Some would say that traveling in a foreign country by ones self is a daunting task but add a metropolis, language barrier, mass transit, no communications, lack of internet, and two 50 pound pieces of luggage to the mix and we've got ourselves a situation just ready for something disastrous to happen. Fortunately for me I've had the experience of using the transit system in Tokyo the previous year, memorized the maps and stations I would use, plotted the best route to take based on memory and a determination to get to the apartment to see my wife. Yes, I make it and here is the tale of how I did it with some lessons learned and fun thoughts.
Sitting on the plane bound for Tokyo Haneda airport, the passengers are roused from their slumber three hours prior to landing for meal services. As we prepare ourselves for landing I memorize the maps of Tokyo and subway routes one last time. Using my iPad 2, I pre-cached google maps, downloaded Go Tokyo transit app and plotted the best route according to google and what I could see. Unfortunately google in all it's awesome plotting power doesn't take int account some subtle nuances that would have made my journey much easier.
Here is a picture of the Japanese transit system.
As you can see, I had to get from Narita to Motohasunuma. According to google, my best options were to take the JR line to Hamamasucho, transfer to the Yamamoto JR line to Yurakucho and walk over to Hibiya subway station and take the Mita line all the way to Motohasunuma. Sounds easy right?
I you want to see what true crazy is, here's a
link to the full transit map of Tokyo.
We landed half an hour early in Narita. It was 4:30 and I was eager to get my bags and get on my way. One thing to note here is that the immigration process going into Japan is such an efficient process, it takes a matter of minutes to go through immigration. All you do is hand the attendant your form, smile at the camera and place your fingers on the fingerprint pads and you are on your merry way.
First important tip when traveling the public transit system. YOU MUST GET A SUICA CARD. A suica card is a god send when it comes to riding the trains and subway system in Japan. It is a charge card where you can load $$$ on it and it automatically calculates your fare based on where you go. Normally you would have to read the map, determine where you are going, put in the correct amount into the machine and buy a ticket. If you guess wrong you lose your extra money, if you guess less, the gates will close and you will have to make an adjustment before the gates will let you out. You will also disrupt the efficient flow of people making a many busy Japanese commuters disgruntled at the Gaijin who has stopped the flow of traffic (thought they would never let you know they were upset (and more than likely one would come up and help you be more efficient.)) If you want to save a few $$$ you will need to calculate transfers but sometimes you mess up and even though you added the transfer fare, the machine will take your ticket away thinking you were just stupid and put extra money in.
The SUICA card is a godsend because it does all those calculations for you. First you go to the machine with a SUICA symbol, select that you want to purchase a card. A new feature they added this year is an ability to personalize the card with your name adding the ability to retrieve lost cards (for a fee) and any remaining funds. 2,000 yen is necessary to activate the card which 500 of is used as a deposit and is refunded with the return of the card. Once you have the card, you can place it in your wallet since it used RFID and can sense your card through the wallet. Just walk up to the gate, place it on the lighted spot and off you go to your train.
Once I got my Suica card I decided to take the Monorail instead based on a recommendation by some Japanese Americans. 5 AM, waiting for the 5:12 monorail to Hamamasucho, a direct run to that destination. Immediately I was hit by the humidity and even though it was such an early time, I could start to feel the change in the weather. Getting to the station was a breeze and changing from the monorail was easy with escalators a definitive path. I just needed to decide to take the Yamamoto line at platform 2 heading towards Tokyo and Ueno. Two stops later I was at Hibiya and this is where the fun begins.
According to the map the Hibiya station was a short walk away and connected to the station. Boy was I wrong. I exited the station to find myself on the streets of Hamamasucho. With no signs to guide me I whip out my iPad and set it to find the correction direction to walk. Identifying the proper street I head in the direction of the station After navigating three streets I finally find a sign pointing to the station around the corner. As I turn the corner I find that it was just stairs leading into the depths of the earth. Having the need to move two roller bags, I had to find an alternative solution and fortunately there was a elevator 100 feet away. The elevator took me part of the way down into the station and I had to walk quite a distance to get to the subway gates only to find more stairs. By the time I finally make it to the platform I've navigated three stairs taking my bags one at at time up and down and had an old lady pass me during the process. This lengthy excursion could have been avoided now that I know how to read the map. I would have taken an alternative route, one that takes me farther than this direct route but provides me with escalators.
Now on the Mita line I am on a direct route to Motohasunuma, 30 minutes away. It was a smooth ride and at this hour 6 AM, the morning commuters started their day and the subway car started to fill. Sitting there I analyzed the map and decided on a better route for the way back since we will have more luggage with us. At my destination I was greeted with an elevator to the street level and proceeded to make my way to Sakura House.
At Sakura House I was greeted with my arch nemesis, stairs, three flights of them. After moving my bags for the last time up the flight of stairs, it is not 7:15, the sun is up, the air is humid and I'm ready to see my wife and take a shower.
Here's my first Video-Blog post of my adventure, taking video memos as I travel.
Please comment on this post. I appreciate all feedback.
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