My visit to Tokyo achieved exactly what I had hoped it would. I was able to understand the essence of the city in the three days I spent here. I can see the rest of the sites during a future trip. My goal this trip for all my locations is really to crack open the door and determine which destinations interest me the most. I hope to end this blog with a personal ranking.
Tokyo is like a well-oiled machine. Everyone here moves with purpose and everything seems well-designed. I never once felt unsafe and I often felt respected. (See bowing from previous posts.) Interestingly, everyone seems content in their positions. Fast food workers smile and act happy to take your order. Maybe they are great actors or maybe they have great working conditions. Everyone from the traffic officers to the food workers to the men in suits to the hostel owners seem to have positive attitudes. The city is amazingly clean and modern. The subway is the best I have ever seen. Perhaps the most unique observation of all was that everyone follows the rules. At crosswalks, everyone waits for the green walk symbol even if it is midnight and there are no cars around. All the sidewalks have a yellow line dividing the bike lane from the walking lane and everyone stays on the correct side. The subway signs say "do not rush" and amazingly, people don't. In NYC, if the doors some people are trying to force them open. In Tokyo, I never saw anyone running in the subway. Tokyo seems like a great place on paper because they seem to have solved all of the issues that come with a giant city.
The downside of this machine-like city is that it seems to lack a soul. I am sure the residents would disagree, but everything seems so predictable. Music is banned in the subway. Sometimes part of the fun in New York is just seeing what kind of musician is inside today. I am sure the language barrier is partially to blame, but I constantly felt respected, not liked. Not a single person in all of Tokyo (outside of the hostel) engaged me in conversation. In Europe, people came up to me all the time just to ask if they could take a picture with an American. The people here seemed like robots. I did not see a single person eating or drinking outside of a restaurant. In fact, there are no public trash cans. Can you imagine a city where no one eats, drinks, talks, runs, or does anything unique in public? I am always annoyed at the inconsiderate people who blast music in public, talk loudly on their cell phones, and litter constantly. However, maybe I have seen what happens when all of those activities are banned. You end up in a place with no variety and creativity. I am sure it is there if you know where to look, but as an unguided tourist who speaks no Japanese, I can attest that it's tough to find at first glance. After writing this, I'll probably go back to the US and miss the respectful nature of the Japanese.
Without a doubt, Tokyo was a great place to start my trip. The culture shock was more manageable because so much of the country was rebuilt in American fashion after World War II. Now off to Seoul!
No comments:
Post a Comment