I’ve been in Tokyo less than 8 hours, and I’m totally in love with Japan already. The people are endlessly polite, helpful and SMILEY. And as if that isn’t enough to love, there is the extra bonus of an omnipresent air of kitsch...which speaks directly to this tacky girl’s heart. :)
We haven’t had time to do much yet, but in some ways, I feel like we’ve already experienced a fair amount of culture. After arriving at our hotel around 10pm, we quickly hit our neighborhood streets in search of a quick bite. Rachael and Samia had to tear me away from gawking at every quirky vending machine along the sidewalk (they really are EVERYWHERE), so we could finally make our way to a local late-night noodle shop. We each tried a different soba noodle/soup dish…mine was just noodles, Samia’s included some tempura veggies, and Rachael’s included salmon and egg. Being the unaware Americans that we were, we sauntered right into the restaurant and attempted to sit down for service. An adorable, grandmotherly little woman quickly shooed us back outside and walked us through the ordering process. She pointed to the plastic models of all of the dishes on the outside wall, each with a corresponding number, and waited patiently for us to guess what was in each and how it would appeal to our tastebuds. Once we had made our respective selections, she walked us over to the order board (sort of like a vending machine in the wall), where we pushed the corresponding number of our sel
ected dish, entered the appropriate amount of Yen, and retrieved an order receipt (which she quickly snagged, and ran inside to the chef). Then, and only then, we were allowed to come in and make ourselves comfortable. In two minutes—presto--we had hot, fresh & yummy soba to fill our travel-weary tummies.
We haven’t had time to do much yet, but in some ways, I feel like we’ve already experienced a fair amount of culture. After arriving at our hotel around 10pm, we quickly hit our neighborhood streets in search of a quick bite. Rachael and Samia had to tear me away from gawking at every quirky vending machine along the sidewalk (they really are EVERYWHERE), so we could finally make our way to a local late-night noodle shop. We each tried a different soba noodle/soup dish…mine was just noodles, Samia’s included some tempura veggies, and Rachael’s included salmon and egg. Being the unaware Americans that we were, we sauntered right into the restaurant and attempted to sit down for service. An adorable, grandmotherly little woman quickly shooed us back outside and walked us through the ordering process. She pointed to the plastic models of all of the dishes on the outside wall, each with a corresponding number, and waited patiently for us to guess what was in each and how it would appeal to our tastebuds. Once we had made our respective selections, she walked us over to the order board (sort of like a vending machine in the wall), where we pushed the corresponding number of our sel
ected dish, entered the appropriate amount of Yen, and retrieved an order receipt (which she quickly snagged, and ran inside to the chef). Then, and only then, we were allowed to come in and make ourselves comfortable. In two minutes—presto--we had hot, fresh & yummy soba to fill our travel-weary tummies. At that point, we called it a night…just came back to the hotel for long-awaited showers & very welcoming, cozy beds. Although we did take a f
ew moments to enjoy a slap-happy fashion show involving the kimono-type robes in our rooms. Oh…and I enjoyed a few minutes of pressing all of the new and interesting buttons on the toilet (seat warmer, multiple spray functions with various water pressure options, fake flushing sounds in case other noises need to be hidden, etc.). :) I'm so easily amused when it comes to new cultural experiences... :) 
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