John's Travels in Japan

As George Harrison and many before him have said with great wisdom, All Things Must Pass. And so it is with adventures that one can only wish will never end. I would like to be able to cast my trip as such a great adventure, some quest for truth or enlightenment, something noble or lofty. The fact is, I left Knoxville fourteen days ago looking for the reality of modern-day Japan. I wanted to find some way to link the history I've learned over many months with its remnants, with some trace of the spirit of Edo. I can't say I've nailed it down yet. I spent two weeks living in the moment, with only the briefest moments for reflection. As it turns out, the only time I've spent really thinking about what I experienced has been the evenings in my hotel room, when I sat down to write these entries. But even that didn't allow me to view the big picture - I was only looking at one day at a time. And that's really the way it should have been. Writing every day allowed me to recall everything I did and saw with an immediacy that couldn't help but make the experience more tangible for everyone who has been following along. And I certainly appreciate the comments of those who have written to tell me what they've thought of the site. You gave me the energy to complete posts when I was dead tired, and that was many nights.

Today was an easy day, at least in terms of planning. I was up at 7:00 AM, (6:00 PM Thursday back here on the east coast), got showered and packed up, and returned the networking hardware I'd been using at the hotel. This was kind of a funny thing - when I was looking for a good hotel, my three criteria were price, location, and internet access. The Hotel Universe Nihombashi Kayabacho hit all three requirements, but the internet access was an effort - I had to sign out the network box that allowed access from my room, but it had to be returned the next morning. After three straight nights of borrowing the equipment and returning it in the morning, the staff just gave up and told me I could keep the stuff until I checked out. That's indicative of the service I got there - anytime I asked for information or directions, they went out of their way to make sure I got it. I had more than one occasion when the attitude was, "I'm not supposed to do this, but..."

Once I checked out, I took a taxi to the Tokyo City Air Terminal, a kind of downtown access point to Narita, which is 40 miles away. I took the bus with a couple of guys who were flying back to Detriot after a few days of meetings over here. We had a good time swapping stories. Narita wasn't bad - great organization, a stringent but unobjectionable security screening (the young lady who went through my luggage seemed to have the demeanor of a painfully polite but relentlessly inquisitive houseguest), and plenty of duty-free shops selling full-price merchandise. Got a couple of free snorts of sake there

The plane left Narita at about 3:15 PM (2:15 AM Friday, east coast time), and the flight was long. We went through 5 or 6 hours of nighttime on the way to Detroit. I claimed my bags, cleared customs and immigration, and checked them again for the flight to Knoxville. I arrived here at about 5:50 PM. As of right now (9:30 PM on Friday, east coast time), I'm running on maybe two hours' sleep in the past twenty-four, along with lugging baggage and getting the necessities unpacked. My goal is to stay awake long enough to get Thursday's pictures posted before I crash. Enjoy!

John's Travels in Japan

Intro March 25 and 26 March 27 March 28 March 29 March 30 March 31 April 1 April 2 April 3 April 4 April 5 April 6 April 7 April 8 Recap & Reflections		April 8 - Narita and Knoxville As George Harrison and many before him have said with great wisdom, All Things Must Pass. And so it is with adventures that one can only wish will never end. I would like to be able to cast my trip as such a great adventure, some quest for truth or enlightenment, something noble or lofty. The fact is, I left Knoxville fourteen days ago looking for the reality of modern-day Japan. I wanted to find some way to link the history I've learned over many months with its remnants, with some trace of the spirit of Edo. I can't say I've nailed it down yet. I spent two weeks living in the moment, with only the briefest moments for reflection. As it turns out, the only time I've spent really thinking about what I experienced has been the evenings in my hotel room, when I sat down to write these entries. But even that didn't allow me to view the big picture - I was only looking at one day at a time. And that's really the way it should have been. Writing every day allowed me to recall everything I did and saw with an immediacy that couldn't help but make the experience more tangible for everyone who has been following along. And I certainly appreciate the comments of those who have written to tell me what they've thought of the site. You gave me the energy to complete posts when I was dead tired, and that was many nights. Today was an easy day, at least in terms of planning. I was up at 7:00 AM, (6:00 PM Thursday back here on the east coast), got showered and packed up, and returned the networking hardware I'd been using at the hotel. This was kind of a funny thing - when I was looking for a good hotel, my three criteria were price, location, and internet access. The Hotel Universe Nihombashi Kayabacho hit all three requirements, but the internet access was an effort - I had to sign out the network box that allowed access from my room, but it had to be returned the next morning. After three straight nights of borrowing the equipment and returning it in the morning, the staff just gave up and told me I could keep the stuff until I checked out. That's indicative of the service I got there - anytime I asked for information or directions, they went out of their way to make sure I got it. I had more than one occasion when the attitude was, "I'm not supposed to do this, but..." Once I checked out, I took a taxi to the Tokyo City Air Terminal, a kind of downtown access point to Narita, which is 40 miles away. I took the bus with a couple of guys who were flying back to Detriot after a few days of meetings over here. We had a good time swapping stories. Narita wasn't bad - great organization, a stringent but unobjectionable security screening (the young lady who went through my luggage seemed to have the demeanor of a painfully polite but relentlessly inquisitive houseguest), and plenty of duty-free shops selling full-price merchandise. Got a couple of free snorts of sake there The plane left Narita at about 3:15 PM (2:15 AM Friday, east coast time), and the flight was long. We went through 5 or 6 hours of nighttime on the way to Detroit. I claimed my bags, cleared customs and immigration, and checked them again for the flight to Knoxville. I arrived here at about 5:50 PM. As of right now (9:30 PM on Friday, east coast time), I'm running on maybe two hours' sleep in the past twenty-four, along with lugging baggage and getting the necessities unpacked. My goal is to stay awake long enough to get Thursday's pictures posted before I crash. Enjoy!