Tokyo, March 22
Door: Yaru
Blijf op de hoogte en volg Yaru
22 Maart 2020 | Japan, Tokio
1:14AM JST - “A day with an unexpected twist”
Hey there~ Yes I’m writing and uploading quite late. We did a live stream on Instagram this evening and it went on till pretty long so I felt like relaxing before writing this log but then it became quite late hahahhhaa well anyway I want to stay true to uploading everyday so that’s what I will do. We’re getting closer to the end of our trip and I am not going to stop now XD
Well for today we actually planned a chill day so I didn’t expect to be writing much but oh boy am I wrong because I’ve got something to tell you.
We woke up way too late haahahhaa should’ve actually gotten out if bed bit earlier but yeah it was about 11:30AM when we crawled out of bed and 1:30PM when we left the hotel. We went to Eggs ‘N things again, the Hawaiian themed restaurant! And ordered the big strawberry pancakes! It was so delicious but so so much hahaha. We got like 4-5 pancakes who were stacked and in between those they had put slices of strawberry and custard. On top was mascarpone cream and strawberries and on the side was strawberry sauce and a BIG mountain of whipped cream. That was crazy hahah but super delicious! A great Lunch XD We were so full and almost felt sick because of it hahahha but so worth it.
The weather was, as we had seen on the forecast, super nice and warm. It was 23°C but luckily there were a few clouds so the sun wasn’t as strong as normal. Otherwise it would feel a lot warmer than 23°C. We planned to go to Yoyogi park again to chill there. We had bought a volleyball to bring with us and took our books and some snacks with us to maybe hold a picknick. It was pretty busy with a lot of people also just relaxing on mats and a lot of people strolling by. The park is very big so it wasn’t a problem finding a nice open spot to both play and sit in.
We played some volleyball and there was a bit of wind going by so we didn’t get too hot hahaha. It was all fine and calm. There was also this really cute small dog who was running loose and came to greet us many times. He/She was adorable!!
Well here starts the real story XD. We had been in the park for about an hour and a half or so and then this Japanese man came up to us and asked us in English ‘Do you know if this is Yoyogi park or do we have to walk further’ and we responded ‘oh yes this is already Yoyogi park, you’re already here!’ Then he started a conversation with us, asking where we came from etc. and suddenly asked ‘is it okay if we come and sit with you guys and have drink?’ And we both thought ‘We??’ Turned out there were 3 other guys a bit behind us waiting or something. Sounds sketchy I know but we were put on the spot and said ‘yeah sure I guess’
So yeah that’s how 4 boys joined us in the park. They all looked quite young in my opinion (spoiler alert: they weren’t) We thought like begin or mid-twenties but we were wrong haha. They had alcohol and snacks with them and said that if we wanted to drink we could grab stuff from theirs. Considering we aren’t a legal age to drink in Japan (Legal age is 20) we declined politely and just drank our own water.
Mase, the only guy who spoke decent english was the oldest, he was 32. Then you had Suichi; 30, Yuhei; 27 or something and the youngest Muneaki was 23, the only boy a bit in our age range. We all introduced ourselves and stuff and we tried to talk a bit which was fairly difficult since no one could really understand each other except for Mase. We couldn’t speak Japanese, they couldn’t speak English and only Mase could speak both, he is an English teacher. Okay, chitchatted a bit and then they said they were good in volleyball and we played some volleyball with them. It was all just uhhh yeah a bit strange. We knew there were a lot of cherry blossoms blooming further into the park and we asked if they wanted to see them. They agreed and we walked towards it but then suddenly Mase was gone??? The only English speaking guy left us alone with people who couldn’t speak english? Yuhei had left by then so it was only Suichi and Muneaki.
What was also strange is that half of the boys didn’t even know each other?? They had just met today they said!?! Suichi and Mase were ex-coworkers but Yuhei and Muneaki were both just complete strangers to everyone. That was also very weird. Also Mase said he had lived in Tokyo for 6 years so like him asking us where Yoyogi park was is weird... He definitely knew this was the park already but yeah... an Ice breaker I think. Anyway we took some pictures at the cherry blossoms and we even took a Polaroid with them XD I look horrible on it, I look like a ghost because the flash was too close hahaha. Whatever, we went back to the place we wete before and suddenly we met up with Mase again. I don’t know where he had gone off to previously but he was back again. So yeah that was weird, awkward and such an experience but the story’s not over :,)
I actually wanted to go and visit the Meiji Jingu shrine which was located just next to Yoyogi park but, mind you, it was already a quarter past 5 by then and the shrine would close around 6 ‘o clock. We had spent like a good hour with them. They walked with us to the shrines’ entrance but it was already closed when we arrived so we all awkwardly stood there in front of the entrance.
