Days T-2 and T-1: Travel Daaaaay

My ex-sister-in-law has started following my blog and I am now forbidden from abandoning my nephew in a bamboo forest even if he deserves it. Leaving him with some kind, elderly farmer couple is currently in negotiations.

Uneventful is how you want to describe your travel days and that’s how the “todays” went. A 13 hour flight from Chicago to Tokyo, leaving Chicago around 12:30 p.m. on Saturday and landing in Tokyo’s Haneda Airport a bit before 5:00 p.m. on Sunday. I watched Kennth Branagh’s “Hamlet” during the flight. I hadn’t seen it since it came out 1996 and, more importantly, it ate up 4 hours of flying time and that Shakespeare fellow isn’t too bad with words, words, words.

A brief layover a Haneda and it was time for the domestic flight to Tokushima. I’m a big guy in the States at 6’3” and it only becomes more pronounced when I travel in Asia. I’m blond, too, so that only adds to the sticking out in a plane full of jet black or salt-and-pepper hair. During the beverage service, I studied the stewardess’ cart intently as she came down the aisle. I was about to speak a little Japanese completely surround by the natives. Yes. Apple juice! [ringo juusu] That I can say. In short, it was a rather anti-climactic experience for all the anxiety, preparation and effort I put into it.

After landing, things started to go a little sideways. I had forgotten to exchange my dollars for yen while in Haneda, but wasn’t too worried about it as Tokushima Airport had several ATMs to choose from. Two were gated off and the last one wouldn’t accept my card. I had a coin purse full of changes from my last trip to Japan and, sitting in the dark in the back of the cab balancing the light from my phone to count out what usable money I did have, I was able to pull out enough change to get get to our AirBnb for the evening.

Our host greeted me enthusiastically and we sat and chatted for several minutes before showing the layout of the place. I then notice a message from my nephew to call him. His plane was two hours late arriving in Kansai, he missed all his planned connections and he was going to be stuck in Wakayama for the evening. We were working out a plan for him to take the 5:30 am ferry and how to meet up when our host declared that he would drive with me to pick Connor up at Tokushima Port at 8:00 am and then drop us off at Ryozenji (Temple 1). We might have a plan. Stay turned for how that turns out.

Anyway, it’s approaching 11:00 pm and I need to get up around 7:00 am and I’ve been up over 24 hours now.

Bamboo forest. Definitely the bamboo forest …