Konbanwa from Japan! So I took a snowboard trip to Niseko less than a month ago, and here I am, back again in the Land of the Rising Sun. I am not Japan-mad as some of my friends are (they make it a point to go to different parts of the country and make a trip at once to twice a year here); I think the food is great and it is wonderfully clean and efficient, but with limited time (I only have one lifetime!) and resources (travel takes so much of my savings it is not funny), I personally have a wish to explore the entire world, and not just one country, interesting and unique as its culture is.
So…why the hell am I back in Japan then?? I am here on business, and it is for a brand I really believe in – and hence for a job I am most thankful and grateful for. Will share more when I can!
Work lasted all of three days, but I decided to give Tokyo one more chance to win my heart, and hence I extended my stay. The last time I was here was a decade ago, when I won return tickets as part of some Amazing Race-style competition in school. Otherwise, all I have seen of Tokyo these ten years has been of its airports while in transit (mostly enroute to LA and Sapporo).
On friends’ recommendations, I checked out some areas I never visited those years ago, such as Shimokitazawa. It’s somewhat hipster, full of cafes, cool mash-up shops (a record shop shares space with a bakery) and, for some strange reason, hair salons galore.
I had fun in Shimokita! More in the next post. I am now in Shiga Kogen and I need to sleep pronto as am aiming to be at breakfast by 730, on the slopes by 830. xx
