Travel stories

The first day in Tokyo was very rainy and even though I saw a lot, I still had a lot more to do. On this last day before taking off to Australia I managed to once again see a lot and this time I was luckier with the weather. It was an awesome day with fish, temples and a zoo! This is the second half of my Tokyo story!

The fish-market

I wake up way too early again today. The jetlag won’t really go away. I don’t really feel like getting up, though, so I snooze a little before getting out of bed. Yesterday I decided to not get up in the middle of the night to go to the tuna auction. Even though it is a major tourist attraction that is said to be really cool, it usually gets super busy and people que up from around three in the morning so they can get in at six. In total 60 people are allowed in, divided over two twenty-minute shifts with only 30 people. I don’t want to get up risking not being able to get in, nor do I want to wait outside for three hours outside. Around 8:30 I get out of bed and start my day. I need to check out at my hotel, because later today I’m flying to Australia. I throw my backpack, including its yellow case (that I nicknamed “the banana”) into the storage room and take the metro. The first stop for today is a sumo center a little further down town. I wasn’t smart enough to call ahead or check the schedule if there was a training and of course I am in bad luck. There is no training when I get there, nor the rest of the week due to a major tournament in the weekend prior. I peek through the windows to get some sort of idea of what it looks like, but it is not too interesting. So, I make my way to the place I have been looking forward to go to the most: the fish market.

The metro line has no stop close by, so I need to walk a small distance. Luckily for me, all rain from yesterday has disappeared and the sun is shining, making it nice and warm. My shoes, however, are still soaked to the bottom. It makes me appreciate the fact I brought my pair of converse chucks, they saved the day. The fish market is popular among tourists, but not in the annoying way like yesterday’s Asakusa temples. The area is full of life even though it’s just past ten in the morning. I walk straight past all market stalls that are set up in the touristy area and walk towards the wholesale market. When I enter the huge hall that looks like a factory floor, it’s like walking into another world. Tons of carts fly by around me, rushing from one side of the hall to the other. Each cart carries several styrofoam boxes of different sizes. Sometimes water flows over the edges of the upper boxes. That’s only half an hour after the market opens for tourists, but the first tradesmen have already started to pack up. They use large hoses to clean their stalls and water flows freely over the floor of the hall. I have to hop from one dry spot to another, carefully avoiding the little soapy rivers meandering around, so I don’t get my converse shoes wet either. Trashcans hold the remains of fish. Fins, tails, heads, eyes, organs, skins and stuff that is unrecognizable. Some parts clearly show what kind of fish it was, in other cases the meat has been so chopped up that there is no way to detect the species of fish. At two different places I am lucky enough to see the remains of a large tuna fish. Under normal circumstances I wouldn’t get excited about the remains of a dead fish, but the size of the head indicates the size of the tuna, and that’s seriously impressive. It also makes it less bad that I missed the auction. Apart from tuna, the market holds a lot of different fish and sea creatures. There are sardines (I have only ever seen them in a can, so it was weird seeing them swim about in a plastic container waiting for someone to buy them), hundreds of other types of fish, the smaller ones still alive, live prawns, crabs, snails, spiky fish, lobsters and worms. It seems that the only condition for what you can sell at the market is that it is lives in the sea.

After a quick walk through the wholesale market and some sneaky pictures, I hastily move myself out of the building. I had the feeling you are constantly in someone’s way, especially with all the carts rushing about and the salesmen trying to sell their stuff to clients. The smell of fish has been getting into my clothes, that’s how intense the scent is inside of the hall. I walk back from the wholesale part to the regular market. In one of the building I find a stall that sells freshly made sushi that is ready to eat. I buy myself some sushi with salmon and tuna. Though I don’t usually like tuna, I just had to try it because Tokyo is famous for it. It turned out to be a very good decision. At the roof top terrace, I let the pieces of rice and fish melt on my tongue while enjoying the view and the good weather.

The alleys that border the huge factory halls of the wholesale market are also filled with stalls and little shops. This is way more touristy and salesmen try to sell ready-to-eat fishy snacks. They are not at all like the pieces of fried fish we would eat at the beach back in Europe, but rather fried fins and tails, dried prawns sand octopuses and a whole lot of unidentifiable things that smell like fish. I thoroughly enjoy the tourists that curiously look at the exotic food and challenge their friends to eat it. Not far from me a group of Dutch sunburned men declare loudly they have never seen something like this as they order some wasabi ice-cream. I watch them take a first bite only to set their mouths on fire. The smaller restaurants that are also located in the streets sell fish soups and are filled with locals. I slowly get from one end of the markets to the other, rejecting the countless sticks with fried fish that are being stuck in my face by old lady’s trying to make a sale. They get so close that they almost touch my mouth, and I wonder if it’s their strategy to make me pay once it has touched me due to hygienic reasons.

