It's a wrap!

You know when you come home from a vacation or you've been gone for a longer time? Does it feel like it was all a dream? Maybe it's the jet lag but it feels like I dreamt the whole thing. Was I really in Japan for 3 weeks?

As many of you know, my return on Air Canada was quite the fail. From when I left Kyoto to when I got home, it took 45 hours. I took the Shinkansen Bullet Train from Kyoto to Tokyo Station early because I wanted to make sure I had enough time to get to the Narita Express. Tokyo Station is massive with more than 3000 trains going in and out each day. It has all of these areas and levels and I'm glad I had the time to figure out where the hell I was going. I then took another amazing train straight to Narita Airport. All went smoothly!

Got to the airport relatively early to mail some postcards and return my pocket wi-fi system I had used the entire 3 weeks. I totally recommend anyone getting one of these when they travel abroad instead of hunting down public wi-fi. It worked perfectly and cost me less than $100 for the entire trip.

Picked up a few little things like sake flavored Kit Kat bars (yup, that is a flavor) and found out my flight was delayed. I had a 2 1/2 hour layover in Vancouver so I felt pretty confident that I'd still get there in time. Since I had that extra time, I indulged in my last meal in Japan. My first meal was sushi and my last meal was sushi. When in Japan....

So much for positive thinking...the flight kept getting more and more delayed and we eventually left 90 minutes later  Then the pilot informed us that there were no favorable tailwinds so the flight would be just over 9 hours (instead of 8 1/2). Oh boy...that long layover has now become a fingers crossed layover.

The night before I had upgraded to premium economy for less than $200 so I knew I'd have a bit more space and a more comfy 9 hour flight. There were only 4 people in the entire section! I had the entire row to myself! I felt pretty good about staying positive about this return home. If it begins this way, I believe I'll make that next flight.

Landed in Vancouver with about 30 minutes to spare. We were connected to terminal workers who checked on our connections and I was told where I had to go. They suggested I run because the flight was already boarding. My old and tired body did run but I had to go through customs, security, and another checkpoint before I finally got to the gate. Sweet Mother of Pearl!!! I got there right when they were calling final boarding. Yes!!!

I gave the woman my boarding pass and she said they couldn't let me board the flight because my flight had been changed. "Why?" "Air Canada thought you wouldn't get to the gate in time so they rebooked your flights." "But I'm here and I have another connection in Toronto." "I'm sorry ma'am. You might be here but your luggage will not make the flight in time." "I don't care about that. I am staying in Boston one night before I head up to Maine so I can pick it up in the morning." "I'm sorry ma'am but you are no longer a passenger on this flight so we can't let you board." WTF!!!  Nothing like an airline changing your flight when you're in midair and the Wi-Fi system wasn't working on the flight from Tokyo so I wouldn't have known of any changes.

Damn it!

I went down to customer service where I had to wait in line and found out I was scheduled for the next flight to Montreal and then the last flight to Boston. Okay! I've got this. Schlepped to the new gate and guess what happened?! Yup, you're right. The flight was delayed. Are you f*%#ing kidding me?!

Landed in Montreal just in time to miss the last flight to Boston. I had to go to the luggage station because I had to take my bags with me. They were already checked in to go to Boston but since I was staying the night, I had to pick up my bags and recheck them in the morning. Great!

I waited at the luggage carousel for 45 minutes until I was the last person there. When the carousel stopped, I had to trudge all the way back to the service area where they informed me that my bags were already checked in to Boston and that they wouldn't have my bags for me.

Now I had to find Air Canada customer service so they could get me a hotel room for the night. When  I got upstairs I saw this line. It's hard to tell from the photo but there were well over 100 people waiting in line to rebook missed flights and/or get a room for the night.

This was the line 90 minutes later.

I was in line almost 2 hours and at that point I had been traveling for 30 hours with maybe 1 hour of light dozing on the flight from Tokyo. When the representative told me they had a room for me in downtown Montreal (which is about 15-20 minutes away), I almost cried. The rep next to her must have seen my face because she informed my rep that they had one more room at the Marriott that is attached to the airport. She also asked me about my luggage. I told her what had happened and when she checked, she informed me that my luggage was still in Vancouver. What a shit show!

