Getting Lost in Japan – ちょっと迷っています！

I should preface this by warning everyone that I am a huge nerd. I have World of Warcraft T-Shirts and spend lots of time in Japanese toy-stores looking at the pokemon toys. So recently, when I found a group of “Dungeons and Dragons” players in my area I was thrilled. However, I need dice to play D&D. So, at the recommendation of my co-worker (and soon to be brother in arms), Mike, I went to a gaming store in the nearby Sanjo district where I could obtain some dice.

So on Saturday after my Japanese tutoring lesson I set out cheerfully, without my contact lenses or my umbrella (the first an accident, the second hubris), to have an adventure...and an adventure I found! As soon as I left the subway station in Sanjo I saw that it was raining. Being an Oregonian and seeing that it was only a drizzle, I thought I would be just fine with my hooded jacket, so I set out. Unfortunately, the map Mike had drawn pictured the river running right through the subway station, when in reality the station was only on one side. Did I cross the river or continue away from it? I could have asked a passer-by, but not minding a bit of a wander I set out into the rain instead. 

 (I seem to have run out of city...)

(A persimmon tree hanging over a stream between two houses.  I also took a picture of the street just behind me, to give you an idea of what most of the walk looked like.)

About an hour later I ran out of road and surmised that, perhaps, I had gone the wrong direction. By then my clothes were getting soggy and I was very hungry. I retreated back the way I had come, and stopped to refuel and regroup at the McDonald's I had passed on my way out. In addition to a dry place to sit and eat fattening foods, McDonald's was also selling pokemon calendar's for 350 yen. I bought one.

(I will never grow up. Never.)

Refreshed, I set out yet again. This time I walked the other direction, and came upon the shopping district that Mike had told me about. It was pretty crazy! The sidewalks were jammed full of people and there were neon lights everywhere. Once again I went too far in the wrong direction and had to double back. Finally, after asking some street vendors where I could find the place, I headed up some sketchy looking stairs into the fourth floor of a building...and emerged into a brightly lit store full of Japanese gamers playing trading card games. 

The store “Yellow Submarine” sold mostly trading cards, but it also had dice and Dungeons and Dragons books (in Japanese). I explained that I wanted to buy dice, and after a long session of pointing and sharing confused looks I had a good selection...but when I got up to the cash register I found out that I had chosen the expensive dice, which were about 300 yen a piece. Usually I try to live frugally, but after tromping around in the rain for four hours (I'm not kidding) to find this place, I was going to buy the damn things. 2700 yen (about $30, again, not kidding) was a small price to pay to achieve my objective so I could pull my sorry butt home. On my way down the stairs, I noticed that my legs were cramping up, which gives you an idea of how much walking I had done.

I have drawn a small diagram to illustrate my route:

I think it was a worthwhile experience, even if I did get horribly lost. I found some new places, and certainly got my exercise!

(A cat cafe. Supposedly you go in and play with cats while drinking coffee. I would have been more interested, but it was crowded and expensive - $10 per half hour.)

 (The Japanese trains have coopted Thomas. He helps lost kids find a safe place to wait for their parents in the stations. Adam - your son might get a kick out of this.)

That's all for today. Coming soon – the first of many thoughts on studying Japanese.

-Andrew