I am sitting in cubicle number 116. There is a computer here, a TV, a food service, free beverages, smoking, and a slew of words that I do not understant. It is an internet cafe, but unlike any I have ever seen. It is located in the heart of Shinjuku, which in itself is one of the most thriving neighborhoods of Tokyo, one that you have likely seen in pictures of the city (think ubiqituous neon lights). Thus far, there are few words to describe what I have gone through. After a torturous 13 hour flight, and then a two hour bus ride to the center of the city (during which I got to see the vast expanse that is Tokyo and to understand exactly how they manage to fit 100,000 people into a single city block) I checked into the hotel, and along with a slew of other wide-eyed Jets from all over the world descended on the heart of this city. Literally, it is a feeling of awe, of a pure and perhaps even infantile awe. Surrounded by people whom I cannot yet understand, neither literally nor culturally, I walk and I gawk and I take pictures of the vending machines and get stares from onlookers who cannot for the life of them figure out why I am doing what I am doing. Mind you, after close to 30 hours without any sleep, I have not lost the capacity to marvel. Simply walking down a street that is littered with all sorts of shops, signs, etc., I feel like I have stepped out into the world for the first time. I have been told that this experience is quite often and hits most people upon their first exposure to all of this. I have been told to prepare myself for the true shock that comes after the marvel. But that has not yet arrived. I really do need to learn the language and to try to fit into the life more. But again, that is in the future. For now, let me just say that, vse eto snogshebatelnoe. (The damn mirror in the bathroom has a special section that does not fog up, right around where your face would be if you were looking into it after your shower...)
Ok. That is all for now. On my way to get some food, again for the first time. End thought is a brief encounter that took place at the airport. We were standing outside, waiting to ship our luggage on to our hometowns, when a a white guy with a Japanese daughter in his arms was walking by. He asked us where we from and we told him we were on the Jet program. His response - I did the Jet program fifteen years ago and this is what happens because of it, pointing at the child in his arms. I wanted to share that, and of course it is bound to get all sorts of negative responses and predictions, but lets not do any of that now. That is simply what happened. Ok, take care everyone, let us keep in touch...
13 comments:
ahhhhhaaahahahahahaaaaalskalsdjlopxvi%%&@#$*790ljkslf!!!!
"...the next morning i took the train to shinjuku again. i sat on the same bench and looked at the faces of the people passing by..."
no words.
Oh, how I enjoy reading the responses to your blogs! The early wide-eyed curiosity that takes over people when change creeps into their lives in the form of someone significant to the group departing into the wind. Soon, as people will grow used to your large presence and obnoxious and frequent laughter wafting in their midst, I think the blogs will wittle. As you get accustomed to your new life in the vast expanse of the uzkoglazie, your posts will wittle as well.
For now, expect isolation to set in like a black curtain. I've been mad at you since you called right before you boarded. It was selfish. But, as usual, ignore me and go off and soak up everything like a $.99 sponge from the dollar store. Do you remember what a dollar is?
Can someone delete the last comment, cause whoever left is either very angry, very jealous, or is just plainly an asshole.
elina said it, you cowardly shithead and if you want to say something directly, please use your name next time.
holy crap roman! it's amazing. but what's so special about their vending machines?
Roma, all you need is a Keruac novel and a MP3 player with Mozart or the Beatles and you would be Sumire or Toru or Hajime meandering through the city.
How are people reacting to your presence in their city?
How DO they fit 100,000 people in a single city block?
no need to erase anything here - we should all speak our minds.
i feel that it is a wonderful lesson that roman took off. and i hope it becomes an inspiration.
surprisingly, i wasn't sad even a little until the airport. a fog came over me there and settled in progressively tighter over the next two days, until i really shook myself up and faced the truth of the matter. the truth is that i need roman in my life as he was for the last 14 years. it hurts when he leaves and it makes me realize that to the degree that i experience pain now, i was holding him back before - binding him with love. like i told him at the airport, cliche though it be, if you love them, set them free.
should we both grow in the interim, when we reunite it will be different in a good way. change is necessary and it hurts, but there is no other way to progress. painless evolution is a lie.
so roman, do your thing. like rob said - you got your own shit and you need to take care of it. we'll be here waiting. and if we do our parts, when you come back, it will be ecstatic.
peace
I wonder how this experience will compare to when you first came to the states. I'm sure you'll be going through similar emotions. Keep sharing Roman...
oh yes, and i want to second the questions put forth by olya and anya. to reiterate:
1) so how DO they fit 100,000 people into a block?
my guess: 69
2) so what is it about those damn vending machines?
p.s. i just want to point out that those thoughtful questions were all presented by ex-wendy's employees like myself. coincidence? i don't think so.
did Olya S also work at Wendy's or did you confuse me with her?
The question I'm pondering is, Roma, have you had sex with Japanese girls yet? We are all dying to know!
my apologies to miss feigina - i made a boo boo. i must retract my earlier statement. it was olga feigina, slavik kovelman and i, walter rosenberg (ex-shershnev), who worked at wendy's. but that's not all! there was also a miss ryklina and a miss leites and a host of other diligent, conscientious employees who were a gift to the wendy's community and an inspiration for our south of the border bretheren. i remebmer receiving not one free spicy chicken patty from my cohorts at the grill simply because i was , as they said, "one cool motherf***er". i was offended at first - my english being poor - but then realized it was a good thing.
hey olen'ka (f), how's the mother country. between you and roman, we got the globe practically covered.
oh and roman, we really ARE dying to know.
Sorry guys for the lack of communication. This is the countryside after all, and its just that for my first week I am doing a home stay, but with like four different people, so I am constantly moving stuff around and will not be able to settle in actually until the middle of next week. To the question about fitting people, well, every available inch of street had a tall building on it. In Tokyo, there literally are no open spaces, and from the plane it looked absolutely ridiculous. And the cool part about the vending machines are how ubiquitous they are and that you can get a million products from them. Anyhoots, running out of time, so must make quick post...love you all
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