Well, there was nothing I could do about it. I told her I would deal with it in the morning. Got my room, got my meal vouchers and walked the entire length of the airport from literally one extreme end to the other to get to the hotel. At this point it was midnight and I had an 8:50 flight in the morning. I checked in and when I got to my floor, I realized that my room was the absolute last room down this ridiculously long hallway. I started laughing. Remind you of The Shining?

I got to my room, took a quick shower and fell immediately asleep until I woke in a panic at 4:00. Dreamt that I had missed my flight and my bags were nowhere to be found. There was no going back to sleep. Got up, had a good French Canadian breakfast and made my way to the airport to make sure my luggage was where it was supposed to be. Look how empty the airport was at 6:20!

Checked in and informed the person that my luggage was MIA. After about 30 minutes, she informed me that they had found my luggage and I had to go downstairs to retrieve it. No joke, more calls, most trudging through the airport and finally I was reunited with my two bags. Yippee!!

Back upstairs to check-in my bags and finally, FINALLY, made it to my gate with 15 minutes to spare. Thank goodness I got to the airport over 2 hours before my flight boarded. That flight, my friends, was actually on time. 

My daughter picked me up at Logan and drove me the 2 hours back to Portland. Hello home, 45 hours later!

Flights to and from Tokyo were not the best, to put it lightly, but sandwiched in between were three incredible weeks of learning, meeting new people, seeing incredible sites, eating great food and fulfilling a lifelong dream.

A few things I learned about Japan along the way:

• Take public transportation....everything is so efficient and clean (even the public bathrooms). When they say the bus will be there at 7:33, it is there at 7:33.
• Japanese bathrooms are amazing. Why don't we use bidet's in the states? I wasn't a fan of the heated toilet seats but overall even the restrooms at tourist sites are clean. 
• The Japanese love mayo. They even have sushi made with corn and mayo. 
  
• Be punctual! As Professor Takahasi mentioned during our first day, the Japanese people don't do "ish". There is no 11ish or 3ish. If it begins at 11, you get there at 10:50.
• There is so much standing! You stand for the bus. You stand for the train. You stand eating sushi or drinking a beer. It's exhausting!
• Even with the millions of people around you, it's actually pretty quiet. There is no talking on the trains or buses, even if it's packed. Drivers rarely honk their horns. Even bicyclists don't ring their bell to get around you. Lots of people but not much noise pollution.
• You walk everywhere and there is different etiquette depending on where you are. For example, you stand on different sides on an escalator. In Tokyo you stand on the left and pass on the right. In Osaka and Kyoto, it's the opposite. Don't cross the road when the walk light is red, even if there is no traffic. You wait! And don't play chicken and think anyone will move out of the way, especially a Japanese man. In general, they won't move out of the way to make room for you., at least that was my experience.
• Trash cans are only in select areas like at a train station (and even then they can be hard to find). You are expected to take your trash with you and get rid of it at a 7-Eleven or wait until to get back to the hotel. What's incredible is how clean it is. You really don't find trash on the streets.
• Everywhere in Japan are bumpy paths along sidewalks, walkways, etc. It's called tactile paving and it's for those who are blind or have vision impairment. It helps with navigating streets, sidewalks, intersections, train platforms etc. They can feel the texture of the lines so they can follow the path and even tell when to turn left or right. It's not easy when trying to roll luggage around but what a great idea!
  
• The Japanese people are so gracious and kind. They are polite, a bit formal, hard-working and friendly. It's a collective society (unlike the individualistic society in the states) so there is a strong belief in the greater good. That's why it's quiet on trains...you respect the space and experience of others around you. There is a strong belief in group harmony. 

If you ever have an opportunity to visit Japan, do it! It is truly one of the most incredible places to visit. The trip there and back, not a fan. My time in Japan....priceless! Thanks for joining me along the way. Sayonara Japan!!!