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It's coming up on three weeks since my trip to Mishima and Tokyo, so I better get on this update while the trip is still fairly fresh in my mind. I future vlog will be forthcoming. Because of that, I want to focus more on the things that didn't get addressed in the vlog.
This trip was a super-duper budget trip! Instead of taking the shinkansen, I took the local train all the way to Mishima and Tokyo. It was a four and a half hour trip from my house! It wasn't so bad because the time was split up from my stopover in Mishima.
The outgoing trip was pretty smooth without any problems. The initial boarding from Kanayama was packed with commuters because around 8:00 am was still a peak rush hour time, and the semi rapid train was late. Most people disembarked by the time we arrived at Obu and Kariya.
There was a senior who expressed interest in learning English, so I entertained him for the duration of his commute.
( English lesson conversation )
I had to change trains at Hamamatsu, and again at Okitsu when the train went out of service prior to my arrival in Mishima.
This is the iconic JR sign for Mishima.
When I got there, Mishima was basically the same as I had left it. There was a new Starbucks location that opened at Mishima that wasn't there before. I had some unfinished business in Mishima that I used as an excuse to get out of Nagoya at least for a little bit.
And was it ever an ordeal! I was unable to sign off on some papers because the touch screen on their tablet gave out. The issue blew up so much that all the employees came running over to check it out even though they couldn't personally do anything about it. I was in good spirits, and I kept joking and making comments about how "fun" it was. The manager kept giving me the look, as if to say STFU! Eventually, they gave up and had me sign off on a paper copy. Which should have done in the first place when we were having issues with the tablet.
The manager was not impressed or amused by the situation at all. He also struggled to read/write the kanji of my home address, and he got mad when I didn't speak up earlier about being able to do it myself. Oops.
I made my way back to the centre of Mishima and I picked up some local food while I was there.
After I picked up my energy sustenance, I went to the local park called Shirataki Park. There, I practised the usual songs from my setlist, getting attention from the locals. A child was playing on the slide, accompanied by their mother.
It wasn't long before I was approached by a group of other foreigners, asking if they can play my guitar! We took a lot of videos from the spontaneous party, so that will be coming up in a future vlog very soon.
Here is the group photo of us. I wasn't sure if I had permission to post their picture publicly and I didn't want to chance it, so I edited the photo. Making the Music Travel Love poster was such a great idea!
We eventually parted ways, and I walked to Hirokoji Station. From there, I found my way back to my first apartment in Japan. I felt a lot of emotion coming back to the place that originally got me to Japan. A lot has happened since 2017, but it seemed that nothing about the town had changed in the time I was gone. I bumped into some neighbours along the way, and I told them that I used to live in the area seven years ago.
Afterward, I turned around and I made my way back to Hirokoji Station.
Throwback photo from 2017/03/18. Mister Donut and Hirokoji Station.
I didn't get an updated photo, but I did capture the area on video. That will be coming up in the vlog.
Snacking on dounts and coffee before I made my way back on the train.
Can we take a second to appreciate the graphic design on the tray liner?
The 90s are back!
When I was finished in Mishima and boarded the next train, I had to change trains one more time upon arriving at Atami. Then it was the final stretch to Tokyo! I was carrying two bags and my guitar in its travel case, so it made things awkward when getting off the train upon my arrival at Tokyo Station.
And even with the maps at Tokyo Station, I found it so big and difficult to navigate after being gone for almost six years. I chatted with a lot of people along the way, and I eventually made it to the Traveler's Factory Tokyo Station location. I forgot how small the store was, and it was difficult to browse products with so many people coming through. As beautiful as the Station edition TN and the inserts are, I decided not to get them because I already have more than enough at home. I did however, pick up a yellow Tokyo limited insert for a friend. (I wasn't able to locate a photo of the final product, and I didn't take my own before I gave it away.) I settled on getting just the letterpress stickers to decorate the inserts that I already have at home, along with some decorative mailing envelopes.
Screenshot from my vlog in front of Traveler's Factory, Tokyo Station.
Posing in front of the Marunouchi Line sign at Tokyo Station.
When I was finished at Traveler's Factory, I jumped on the Marunouchi Line and made my way to my old flat without notifying anyone. It was indeed, a surprise visit! I was afraid that I was going to get lost due to the six years that have passed, and my overall poor navigation skills. But it was totally fine. When I got to my old home station, nothing had really changed. There was one place I noticed had closed, but virtually everything else was the same. I was able to rely on my memory alone without checking Google Maps at all to get back to my old flat.
