Destini in NIPPON '09 | Day 3-6
Jul. 10th, 2009 12:13 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sakuraiMonday was Emily's first day in school. We woke up early to go back to Shibuya to get our prepaid phones.
"We don't have any right now."
"...haa?"
So I asked her to write a note to take to the other Softbank Store because I'm still getting in the groove of speaking Japanese ALL THE TIME again. I.E. I'm rusty! So she does.
We take it to the other Softbank store. Read: the WRONG Softbank store. Who knew Shibuya had like 4,000 RANDOM SOFTBANK STORES. The guy in the wrong Softbank store leads us to the correct one mentioned in the note. So, we go there.
"We don't have any."
"But they called earlier and you said you did."
She goes to check.
"We only have one."
So...Emily takes it! Which, you know, WHATEVER. We're friends. I'd be lying though if I said I wasn't like, "AWWW MAN!!!"
It's fine though, we got her a phone so at least if we're together and are in danger, then yeah. Then we head towards her school. I look at the address and it's not exactly in Shinjuku, it's in Okubo. So we get off at Okubo Stn.
And then, nothing.
I don't know that area at all! However while walking I see...
BIG BAAAAAANG everywhere!
And Tohoshinki but um. W'ever.
Okubo is apparently K-Town! Interesting discovery.
But I digress.
We're walking aimlessly to find UNITAS Language School. I ask the people in the conbini.
Nothing. They lead me to a koban (police box).
I ask him. He tells us, "MAAAASUGU DOWN THS STREET AND TURN ON THE MAIN ROAD AND THEN KEEP WALKING AND YEAH HAVE FUN."
...
So we "have fun." I have fun while in my adorable Chucks.
CHUCKS THAT CAUSE BLISTERS.
By the time we find it, I'm limping. To make matters worse, earlier, I (thought I) lost my SUICA. So Emily heads of to school and Ol' Gimpychan (Read: Me) wanders into the Book Off across the street from her school. Naturally and aim straight for the Arashi sector.
Couldn't find it. o_o
In my discouragement, I run into Koakuma Ageha magazines. 150Yen! So I buy the 2 listed at 150Yen, as well as the most recent issue they had.
So then I decide to get on a bus and ride into nowhere! My thought process was, "I'm bored and can't walk so I'll get on the bus and ride back and forth a few times!" Not how it happened.
What did happen was, I rode the first bus and got told it was the last stop, so I got off. Then, crossed the street and got on the bus that I ASSUMED was going the opposite way. Oh, it went opposite alright.
OPPOSITE TO MY WISHES!
I don't even know where I was headed! So, I decide to get off at the next stop with a familiar sounding name - Iidabashi.
So I'm in Iidabashi - aimless. I decide to buy a coffee and the actual most recent Ageha (Koakuma Ageha Count: 4) and sit it out inside their little cafe area.
I'm pretty sure I'm being stared at (Look at her hair. O_O kind of stare.) To add, I'm looking at my face and the mirror and realize that while I decided to "go natural" today, I left on a huge area of caked on foundation on my forehead/eyebrow area!
So I'm like, "NYAAAAA!!!" and run to buy some Biore makeup cleansing wipes, and run outside and into a phone booth to furiously clean it off my face.
At this point, I'm in pain, tired, have to pee, and have no idea how to get back to where I was. So I get on a train in Iidabashi, and try to head back to the Okubo area. I'm back there but leave the wrong exit so I see nothing familiar! Not that I was "familiar" with the area anyhow!
All I see is Korean and keep thinking, "I'm in Japan darnit! WHAT IS THIS MADNESS?!" So I'm walking, and walking and run into a Don Quixote (a large shopping extravaganza in Japan). I'm instantly like, "Yes! Maybe I can find some cheap shoes!"
Know what Don Quixote said?
"No you can't!"
Okay, 3,900 Yen really isn't expensive, IF YOU HAVE IT.
