Tokyo: A Geek's Paradise

Now let me start by telling you about the plane ride into Haneda Airport in Tokyo.  We were flying one of the major airlines in Japan for cost reasons, so we boarded the Air Do plane and headed out.  Now the beginning of the flight was pretty normal, except for the jump suits that the flight attendants were wearing.  It was like I was warped back to the time when overall�s were all the rage (was that middle school?).  But my major complaint came when we were making our approach to the landing strip.  The plane did a dance of sorts, and seemed to shake from side to side really quickly.  Now this really freaked me out and I latched onto the arm rests for dear life hoping that we wouldn�t crash.  My fears eased once we landed, but if that is normal for an Air Do flight I think I�ll pass on them the next time around. 

While we were being transported to where we were staying, the National Youth Olympic Center, we went through what seemed like downtown Tokyo.  We passed by Tokyo Tower and I snapped a few shots from the bus.  I�d later go to the Tower just because it was the most touristy thing I could think of.  When we got to the Olympic center we were shown to our single rooms.  There wasn�t much else in the rooms other than a bed and desk, but it was air-conditioned which was very pleasant.  After all it was quite hot in Tokyo.  The keys to the room also doubled as an on switch for the air conditioner, but we all figured out a way to keep the AC going while we weren�t in the rooms (just as long as you had the right kind of toothbrush J ).  Most of our time Tokyo would be spent preparing for the forum near the end of August.  Our table would have a couple of field trips while we were in Tokyo, and we would also have the opportunity to get some real �American� food thanks to Bret. 

Perhaps the most significant cultural thing we did as a group in Tokyo was going to Kabuki.  We actually went to the Kabuki theater near Ginza and got the full treatment while we where there.  We didn�t have the best seats available but I have to say that I really enjoyed it.  It was so different from anything else I had ever seen.  The description of the play, done by a British guy, made the play easy to follow.  I just wish I knew more Japanese so that I wouldn�t have had to rely on the interpretation.  The play ended fairly early in the afternoon and we where able to roam the streets of the Ginza for anything that seemed cool.  The street was actually closed to traffic, which really surprised me.  On a more interesting note to those people that are obsessed with electronics, I was able to go into the Sony building, which I must say was really cool.  I was like a kid in a candy store.  I was even able to see a demo of an Aibo long before it came out in the States, but I can�t say I was all too impressed. 

During the rest of our stay we would take some field trips to Yokota and Yokosuka.  I don�t remember which is which, but I think that Yokota is the Air Force Base that everybody from JASC went to.  While we were there I took some pictures and captured the infamous �Jenny Pose� while some JASCer�s were crossing the road (from left are Larry, Athena, Jenny, Eileen, Gen-chan, and Yosuke).  I had no intention of doing so but there is a slight Abbey Road kind of feeling to the picture with them crossing the street and everything.  Of course I�m just being silly now.

While we were at the AFB we were able to crawl inside some helicopters and the next picture was while a bunch of us were looking at the inside (from left are myself, Larry, Tetsuo, Miho, and Kaoru).  I have to say that those earphones are damn heavy, that and the seats weren�t all that comfortable.  I�m glad I never had to go into the military.  We all had a good time while we were there, and it was fun to explore these machines without actually having to be in the military.

The next picture came in a pure moment of silliness.  I don�t know what inspired me to do so, but when I saw that street name I had to do something about it, and just taking a picture of it wasn�t enough.  Now, I have to take a moment to say that I have never used a bong in my life nor have I ever smoke weed, but this picture was too funny not to show to the guys back home J.  I still don�t know what is up with the goofy grin on my face; maybe the heat was getting to me. 

Some of the other touristy things that I did while I was in Tokyo was going to Tokyo Tower, Asakusa (is that the right name, I can never remember), Akihabara, and of course the inevitable trip to a McDonald�s.  Going to Akihabara was truly cool.  It was the Mecca of electronics.  There were so many stores in such close proximity that had so many cool things.  Larry and I ventured into one of the many arcades in the area, and the one we went into had a big SEGA sign above the entrance.  I don�t know if this was a SEGA building but they had Tekken Tag Tournament there and we decided to see how our skills matched against some of the kids there.  Both Larry and I consider ourselves to be decent Tekken players, but when it came to playing the kids in Tokyo we got our asses handed to us.  We only managed to win once.  It�ll really take the wind out of your sails when you go in there thinking you�re hot stuff, and then getting beaten in about 4 seconds.  This was a great lesson in humility. 

Our time was quickly running out in Tokyo and the forum was quickly approaching.  Everybody was rushing to get everything ready, except for our table it seemed.  We had been spending out time getting everything ready and found that we were essentially done with a day or two to spare.  This left for a lot of napping during our meeting periods.  I have some pictures that tell a great story about that, but they haven�t been scanned in quite yet.

The day for the forum came around and it seemed that everyone was in a dither with his or her final preparations.  Some groups did skits; some just did their presentations.  Our group had thought about a skit of sorts but nothing came from that.  Brian and I actually considered making our part of the presentation like a tag team wrestling match, but that never got past the kidding around stage.

The forum itself had its moments, but I think everybody was winding down at that point and you could see the fatigue setting in.  When the forum was over you could see that people were relieved that it was over and there was a sense of accomplishment in people�s eyes.

We had a few days of relaxing in Tokyo, but we had to elect the next years AEC�s.  I think that the people that were elected would do a good job, and I was glad I wasn�t one of them.  I was going to be transferring schools and the last thing I needed was even more things to get used to or be responsible for.  I spent a couple of days wandering around the area near Yoyogi Koen and found some interesting looking streets.  Of course I found a bunch of convenience stores in the area as well.  Just how many Lawson�s, AM PM�s, and Sunkus� are there in that area anyway J.  But mostly I just hung around with people and talked.  There was however one last thing I was able to do while I was in Tokyo.

Since I�m a big baseball fan, I wanted to see if it was possible to make it to a game at the Tokyo Dome.  I didn�t care who was playing, seeing as how I don�t really know any of the teams or players over there, but I knew I wanted to see a game.  So Wright, Jason, Taka, Yozo, Natsuko, and myself all made the journey to the Tokyo Dome.  We were able to see a game, but it wasn�t the Giants.  The Giants share the dome with the Nippon Ham Fighters, so instead of the Giants we saw the Ham Fighters vs. The Marines (I�m not sure where they are from).  The Tokyo Dome is a very cool building, but it is quite different from the stadiums in the States.  I was comparing the Dome to Shea Stadium the entire time and what struck me was the involvement of the fans.  We sat in the right field seats and were part of the �home crowd�, while the left field seats were filled with Marines fans.  Each section had their own chant and everybody knew it.  It was really cool just to sit there and watch the game.  The Ham Fighters ended up winning the game and I kept the ticket as a memento of the occasion.

However the time came when we had to say goodbye to all the great people that we met and all the amazing places that we saw.  On the day we left, we all congregated around the buses and there was much hullabaloo about saying goodbye.  We really had to get moving so I helped in ushering people onto the bus.  It was truly sad to say goodbye to everyone, but I know that I would never forget any of them.

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