It was almost 6 ‘o clock by then and Jo-Anne and I had actually planned to go to a Conveyor belt sushi restaurant. We had already eaten Ramen the past 3 days and we really wanted something else. We didn’t exactly know what the boys wanted from us. If they were going to eat on their own, if they expected we’d eat with them it was all just so confusing. They were talking in Japanese and we were discussing what we should do in Dutch and then Mase asked if we wanted to eat Ramen. We honestly didn’t feel like it so in the beginning we said ‘no not really’ but then we stood there awkwardly again, not saying a thing so in the end we agreed to it and went to a ramen place.
Jo-Anne and I said to each other ‘If we’re going into a shady alley or something we RUN for it’ XD That didn’t happen though. We arrived at the ramen place and we had to order through a vending machine again. Muneaki was actually really sweet and wanted to pay for our food but we really didn’t want him to :,) Didn’t want to scam that poor boy so we paid for our own food (which wasn’t expensive at all by the way) Well we got our food and we started eating. Man do Japanese people eat Ramen fast and hot. We got our bowls first and they were super hot, we had to wait for a bit until we could properly eat but damn Muneaki, Suichi and Mase just went for it after their bowls were placed in front of them.
Mase had probably already drunk alcohol before he met us because once finished with his ramen he sat at the table and just looked really sick. Jo-Anne said he had taken some pills which looked like paracetamol before eating?? And suichi was waiting in line for the toilet so it was only us and Muneaki. He was actually really kind, he actually tried to talk to us with his broken english and was all in all pretty sweet. If we talked slowly and used easy words he could understand us and we would try to answer back with words he knew hahaha. We actually learned a bit of Japanese culture from him.
I also took a picture of them at the restaurant hahaha So from left to right you have Muneaki, Suichi and Mase.
So we were done eating and Mase who had gone outside to clear his head since he had such a headache from drinking had disappeared again? So it was just Suichi and Muneaki and us two again :,) It was like a quarter past 6 or so and we just strolled around Shibuya. Jo-Anne and I really had thought they would leave us after we left Yoyogi park yet here we were, just had dinner with 3 random strangers and now strolling around town. It was such a weird and mentally draining experience. We had thought today would be a chill day and just all in all relaxing with a nice sushi dinner. (R.I.P our sushi). Instead it had become to this. Well we went into some stores and in the end found Mase again. He was pretty sick from the alcohol I think and was in a smoking room. We didn’t go in but Suichi did. Poor him though, Mase had just left all his stuff at the restaurant when we left and suichi had to carry that around the whole time. Honestly a shit friend if you ask me. But once again we were left with Muneaki and we really wanted to just go back to the hotel. We didn’t know what they wanted from us, money? Friends? English experience? I don’t know man but it was 7 ‘o clock by then and it had been like 3,5H by then and we just were done. So we politely thanked Muneaki for today but said we really should go back to our hotel now. I felt kind of bad for him because he was the only one who actually tried to talk to us and teach us some stuff because Yuhei was gone after like the first 30min, Mase kept abandoning us and then reappearing again and Suichi didn’t say shit. He was I think just really shy or something but that didn’t help with this situation XD
I don’t know how sketchy this sounds but we have no clue what happened either to he honest. We really didn’t expect this day to turn out like this and once we had come back to the hotel we both were just drained :,) What was supposed to be a chill day became a somewhat weird experience. It wasn’t particularly bad, they were kind and we got off harmless but it wasn’t a super fun thing either hahaha. In all it was just so confusing. We didn’t know what they wanted from us and while they were kind it was just difficult because o the language barrier.
Well... we’re safe in the hotel haha so no worries. We got off safe and sound. For tomorrow we want to go to the Tokyo Starbucks Roastary which is the biggest starbucks in the world.
I’m going to sleep now. Took an hour to write this so it’s pretty late here now. Was a full day. Definitely going to be one of the highlights of our trip hahaha If that’s positive that’s not decided yet.
