Now then, where was I...
The next twenty minutes on the train were spent discussing girlfriends and relationships. I could think of many better things to talk about, but I assume this is the natural progression from leering at girls. Every single person in this country is trying to pair me with some girl. I'm not necessarily opposed to the idea, but I knew coming in that a mere seven months would be nearly pointless. Either that, or I'd end up getting trapped here, and I'd turn into one of those guys. The Kiwi girl I know calls them "LBH", short for "Losers back home". This may be the case with me, I don't know.
Max then tried getting me to go to Roppongi with him that night. Use Wikipedia to get the idea behind it, but the basic idea is this. Take all the things I hate in this world: blinking lights, tight spaces, people screaming, loud pop/dance music, and most of all, "fun". Then, soak this in overpriced drinks, and let it run, all day and all night. An assault on the senses, the essence of Tokyo's night life. This is Roppongi. This is Hell.
Not to say that Roppongi shouldn't exist. Rather, that I shouldn't exist in Roppongi. A wild night for me is playing cards at a local bar. I'm easy to entertain, generally. Within the urban seizure that is Roppongi, I start to physically and mentally break down, as it's simply too much at once. I can't drink nearly enough to keep up with the pressure, certainly not at 7$ for a cheap beer. Because I despise this place so much, it is natural that it would be the Tokyo district I have visited the most.
But this train did not stop at Roppongi. We stepped off the train and outside the station to find the town of Kamakura. The downtown area near the station was a stark contrast to the crowded train we rode here. Thick gray clouds damped the colors of the nearby restaurants and taverns. A flock of large black birds rushed overhead, towards the other side of the station. Japan is known for its crowded sidewalks and high density; today, we were two of five or six others on the street.
A young couple stood by the bus stop, burning their cigarettes down as they waited for the next bus. Another man was sitting near them, despondent, with a ragged guitar case and an equally ragged backpack. Two more figures were on the other side of the roundabout, too far away to catch my interest.
"Where the fuck is everyone?" Max asked.
"Hard to say. I'll see if there's some kind of festival going on."
"Yeah, well, let's find something to eat first. Let's go down this way."
The shopping district adjacent to the station looked abandoned. Rows of bicycles and scooters pressed the edges of the street a little closer together, forcing any traffic into two lanes. At this instant, this wasn't a problem, as these bicycles had no apparent owners.
"You eat ramen?", I asked.
"Sure, why not."
We ducked into a ramen shop along the alley. Six stools were spaced down the long side of the bar, with two more at a right angle towards the door. We slid down the bar and took our seats. I could literally lean back against the wall from my position on the stool. Space was at a premium here.
The shopkeep showed us none of the saccharine courtesy normally extended by their sort. He stood up from watching some sports show, poured us each a glass of water, and returned to his seat. The smoke from his cigarette trailed up in wisps to the ceiling, where it mixed with the vapors of the salty broth that was ramen stock. The shopkeep coughed one of those heavy, painful cigarette coughs into his hand and glared at us.
"Whatever you're having, man, I can't read this shit"
"Fair enough. [i]Two chanko ramen please[/i]
"[i]Yeah.[/i]"
"I'll ask him about that festival"
"[i]Excuse me.[/i]"
He glanced at me, then continued on with the preparation.
[i]"Do you know where everyone is? Is there a festival or something today?"[/i]
The man shrugged his shoulders without missing a beat, as though this sort of question was tedium at this point.
The food came moments later: a huge bowl of ramen, with a couple slices of tender pork, and a few vegetables here and there, mainly onions. Nothing impressive, but the price was right. We ate it while we talked about our itinerary. We paid for our food, and went back out onto the street. A light drizzle greeted us, and we set off, following the signs marking the path to the Kamakura Daibutsu.
--------
The plot thickens, just a little bit.
Max then tried getting me to go to Roppongi with him that night. Use Wikipedia to get the idea behind it, but the basic idea is this. Take all the things I hate in this world: blinking lights, tight spaces, people screaming, loud pop/dance music, and most of all, "fun". Then, soak this in overpriced drinks, and let it run, all day and all night. An assault on the senses, the essence of Tokyo's night life. This is Roppongi. This is Hell.
Not to say that Roppongi shouldn't exist. Rather, that I shouldn't exist in Roppongi. A wild night for me is playing cards at a local bar. I'm easy to entertain, generally. Within the urban seizure that is Roppongi, I start to physically and mentally break down, as it's simply too much at once. I can't drink nearly enough to keep up with the pressure, certainly not at 7$ for a cheap beer. Because I despise this place so much, it is natural that it would be the Tokyo district I have visited the most.
But this train did not stop at Roppongi. We stepped off the train and outside the station to find the town of Kamakura. The downtown area near the station was a stark contrast to the crowded train we rode here. Thick gray clouds damped the colors of the nearby restaurants and taverns. A flock of large black birds rushed overhead, towards the other side of the station. Japan is known for its crowded sidewalks and high density; today, we were two of five or six others on the street.
A young couple stood by the bus stop, burning their cigarettes down as they waited for the next bus. Another man was sitting near them, despondent, with a ragged guitar case and an equally ragged backpack. Two more figures were on the other side of the roundabout, too far away to catch my interest.
"Where the fuck is everyone?" Max asked.
"Hard to say. I'll see if there's some kind of festival going on."
"Yeah, well, let's find something to eat first. Let's go down this way."
The shopping district adjacent to the station looked abandoned. Rows of bicycles and scooters pressed the edges of the street a little closer together, forcing any traffic into two lanes. At this instant, this wasn't a problem, as these bicycles had no apparent owners.
"You eat ramen?", I asked.
"Sure, why not."
We ducked into a ramen shop along the alley. Six stools were spaced down the long side of the bar, with two more at a right angle towards the door. We slid down the bar and took our seats. I could literally lean back against the wall from my position on the stool. Space was at a premium here.
The shopkeep showed us none of the saccharine courtesy normally extended by their sort. He stood up from watching some sports show, poured us each a glass of water, and returned to his seat. The smoke from his cigarette trailed up in wisps to the ceiling, where it mixed with the vapors of the salty broth that was ramen stock. The shopkeep coughed one of those heavy, painful cigarette coughs into his hand and glared at us.
"Whatever you're having, man, I can't read this shit"
"Fair enough. [i]Two chanko ramen please[/i]
"[i]Yeah.[/i]"
"I'll ask him about that festival"
"[i]Excuse me.[/i]"
He glanced at me, then continued on with the preparation.
[i]"Do you know where everyone is? Is there a festival or something today?"[/i]
The man shrugged his shoulders without missing a beat, as though this sort of question was tedium at this point.
The food came moments later: a huge bowl of ramen, with a couple slices of tender pork, and a few vegetables here and there, mainly onions. Nothing impressive, but the price was right. We ate it while we talked about our itinerary. We paid for our food, and went back out onto the street. A light drizzle greeted us, and we set off, following the signs marking the path to the Kamakura Daibutsu.
--------
The plot thickens, just a little bit.