Yes, I visited Japan. Sort of ...

 Sunday May 26 2024 - Tokyo Japan

The ship arrived at the correct time and the correct location. The International Cruise Terminal Tokyo. I knew this because there was huge lettering on the building telling me that.

My original plan was for 18 days aboard the ship, followed by 12 days of solo travel in Japan. The plan included a trip to Hiroshima, a world-famous Tori gate and a 45’ish mile bike ride split over two days. The Non-smelling illness really knocked me for a loop in regard to my stamina. When I got on the ship I could bound up six flights easily, now I was needing a breather after two (better than the days when one was a killer). That made the potential bike ride much less appealing. Also, frankly, I’m not sure homesick is the correct term, but I just felt it was time to go home. Three weeks seems to be my maximum amount of time for travel. I’d experienced it when I first retired and put it down to lack of US amenities, but I now think it is me. So since Delta allows free flight changes I made a change. The flight home was packed the day the ship arrived and only crowded the next day, so I booked the flight home after one full day in Japan.

Since I decided to curtail my trip from 12 days in Japan to one day in Japan, I had a choice to make. A) stay in downtown Tokyo or B) see what DisneySea (a unique park only in Tokyo) was all about. I fired up the internet and booked a day at DisneySea for about 50% of the price it would have cost me to go to Disneyland Anaheim. Found a reasonably priced hotel near the park and so all was set. I’ll worry how to get from the hotel to the airport tomorrow.

On leaving the ship there was the normal Rat’s maze of turns and switchbacks, and I was spit out into the Japanese sun.
First things first. I need some cash. I have many Benjamins but few Yens. There must be a money exchange near. After a five minute search it was clear there was nothing like that at Tokyo International Cruise Terminal.

Fine ! I’ll catch a cab and pay with plastic. The line for the taxi’s stretched nearly back to Alaska. The line of black taxi’s outside looked like a huge funeral cortège running at least 3 blocks long. Fine again ! I’ll go for a walk about and see what I can find.

Google maps says I better plan on camping out if I want to walk to the hotel. I could spend 3 hours navigating the Tokyo train system, if I was familiar with how that worked (I’m not). A taxi or private car about an hour. Grumble, grumble. Aha ! I have an App for that ! When I was researching the trip one of the YouTube presenters suggested Go!. It is Japan’s alternate Uber, only it is connected to not individuals, but cab companies. What the heck I’ll try nearly anything. I put in my hotel into the App, and pressed call cab. In less than 5 minutes I had my own mini hearse stopped in front of me on a quiet side street. I glanced toward the ship and the taxi line didn’t seem any shorter.

Without a word. My luggage was placed in the back, the door slid open and in was outta there !

I’m glad it was a Sunday morning, since like Sundays I am used to, the roads stay quiet until around noon on Sundays. We made good time and after a few mis-steps with the credit card reader, I was at the hotel.

Check-in was fine since most of the heavy lifting was done by the App. The desk clerk told me that the room wasn’t available, which was no surprise. I asked if I could leave my luggage and go to the park and come back around 6pm. He said “Yes, your room number is … and your check-in time will be 6pm”. I’m thinking, but check-in time is 3pm, what if I want to leave the park before 6pm? “Your check-in time is 6pm.” Okay fine.

Next do you exchange dollars, he waved in a general direction of ‘Over there’ and said something about ‘Past Mickey’. He knew a few more English words than I knew Japanese, but we were on similar ground. I wandered away lost as before, but without my luggage. I stumbled into an exchange machine. The rate of exchange was awful, but without only about $10 in Yen, I accepted the mechanical robbery.

I stepped out of the hotel, waited a minute and the bus with the mouse eared windows arrived, and we were whisked to the monorail station. A ticket needed to be purchased and with the help of someone else with a European background I had ticket in hand and was soon on the elevated train viewing the world again through Mouse eared glass, while holding on to Mouse head shaped straps.