Byebye!
- Yaru
Hey there~ Yes I’m writing and uploading quite late. We did a live stream on Instagram this evening and it went on till pretty long so I felt like relaxing before writing this log but then it became quite late hahahhhaa well anyway I want to stay true to uploading everyday so that’s what I will do. We’re getting closer to the end of our trip and I am not going to stop now XD
Well for today we actually planned a chill day so I didn’t expect to be writing much but oh boy am I wrong because I’ve got something to tell you.
We woke up way too late haahahhaa should’ve actually gotten out if bed bit earlier but yeah it was about 11:30AM when we crawled out of bed and 1:30PM when we left the hotel. We went to Eggs ‘N things again, the Hawaiian themed restaurant! And ordered the big strawberry pancakes! It was so delicious but so so much hahaha. We got like 4-5 pancakes who were stacked and in between those they had put slices of strawberry and custard. On top was mascarpone cream and strawberries and on the side was strawberry sauce and a BIG mountain of whipped cream. That was crazy hahah but super delicious! A great Lunch XD We were so full and almost felt sick because of it hahahha but so worth it.
The weather was, as we had seen on the forecast, super nice and warm. It was 23°C but luckily there were a few clouds so the sun wasn’t as strong as normal. Otherwise it would feel a lot warmer than 23°C. We planned to go to Yoyogi park again to chill there. We had bought a volleyball to bring with us and took our books and some snacks with us to maybe hold a picknick. It was pretty busy with a lot of people also just relaxing on mats and a lot of people strolling by. The park is very big so it wasn’t a problem finding a nice open spot to both play and sit in.
We played some volleyball and there was a bit of wind going by so we didn’t get too hot hahaha. It was all fine and calm. There was also this really cute small dog who was running loose and came to greet us many times. He/She was adorable!!
Well here starts the real story XD. We had been in the park for about an hour and a half or so and then this Japanese man came up to us and asked us in English ‘Do you know if this is Yoyogi park or do we have to walk further’ and we responded ‘oh yes this is already Yoyogi park, you’re already here!’ Then he started a conversation with us, asking where we came from etc. and suddenly asked ‘is it okay if we come and sit with you guys and have drink?’ And we both thought ‘We??’ Turned out there were 3 other guys a bit behind us waiting or something. Sounds sketchy I know but we were put on the spot and said ‘yeah sure I guess’
So yeah that’s how 4 boys joined us in the park. They all looked quite young in my opinion (spoiler alert: they weren’t) We thought like begin or mid-twenties but we were wrong haha. They had alcohol and snacks with them and said that if we wanted to drink we could grab stuff from theirs. Considering we aren’t a legal age to drink in Japan (Legal age is 20) we declined politely and just drank our own water.
Mase, the only guy who spoke decent english was the oldest, he was 32. Then you had Suichi; 30, Yuhei; 27 or something and the youngest Muneaki was 23, the only boy a bit in our age range. We all introduced ourselves and stuff and we tried to talk a bit which was fairly difficult since no one could really understand each other except for Mase. We couldn’t speak Japanese, they couldn’t speak English and only Mase could speak both, he is an English teacher. Okay, chitchatted a bit and then they said they were good in volleyball and we played some volleyball with them. It was all just uhhh yeah a bit strange. We knew there were a lot of cherry blossoms blooming further into the park and we asked if they wanted to see them. They agreed and we walked towards it but then suddenly Mase was gone??? The only English speaking guy left us alone with people who couldn’t speak english? Yuhei had left by then so it was only Suichi and Muneaki.
What was also strange is that half of the boys didn’t even know each other?? They had just met today they said!?! Suichi and Mase were ex-coworkers but Yuhei and Muneaki were both just complete strangers to everyone. That was also very weird. Also Mase said he had lived in Tokyo for 6 years so like him asking us where Yoyogi park was is weird... He definitely knew this was the park already but yeah... an Ice breaker I think. Anyway we took some pictures at the cherry blossoms and we even took a Polaroid with them XD I look horrible on it, I look like a ghost because the flash was too close hahaha. Whatever, we went back to the place we wete before and suddenly we met up with Mase again. I don’t know where he had gone off to previously but he was back again. So yeah that was weird, awkward and such an experience but the story’s not over :,)
I actually wanted to go and visit the Meiji Jingu shrine which was located just next to Yoyogi park but, mind you, it was already a quarter past 5 by then and the shrine would close around 6 ‘o clock. We had spent like a good hour with them. They walked with us to the shrines’ entrance but it was already closed when we arrived so we all awkwardly stood there in front of the entrance.
