9Saturday, April 07, 2007

THIS ENTRY IS STILL BEING DRAFTED. PLEASE REFRAIN FROM SCRUTINIZING MY ENGLISH AT THE MOMENT AS IT HAS NOT BEEN CHECKED, HAHA, WHILE PICTURES WILL BE POSTED UP ONCE I GET BACK TO SINGAPORE WHERE MORE INFORMATION WILL BE ADDED =] CHEERS!

Rain has pretty much engulfed pretty much of Tokyo as I huddle at a cozy internet cafe, typing this entry, while sipping over a cup of hot chocolate. It's Saturday night and it's just two more days to my departure from Tokyo.

I've pretty much adjusted to living in Tokyo over the past week. It's my third trip to Tokyo since 2006 and surviving in this practically alien civiliaztion has surprisingly becoming a breeze on this particular trip.

Japan has fascinated me in more ways than one. I regret that I did not create an entry of my earlier trip here a few months back so I'll tell you more about Tokyo (for those who aren't familiar with Japan, you know, the country with the red circle as its flag and its citizens shouting BANZAI! wherever they go) through my eyes and reflect on my week's stay in this truly thriving cosmopolitian city.

Arriving at Narita airport, I was greeted by the relatively cool and dry weather of Tokyo, unlike the humid environment of Singapore. (probably the major cause of most severe acne cases) Getting through customs was a breeze as true to the people's promise, its efficiency is never compromised!

We took a limousine bus towards our awaiting abode after exiting the airport. During my earlier visits to Japan years before, I usually stayed at hotels for its convenience and as a safety precaution. (we can't really speak Japanese you see, and the hotel staff are our only source of navigators, fluent in the universal language of English) Over my past two trips, we became more confident with navigating ourselves in this sometimes confuzzling and frustrating city where English is just utter glibberish to the ears of the typical Japanese. (it's better now though, the Japs must have went to upgrade themselves abit, probably to anticipate its booming tourism industry) ...or maybe Chairperson Joanne Low decided that the time had come for them to go for english lessons. (I wonder... hmmm)

We decided to stay in a serviced apartment, the Somerset. It provides more flexibility for tourists as well as a sense of homeliness as the rooms are like real apartments with a kitchen installed and at the same time providing laundry services and room cleaning just as most hotels do. The best of both of worlds at a more affordable cost. Furthermore, most of the residences are Singaporeans (Somerset belongs to Ascott, running under CapitaLand)

Well, back to my story. As I travelled towards the city, for the first time in my life, I encountered what seems top be one of the most remarkable flora on the face of this planet, the Cherry Blossom (or Sakura) Almost coincidentally, I arrived at the peak of its blossoming season and it was a true sight to behold indeed.


The Cherry Blossom

Anyways, after much ogling at the spectacular beauty, I arrived at our apartment and well, I was terribly exhausted and practically snored the entire afternoon away. In the evening, my parents snapped me out of my slumber and I yawned myself out of the apartment (after bathing OF COURSE!) to see how much Tokyo has changed since my last visit.

Roppongi is a district of Tokyo, much like the more familiar Shinjuku and Shibuya. This particular district was once a sleeping and quiet area of Tokyo where when the sun goes down, it becomes one of Tokyo's most notorious red light district with strip clubs and bars. This was also home to the american military occupiers ever since ethe end of World War II. You can imaging drunken G.I.s bee-lining from bar to bar with scantily-clad ladies along side them. Haha!What a naughty place right and guess what, that's where I've been residing during my last two trips and on this particular trip as well.

Haha, no, I don't walk by the roadside to ogle at prostitute and pimps! Now, let me continue my story while you scrutinize my intentions. Well, one fine day, a bloody rich and prominent property developer in Japan known as Minoru Mori decided to build an integrated development where high-rise inner-urban communities allow people to live, work, play, and shop in proximity. In April 2003, Roppongi Hills was born and this minniature city drew the rich and famous, stealing the limelight off Shinjuku. Ironically, Roppongi, remains today a red-light district, the only difference today is that the strip clubs are more modern and they are situated beside prime boutiques like Louis Vuitton and Prada. Haha, that's what I call integration!


