Totos and Tamago

Jen Schuetz

Two of my favorite Japanese things.

Traveling to Japan had been on the bucket list for awhile. The Shinkansen, shrines, shopping—and walking. We easily walked over 60 miles during our nine-day visit.













Then there’s the food options. Bento boxes, 7-Eleven onigiri, tamago, yakitori, sushi, ramen, tonkatsu, soba, tempura, mochi, even A5 Wagyu beef—we ate all the food and then some.











Did I love Japan? Mostly, yes. The chaos and flow of Tokyo was enchanting at first, then overwhelming, and finally, just plain exhausting. To be fair, though, this is more of a commentary on my age and tolerance level of big cities. If I had my choice of travel venues, these days I will opt for tropical environments and nature over urban density and sprawl.









Japan is known for order, precision, and efficiency, and more often than not, these traits were abundant. But in Tokyo specifically, instances appeared where those characteristics vanished: Which side of the escalator do you stand on? Most of the time it was the left, but then suddenly some locals went rogue. The same can be said for sidewalk etiquette. Immigration both in and out of Narita was an exercise in patience. And it seems the practice of staring down at a mobile device while walking, seemingly oblivious, is everywhere now.

I am a big fan of Japanese cuisine, but food fatigue most assuredly set in. I was all too happy to return to my Cali fare of greens, greens, and more greens. I love pickled gourds, but they did nothing to satisfy my cravings for fresh produce, which isn’t featured much in restaurants, save for the Western-style establishments. It’s simply too costly.

Despite these small gripes, everyone was friendly and eager to help, and English is more readily spoken than I was led to believe. The subway systems, though intimidating, were remarkably easy to navigate. And sushi in the States will never be the same. Ever. Even the cheap sushi from random places in small alleys are tastier than the most expensive sushi I’ve had here. We were warned.

Admittedly, after visiting both Kyoto and Tokyo, Kyoto ranks higher for me. Quieter, less touristy, lousy with shrines and temples and serenity, a more manageable movement to life. The lack of Tokyo photos in this set was no accident; I simply couldn’t capture singular, isolated moments like I could in Kyoto.





Japan as an entity has much going on, and the country boasts so many other cities and islands even that I’m certain we could return and have an entirely different experience. Thus, that is the plan.







The full, unedited album of my Japan photos can be found on Flickr.



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