Tokyo

#kaeshajapan

My grasp of all that is Japanese is similar to the fluttering of paper moth wings - slight, barely, just. It was enough to spark an interest to see all the glorified weirdness, the snippets I harbored from mangas and quiet Murakami novels. The impromptu trip came in the wake of a cavernous curiosity, and, more honestly, I just really wanted a quick break from the mania that was Malaysia. The only preparations we made were living arrangements, and the rest: a quick flick through internet tips formed a mashed up list of places to go. Then just like that, we rolled.

Tokyo was everything I imagined it to be. From the sleek, towering skyscrapers to the masses of steel wires tangling above bustling train stations. There were the neon blasted alleyways with naked anime, shops blaring crazy pop videos with men in purple lipstick, giant gundam statues, tiny unagi shops tucked in between steel buildings. We passed by arcade centres filled with drunk old businessmen, saw a solemn wedding ceremony in a shrine, and followed a perky Harajuku cosplay parade in awe. We got by with our maps, our lists and our terrible (= non existent) grasp of the language, navigating through with the graces of extremely polite, helpful-and-hygienic people.

It caught me - the express steps of the commuting crowds mingling with pastel sunsets and twinkling lights, all the small homes with its even smaller occupants. The trip passed through with me floating in a foam  balloon of my own make, getting shocked and amused accordingly, not quite planted in its Kanji cobbled pavements. This harbour capital was filled with so many bizarre things that it left me breathless, aware that I couldn't possibly catch up to the momentous amount of culture in such a short trip.Where else could you nod respectfully at pale skinned girls clad in kawaii maid outfits, casually grab a salmon flavoured condom from the street? It was visual hysteria straight from painted pages.

I ended the trip feeling tinier and more foreign than ever, but in the best, most segoi way possible.