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hot day for getting lost

the journal of Michael Werneburg

twenty-seven years and one million words

Tokyo, 2005.07.18

I haven't been here long, but I've already seen a number of "Tokyo sights", like the old-fashioned small wooden houses, a girl wearing an informal version of a kimono, and drunken young fellow in a suit wearing his tie around his forehead in the prescribed fashion.

I've also mistaken mouthwash for soap while in the tiny washroom at a restaurant (they were both clear blue liquids in pump bottles, so the fault isn't as obvious as it sounds). And I've gotten lost in the maze of small winding one-way streets, despite the fact that I was a pedestrian and within sight of the massive tower where my hotel is.

I've also had extremely cheap sushi from a 'sushi train' style place in a heavily-trafficked alleyway (two of us ate for $21CAD) and even cheap quality bourbon (mmmm, Blanton's). And I now carry a hanky in the fashion of the Tokyoites (Tokyosiders? Tokyo-illians? Tokyonians?) for mopping my brow of sweat as I stumble about the streets.

This city is unusual in my experience for a number of reasons, but I'll quickly list two gimmes. First, there is no real downtown, here. Second, there doesn't seem to be much of a heirarchy to the local streets. That is, laneways don't necessarily feed into small streets which then feed into mid-sized streets which then feed into major streets. Instead, a given stretch of road might suddenly narrow or widen to take on greater volumes at any random point. So, a one-way alley might balloon into a two-way street mid-block, or at one of the countless five-way intersections. The sidewalks tend to be a bit ephemeral as well.

That's it for tonight - it's only 8:30 but I'm lagging bad.

Tomorrow I start work.

rand()m quote

Some people talk about living every day like it might be their last. Maybe that's good advice. Carpe diem and all that. But perhaps it's better to try to live every day like it might be everyone's last. If there are people in your life who are important to you, let them know...

—Mark Bedford (quote taken from posting to fray.com)