Roppongi Hills by Night

Anyways, due to the overhwelming success of Roppongi Hills, another miniature city was built just a few streets away, called Tokyo MidTown. I haven't visited this new development, I'll be going there tomorrow and I'll tell you what MidTown is like!

Well, from from my day of arrival (Sunday) to Tuesday, I roamed the districts of high-end Roppongi, the ultra-cool Shibuya, cultural Ueno and the up-market Omote-Sando. At Ueno Park, I was overwhelmed by the Sakura trees as everyone from Tokyo thronged the park to get a better sight of this once in a year phenomenon. You can imagine the cool breeze slowing whistling at the flowers and the petals gracefully sweep across the park like snow. It's an amazing sight, sadly it can't really be captured on camera... bummer!


Sakura @ Ueno Park

Shopping is what you HAVE to do when you come to Tokyo. Yes, it may be a little pricey even in those small alleys where one would expect counterfeit goods, but hello-hello, everything is 100% original and it's quality is undescribable. You really have to give it to the Japanese, spoiling their consumers with luxurious necessities. Haha! And what more, most of its merchandise are exclusive to its own country and you properly can't find it anywhere else on the planet so spend if you can. I mean it!


My Shopaholic Mom

Indonesian ex-president Megawati Soekarnoputri was also in Tokyo that week with his husband, Mr. Tuafik Kiemas in the company of my two uncles. We were supposed to have dinner together that night but other events had caught up with their entrouage and it was called off. The next morning, the daily newspaper reported the ex-president of Indonesia having a hastily organized tea session with the ex-prime minister of Japan, Yasuhiro Nakasone. Now I know why it was called off =X

Wednesday and Thursday was dedicated to relax our tired souls. I headed off to a mountanous community known as Hakone, a two hour train ride from the bustling cosmopolis. This town is a wonderful place with a rich culture and heritage. I cannot even imagine that such a place could exist in this world where nature and modernism collides to form a spectacular environment.


Hakone Town Buildings


View of the Town Bridge

Hakone is probably reknowned for one thing, its ONZEN (or hotsprings) and Tokyoites come here whenever they can to get away from the city. I stayed at a Ryokan like hotel over some mountain and this was the first time I experienced Japanese culture first hand with its tatmi-styled rooms and babmboo shoots flying over the place. Haha! ... and of course, the ONZEN!

Oh btw, this was my first time going to a hot spring and I was bloody emabaressed having to shed my clothes and strut stark naked from the locker room provided by the hotel to the hotspring itself. Well, I did it anyways and everyone was like staring at me, cause I was bloody red like a tomato. Yes, I was shy but it had something to do with my tan. Most Japanese people possess fair complexion and haha, I did stick out like a sorethumb. Anyways, putting that aside, once I entered the hot water, I was in Onzen Heaven. The cool wintry chill and the hot water created a suana environment and I swore never to leave the place; however, sadly I could only stay for at most fifteen minutes as the mineral-rich water would be too much for our body to handle. i can imagine going into spasms =X

Dinner that night was totally absurd. Imagine those Japanese TV channels (like JET)where they serve all sorts of nonsense and you swear you will never eat any of those stuff, well, that day was imminent for me as the hostess served us our first dish. (there was a total of eight dishes btw) OMG. I didn't know what the hell it was. Just to be courteous I gobbled the platter and winced, trying to imagine what was next. Well, you have to see the photos to understand better what I had to endure throughout that two-hours. I'm not trying to say I detest authentic japanse food but I've got my rights right? I still respect and its culture but I still have a problem appreciating it, especially the food section of it (besides most japanese youngester don't usually have to go through such ordeals)


Appetiser

OMG! I just remembered I ATE THE STEM OF A BLOODY PLANT! WTF! It was the most bitter thing I had ever eaten and the Japanse call it delicacy... shit, respect, appreciate, forget what I just commented earlier =X


Beautiful but Yucky Stems =X

I returned to Tokyo, thursday evening and I spend the next few days until today, shopping like a hysterical lunatic. Seriously, this is the first time in my life where I entered three stores, one after another, and producing a bag after every exit. OMG, a new shopaholic is born. Haha. No la, it's just because there were a couple of great sales and some clothes are really irresistable and I know I can't find them anywhere else in the world and haha, you can just say, money well spent!

