A Very Nostalgic Day

On Sunday I had such an emotional rollercoaster of a day. It was amazing! I decided to go and visit my old house from last year in central Tokyo.

I left my guesthouse around mid-afternoon and took the Chuo-line all the way to Tokyo station, which takes about forty minutes, and then walked to Otemachi subway station (大手町駅), which is basically right next door. Unfortunately, the Hanzomon line (半蔵門線) is the furthest one from Tokyo station, so I had to walk for about fifteen minutes underground before I actually got to my platform, but it was lovely because I remembered every passageway. Every turn brought about a new bubbling feelings of nostalgia.

I was really really excited to see my old housemates and the area. As I took the subway the two stops to Suitengumae (水天宮前駅) I was trying really hard not to smile.

I took the exact route out of the station I always used to and as I walked out into the sun and walked past the police box on the corner and past the busy intersection, it felt so strange, but so lovely!

I rounded the corner and there it was! My old building.

I took the lift up to the second floor and knocked on the door. I heard a shout of "Hello" from my Chinese housemate and I opened the door. I can't write down how nice it was to see the place again, but take it from me that it was nice!

It felt exactly like last year sitting on the sofa and chatting about random things and looking around the living room. What struck me most was how everything looked the same! Almost nothing had changed, except for maybe the shower head!

All the post-it notes with English vocabulary and phrases I'd written were still up, and some notes my Thai housemate had written were still up too. I looked in my old cupboard and there were even packs of tea I hadn't used! The decaff pack that my family had brought out to me in the Spring was still there, and you can't find that easily in Japan, so I put them all in a bag and took them with me! My umbrella was also still in the rack, but I have a new fold-away one so I didn't steal that back.

I wanted to see inside my old room but there's a Vietnamese guy living there now, and although he seemed really nice, I felt it would be really rude to ask if I could have a look at it, so I let that pass.

We had a bit of time, because we were waiting for a French guy I lived with to arrive, and then we were going to a Monica Wu concert together.

We went for dinner in a restaurant I remembered was good from last time. The name is Don Don, which is very similar to my Chinese housemate's name, so I thought it would be fitting to go there. On the way, I asked if we could have a quick wander round the local area, for old times' sake.

We went to the river (the Sumida River, 隅田川), which is just one minutes' walk round the back of the guesthouse.

Then we walked past the Tokyo City Air Terminal, where I used to take the Airport Limousine Bus to Narita Airport. We went inside to see some of the shops, and I saw the restaurant where I had my 19th birthday breakfast with my family last year. That was such a nice time!

I had ramen with tempura (my favourite) for dinner, and we chatted more about what had happened since I left last August.

I rang my French housemate from the restaurant, and he said he'd be about thirty minutes, so we went for another walk.

We passed the local veg shop.

There's the Daimaru Peacock (the supermarket) tower, which you can see from all around.

Random statue in between Peacock and Hamacho Park.

I didn't see this last time I was here! It's a decibel counter; we tried clapping by it and the numbers went up immediately!

We went into Hamacho Park, which is right by the hotel my family stayed in, and the leisure centre where I used to swim sometimes.

You really can see Peacock tower from all around!

And here's the hotel...

Ahh, Peacock. You and your deals were so good to me.

On the way back to the guesthouse, we passed a group of women in traditional dress. It's the first time I've seen them this time round.

We met my French housemate and got back on the train, me waving goodbye to the building again, and went to Futako Tamagawa (二子玉川) on the Tokyu Denen Toshi line, which the Hanzomon line becomes after Shibuya.

I was worried we might be a bit late for the start of the concert, but we made it with a few minutes to spare.

It was easily the best performance I've seen Monica do. I can't remember how many concerts I've been to, but it's quite a few, and this one stood out above the rest. It might have been because I was in a really good, slightly dazed, mood, but she sang and danced really well, and I really enjoyed hearing her songs, including some new ones. Looking forward to the new album!

I was a bit worried I'd miss the last train, as I had to change at Shibuya and then at Shinjuku before getting on the Chuo-line back home, but it was fine and I made it in time.

I looked back over the day on the train, and I couldn't really believe it. The thing that struck me most was how everything was the same, not just with the guesthouse, but with my housemates. I'm really glad I'm living in Tokyo again and I can see them often. It's going to be a really good year!