I was so anticipating my trip to Japan.  Ever since I was a child and my dad told me stories of going to Japan, the dream of visiting Japan was a goal I had set.  Finally, being able to travel to Japan to experience the culture and try out my Japanese (since I have been taking it for the past 3 years) was a dream come true.  First time out of the country.

So, as you have noticed in my title I have never flown before and it took a toll on me (and my concerned mom). Not only was it my first time, but I was flying 18 hours away to Japan.  The flight was extremely long, but I survived.  My first week in Japan I was able to explore Tokyo.   Tokyo was so full of culture.  Here are some descriptions of my experiences in Tokyo.

Transportation in Japan mainly consists of shuttles and most importantly, the train. The train ride from the airport to the hotel took over 3 hours for a ride that should have only taken ½ hour.  Of course, my friend and I were new to this system, so it really did take some getting used to.  One time my friend was on the train and I was not on the train and the doors close and there he was leaving without me.  Once we got use to the system it was a great way to get around. 

The hotel I stayed at was Hotel Niwa in Tokyo.  The hotel felt very homey actually and the people were really nice and helpful.  It was also in the center of Tokyo which was nice being able to also walk to many places.

Tokyo is divided into several districts/neighborhoods.  A couple of districts I visited in Tokyo were Akihabara and Shibuya. Akihabara is a large area around the Akihabara train station.  It is also where anime and manga are very popular.  You can see a lot of the old and new Anime/Manga characters like Pokemon.  They always have conferences and premieres of new character all the time. This is also were the otaku culture has a large influence. Otaku is known as having a strong obsession with something, like anime and manga.  You see it all over Akihabara.  Another place we visited was Shibuya.   Shibuya is all about fashion.  Shibuya 109 is a major shopping area, so it is the place to go to see the new styles of Japan. We were also able to visit Disneyland.  Their Disneyland is more focused towards children, but it was a great place to experience. When you first enter Disneyland, you enter the Fantasyland part which has the big castle like in the U.S.   They also had Toonland and Tommorrowland which include rides like Space Mountain and Roger Rabbit rides.

The experience of me and my friend being in Japan, away from home, by ourselves is amazing and I am enjoying being able to explore the different areas and experience the culture, especially the anime and manga aspect.  Remember to take the time to enjoy a new country and a new way of life.