A scan of my phone and the gates parted, I was in the Land of the Corporate Mouse. The park opened at 9am, it was near 1130, so I’ll buy a Fast Pass for the line to a ride that I wanted to experience. I bounded around a few spots, and back tracked a time or two. I quickly found out, that though I was on Disney property, I was indeed still in Japan and English was perhaps in the top 10 second languages spoken. I have had easier times in Syria and Ethiopia with English than I did in Japan. I did find the Fast Pass location where they patiently and eventually got across to me that except for a parade location everything was sold out. Fiddle !

I thought lines getting on and off the cruise ship were crazy. Here, no matter where you go there was a line. The most unexpected lines were the block long lines for popcorn. True the flavors were varied at each stand, but still — Popcorn?

The line for Soar was estimated at one hour forty-five. I wanted to see it, and there was no alternative, so I was the last in line for about 30 seconds. DisneySea lines are great at the tease. You can see that the entrance is just around that corner, until you round it and find still another maze, with a hint of an entrance at the end of that. The people around me were having a great time waiting. Laughs and conversations, happy to wait with friends. In a land across the sea the same line would be full of bitching and crying babies and adults. Here mouse ears, mouse glasses, mouse socks and all manner of costumed patrons abounded. Well there were those stick in the mud attendees, but they were mostly of European extraction.

The ride was GREAT ! So great I would have waited in line for an hour to experience it again. I checked a few times throughout the day alas it was always near 2 hours.

The next ride I came across was after I got a bottle of water and a Yam based Churro, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. The cast member at the entrance said “40 minutes”. After standing around for 10 I asked her “Here or there”, pointing to the ground or down a ramp. She pointed down the ramp. I should have taken a Babel course before coming. The line went quickly. I don’t know if it was because it was less than 2 hours, or it was actually less than 40 minutes.

For the next few hours I just walked around and gawked. It was way more interesting to me than DisneyLand. Quite a bit more adult oriented than child centric. Not that there was anything stronger than PG, but not much in the way of Flying Dumbos type rides.

Past several popcorn lines I found a shorter line for little Green sno-ball shapes three to a cup each with eyes that were for sale. What’s the worst that can happen? They can be filled with raw squid? Ten minutes I had my own cup. Here goes nothing. They were like biting into a thick cloud and filled with chocolate. Mochi filled with chocolate, vanilla and strawberry flavored custard. They were worth the line.

The line to the mine cart rollercoaster read an hour. Sigh ! Might as well. I got in line and a cast member asked if I was alone. Turns out there is a singles line for this ride and within 10 minutes I was seated next to a young Japanese woman. We struggled through the basic question and then were off to scream for 90 seconds. Once we left she thanked me for riding with her, and wanted to introduce me to her group. Even though the language gap looms large the people I met so far are warm, friendly and wonderful hosts.

Time for dinner. I found a sit down place. Stood in a short line and told the cashier what I wanted, handed her a few bills and some coins. She pushed a button. Slipped the bills in a slot and dumped the coins in a funnel and handed me my meal ticket and some coins in change. Except for the handing part, everything else was automated. The Terminator will land first in Japan, I’m sure.

More wandering and as dark approached I found a spot to sit and wait for the lighted parade. I think my spot was better than the Fast Pass location offered, at least I could sit down. From noon to seven-thirty is a long time to be mostly on my feet. The parade started, and I quickly found out Mickey spoke Japanese, as did Ariel and Goofy and even Donald. Guess a Babel course must be mandatory for the characters.

After the parade it was back to the hotel. Same as before only in reverse. By now it was near 9pm and I found my room, with my luggage inside. A nighttime routine and lights out.

Morning came and rain. I was really happy I went the park yesterday, the weather report was rain all day today.

Hotel check out and airport shuttle, was the same as everywhere else in the world. Once in the terminal I was back in the world of “Yes, we speak some English”.

Blah, blah. Passport control, Customs, TSA, boarding, food, movies, more food, landing, Customs, bus and home. Blah, blah. We have all done these things numerous times before. Blah, blah, Jet Lag, etc, etc .. and here we are back in the USA.