One more round
After an idyllic month in Fukue, I was apprehensive about heading back to the real world.
Thankfully, I had exciting things to look forward to, mainly reunions!
Originally, I had planned to take it slow on the way back to Tokyo from Goto, stopping at a few smaller places along the way. But plans, well … they change.
My cousin Doug and his family were vacationing in Japan. We had spoken previously about the possibility of meeting up, but it hadn’t looked like the dates or the locations would match up.
As luck would have it, things shifted on their end, and they would be getting as close as Kobe to me. So instead of a ferry back to Nagasaki, I took the longer eight-hour ferry to Fukuoka, then immediately hopped on the Shinkansen to Kobe. Even with the late hour of my arrival, we dove right into catching up, staying up well past everyone's bedtimes.
You know those times, where in the moment you’re really annoyed but months and years later become funny stories? Yeah, that was our next morning. We attempted to find a locker to stash our luggage for the day while we explored Kobe. Turned out it was a holiday in Japan, so literally every locker was already taken. As time passed, we became grumpy in our futile attempt to locate a vacant locker. Eventually, we gave up, stopped for a coffee and a bite to eat. As the hanger faded, the jokes began to flow. We strolled Kobe, luggage in tow, until we came across a relaxing park. We parked ourselves and proceeded to enjoy both highballs and conversation, as the sun faded into the evening.
Family is a funny construct. Doug and I had been close as kids, our two families spending many vacations and holiday weekends together. But as time went on, we invariably drifted, pulled by both time and distance. Yet, familiarity and comfort always remain. I noted this immediately the first evening. At this point, I’m used to being solo, far from family. Yet I found myself overwhelmed with the emotion of comfort that family provides. I’m so happy and grateful that we both took the opportunity to meet up, even if ever so briefly.
With our day together wrapped up, I headed to another rendezvous with another long-lost friend. Mami was one of my father’s students at Pacific. Beyond that, she was one of his prize students, the ones with whom he connected and formed a deeper bond. I had met Mami even before I started attending Pacific, and she was one of my first friends on campus. In fact, my very first college party was at her house off campus on the first weekend of my freshman year.
Much like my reunion with Kaku, almost 30 years have passed since we last saw each other, and yet, it felt natural and comfortable. Always a good sign of real friendship. We relaxed at her place with her partner, Nobu, for a bit before heading out for dinner at their local spot.
They were kind enough to accommodate me for several days. Mami grew up in Kobe, so it was super fun to wander the city seeing her hometown. We walked through parks where she played as a child, past schools she attended and bars she has drunk at for decades.
Alas, after several wonderful days, it was time to move on. I made a very bold decision to skip Kyoto altogether. Some will say that’s insane, and perhaps it was. I’m not a big fan of crowds, and Kyoto might be the queen of crowds, so I was sort of trying to avoid them. Sounds ideal in principle, my execution, however, wasn’t without flaws.
I chose instead to go to Nara, the spiritual birthplace of Japan, and home to the famed Nara deer. As you can probably guess by now … it was crowded. DOH! Such is life. So I set about doing my best to avoid everyone. Worst place to start? Nara Park, let’s go there!
Approaching the park, one thing is in abundance ... the deer! The docility of the deer cannot be overstated. They are so completely used to humans that I even found them inside the underground metro station.
The further up the mountain I traveled, the more deer there were … and the fewer the people! The park and mountainside are an amazing collection of temples and shrines. Some tucked into the forest, others had views of the valley below.
Two nights were enough to explore the park and the city, so I was back on the train. Destination Tokyo.
Back in familiar environs, I quickly fell back into familiar routines. Long metro rides to far-flung neighborhoods in search of delicious single-origin coffees.
And it’s in that space that I met my coffee nerd twin, Ed. Another coffee nerd asking questions about elevation and processing style to baristas in broken Japanese. The two of us together were a dangerous pairing, each encouraging the other to have “one more cup.” Mornings became afternoons, as coffee shops blurred together.
Ed also shared my affection for cocktails, and he had found an interesting bar to check out. There is a growing trend for “audio listening bars” around Japan. The bar he wanted to check out was one of the first and noted to be one of the best. But strange rules they did have. No photos, and more crucially … no talking! You sit and simply listen to the music. The draw is the ultra-high-quality audio equipment that the music plays on.
Strange yet intriguing, we agreed to go for one drink, just to see what the hype was all about. The assumption was that it would be weird and not enjoyable to sit, listen to music and drink as if you were solo. We arrived at opening, found a spot at the bar and ordered a cocktail.
I judge a bar’s worthiness based on its ability to make the classics well. My Manhattan was flawless. The music selection was excellent as well. Relaxed jazz and the vocals of Ella, Billie and Dinah. The vibes were high, so we ordered another round. The Sazerac was equally on point, and the music had moved into the realm of 60s California dreaminess. The Beach Boys, the Mamas and Papas, and others … all sounds my father loved. I lifted my glass silently towards the heavens.
Such were the DJs’ curated deep cuts that we found ourselves compelled to order another round, wanting, ne needing, to hear what she would spin next. As my neat pour of Buffalo Trace arrived, the music moved into an era I remember vividly. Eighties pop, hair metal and hip hop were woven seamlessly together.
As we walked through the quiet Tokyo streets on the way to the metro, we both concluded that it was quite the experience. We were only told to be quiet twice, which for me is pretty impressive. The music was amazing, the sound system impeccable, the cocktails perfectly executed. Bar Martha is worth a visit if you find yourself in the Ebisu area in Tokyo.
With my days dwindling, I had one last mission to complete. I needed to see Kaku one last time. After 30 years, spending only a few hours together wasn’t enough. On my last afternoon in the country, I took the train back down to Yokohama, the hour-long ride more than worth it.
We grabbed drinks and bites at a couple of different izakayas and talked as old friends do. This one goal alone, to see him after all these years, was enough to mark my trip to Japan a complete success.
Yet, after three months on its islands, Japan had so easily ingrained itself in my heart. It went from mere success to the top of the list of places I love in this world.
I arrived on its shores with an anticipation and excitement I had not had in quite some time. Expectations might have been higher than in any other place I’ve traveled. Yet Japan smashed those expectations at every turn. The natural beauty, the metropolises, the history, the traditions, the people, the food, the coffee, everything better than I ever imagined.
Outside of Italy, no other country has filled my heart and soul so fully with love and joy. Even now, all these months later, as I write this, I get chills thinking about all the joyous moments I experienced in my 90 days in the land of the rising sun.
Once again, it was time to move on, my visa hours from expiry … yet, I didn’t know where I was going. As is becoming more and more frequent, I had left my decision of the next location to the last possible moment.