I didn't have it! So alas, I was stuck in my painful shoes. Good news was they had a bathroom. So although shoeless, my bladder is intact.
So I leave Don Quixote and I walk some more.
And some more and...what do you know. I walked ALL THE WAY TO KABUKICHOU.
I MEAN WHO DOES THAT?!
WHO?
I'm just feeling insane at this point! So I ask a cab to get me back to Shin-Okubo Stn. Nice guy, by the way. I keep trying to find a internet cafe so I can e-mail Emily and tell her to just meet me in front of Shin Okubo. Well, I finally found one and it's the WORST MANGAKISA EVER.
No it's not dirty. It's not..what, expensive.
IT'S FULL OF NAKED CHICKS!
To make matters worse, they're ON THE WALLS WITH THEIR NINNES HANGING OUT.
Think that's bad?
THEY SELL LUBE AT THE FRONT COUNTER.
So I'm just like, "AHHHHHH FML I JUST WANT TO SEND AN EMAIL!"
I paid 1,000 Yen for a thirty minute session what I wouldn't have even needed if Shibuya Softbank Store #3,999 would've had my phone! However, I sent the email and caught up with some others and went on my way. I didn't see Emily waiting so I decided to walk up and see if I'd run into her. And I did.
She told me that Salwa called and wanted to hang out 'cause it's her last night in Tokyo. Even though I was in pain, I'm no jerk. I can go home and change~ I wanted to hang out with her.
So we went home together and go to Ikebukuro Stn. We got to Ikebukuro Stn. TOGETHER.
I look around, there's no Emily.
THE CROWD OF PEOPLE SEPERATED US IN 5 SECONDS.
Completely lost, vanished, no sign of her.
So I'm freaking out big time. I can't find her, I don't have a phone to call her, AND I'm like on Level 3 Japanese here. NOT VERY HELPFUL.
I looked and looked and then I went through the Seibu line gates and asked the Station Office to help me. So they do, but they can't call it out in English.
Uhh.
So an announcement of, "Emily Chanmanivong, Destini Johnson's looking for you."
Is made.
In Japanese.
USELESS.
So I'm waiting and waiting and nothing. I get ready to tell the guy, "Don't worry about it, I'm just going to head home," when my Blackberry beeps.
It's Emily.
She's home safe.
O_O
And I don't get mad, I'm like relieved! But I'm tired and need to change my shoes urgently. So I change and we head to Mejiro to meet up with Salwa, Gwendy, and two of Salwa's Japanese guy friends.
It was a nice izakaya too~ Everyone laughed and we finally got some Arashi lovin' done.
Then Salwa was like, "Why don't you guys come to the hotel room and we'll watch Arashi no Shukudai-kun together!"
So we did and it was a lot of fun~ Then we just sat around laughing and chatting. The next thing I know, it's morning and we got ready to leave and said our goodbyes to Salwa. We headed home and Emily got ready for school while I messed around on my PC for the day. When she came home, we went grocery shopping.
Wednesday, I met up with my friend from Aibaka and I met her at NYCC, Maria. We met in Shibuya and ate curry. Then we went to Harajuku to the Johnny's Shop. I bought some shop photos of Sho and one of Ohmiya for Emily and of Aiba for Doomchan. Then we went to the KDDI Building!
They have a HUGE theater setup where you can watch all of Arashi's au CM's! It was so fun.
Then we walked upstairs where you can find a HUGE au phone model....SIGNED BY ARASHI! It's so cool! I'll edit this with what each member said because I can't remember at the moment.
Then then! We were looking at Shun Oguri's au add (where he kept changing and stuff) and were all, "He's a pretty woman~" and we're pretty much like "Blah blah Arashi, blah blah Shun, blah blah yay!" and the lady asks us, "Do you like Arashi?" (in Japanese)
Us: YEAH!
And we talk to her about Arashi for a bit and find out she likes Jun! LOL So after that, we leave and I head home.
