After a flight that truly flew by (though not serving the 2nd meal service until about 9 hours into the flight was a devious move by Hawaiian), I landed at Narita airport around 4:45pm local time. I knew this airport was further away from the city center than the other one, Haneda- but I wasn't expecting 50 miles away! Fortunately, the train system here rules, and it takes as long to get from Narita to Shibuya (about 75 mins) as it does for me to get from my house to SeaTac airport- a mere 18 miles away, but with transit at much lower speed.
On the Ground
Thanks to some tips from friends before traveling, I had already gone through my customs/immigration form process before leaving the US and had the coveted QR code that allows quicker entry into the country. Before I knew it, I was in Japan!
While in line for customs, I looked into the train options to get into town, landing on the Narita Express. I reserved a seat for both trips (today, and back to the airport at the end of my time here), and figured that was that. Turns out there was a little more to it than that.
Thinking I had oodles of time, I popped into my first 7-Eleven and the rumors are true- these (and other convenience stores- namely Lawson's) have legit GOOD food. Nothing against burnt taquitos and roller jalapeno dogs, but I'll take a $1 onigiri or $3 sushi rolls (among many many other fresh packaged food options) any day of the week. And that's exactly what I did after a quick ATM visit- inspired in part by the rows of Gashapon toy vending machines conveniently outside the 7-Eleven. I quickly bought a few and realized these things are a dangerous gamble. Luckily, most of the prizes weren't particularly appealing, to the relief of my jangling pocket full of yen coins.
Finding the Train
After stocking up on a couple onigiri (mayo/tuna, and mayo/shrimp) for the train, I made my way to the JR vending machine to print my tickets. I managed to navigate the intimidatingly expansive menus (thank you, English language option), but the machine instructed me to see a counter attendant. With about 10 minutes until the train's arrival. Suddenly, I realized all the time I spent carefully inspecting the vending machines in the previous corridor was quite possibly going to come back to bite me- but I still had time.
I hustled over to the JR customer service office, which was unfortunately fairly crowded. I confirmed with an attendant that yes I had tickets reserved, but they just weren't printed- he noticed I only had a few minutes so he quickly looked around and then abandoned his post, marching over quickly to the machine again with me. I pulled up the confirmation email and lo and behold, I had failed to scan a little QR code at the bottom. Once that was taken care of, out shot 4 tiny, indecipherable ticket stubs- my keys to the city! I thanked the man and hustled over to the turnstile and down to the tracks with a couple minutes to spare.
Arrival in Shibuya
Prior to this trip, I knew nothing of Shibuya other than its famous Crossing, or “Scramble”, and that it has lights (formerly neon, now overwhelmingly LED) akin to Times Square and is allegedly the world's busiest intersection. But even beyond this area, I did not know just how BUSTLING it is! Like New York City in some ways for sure, but with so many pedestrian overpasses, escalators, sky bridges, and elevated roads. Humanity in all directions- and I was arriving during the very tail end of commute time, around 7:30 by the time I got to the station.
Arriving at Shibuya Station, I popped out inside an ultra-modern shopping complex, Shibuya Stream. I assumed I was relatively close to the infamous Shibuya Crossing, so decided to route my walk to the hostel so that I would pass through. It took a bit of navigational skill- Google Maps is somewhat less straightforward when you're navigating multiple layers of walkways- but eventually made it there. It was really fun observing- and then joining- the waves of excited pedestrians crossing the intersection in all directions every few minutes when the signals changed. For a Tuesday night, it was quite bustling (not a shocker). Very cool to see it nearly immediately.
Feeling simultaneously energized and ready for a break, I finished making my way to the hostel. It's quite nice- small, but smartly designed with a vibey little lobby/common area and quiet, calm corridors for the “pods”- a little copier than some of the old school ones I've seen photos of which look a little more like cheap sci-fi “hypersleep chamber” props and less like a nice place to rest. But small size aside, this one is quite modern and cozy- with a powered bed that coverts from a couch-like position into a lay flat mattress. Funny feature: the pod is powered by an iPad control, and the alarm can be either an alarm (boooo)- or the light slowly turning on, and the mattress rising up a few inches towards “couch” mode every minute. Can confirm: very effective.
I sorted out my belongings, did some check-in chatting on my phone, and decided to take a quick 30 min nap before grabbing a late dinner nearby around 10pm- and maybe even a vinyl bar! However, once I laid down I realized it's a marathon, not a race- and that if I went to sleep now (at a “normal” time in Japan time) then I'd likely wake up on local schedule and ready to go. So, I decided to call it a night. I guess crossing an ocean and then a 50 mile train journey to get here is plenty for one day.