The most surreal night of my entire life.
So I will write an awesome massive Japan entry later, but for now...
Caitlin and I were on a train to Okaga tonight to connect to an overnight train to Tokyo.
Our train was late, and there were no trains to Tokyo left. This was at about midnight, by the way.
So...holy shit. We do not particularly want to sleep outside. What are two gaijins (foreigners) to do?
We were ushered onto a train to Nagoya. A toothless old man tried to kiss my hand, and it was creepy as hell. We arrived at the station trying to figure out our next move when a lovely Japanese mother appeared out of nowhere and asked Caitlin (who speaks a fair amount of Japanese) what was wrong. She explained the situation as best she could, and the lady proceeded to talk to the ticket booth man and explain our situation further. Then she called her daughter, who met up with us a few minutes later, and she spoke English! YES. Edi (the daughter) made sure our tickets would be valid for tomorrow, then took us to a police station to find a place for us to chill for the night (this was AFTER they offered to let us stay at their place, which is TOO nice and we felt it was best to stay near the train so we could catch the first one out). So we were directed to a nearby 24-hour internet cafe...
And here I am. It is now 3 AM, and I am in a cute little cubicle that I have rented for 5 hours. I have a TV and computer and comfy office chair, and as many free drinks as I can consume.
So what could have ended up as a freaking horrible night out on the streets of Nagoya turned into a very cozy adventure that could not have happened without 2 beautiful Japanese guardian angels.
Who then came back to the cafe 20 minutes later AND BROUGHT BOTH CAITLIN AND I HOT MEALS, PRINGLES, AND CHOCOLATE.
Seriously. SERIOUSLY. Who DOES that?!?!?!? I am at a total loss for words. I cannot believe the kindness we were shown tonight. Sometimes strangers can really knock your socks off. My faith in humanity is restored.
Bless you, bless you, Edi and Edi`s mom.
For now, I*m taking a nap.