Today, all I did was hang out online. I got a bit restless, so I left. Besides, it's not good to stay inside all day. In you know. A foreign country you've never seen all of. So I head out and look around Higashi-Nagasaki a bit.
I'm walking.
And some o-mise boy, who's SUPPOSED TO BE GETTING CUSTOMERS AND SUCH.
Says, "Chou kirei! Ii na..." TO ME.
NANDEYANEN OMAE.
WHAT IS THIS MADNESS?
I AM NOT CHOU KIREI.
>.> Janky O-mise Guy.
DO YOUR JOB.
So I'm like, *laughs* *walks away* *blegh face*
Then I find this neat drug store 'cause I felt my head starting to hurt. Oddly enough, once I walked in and started looking, my head stopped hurting. That also might be because aspirin was crazy expensive.
I did find some face wash though and caramel macchiato mix. Trip not wasted!
Then I head home and bs'd on the computer a bit more until Emily came home. We cooked dinner and then watched Himitsu no Arashichan!
No spoilers from me. ;)
YAAAAY SHO!!!!!
>.>
Tomorrow, we're going to 1) Try and get me a phone and 2) Try anf buy those Strangers on a Train butai tickets I saw!!! :D
"We don't have any right now."
"...haa?"
So I asked her to write a note to take to the other Softbank Store because I'm still getting in the groove of speaking Japanese ALL THE TIME again. I.E. I'm rusty! So she does.
We take it to the other Softbank store. Read: the WRONG Softbank store. Who knew Shibuya had like 4,000 RANDOM SOFTBANK STORES. The guy in the wrong Softbank store leads us to the correct one mentioned in the note. So, we go there.
"We don't have any."
"But they called earlier and you said you did."
She goes to check.
"We only have one."
So...Emily takes it! Which, you know, WHATEVER. We're friends. I'd be lying though if I said I wasn't like, "AWWW MAN!!!"
It's fine though, we got her a phone so at least if we're together and are in danger, then yeah. Then we head towards her school. I look at the address and it's not exactly in Shinjuku, it's in Okubo. So we get off at Okubo Stn.
And then, nothing.
I don't know that area at all! However while walking I see...
BIG BAAAAAANG everywhere!
And Tohoshinki but um. W'ever.
Okubo is apparently K-Town! Interesting discovery.
But I digress.
We're walking aimlessly to find UNITAS Language School. I ask the people in the conbini.
Nothing. They lead me to a koban (police box).
I ask him. He tells us, "MAAAASUGU DOWN THS STREET AND TURN ON THE MAIN ROAD AND THEN KEEP WALKING AND YEAH HAVE FUN."
...
So we "have fun." I have fun while in my adorable Chucks.
CHUCKS THAT CAUSE BLISTERS.
By the time we find it, I'm limping. To make matters worse, earlier, I (thought I) lost my SUICA. So Emily heads of to school and Ol' Gimpychan (Read: Me) wanders into the Book Off across the street from her school. Naturally and aim straight for the Arashi sector.
Couldn't find it. o_o
In my discouragement, I run into Koakuma Ageha magazines. 150Yen! So I buy the 2 listed at 150Yen, as well as the most recent issue they had.
So then I decide to get on a bus and ride into nowhere! My thought process was, "I'm bored and can't walk so I'll get on the bus and ride back and forth a few times!" Not how it happened.
What did happen was, I rode the first bus and got told it was the last stop, so I got off. Then, crossed the street and got on the bus that I ASSUMED was going the opposite way. Oh, it went opposite alright.
OPPOSITE TO MY WISHES!
I don't even know where I was headed! So, I decide to get off at the next stop with a familiar sounding name - Iidabashi.
So I'm in Iidabashi - aimless. I decide to buy a coffee and the actual most recent Ageha (Koakuma Ageha Count: 4) and sit it out inside their little cafe area.
I'm pretty sure I'm being stared at (Look at her hair. O_O kind of stare.) To add, I'm looking at my face and the mirror and realize that while I decided to "go natural" today, I left on a huge area of caked on foundation on my forehead/eyebrow area!
