Tokyo Dome City

Took the walk across the bridge over the highway that separates my side from the marvelous Tokyo Dome City.
They have a museum, bowling hall and hot dog inn amongst others. I found the museum to be the most intriguing* and entered.
They had all the arcade games I thought Mtoya!! would have and more.The kid behind the guitar hero was fantastic. I'll post a video I shot of him, soon.

* Actually I found the bowling hall most exciting, but felt a deep urge to skip the mood of feeling too alone and possibly out-stared.

Hmmm…!?

Sometimes the stress and guilty conscience of what you should do removes the joy of just doing.
So should I plan my day a bit more than today, or just set off on another random stroll tomorrow?

Discoveries about Tokyo so far:

There’s’ no smoking on the street.Again – it’s much, much calmer than expected.People frequently bow. Just say, "HAI!" and you'll se a head from above.
It’s easy to feel alone around another 3o millions of people.
Every restaurant’s menu is shown like this:

HAI!

Bought a McFlurry and even the guy behind the counter bowed at me.
Arrigato, Japan!

..and they actually whine about not being taken seriously

Running OUTSIDE

Almost forgot how much I love it.
No more of this.

A day in pictures

Strolled around Tokyo on autopilot-random-mode until I met a huge park that turned out to be the The Imperial Palce East Gardens. Not bad at all, I thought, and entered its mighty gates. It had a lot of Japanese taking pictures of a red flower and an amused Swede taking pictures of them in it.Climbed the curious aisle to get a better point of view, only to discover that it was a lot of trees in this park. Took a restricted picture of this house.

This is my arm reaching across the wall. Its size was immense but after a good compilation of green trees and big stonewalls, I exited.I got a bit lost as I now ended up from another angle than I entered from (my grand plan is to walk as straight as possible to diminish getting too lost).
A huge department store appeared and the rumor of a great shopping-city was confirmed.Also found English magazine's and mango-juiced away an hour or so in a café reading about Erik, who after a car crash been condemned as a life-time prisoner encapsulated by his own body, i.e the lock-in-syndrome. He wasn’t as “lucky” as Jean-Dominique Bauby (hero in The Diving Bell and the Butterfly) who “could at least" blink his eyes”.

No, Erik is doomed to never move another muscle in his entire body for as long as he lives.
He can’t even roll his eyes sideways, blink, or produce a single teardrop. But yes, his body and mind works "perfectly", he can hear, feel and think just like you and I.Although it’s a story of love, hope and pure real life-amazingness (Erik’s been imprisoned for nine years), it was too depressing and I went back to the hotel.
But before that I got lost and tried to remember trademarks to guide me home.The relief of asphalt soon emerged along with grandpa one-eye. and managed after a while find my hotel.I will now go for a run around the The Imperial Palce East Gardens. The best (only) park I know of in Tokyo, and this will be my view for the next hour or so.

Tokyo + moi = ♥ ♥ ♥

We’re slightly in love. Still on a nascent dating phase of course, you don’t want to hurry affections, but this could lead to real amore.
But so far so good (knock on wood) let’s see what today has to offer before we make any serious plans or commitments.
Though it’s so bright and vibrant, it's also a lot calmer than I thought (except for Mtoya!! of course).And by the way, I think I’m very close to adopting a Japanese soon. When they help you (I said dating, not that we know each other), they shine, smile and bow. They try so passionately hard to be of assistance that you’re scared your question might cause a heart attack.

Oh...

...you should read your tips.

A perfect catch 22, Japanese-style

My sim-card to my phone doesn’t function here and I couldn't feel more disconnected from the outside world.
I have just spent a good walk trying to buy a prepaid-card.
Which should be simple.
And it is, except their prepaid-card is not a normal sim-card, just a card. And it’s all written in Japanese. Hence we’re in Japan; fair enough, but I’ve implicit that you’re supposed to call a number and activate it.
But consequently my sim-card doesn’t work here - I can’t call the number.

Mtoya!!

Went to the toy store to lavish through bizarre Japanese toys.
Or so I thought.
It turned out to be the loudest arcade place in the whole wide world. But it wasn’t normal games, people was just sitting in front of their monitors and watched millions of gold colored marbles go down a noisy slope.
Absolutely insane. Just like Tokyo seems to be. In a very, very positive way.

Absolutely lost in Tokyo

Arrived an hour ago and it's nice that your fear of feeling absolutely lost is confirmed. Discovered a crazy toy store around the corner and from the window in my cubicle to room you can see the Tokyo Dome. I have obviously no idea what it is.
But it’s big and bright, colorful neon signs and flashing lights surround it and very hip Japanese arrive in numbers.
I think I will enjoy Tokyo after all.

But what’s so easy in the evening, by the morning is such a drag.

Yes, I went out again.
And today is the last day in China… So yes, we will go out again. Karaoke is on the menu and I will perform this song.
I’m also 100% certain I’m gonna miss my plane tomorrow morning and with an expired visa I’ll be double fucked.
Jail-time.
What’s so simple in the moonlight, by the morning is so complicated.

…there it was!

Been on a scavenge through whole (not) Shanghai after English magazines. Reading the same Time doesn’t keep you regularly updated so to speak.
And when I finally found a stand it’s two feet outside our office and two days left in Shanghai.
Doh!

Paying the prize

Although it was insanely fun at yesterday’s good-bye dinner in our honor, and maybe because of the fact we went to the lovely sushi-place on Xinle Lu (all you can eat AND all you can drink, including beer AND sake) I feel absolutely sheit today.
I might not make it.

The Dark Knight that became Man vs Wild

Went home in perfect mood for a second view of Dark Knight.
But the film refused to stop jumping in sequences and kept shutting off the audio. I struggled for a good hour but it was too unbearable and I felt a deep urge to quit my life there and then.
Miserably and deeply sad I flicked on to Discovery channel and the bizarre little Brit who keeps eating goat testicles, maggots and finish it off with drinking “the fluids from really fresh elephant pooh” in weird locations around the globe, was on and I smiled again.
He does this with a very strong believe that this information is:
1. Vital for any other human being.
2 Will help some other poor fella who’s left in the desert/jungle/etc with no other option than to lavish on raw insects.
He’s deep determination and pure passion (I seriously don’t think he crawls into the tent to sleep at night nor eat any other food than whatever he finds around the outback, he’s to insane to be fake) of this is contagious though, and – if – I end up in the amazons of Venezuela caught in a muddy river – I know how to use my shirt as a filter to get fresh (maybe naaah) drinking water.
But despite it’s outrageously entertaining, I keep thinking of his camera-crew. What must they not think of him?
Especially late at night with some beers and nice BBQ meat over the cozy campfire, singing songs absolutely hammered.

Another birthdays

Wythe and new wiz-kid Francis all of the sudden celebrated their 20-something day and everyone sang and cheered.
Unfortunately Wythe was sick and has worn his protection all day.
Something Nick found extremely pleasing.
Due to Wythe's illness Francis was honored to blow the candles.Though I was a nearby spectator, I couldn’t say if the poor lad got himself a bite or not.