I'm going to make this blog a two parter because I have some things that I still need to get done today. I will also update this entry with more details from Mishima and photos from the trip.
This trip was a super-duper budget trip! Instead of taking the shinkansen, I took the local train all the way to Mishima and Tokyo. It was a four and a half hour trip from my house! It wasn't so bad because the time was split up from my stopover in Mishima.
The outgoing trip was pretty smooth without any problems. The initial boarding from Kanayama was packed with commuters because around 8:00 am was still a peak rush hour time, and the semi rapid train was late. Most people disembarked by the time we arrived at Obu and Kariya.
There was a senior who expressed interest in learning English, so I entertained him for the duration of his commute.
( English lesson conversation )
I had to change trains at Hamamatsu, and again at Okitsu when the train went out of service prior to my arrival in Mishima.
This is the iconic JR sign for Mishima.
When I got there, Mishima was basically the same as I had left it. There was a new Starbucks location that opened at Mishima that wasn't there before. I had some unfinished business in Mishima that I used as an excuse to get out of Nagoya at least for a little bit.
And was it ever an ordeal! I was unable to sign off on some papers because the touch screen on their tablet gave out. The issue blew up so much that all the employees came running over to check it out even though they couldn't personally do anything about it. I was in good spirits, and I kept joking and making comments about how "fun" it was. The manager kept giving me the look, as if to say STFU! Eventually, they gave up and had me sign off on a paper copy. Which should have done in the first place when we were having issues with the tablet.
The manager was not impressed or amused by the situation at all. He also struggled to read/write the kanji of my home address, and he got mad when I didn't speak up earlier about being able to do it myself. Oops.
I made my way back to the centre of Mishima and I picked up some local food while I was there.
After I picked up my energy sustenance, I went to the local park called Shirataki Park. There, I practised the usual songs from my setlist, getting attention from the locals. A child was playing on the slide, accompanied by their mother.
It wasn't long before I was approached by a group of other foreigners, asking if they can play my guitar! We took a lot of videos from the spontaneous party, so that will be coming up in a future vlog very soon.
Here is the group photo of us. I wasn't sure if I had permission to post their picture publicly and I didn't want to chance it, so I edited the photo. Making the Music Travel Love poster was such a great idea!
We eventually parted ways, and I walked to Hirokoji Station. From there, I found my way back to my first apartment in Japan. I felt a lot of emotion coming back to the place that originally got me to Japan. A lot has happened since 2017, but it seemed that nothing about the town had changed in the time I was gone. I bumped into some neighbours along the way, and I told them that I used to live in the area seven years ago.
Afterward, I turned around and I made my way back to Hirokoji Station.
Throwback photo from 2017/03/18. Mister Donut and Hirokoji Station.
I didn't get an updated photo, but I did capture the area on video. That will be coming up in the vlog.
Snacking on dounts and coffee before I made my way back on the train.
Can we take a second to appreciate the graphic design on the tray liner?
The 90s are back!
When I was finished in Mishima and boarded the next train, I had to change trains one more time upon arriving at Atami. Then it was the final stretch to Tokyo! I was carrying two bags and my guitar in its travel case, so it made things awkward when getting off the train upon my arrival at Tokyo Station.
And even with the maps at Tokyo Station, I found it so big and difficult to navigate after being gone for almost six years. I chatted with a lot of people along the way, and I eventually made it to the Traveler's Factory Tokyo Station location. I forgot how small the store was, and it was difficult to browse products with so many people coming through. As beautiful as the Station edition TN and the inserts are, I decided not to get them because I already have more than enough at home. I did however, pick up a yellow Tokyo limited insert for a friend. (I wasn't able to locate a photo of the final product, and I didn't take my own before I gave it away.) I settled on getting just the letterpress stickers to decorate the inserts that I already have at home, along with some decorative mailing envelopes.
Screenshot from my vlog in front of Traveler's Factory, Tokyo Station.
Posing in front of the Marunouchi Line sign at Tokyo Station.
When I was finished at Traveler's Factory, I jumped on the Marunouchi Line and made my way to my old flat without notifying anyone. It was indeed, a surprise visit! I was afraid that I was going to get lost due to the six years that have passed, and my overall poor navigation skills. But it was totally fine. When I got to my old home station, nothing had really changed. There was one place I noticed had closed, but virtually everything else was the same. I was able to rely on my memory alone without checking Google Maps at all to get back to my old flat.
I'm going to make this blog a two parter because I have some things that I still need to get done today. I will also update this entry with more details from Mishima and photos from the trip.