It was almost 6 ‘o clock by then and Jo-Anne and I had actually planned to go to a Conveyor belt sushi restaurant. We had already eaten Ramen the past 3 days and we really wanted something else. We didn’t exactly know what the boys wanted from us. If they were going to eat on their own, if they expected we’d eat with them it was all just so confusing. They were talking in Japanese and we were discussing what we should do in Dutch and then Mase asked if we wanted to eat Ramen. We honestly didn’t feel like it so in the beginning we said ‘no not really’ but then we stood there awkwardly again, not saying a thing so in the end we agreed to it and went to a ramen place.
Jo-Anne and I said to each other ‘If we’re going into a shady alley or something we RUN for it’ XD That didn’t happen though. We arrived at the ramen place and we had to order through a vending machine again. Muneaki was actually really sweet and wanted to pay for our food but we really didn’t want him to :,) Didn’t want to scam that poor boy so we paid for our own food (which wasn’t expensive at all by the way) Well we got our food and we started eating. Man do Japanese people eat Ramen fast and hot. We got our bowls first and they were super hot, we had to wait for a bit until we could properly eat but damn Muneaki, Suichi and Mase just went for it after their bowls were placed in front of them.
Mase had probably already drunk alcohol before he met us because once finished with his ramen he sat at the table and just looked really sick. Jo-Anne said he had taken some pills which looked like paracetamol before eating?? And suichi was waiting in line for the toilet so it was only us and Muneaki. He was actually really kind, he actually tried to talk to us with his broken english and was all in all pretty sweet. If we talked slowly and used easy words he could understand us and we would try to answer back with words he knew hahaha. We actually learned a bit of Japanese culture from him.
I also took a picture of them at the restaurant hahaha So from left to right you have Muneaki, Suichi and Mase.
So we were done eating and Mase who had gone outside to clear his head since he had such a headache from drinking had disappeared again? So it was just Suichi and Muneaki and us two again :,) It was like a quarter past 6 or so and we just strolled around Shibuya. Jo-Anne and I really had thought they would leave us after we left Yoyogi park yet here we were, just had dinner with 3 random strangers and now strolling around town. It was such a weird and mentally draining experience. We had thought today would be a chill day and just all in all relaxing with a nice sushi dinner. (R.I.P our sushi). Instead it had become to this. Well we went into some stores and in the end found Mase again. He was pretty sick from the alcohol I think and was in a smoking room. We didn’t go in but Suichi did. Poor him though, Mase had just left all his stuff at the restaurant when we left and suichi had to carry that around the whole time. Honestly a shit friend if you ask me. But once again we were left with Muneaki and we really wanted to just go back to the hotel. We didn’t know what they wanted from us, money? Friends? English experience? I don’t know man but it was 7 ‘o clock by then and it had been like 3,5H by then and we just were done. So we politely thanked Muneaki for today but said we really should go back to our hotel now. I felt kind of bad for him because he was the only one who actually tried to talk to us and teach us some stuff because Yuhei was gone after like the first 30min, Mase kept abandoning us and then reappearing again and Suichi didn’t say shit. He was I think just really shy or something but that didn’t help with this situation XD
I don’t know how sketchy this sounds but we have no clue what happened either to he honest. We really didn’t expect this day to turn out like this and once we had come back to the hotel we both were just drained :,) What was supposed to be a chill day became a somewhat weird experience. It wasn’t particularly bad, they were kind and we got off harmless but it wasn’t a super fun thing either hahaha. In all it was just so confusing. We didn’t know what they wanted from us and while they were kind it was just difficult because o the language barrier.
Well... we’re safe in the hotel haha so no worries. We got off safe and sound. For tomorrow we want to go to the Tokyo Starbucks Roastary which is the biggest starbucks in the world.
I’m going to sleep now. Took an hour to write this so it’s pretty late here now. Was a full day. Definitely going to be one of the highlights of our trip hahaha If that’s positive that’s not decided yet.
Byebye!
- Yaru
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