Lazy afternoon

At the end of the alleys I find a Buddhist temple that I haven’t read anything about. This temple looks very different from the ones I have seen before. Instead of looking like a temple from an anime or samurai movie, this temple is completely white. A sad singing existing of long and low sounds lures me inside the temple. I see a monk sitting on his knees. He is clearly the one singing. He hits a copper bowl that produces a bell note every once in a while, in between his lamentation. Behind him sits a couple, dressed in black. They hold booklets and appear to read along with the monk’s singing. On the left side there is an old sign saying “please keep quiet for the memorial ceremony”. The woman’s shoulders shake heavily as she rests her head on the shoulder of the man besides her, while she tries to keep reading. I give some obnoxious tourists who came to toss a coin and “pray” an angry look as they came in laughing and talking loudly. I nod at the sign, pointing it out to them mentally. Luckily, they get the point and they shut up. I am hooked to the monks’ monody and stay to watch the ceremony from a corner of the temple for a while. When the monk stops singing and collects the books from the couple, it is as if I am released from a Siren’s singing at sea.

It is still early, around lunchtime. I have to be back at the hostel at four so I can collect my stuff but until then I have nothing to do. I decide to pop into the Hard Rock Café so I don’t have to do that on my way to the airport and get my 22nd t-shirt for my collection. From there the Tokyo zoo is close and I still have enough time for a visit. People that know me well know that I absolutely adore animals so killing time in a zoo is only time well spent for me. The park isn’t big but they got a panda bear couple who had a cup a while ago. In two hours I stroll through every nook and corner of the zoo. My converse chucks are burned into my feet and my heavy legs carry me back to the hotel where I get “the banana” and then depart to the airplane. Good bye Tokyo, Australia awaits.

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After Hong Kong it was time for my very brief stop in Tokyo, Japan. I was there for two nights as well but my flights were a little more helpful in the amount of time I had for sightseeing. I had almost two full days to explore the city. Because Tokyo is huge and there is, once again, a lot I did and saw I divided my story in two parts. This is the first half!

First impressions of Tokyo

Around 5:30 pm I arrive at my tiny hotel in Tokyo. I throw my backpack in the corner of the room and let my body free fall on the bed. It had been a long day. This morning I got up at 5:30 am to get to the airport in time. The journey was a little delayed but all went well. At the Narita Airport I’m surprised about the amounts of crystal white and pink plastic that is used in almost anything. The border security machines that scan passports and the interior of the metro, everything is plastic and everything is colored baby pink. My train rushes through the rice fields and drops me off in the center of Tokyo within 40 minutes.

I startle awake. 9:00 pm it says on my phone. Oops, I think. I didn’t mean to fall asleep as I was planning to explore the city at night. My stomach growls at me, I haven’t eaten since they served lunch in the airplane. Yet I don’t really feel like eating. The exhaustion has overtaken the feeling of hunger. With heavy eyes I drag myself to the nearest supermarket I can find to get myself a sandwich. The label is in Japanese and I have no idea what it says, but the sandwich looks like it has chicken, lettuce and tomatoes, so it’s good enough.

The next morning, I wake at 5 in the morning and I can’t manage to fall asleep again. It’s bound to be a busy day today so I try to figure out a logical path to all the places I want to see. My first stop is the Asakusa temple. There are a couple of huge temple buildings, which are gorgeous, but it is super touristy, despite me being there rather early. I’m surrounded by the clattering of coins and metal boxes. At every single corner of the temple complex there are fortune-walls. They are similar to fortune cookies. You throw a coin into the wall, then you shake a box that holds a hundred sticks. One of those sticks comes out as you shake. You then read the number on that stick and open the drawer in the wall matching that number. You then find a paper that tells you your fortune. It is super popular among the tourists, you can tell by the amount of non-stop noise it makes. I feel sorry for all the people working at the temples. Even though the temples are really big and quite impressive, the number of tourists there make it a little less authentic and I decide to not linger around for too long.

