I’m sitting in my favorite neighborhood coffee shop on a Thursday night and have been staring at a blank document for the last several minutes. My plan was to write an eloquent and precise summary of my recent trip to Tokyo... that seems to be easier said than done. We were only in the city for four days but that provided enough experiences and observations to completely jumble my thoughts. So I’m afraid I’m going to have to revert to my tried and true thought organizing process... to the list, Batman!!
Japan is NOT Korea
Yes, I know- Captain Obvious here. But truly I was not prepared with how very different Japan would feel from Korea. I’m aware that they are their own countries with their own (although at times very connected) histories. But I think I often lump Asian countries into the same category and make assumptions based on that. Seeing, feeling and getting a small glimpse of the differences between Japan and Korea was one of the things that made this trip so enjoyable for me. I would very much like to go back some day and spend some more time exploring this in more depth!
If Asia was a high school lunchroom
Japan is NOT Korea
Yes, I know- Captain Obvious here. But truly I was not prepared with how very different Japan would feel from Korea. I’m aware that they are their own countries with their own (although at times very connected) histories. But I think I often lump Asian countries into the same category and make assumptions based on that. Seeing, feeling and getting a small glimpse of the differences between Japan and Korea was one of the things that made this trip so enjoyable for me. I would very much like to go back some day and spend some more time exploring this in more depth!
If Asia was a high school lunchroom
I’m not a fashionista... I’m not even very fashionable or pay all that much attention to it. But somewhere in the last several months observing and comparing what groups of people are wearing in different places and areas suddenly fascinates me. So I was thrilled to get to Japan and have a whole new fashion outlook to take note of.
While traveling by subway and buses one has a lot of time to think. During this time I’ve started to develop my theory of Asia as high school lunchroom (I may or may not be blatantly stealing this from a movie... let’s just go with it). On one side of the room we’ve got Korea. Their the Preps. Everything is fitted, pressed and polished. Every hair is in place, makeup applied to perfection, the scarves are jauntily thrown over the shoulder to fall just right. Honestly, I really don't dress well enough to live here! There has been more then one evening where I’ve found myself standing next to middle schoolers at the bus stop who, I’m pretty sure, are better dressed than I am.
Japan, on the other hand are more like the cool kids that follow the Preps dress code but with their own spin. A lot of what they wear looked similar to Korea but had a slight edge or difference that made it stand out. Guys clothing was looser (I did appreciate that not all the guys were wearing jeans tighter than mine...), girls had more dramatic makeup with longer eyelashes. Hair styles were spikier and and tousled looking. I also noticed a lot more guys/girls with multiple piercings then I do here.
I’m not sure if any of that paints a picture of what I saw. Like I said, fashion is NOT my area of expertise, but I enjoyed seeing the differences.
*side note: if anyone wants to add to my high school lunchroom theory with other Asian countries and their fashion trends I would be fascinated to hear about it!!*
Where are are we?! And where are we going?!
I am sorry to tell you this but not everything about Tokyo was peaches and cream. I was not a fan of their subway system... at all. Unlike cities in Korea the subway system in Tokyo is run by several different companies. Due to this division it was at times difficult to maneuver around the city if we had to transfer to a different line. Add to that the fact that almost no subway maps had any english... honestly I'm amazed we got anywhere (and there's a good chance that, had it just been me, I wouldn't have!).
Nomnomnom
When you travel you start to learn a lot about yourself. Somethings can be very profound and eye-opening. Others... maybe not so much but still good to learn. The last few trips have helped me see that eating is not always on the top of my list of things to do. Which really is a travesty when it comes to international travel! Luckily I was still able to try a few of Japan's delectable dishes! I think my favorite was by far the ramen... I would eat that just about everyday! So, so good! And it was definitely one of those great moments where you just sit back and think, "I'm eating ramen... in Japan. That's kind of amazingly awesome!!"
The sights to see
Last but certainly not least, besides the people watching (ok, truthfully that might be my favorite thing about traveling), I was able to take in some of the delightful sights that Tokyo has to offer. Tokyo Tower was beautiful at night and give an amazing veiw of the city and Harajuku lived up to it's funky reputation and provided exceptional people to watch (and super tasty crepes)! I could live at Tower Records and Tokyo Disney was perfectly Magical. The temples, shrines and parks were peaceful and relaxing.
In the end I thoroughly enjoyed my time in Japan. It is a beautiful country that I would very much like to visit again and spend more time exploring and learning about...even though it's not MY asian country. I think Korea will always hold that title in my heart. ; )
Nomnomnom
When you travel you start to learn a lot about yourself. Somethings can be very profound and eye-opening. Others... maybe not so much but still good to learn. The last few trips have helped me see that eating is not always on the top of my list of things to do. Which really is a travesty when it comes to international travel! Luckily I was still able to try a few of Japan's delectable dishes! I think my favorite was by far the ramen... I would eat that just about everyday! So, so good! And it was definitely one of those great moments where you just sit back and think, "I'm eating ramen... in Japan. That's kind of amazingly awesome!!"
The sights to see
Last but certainly not least, besides the people watching (ok, truthfully that might be my favorite thing about traveling), I was able to take in some of the delightful sights that Tokyo has to offer. Tokyo Tower was beautiful at night and give an amazing veiw of the city and Harajuku lived up to it's funky reputation and provided exceptional people to watch (and super tasty crepes)! I could live at Tower Records and Tokyo Disney was perfectly Magical. The temples, shrines and parks were peaceful and relaxing.
In the end I thoroughly enjoyed my time in Japan. It is a beautiful country that I would very much like to visit again and spend more time exploring and learning about...even though it's not MY asian country. I think Korea will always hold that title in my heart. ; )
Kpop Song (in Japanese) of the Week: MBLAQ- Your Luv
Lots of kpop artist tap into the Japanese market and release songs in Japanese as well as Korean. And many times you can actually see the different styles when you compare Japanese and Korean MVs.
