• My Adventure Begins
• "Cheap Eats" in Japan
• An Exchange Student's Perspective
• Studying Abroad in Japan
• World Expo 2005 Extravaganza

My Adventure Begins

By N. Kido

My trip began with a pleasant plane ride out of Honolulu International Airport. I was fortunate to have found a good deal on a non-stop plane ride to Nagoya on Japan Airlines. On a side note, Japan Airlines provided some of the best in-flight service I have ever experienced featuring an array of snacks, drinks, and meals. We were also offered complimentary newspapers, including The Wall Street Journal, the Honolulu Advertiser, and a number of Japanese newspapers. To top it all off, the flight attendants were the most pleasant and accommodating I have seen thus far.

Due to heavy head winds, our flight took a shade longer than expected, but after nine hours, we had finally landed at Chubu International, Nagoya's newly opened airport constructed on a man made island one mile off the central coast. Nine hours can seem like a daunting trip, but when you haven't seen your girlfriend for over four months, a nine hour plane ride becomes insignificant.

As I departed the plane and entered the terminal, I was extremely excited at the anticipation of finally seeing my girlfriend. For a moment I became distracted as I stood in astonishment while looking at the Japanese architecture. The terminal was a masterful blend of architecture and art, functional, yet aesthetically pleasing and intriguing. Many pieces of artwork lined the terminal, leaving the impression that the Japanese have a genuine appreciation for art.

My last hurdle was retrieving my baggage and getting through customs. There were less than a hundred people on my flight which made baggage hunting much faster and less hectic. I flew through customs and I could see the door which separated me from my girlfriend. I was definitely antsy at this point and as I passed through customs, I scanned the terminal in eager anticipation. There she was waving and finally, after four months, we were together again.

Now the real adventure began. I had heard so much about Japan's highly efficient train and subway system and now I would have my chance to experience it. We entered the major train/subway system at the airport and within a few minutes, we were on our way to Inuyama, a town situated north of the airport. The trains in Japan were never late and arrived on the minute. Fares were quite reasonable, averaging between $2 and $15 depending on the distance being traveled.  

As we rode the train through the city, I sat in amazement at how different this country was. Houses were quite small and often two stories tall with only a few feet separating one house from the next. I assumed that with 125 million people on land the size of California, you get very good at maximizing space. The majority of people here utilized public transportation because of its ease and efficiency. As we passed different towns, I also noticed that both young and old rode bicycles to school and work. People in Japan travel efficiently in stark contrast to America's millions of cars and hours spent in traffic every day. We could learn a lot from the Japanese.

We got off the train and began our walk through the city. I took a breath, paused for a few minutes, and admired the scenery around me. From afar, the city of Nagoya looked like a normal suburban city in the US. However, upon closer inspection, Nagoya looked very different. People rode bicycles and utilized trains and subways. Signs were written in beautiful strokes of Kanji (Japanese characters used for writing; similar to Chinese writing). There were vending machines on every corner, selling a wide array of goods from soda to green tea, cigarettes to french fries, and even beer!  After buying an interesting Japanese drink from one of the vending machines, I tossed it in the recycling bin next to the machine and noticed there were no trash cans in sight. I later learned that the lack of trash cans on streets helped reduce the amount of litter and waste. Utterly amazing. Japanese cities were extremely clean and without a single trash can in sight.  

The adventure continues...