Shi-Booya!

Wow...first impressions...

Stepping off the plane and into the first bathroom was like stepping into a Kubrick film...everything was pristine, and was placed so purposefully it was somehow frightening. The drive from the airport to Tokyo took about an hour and a half. There was not a piece of litter to be seen anywhere on the highway. Everything was beautifully landscaped. Golf courses everywhere. Everything at this point seems to be like the USA, but one notch better.

For instance...

The air powered hand dryers in the bathroom had a small bowl underneath to collect the falling water from the drying process...genius! Who wants to clean up that dribble? The bus had a TV screen that told us in both Japanese and English that, "we are about to experience traffic, now taking a detour." Of course! Keep the people informed! The parking cones are still bright orange, BUT they all have a glowing light inside them so they show up when its dark. Getting late? Watch out for that pulsating orange beacon!

The list goes on.

So in other news, I'm very quickly realizing how badly I need to learn more Japanese. While Eric and I successfully navigated our way to Shinjuku station, we were cross-eyed when looking at signs like this.

In all honesty, we only made it because Lewis gave us step by step instructions for getting to the station. Once we met up with him at Shinjuku, we signed our leases at the apartment office, and then took the sub to Yoyogi station in Shibuya. Alright! This is gonna be our turf! It's an awesome spot, populated by the trendy business people of the city. Tons of buildings and little streets with hole in the wall restaurants (photos to come). After dropping our gear at our place we went out for dinner.

We had octopus puff ball thingies, chicken on a stick, cheese wrapped in bacon, sashimi, and some fried fish...the names were all in Japanese, so I can't really tell you exactly what was what...but here's a photo of the fish and the refreshing beer.

Oh and when you go to a restaurant, you put your shoes in a little locker at the door...that's dining in comfort! Let those puppies breath!

Now to sleep...it's been 40 hours or so...and I think I'm hallucinating...or is that just how things really look over here...