Leaving Japan
Leaving Japan was weird. We had a flight at half past midnight on Sunday morning, so we had the whole of Saturday for packing and saying goodbye. We had a lot of bags, many more than we'd arrived with, having acquired a guitar and a telescope (with tripod) from Seiko's mum, and done a lot of shopping ourselves. Trains with four changes were out, but fortunately there is a coach direct to the airport from quite near the house, and we took a couple of taxis down to the bus stop. The timing of the bus meant that we left the house at 6pm, which was early for a midnight flight but by that time we were eking out goodbyes and it was a good time to go.
Hanada airport is quite nice (for an airport). The international terminal is quite new, and has a large Edo period themed eating / shopping area (think samurai and shoguns). The kids did some last minute souvenir shopping, and we braved security. Air side was much like any other airport, and we sat and waited, ate our packed tea, discussed our oversized hand luggage (the guitar) with the staff, and got more and more tired. Eventually we boarded, found our seats, stowed the baggage and in due course the plane took off. As we were thundering down the runway, my exhausted brain reminded me that this was it, goodbye Tokyo, see you again in a few years hopefully... but I wasn't even anywhere near a window to take a last longing look and wave goodbye. On the plane I watched a new Japanese anime called 'Your Name', in which the two leads swap bodies and lives. I've still got the same body, but it feels like I've swapped life. I spend such a lot of time in Japan in Seiko's family's home my 20s and early 30s, and I'd forgotten quite how much I feel at home there myself.
[update] A week after arriving home, I'm getting round to posting this writing. I'm suffering from the worst Japanese export I've yet encountered, a rather debilitating chest infection that I have unsuccessfully tried to ignore into non-existence all week (and got prescribed antibiotics for earlier today). The whole Japanese excursion seems like a dream I once had. Maybe I can have it again.
Hanada airport is quite nice (for an airport). The international terminal is quite new, and has a large Edo period themed eating / shopping area (think samurai and shoguns). The kids did some last minute souvenir shopping, and we braved security. Air side was much like any other airport, and we sat and waited, ate our packed tea, discussed our oversized hand luggage (the guitar) with the staff, and got more and more tired. Eventually we boarded, found our seats, stowed the baggage and in due course the plane took off. As we were thundering down the runway, my exhausted brain reminded me that this was it, goodbye Tokyo, see you again in a few years hopefully... but I wasn't even anywhere near a window to take a last longing look and wave goodbye. On the plane I watched a new Japanese anime called 'Your Name', in which the two leads swap bodies and lives. I've still got the same body, but it feels like I've swapped life. I spend such a lot of time in Japan in Seiko's family's home my 20s and early 30s, and I'd forgotten quite how much I feel at home there myself.
[update] A week after arriving home, I'm getting round to posting this writing. I'm suffering from the worst Japanese export I've yet encountered, a rather debilitating chest infection that I have unsuccessfully tried to ignore into non-existence all week (and got prescribed antibiotics for earlier today). The whole Japanese excursion seems like a dream I once had. Maybe I can have it again.
posted by Tony @ 17:01
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home