We took one anotehr day off, at the command of my father, haha, to visit Shunjuku Park. He insisted that we took a day off to relax ourselves from shopping. I for one had suspicious doubts of his reason and alas, it was true, he really tricked us into accompanying him to take more photos of the Cherry Blossoms -.- Anyhow, Shinjuku Park is amazing, to say the least. It's just like New York's Cntral Park, a a piece of nature heaven amidst a bustling city. By now, the Sakuras have begun to wither and everytime the wind breezes over the park, hundreds and thousands of petals gently float across the park and it looks damn beautiful, really.

I had dinner at one famous restaurant tucked away in the the streets of Roppongi. It was introduced by my dad's good friend who APPARENTLY owns two big strip at Roppongi. I was trying hard not to smirk at my dad's friend. Haha! But, hello, a strip-club owner. WOW! My mom insisted my dad and I paid one of the club, named Tantra, a visit and I was like NO WAY I'm going to a strip club with my dad. Can you imagine half-naked women serving your father and you? Get the picture? =X

After appreciating a little of heaven, it was my mom's turn to do her thing and haha, back to civilization. My mom usually buy bags at the porice tag of $10,000 per bag; however, on this particular trip, she gave such luxury a rest and stormed over to every single street and shop and bought small little goodies. I for one, am really amazed by a woman's ability to well, shop. It really amazes men how women can spend an entire hour in one shop, trying over a dozen piece of clothings. Haha, the UOB Lady's Card got one thing right, the men don't get it. HAHA!

I managed to visit Harajuku this morning. Yes, the area reserved strictly for teenagers and cosplay fanatics. As it was a saturday, kids and teens thronged the entire area and the famous steet was like a human traffic jam, nevertheless, I still managed to leave the area with four gift-ladden bags for all my friends and relatives back in Singapore. Try to picture a poor ah mah heaving four bloody heavy haversacks. Oh, I took a couple of photos with some of the cosplay kids. I don't know what people call them so I'll just coin the term, Cosplay Kids! Haha! Sometimes, I really imagine how they can be so daring to attempt such a feat ... in public somemore! Furthermore, all the camera fanatics are there too and they have their cameras all trained at these kids. Imagine a zoo =X

The past week in Japan has exposed me of the rich culture and heritage that Japan has to offer. It's a society that has embraced modernism and yet, still able to retain its past. It's a magnificent social structure that I hope one day Singapore can follow, as in the liberty passed to its people by the government and with its people knowing when enough is enough. Japan is truly the pearl of the orient and a gem of this planet and this I have to give kudos for them. (and another one to wonderful tokyo, a city that truly never sleeps, WOOT!)

Well, I just looked out of the cafe and the rain seems to have stopped. The time is now is 11:30 and I guess I have to head back to my apartment and I'm really going to spend my last day in Tokyo before I leave on Monday.

On a personal note, I really miss all of you guys back at home. Yes, I did enjoy this trip but it was a last-minute one and I really didn't have time to mentally prepare for it.

To the hard working MCs, SCOs, ASCOs and the Subcoms, bAoc 2007 is just a couple of days away. It's regrettable that I couldn't be there with you guys during this past week and I wished that I could have done more to help you guys out. In any ways, stay strong together as a society and make this orientation a success, win us our trophy again and I'll see you guys for rehearsal on Monday =)

To the guys who came down to send me off at the airport last Saturday, thanks alot cause it really mean alot to me. I'm missing our outing sessions already! I really can't wait to see you all! Ahhh!


Groupshot @ Changi

To everyone else I know, do have a wonderful sunday tomorrow before the start of the new week and I'll cya when I'm back! Sayonara!

Very Missed,
Winston =]



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