What’s the first thing you eat when you get back from a trip out of the country? I got Fatburger.
At about 7 a.m. we woke up. We were up until almost 1. I was packing while Diamond was catching up with the rest of the world. We walked down to the nearby noodle house for breakfast then checked out.
We boarded a shuttle bus that took us back to Narita Airport. I stayed up and saw everything I could see while Diamond took a quick nap. Since Diamond was flying to Taiwan after Tokyo, he had to get off at a different terminal. I thanked him for the invitation to travel with him.
I was now on my own. I was dropped off at my terminal and saw how long the line for Korean Air was and knew I wouldn’t be getting much rest before the flight. After waiting in line after line after line, I finally made it to my gate. I still had some yen left over so I went to the airport McDonald’s, yes I did, and spent it all.
… I boarded the plane at 3 p.m. on Friday in Tokyo. Within an hour of take off the sun was gone and I had to just sit there for the next nine hours. I had a window seat and couldn’t move around much. I did get to see “The Dark Knight” so that was nice.
Every now and then I would open the window shade to see anything. All I could see was the light at the end of the wing.
At about 5:30 a.m PST they began serving breakfast and I opened the shade to see some land. By now we were flying over California near Monterey. It was about this time I stared to see land and I knew I was close to home.
As the sun continued to rise I was able to see more and finally recognize the skyline of Los Angeles and home.
… After getting my bags and passing through customs I was outside at 7 a.m., midnight back in Tokyo. I may never go up to Alaska to see the sun at midnight, but in a way I got to live it. I was picked up by a friend at the airport and went home.
Now, I’ve never flown out of the country, but when you come back and are tired and should be asleep because it was night time where you were, do the colors look dull? I’m just asking.
I picked up my car from another friend and drove myself home, where I preceded to drop my stuff and go to sleep. It was a good plan too until someone called my house phone at 10 a.m. I quickly went back to sleep.
… At 2 p.m. I woke up to go to work. Yup, the sports news waits for no one. I got to work at about 3:15 p.m. and realized that was 15 minutes after I left Tokyo on the same day. Ah, the International Dateline.
Work was work. I was tired at first but by the time I got to the end, the stress of the job kicked in and kept me up.
… So for the past couple hours since I’ve been home, doing laundry and thinking back. I mean I had plenty to do on Friday being that it was 40 hours long.
I’m so glad I was able to experience this trip despite my fears.
Food was one fear. While I did lose three pounds to put me under 210 for the first time in years, I will say that I always had plenty to eat. I never truly starved, but the portions are smaller in Japan. And I ate so much ramen. Plus we walked everywhere so that helped burn calories.
Communication was another fear. I’ve always considered myself a patient person. However, witnessing how much people were trying to help me in Tokyo, people who may not have known English and being patient enough to understand so they could help, was humbling.
Am I ready to be a world traveler? Yes and no. I do have an idea of where I want to go next. But it’s not a trip to Europe, or an island nation. Where I want to go is to see where my parents grew up in Mexico. I think I’m ready; I just need someone to guide me there.
I think it’s about time.
No comments:
Post a Comment