So I'm like, "NYAAAAA!!!" and run to buy some Biore makeup cleansing wipes, and run outside and into a phone booth to furiously clean it off my face.
At this point, I'm in pain, tired, have to pee, and have no idea how to get back to where I was. So I get on a train in Iidabashi, and try to head back to the Okubo area. I'm back there but leave the wrong exit so I see nothing familiar! Not that I was "familiar" with the area anyhow!
All I see is Korean and keep thinking, "I'm in Japan darnit! WHAT IS THIS MADNESS?!" So I'm walking, and walking and run into a Don Quixote (a large shopping extravaganza in Japan). I'm instantly like, "Yes! Maybe I can find some cheap shoes!"
Know what Don Quixote said?
"No you can't!"
Okay, 3,900 Yen really isn't expensive, IF YOU HAVE IT.
I didn't have it! So alas, I was stuck in my painful shoes. Good news was they had a bathroom. So although shoeless, my bladder is intact.
So I leave Don Quixote and I walk some more.
And some more and...what do you know. I walked ALL THE WAY TO KABUKICHOU.
I MEAN WHO DOES THAT?!
WHO?
I'm just feeling insane at this point! So I ask a cab to get me back to Shin-Okubo Stn. Nice guy, by the way. I keep trying to find a internet cafe so I can e-mail Emily and tell her to just meet me in front of Shin Okubo. Well, I finally found one and it's the WORST MANGAKISA EVER.
No it's not dirty. It's not..what, expensive.
IT'S FULL OF NAKED CHICKS!
To make matters worse, they're ON THE WALLS WITH THEIR NINNES HANGING OUT.
Think that's bad?
THEY SELL LUBE AT THE FRONT COUNTER.
So I'm just like, "AHHHHHH FML I JUST WANT TO SEND AN EMAIL!"
I paid 1,000 Yen for a thirty minute session what I wouldn't have even needed if Shibuya Softbank Store #3,999 would've had my phone! However, I sent the email and caught up with some others and went on my way. I didn't see Emily waiting so I decided to walk up and see if I'd run into her. And I did.
She told me that Salwa called and wanted to hang out 'cause it's her last night in Tokyo. Even though I was in pain, I'm no jerk. I can go home and change~ I wanted to hang out with her.
So we went home together and go to Ikebukuro Stn. We got to Ikebukuro Stn. TOGETHER.
I look around, there's no Emily.
THE CROWD OF PEOPLE SEPERATED US IN 5 SECONDS.
Completely lost, vanished, no sign of her.
So I'm freaking out big time. I can't find her, I don't have a phone to call her, AND I'm like on Level 3 Japanese here. NOT VERY HELPFUL.
I looked and looked and then I went through the Seibu line gates and asked the Station Office to help me. So they do, but they can't call it out in English.
Uhh.
So an announcement of, "Emily Chanmanivong, Destini Johnson's looking for you."
Is made.
In Japanese.
USELESS.
So I'm waiting and waiting and nothing. I get ready to tell the guy, "Don't worry about it, I'm just going to head home," when my Blackberry beeps.
It's Emily.
She's home safe.
O_O
And I don't get mad, I'm like relieved! But I'm tired and need to change my shoes urgently. So I change and we head to Mejiro to meet up with Salwa, Gwendy, and two of Salwa's Japanese guy friends.
It was a nice izakaya too~ Everyone laughed and we finally got some Arashi lovin' done.
Then Salwa was like, "Why don't you guys come to the hotel room and we'll watch Arashi no Shukudai-kun together!"
So we did and it was a lot of fun~ Then we just sat around laughing and chatting. The next thing I know, it's morning and we got ready to leave and said our goodbyes to Salwa. We headed home and Emily got ready for school while I messed around on my PC for the day. When she came home, we went grocery shopping.
