Goodbye, Japan. No Hard Feelings!

Back in Tokyo we made one last effort to spoil ourselves and went out for a meal, looking for a kind of DIY barbecue available in the area. We found a likely place, which certainly smelled the part, but ordering meant pointing, and Joanne pointed at what someone else had. It turned out to be cow organ stew. We're not sure what organ; it seemed quite like tripe but not as chewy as it usually is or with the same texture; Joanne thought it was tongue, but I have a suspicion it was what I saw later on a menu: colon. What a fitting end to a terrible two weeks! We went home and finished off all the booze, giving ourselves a sensible four hours sleep before getting up for our flight.

Cow organ stew

Japan wasn't horrible, but the time we had there was. Of course there were very nice moments: Nagasaki and Nara were my favourite places, and the couple of times we went out to eat were lovely. The people we always really nice, but it was just too difficult; I don't think two weeks is anything like enough time to get to grips with the place unless you have Japanese baby-sitters, or at least someone who had been living there a while to help you out. It certainly wasn't as beautiful or as high-tech as I had been expecting, and I think my expectation being so high compounded how disappointing I found it all. The sleeplessness and the awful form experiences did not improve my ability to enjoy myself either. I don't understand that: most of the dorms I've slept in have been in Scotland and they are never noisy like that. The English, Scottish, Germans and Dutch who (primarily) make use of them are considerate and quiet. Why Japanese people who are renowned for their politeness are so inconsiderate in hostels is beyond me. And lastly there is the cost. It was too expensive for our budget really, but we did manage it. However, I would advise anybody against visiting Japan; live and work there, sure, but if you have a finite amount of money to spend why on Earth would you go to Japan when your money will go much much further in SE Asia, India, Nepal, or even China? And to my mind, the places are not just much cheaper, but much nicer to visit anyway, even at the same cost.

We didn't expect Japan to be so difficult, certainly not harder than South China had been, but it was. Until Japan we had never walked so far with our big bags; most places the cheap backpacker accommodation is near public transport, but not in Japan, and even if it wasn't near public transport in other places you could just get a tuktuk or equivalent, but in Japan there are only unaffordably expensive taxis.

Oh yeah! But I loved that fast internet once we eventually found it!

I was absolutely ecstatic that we were leaving, though.

written by

The Happy Couple on July 17, 2009 from Tokyo, Japan

from the travel blog: Michael's Round-the-World honeymoon

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