Tokyo

The Tokyo skyline, seen from my hotel window. The view was
panoramic; this is only a partial shot.

I only had two days here, having squeezed it in between planned stops in Hong Kong and Australia. I've always wanted to come here – as someone who loves cities, Tokyo has is a dream destination of mine – and it did not let me down. What an incredible place! The flight over was good, really enjoyed Cathay’s food and service on the four hour hop and we arrived bang on time. I got an ‘Airport Limousine’ (read: coach) to the hotel, as it drops you off directly there and takes the same amount of time as the train, but with less hassle. It took me 2 hours to get from exiting customs to my hotel room.

And what an amazing hotel it is. A 40-storey megalith overlooking the world-famous Shibuya junction, I had an utterly most jaw-dropping view over the whole of Tokyo from the 33rd floor. A true 5-star hotel with incredibly comfortable and well-appointed rooms, and great service to boot. Concierge was very knowledgeable and helpful. It’s also literally a 2 minute walk to the Arup office – the place even has its own 7-11!

Taken from the coach on the way in from the airport - gasp!

I had an ‘interesting’ experience at customs. I got to the green channel, handed my form over and was asked some questions about where I had come from, how long in Tokyo etc ("It's all there on my form" I was thinking...). I told him I was there on business, and he asked if it was my first time and I said yes. Anyway, expecting to be waved through, he then asked me to open my bag. I complied and he gave it a very quick search, having seen it was only clothes etc. When I was locking it up again he spotted the Cathay Pacific 'Business Class - Priority' tag and became very apologetic, saying "Ah Business, sorry, I didn't see". Gave me the impression he hadn't believed me when I said I was there on business – maybe I need to dress smarter for my flights in future! Tokyo has instantly become my absolute favourite city on Earth, and I say that even as someone who could barely find something to eat there (more on that later). The journey in on the coach was interesting of itself – the roads here are like roller coasters for cars, operating on up to four levels (yes levels, not lanes) at once; ducking, diving and twisting both around themselves and the surrounding buildings. And it’s dense – completely, consistently and unrelentingly dense. A few green lungs punctuate the concrete and train lines weave between, under, over and through buildings like veins carrying fresh oxygen all over this massive conurbation, but the urban rhythm remains unbroken as far as the eye can see, in all directions.

Shibuya crossing in action

Navigation is aided by bilingual signage in most places, but I still managed to spend most of my time walking around lost. This was OK as it’s another way to see more of the city. I was helped no end by incredibly polite Japanese who were always happy to offer directions using a combination of Japanese, English, sign language and patience. My main day of sightseeing was accompanied by a constant, unwavering downpour that somehow failed to ruin my fun, such was my delight at just being able to experience this enthralling place first-hand. Tokyo isn’t one city but an amalgamation of 14 that have spread into each other. It’s hard to say that many of them have their own distinct character. Shopping is the main pastime here, in what’s probably the most commercial city on Earth. It’s a great place to pick up little knick-knacks – pointless tat that is somehow made cool just by virtue of being Japanese. And I totally joined in – it was fun browsing the weird and wonderful stuff available, and made for easy souvenir shopping. The electronics shops here are something to behold – cacophonies of noise, lights and endless rows of products. I sampled two separate 3D TV products (and remain to be convinced), and saw loads of other cool gadgets and doo-dads that never made their way over to the UK.

A typical Tokyo electronics store - sensory overload
spread over 6 levels!

I was determined to try as much ‘Japanese’ stuff as I could – video game arcades, vending machines, shopping, food, travel, language etc. It was a lot of fun, because unlike many places in the world, ultra-commercial Tokyo surprisingly doesn’t feel like it’s been sterilised by global corporations and their bland brand standards. And whit still has the feel of a very different culture, and the people are so friendly it feels accessible to even a total outsider like me. Food was a challenge. I was determined to overcome my failure with chopsticks (and partially succeeded), and moreover to banish my mental block when it comes to eating proper sushi (i.e. raw fish). Again, I only partially succeeded here with some varieties proving just a bit too ‘squidgy’ for my brain to compute. Vegetarianism doesn’t really exist as a concept here (similarly to China) so it’s easy to find that an apparently 'safe' dish contains hidden animal fats. Added to my aversion to raw fish, this made life a little difficult. I was very fortunate one night to stumble across a halal Indian/Pakistani restaurant where the food was surprisingly delicious – a real treat in the middle of a long trip away from home.

Plastic food models are used outside restaurants in place of menus,
and they're scarily realistic.

Visiting the office was a real pleasure, and I was very glad Yoshi and Teppei were able to make time for me at such short notice. I was taken for a sushi lunch by Yoshi (must... stretch... boundaries...) where we had a chat about work, Japan and culture. There are about 70 people in Arup here, and we've been established for about 20 years. It always feels like visiting family when you’re in an Arup office abroad; there’s a reassuringly similar atmosphere.

Teppei, Yoshi and I in the Tokyo office.

OK, I’ve gone on enough about Tokyo. I feel like I’ve left loads of stuff out (techno-toilets, navigating the transport systems, the Turkish mosque that tricks you into thinking you're in the heart of Istanbul, youth culture, history...), there’s so much to say about this place. But onwards to Melbourne, and a return to a world I’m more familiar with.