Wednesday, I met up with my friend from Aibaka and I met her at NYCC, Maria. We met in Shibuya and ate curry. Then we went to Harajuku to the Johnny's Shop. I bought some shop photos of Sho and one of Ohmiya for Emily and of Aiba for Doomchan. Then we went to the KDDI Building!
They have a HUGE theater setup where you can watch all of Arashi's au CM's! It was so fun.
Then we walked upstairs where you can find a HUGE au phone model....SIGNED BY ARASHI! It's so cool! I'll edit this with what each member said because I can't remember at the moment.
Then then! We were looking at Shun Oguri's au add (where he kept changing and stuff) and were all, "He's a pretty woman~" and we're pretty much like "Blah blah Arashi, blah blah Shun, blah blah yay!" and the lady asks us, "Do you like Arashi?" (in Japanese)
Us: YEAH!
And we talk to her about Arashi for a bit and find out she likes Jun! LOL So after that, we leave and I head home.
Today, all I did was hang out online. I got a bit restless, so I left. Besides, it's not good to stay inside all day. In you know. A foreign country you've never seen all of. So I head out and look around Higashi-Nagasaki a bit.
I'm walking.
And some o-mise boy, who's SUPPOSED TO BE GETTING CUSTOMERS AND SUCH.
Says, "Chou kirei! Ii na..." TO ME.
NANDEYANEN OMAE.
WHAT IS THIS MADNESS?
I AM NOT CHOU KIREI.
>.> Janky O-mise Guy.
DO YOUR JOB.
So I'm like, *laughs* *walks away* *blegh face*
Then I find this neat drug store 'cause I felt my head starting to hurt. Oddly enough, once I walked in and started looking, my head stopped hurting. That also might be because aspirin was crazy expensive.
I did find some face wash though and caramel macchiato mix. Trip not wasted!
Then I head home and bs'd on the computer a bit more until Emily came home. We cooked dinner and then watched Himitsu no Arashichan!
No spoilers from me. ;)
>.>
Tomorrow, we're going to 1) Try and get me a phone and 2) Try anf buy those Strangers on a Train butai tickets I saw!!! :D
no subject
Date: 2009-07-09 03:42 pm (UTC)Good luck with the cellphone hunting, I will be seriously pissed at Softbank for the numerous times of not having pprepaid cellphones in stock
no subject
Date: 2009-07-09 04:11 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-07-09 04:22 pm (UTC)I would be freaking out like crazy if I suddenly ended up in an area I didn't know at all :DDD
no subject
Date: 2009-07-09 04:52 pm (UTC)IT SUCKS, DOESN'T IT.
Aw it sounds like fuuuuuun! <3
GOOD LUCK WITH THE TICKETS!
no subject
Date: 2009-07-09 05:36 pm (UTC)hope you get your phone!
no subject
Date: 2009-07-09 05:48 pm (UTC)It sound like fun tho.
I love getting lost. I've live in LA all my life as well as rode the bus all my life and Ive gotten lost 2 times...lol.
It sound like your having fun.
Good luck in getting the butai tickets and your phone!
(^_^)
no subject
Date: 2009-07-09 09:45 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-07-10 12:23 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-07-10 01:16 am (UTC)Anywho, don't forget to take mucho pictures! That way Sensei can see your travels. XDD
no subject
Date: 2009-07-10 03:25 am (UTC)The shows thing is the worst for me, so you totally have my sympathy there. Every trip -- every one -- no matter how comfy the shoes are back home, they end up hurting by the time I wear them a day in Japan. Maybe cuz in LA we drive everywhere, and in Japan walk, so they get the true test of worth. Oh well, I sort of expect it now anyway! Good luck with the phone. I'm rooting for you to get the damn thing!
no subject
Date: 2009-07-10 05:00 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-07-10 08:04 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-07-12 09:47 am (UTC)Glad you're having fun and that you ended up finding everything.
Question though... whats an o-mise boy? That's not a word I ever heard of