I still dont have a camera so you will just have to make do with my powers of description for now. The past week has mainly consisted of orientation after orientation. I have lost count of the number of forms that I have filled in, it seems that here in japan every part of student life comes with a registration form and questinairre. You even have to apply to have a party at my halls, needless to say its not the most exciting place in Tokyo but its clean and modern (I think they were trying for a prison meets spaceship theme).
I spent the weekend exploring nearby Shinjuku, one of the busier districts of Tokyo full of restaurants and izakayas (japanese pubs). So far my most common pass-time is "guess the food" which involves pointing at random foods on the menu and then eating whatever turns up. No food poisoning thus far but I cant say im a fan of the gooey green mess that I later found out was grilled aubergene, harmless enough but I didnt know that at the time! I also met up with some students from Edinburgh who are staying in Japanese all-male halls. They told me horror stories of drink till you puke induction ceremonies and 6 am wake up calls followed by 4km runs. Seems my prison-ship isnt so bad after all.
On Sunday some students from Waseda organised a guided tour of certain areas of Tokyo. My group visited Harajuku which consisted of a variety of weird clothes shops and even weirder people. Basically camden market with the circus in town. No doubt you will have seen pictures of Japanese teenagers dressed up in weird costumes and gothic make-up. Well this is where they hang out every Sunday much to the amusement of tourists and locals alike. From there we visited Yoyogi park which is more of a forrest than a park. The folliage towers above stoney paths blocking out the noise of the city providing brief respite from the chaos of the urban sprawl.
A party had been planned in the evening but as we finished before the other groups I got to experience my first taste of Japanese karaoke. The variety on offer was astounding, as one girl was singing her favourite disney song I found the entire Pantera back catalogue was on offer. Somehow I managed to resist the temptation of ripping into my Phil Anselmo impression and played it safe with the Clash. Unfortunately this being the birthplace of karaoke everyone seems to be a pro and I quickly realised that I was way out of my league. I put my lack lustre performance down to my sobriety, although that was about to be obliterated by my introduction to nomihoudai or "all you can drink".
Here are the rules: 2500Yen (about 12 quid), a two hour time limit and as much drink and food as you can consume within said time limit. It soon became evident that I can only drink at Weatherspoons speed which is much much faster than you should drink when 1) the drinks are free and 2) they keep on coming. Anyway it seemed to impress some nearby Japanese guys who had heard the legends of the English drinker, so I started showing off. It seems my Tescos vodka and Iron Bru training has served me well, I managed to get through a number of japanese spirits and I even remember leaving the establishment. But I have no recollection of how I got from there back to my bed, nor do I remember any of the random Americans that I seem to have enthusiastically introduced myself to. But my final memory of that night still haunts me now. All that I can recall is a feeling of euphatic relief that the sick being fought over by a number of well-fed rats was someone elses. I returned home triumphant, god bless the Crown and all who drink in her!