My next destination is the Imperial Palace. Part of my journey I do by metro, another part I do by foot. I take a lot of alleys and avoid the main streets. Luckily, I run into some temples used by the locals, which aren’t as known or popular as Asakusa. The colors of the temples are very different from the ones in Hong Kong. Even though there still is a lot of gold, the red color is used a whole lot less or sometimes not at all. The majority of the temples are colored in blacks, whites and browns. This is also the case in the Imperial Palace.

When I get there I am just in time for the changing of the guards. then I take a walk through the Imperial Gardens, along the hundreds of pine trees and many different plants and flowers and the Imperial Pond, that holds a number of Koi fish released there by the emperor and empress themselves. Fascinated by their culture I read all about former warrior rituals and the traditions of the Imperial family. I learn that pine trees symbolize a long life. That explains why there are so many.

Rain, rain, rain

It was a long walk and above me the clouds turn darker and darker. Grey to black clouds gather all over the city. I quickly hop in to a metro towards Shibuya Crossing. When I get there, rain is pouring down like it hasn’t rained in years. I’m surrounded by flocks of umbrellas, that like a herd cross the street when the pedestrian traffic light turns green. I run through the crowds, hopping from under one umbrella to the next and then pop into the McDonalds, because it is the first restaurant I could find. I initially wanted sushi for lunch but it is raining too much to find another place to eat and it’s already three in the afternoon. After a quick cheeseburger I sprint into a bookstore that also sells umbrella’s. With my umbrella covering me I roam around the area a bit longer but there isn’t much to do so I decide to go to Meiji-Jingu temple which is nearby.

After a little search I arrive at a big forest-y park where the temple is supposed to be. Rain is still pouring from the skies so there is no-one else. The dirt path to the temple is soft and mushy and full of big puddles. With each step I take I feel water splashing up my legs. The water keeps creeping up and even my shoes are now getting soaked; I feel my socks squishing in my brand-new Sketchers.

The temple is luckily worth the annoyance of the rain. It is quite different from all the temples I have seen thus far as it is has a courtyard, and there are a holy tree and a wishing-wall. Different from the fortune wall, this is a wall that people hang their wishes on. As I am exploring the temple, a long line of people in traditional clothing pass by. They are led by two monks, dressed in black, and a female, dressed in a long white kimono. A large white cap covers her head. “It’s a wedding” I hear the safety guard saying to a group of Swedish tourists. Even though it was hardly ceremonial, I appreciated that I could catch a glimpse of a traditional Japanese wedding. My pants now completely stick to my legs, as they are soaked with water. There is no sign of the rain stopping to fall anytime soon, so I have to pick between going back to the hotel where nice dry and warm clothes will be waiting for me or conquering the weather by going to the Shinjuku district and look for a place to eat there. I decide to go for the latter option, as that area is famous for its lights and billboards, which is more beautiful at night.

Shinjuku is exactly like the pictures. I roam the streets looking for a place to eat. It is, however, already quite late and most places are packed. When I finally find a place that is not in what appears to be a red-light district, a rat pops out of the front door. “Never mind” I think as my last resort, a sushi bar, is about to close. I take the metro back and eat another burger on the way. As soon as I get back I take a long hot shower. I’ll catch up on sushi tomorrow.

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Hong Kong was the first destination of my world trip! I was only there for two nights and only really have one day to see and do everything. But, I did it! It meant running and flying from here to there but it was more than worth it! I have seen so much in so little time that, looking back on it, I am honestly impressed with myself. But it was super awesome!

Arrival in Hong Kong

I wake up with a headache. The sun is peaking through the blinding window foil. I reach out to my phone, which is safely secured in my pillowcase as a precaution against theft in my hostel. The display says it’s 4:48. I should be tired by now, and my body indeed feels exhausted, but my mind is wide awake.

