The streets of Shinjuku

I saw the city lights of Tokyo as the airplane began its final descent to Narita Airport.

Me and a colleague were invited to a press conference in Japan arriving very late on a balmy night. We were told that our hotel is in the Shinjuku district in downtown Tokyo, and is about half-an-hour away from the airport.

I had the chance to doze off a bit, after a boarding a chartered coaster to take us directly to the hotel.

Arriving in the hotel, the first thing I noticed are the neon lights, exactly as they appear on postcards and pictures. These neon lights are probably one of the most recognized and most iconic symbols of Japan.

After the press conference, there was very little time to go around downtown.

At the first opportunity, me and my colleague headed out of the hotel to try to enjoy the street sights, deciding to find our way to the nearest bookstore. It was a bit of a struggle though, because most street signs and road directions are written in Japanese.

We had to go to a convenience store to ask for directions.
A smiling store saleslady tried to help, and after a few exchanges through improvised sign language, we finally got our bearing.

The streets of Shinjuku display a mix of vibrant and lively colors, as people go about their business. It was a thrill to see first-hand the world-famous, and quite unique fashion sense that the Japanese have.

During the night, we had the good fortune of having a Japanese executive bring us to some nice restaurant slash bar in Shinjuku.

It was a five-minute walk to a rather lively street where rows and rows of restaurants are found.We finally found one. Our gracious Japanese host told us that he frequents the place.

The elevator opens directly to the modest restaurant. The interior was rather simple, with wooden tables and wooden chairs. But the place is bustling with activity, and was almost full of mostly Japanese office workers.

My hunch was these are the so-called Japanese ‘salary men’ enjoying an after-office drink or two, their white sleeves rolled up and their neckties untied.

We had peas in a pod for starters, and some deep-fried eel as appetizers.

As customary in Japan, we shared a few rounds of the famous Asahi beer and an accompanying bottle of warm sake.

One lesson I learned is that it is not polite to nurse your beer or chug it directly, because beer served on the table is meant to be shared.

From time to time, our gracious Japanese host had to check his laptop and use a Japanese-English translator as continued our nice chat about Japan and a bit about the Philippines.

It was only a very small ‘taste’ of Japan because my visit was very short, but Shinjuku will be always be one of the most memorable places I have ever been to.