Freedom to the Fullest

Three days in Tokyo and three more in Yokohama was a great beginning to my freedom! Michelle, Jamie and I hopped on the bus Friday afternoon to my favorite city…Tokyo. It was the first time in a month that we were all together again which is an eternity in our world. That night we decided it was time to feel like real working Tokyo women and hit up the Friday night, after work bars in Roppongi (yes, I know that I don’t work in the city but it fun to pretend). Besides the fact that we meet Will Farrel’s look alike and Jamie even got his autograph, we had a pretty relaxed evening. One of the great things about Tokyo is not only the wild lights, posh streets and never-ending revelations but also our dear friends. John, Christy and Ethan have become quite close to us which makes the weekends ten times better. They have introduced us to new friends, sites and establishments all over Tokyo. Cheers to you three!! Saturday, Jamie, Michelle, Christy and myself had a relaxing lunch and stroll around the Harajuku and Ebisu areas of Tokyo. We caught up on everyone’s love life, did a bit of extremely expensive window shopping and ate a fabulous brunch. Oh and when I say expensive window shopping, I mean over $2000 for a beautiful purse and $1500 for a small dog bed!!! Love Tokyo but just can’t afford it. When we stopped for coffee and a sweet we started to discuss the basics of our next Scavenger Hunt and the wheels were turning! We have set the next hunt June 3 which should give us plenty of time to arrange a spectacular event. That evening our three besties hosted a fabulous house party that left us all with stories the next day. You can see by the pictures that we were ready to rock n’ roll that night! It was certainly a sight watching everyone run out of the house to make the last train into Roppongi. Vanilla night club was the choice for our all-night entertainment and it didn’t let us down. Dancing until 6am will always be one of my greatest Tokyo memories! Reaching the futon at 7 am on Sunday morning could probably explain our lazy Sunday. Eating ramen and sitting around reenacting the night is among the highlights. We felt like the six of us should have been on an episode of ‘Friends’ that day! Listening to Christy’s slightly exaggerated tales and John’s black toe story had us all rolling in laughter…what another successful day. Yokohama is such a lovely and completely opposite metropolis compared to Tokyo. Last summer, the girls and I went with a Japanese friend for the weekend and enjoyed the city tremulously. This past week we were thankful to be able to attend a conference in the area again. All returning JETs (to their home country) were given the opportunity to attend this conference which prepared us for the next step in life. Overall, it was probably the best JET conference I had attended. It contained factual and useful information that I do believe will assist me on the upcoming job search and reverse culture shock ahead. About 800 JETs participated in the conference which allowed us to have a bit of the social ‘conference’ as well. Soaking up the western atmosphere at Hard Rock was among one of the favorite spots for the group! Those happy hour specials are always a hit. Oh, forget to mention the 2x2 shoebox hostel that we had the pleasure experiencing. It was certainly a site and now that I think about it I failed to snap a photo of the comical situation. It was the size of two futons laid out; to the western population that translates into about a 7 foot by 5 foot room! Most of you know that I don’t pack light therefore, cramming rolling suitcases, futons, blankets and two people into one room was certainly a challenge. The transportation of choice this weekend was the bus! I certainly love the bus to Tokyo because it is clean, safe and a joyful, carefree ride into the city. However, I am not certain that the locals enjoy the foreigners on their bus. In Japan, life is quiet whether it is at home or in a public space. There are far too many people in this country to create a racket. Of course, it is human nature to western people to talk and talk, and talk again just to hear their voice. This is exactly what we do on any mode of transportation in Japan...ooops! After a year and a half here I still find it simply amazing that no one talks on trains or buses here. If you step on the subway in Tokyo it so quiet at times that you can hear a pin drop (that is with the subway train smashed full of people). However, you can only hear that pin drop if we shut up and listen….so forget that situation if more than two foreigners are on the subway together. Overall, the five and a half days on the road were just what I needed after being trapped in the apartment for a month.