Yesterday I arrived at the Mt Davis Youth Hostel in Hong Kong around midnight. My 15-hour flight from Chicago before that was tiring but luckily I managed to get some rest. Watching four movies and a documentary to keep myself awake in the first half of the flight turned out to be a good strategy. Getting to Hong Kong city wasn’t hard. The MTR metro system is very user friendly, although I must say I felt happy with lots of travel experience so figuring out a foreign system isn’t that hard. Roughly fifty minutes after getting through security at the airport I find myself on the other side of Hong Kong, on the Hong Kong island in Kennedy Town. My hostel is not supposed to be far from here, but I soon learn my first lesson on this trip; islands here aren’t flat. Although my hostel is close in radius, it’s located on top of a mountain. I turn up Google Maps on my phone to find out that it will be at least a 45-minute walk. My eyes move up the screen to check the time. It’s 10:43, and I’m supposed to check in to my hostel at 11. I text Ishan (one of my friends) from MSU) for help, but I can’t stay where he is staying. I also try to call the hostel, but they don’t pick up. Eventually I decide to take a taxi. The first four drivers I stop have no clue where my hostel is, the fifth one is willing to give searching for it a try. I arrive at my hostel 35 minutes too late, but the guy at the reception desk still helps me check in. Grateful for not having to stay out on the sleep I forget about the crappy quality of the bunk beds or the dirty bathrooms.

Exploring Hong Kong

8:45, rush hour in Hong Kong’s metro system. I’m at the central station, where multiple lines come together. It’s a regular weekday and it’s super busy. People hastily get themselves from one line to the other. I’m caught in the middle of these streams of people and feel eyes burning in my back. It feels like I’m standing in everyone’s way, but they might also be staring at my very bright pink tank top and flowy patterned pants. Suddenly I realize I look extremely touristy compared to the suited-up people who are rushing to their jobs. The contrast must have looked funny. I quickly remind myself that Hong Kong is a former British colony, which explains why everyone is walking on the left. I mingle in the stream of haste-makers and head into the city for breakfast.

It’s still pretty early, so I decide to grab a sandwich from 7eleven on my way. I was headed towards the Hard Rock Café to get a t-shirt to add to my collection, but since it takes a while before they will open I redirect my route to the Man Mo Temple. On the way I am amazed by the many skyscrapers. The city seems to have high rising buildings for all economic classes. They range from all glass (GEVELS) to pure concrete with hardly any windows at all. The contrast between rich and poor is not only visible in the flats, but also in the streets. I stumble upon streets filled with salesmen who try to sell me dried squid and octopus, all sorts of plants, roots and vegetables and hundreds of types of nuts. Some sell dim sum and noodles from their carts. The streets, almost too narrow to walk in, smell delicious. The next street has massive buildings from Prada and

The Man Mo temple is located on Hollywood Street. When the British arrived in Hong Kong it was pretty much the only street there. At it’s center was the temple, built in 1847, the most prominent one on Hong Kong island. As I enter the temple I am overly aware of my touristy looks. Despite claiming it is a tourist hotspot, there are no other outside visitors than me. It feels somewhat awkward and intrusive, so I almost hesitate to go in. Then I realize I visit churches all the time when on trips in Europe and decide that it is okay as long as I am respectful of people inside. The temple has a mysterious aura surrounding it. A certain warmth comes from the wax candlelights within the temple, inviting me in. I walk into a curtain of smoke coming from the incense sticks that are lit all over the temple. A very distinct smell of flowers, fruits and burning coming from the incense sticks settles on me. Fascinated by all the red and golden colors, I observe every statue and altar. From a distance I watch people perform a ritual that looks like praying.

Lantau Island

I leave the temple, still in awe, and take a quick break on Statue Plaza but ready to travel to Tung Chung and Ngong Ping village. There is a 360-degree view cable cart that runs between the two villages. However, when I get to Tung Chung, it turns out that the cable cart is closed due to maintenance. There are still busses running to Ngong Ping, but I’m not the only one who wants to board the bus. Ahead of me are at least a hundred passengers, and there are no signs that the frequency of the busses has been increased. A bus leaves as I join the line. “Next departure in half an hour” it says on the screen. Luckily fifteen minutes later four busses show up at the same time and the climb up the mountain, through the woods, can begin.

Overall it took me around an hour to get from the city center to Ngong Ping, but it is definitely worth the effort. On top of the mountain are the Po Lin monastery and the Tian Tan Buddha. The monastery was built in the beginning of the 20th century. The Buddha, also known as Big Buddha, is made of bronze and is the biggest in the world. On my way up, I run into several monks, who drop to their knees to worship Buddha every time he is referenced or symbolized. It is hard to describe in words what the temples looked like. Despite being relatively new (not yet 100 years old), they are very impressive. The colors red, gold, blue and green are the only colors that are used alongside blacks, greys and whites. The Buddha on the mountain is flawless. The bronze statue is hollow inside and you can enter the museum that has been built inside of it. Big tapestries tell the legend of Buddha. The museum also holds a relic, believed to be a piece of Buddha’s bone. Inside, the monks keep dropping to their knees to pray and worship. The monastery offers a vegetarian lunch. I haven’t eaten sine my single sandwich at breakfast and I decide to go for it. I get served a large portion (half a pot) of rice, three spring rolls, a big bowl of soup and two plates of different vegetables. It is way too much to finish on my own but it is delicious.

When I plan on going down the mountain, I also have to take a bus. There are two options, either going back to Tung Chung directly, or taking a minor detour with a sop in Tai O. I pick the latter because Tai O is one of Hong Kong’s remaining few fisher villages. Although I might encounter similar villages in my later travels through Asia, I don’t want to miss out on the opportunity of seeing a village built on poles. I would love to learn more about this village and I have so many questions. Why has this village not become part of the massive city of Hong Kong yet? Is that just a matter of time? How do the fishermen live? If the village expands, then how? Do the children stay or do they go to school somewhere close, or further away? And do the children work on the boats with their parents? Fining answers turns out to be impossible. No-one in the village speaks English, except for a couple of boat owners that try to sell me a 30 HKD (about 3 euro’s) dolphin tour. The few tourists that managed to find Tai O all take his offer. Tiny boats filled with white tourists travel up and down the bay. I don’t want to know what it would look like on the sea, with so many boats near the dolphins and undoubtedly any regulations, so I reject. I explore the village on my own. It is significantly poorer than the densely populated area in Hong Kong. It leaves a whole different impression than the rich temples and skyscrapers earlier that day.

New Territories

I spend the late afternoon in New Territories, the northern part of Hong Kong. I roam through the shopping street, Nathan Road and drag myself over an endless street market where people try to sell me souvenirs, clothing, electronics and other cheap stuff. As the sun sets over the city I head towards the coast to see the skyline. Unfortunately, the sundown is not as impressive as I had hoped because it’s cloudy. I then walk through Kowloon park, where they have flamingo’s. I am starting to feel tired because of my jetlag. Relaxing in the coolness of the park, which is said to be five degrees Celsius less hot than the rest of the city, is a good way to spend the last hour of the afternoon.

At eight I am supposed to meet with Ishan, one of my MSU friends, at the Star Ferry Pier. When I get there, I guess ten minutes in advance, it’s already super crowded. People flood the pier and the square next to it and all try to catch a glimpse of the water. I am trying to reach Ishan over the public Wi-Fi, but quickly learn that he either doesn’t have Wi-Fi or cellular internet. At eight precisely a light show starts. The buildings on the other side of the water are being lit up on the rhythm of music. I forget about finding Ishan and focus on the show. I love good architecture and have spent years doing lighting and sound design for my high school’s theatre productions. The show combines the best of both, I couldn’t be happier. My feet tap on the beat of the music and I see how the light on the buildings does the same. I am fully endorsed in the different rhythms when I feel my phone vibrate in my pocket. Incoming call from Ishan it says. We quickly agree where to meet and see each other two minutes later. It turned out we were watching the show on two different sides of the pier and it was so crowded that it’s no wonder we didn’t find each other sooner.

We take the Ferry back to Hong Kong Island. I love being on the water and for five minutes I feel more liberated than I have felt all day. Ishan says he wants to take me out for dinner to a Nepalese restaurant that is hidden in some building on the seventh floor. Not legal, he explains, but the food is delicious. When we get to the building we ride the elevator to level seven, which is nothing but a shady hallway. It doesn’t look like there’s a restaurant here at all. Ishan proceeds to knock on a door, but no-one answers. So, we have to find another place. We end up in a kebab restaurant. It’s cheap, and not too much, because I’m still full after that big lunch at the monastery although it feels like that was days ago. A bunch later Ishan’s girlfriend and a friend of hers join us. After talking about MSU for a bit, we have finished our food. The streets have flooded with people that are going out. The night life in Hong Kong is said to be amazing, and apparently it already starts around dinner time. Ishan asks me if I’m up for partying, but I am so exhausted that I can barely walk any further, so I decide to go back to my hostel. I have to be at the reception desk at 6:30 in the morning to head to the airport, to continue my trip in Tokyo. The 36-hour adventure in Hong Kong has come to an end. It was amazing.

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