So I'm going to Japan next week...
I’m going to a remote island in Japan next week. I’ll spend a few hours in Tokyo on the way out and the way back, first at Narita and then at Haneda. My coworkers that have been to the island do not remember seeing any tea there at all, but I’m just assuming it is because they weren’t paying attention. The island is quite remote, but I know there is a convenience store there. Going to any other part of Japan from there involves a plane or hydrofoil, so that’s not going to happen. Any ideas about things to do or try, tea related or not?
On Youtube see GenkiJapan.Net the guy Richard there has lots of videos also on food & drink, travels around Japan. He might know this, just post and ask in his comments or email. He always answers all sorts of questions about Japan. Enjoy your travel and hope you get/find nice teas.
If you haven’t already posted on any of the numerous Japan travel/tourist forum websites, I’m pretty sure you’ll have a lot more luck there.
I assume you’ve googled, but tea is definitely grown on Tanegashima, see this blog post, for example:
Thanks for the replies everyone. Our Japanese coworkers know all the sights on the island (not a lot unfortunately) but I was just wondering if there was anything really cool around the airports I could do with my 4 hours or so there.
As you go from one airport to the other, make sure you go past Tokyo Disney. You can’t see much from the highway, but their main attraction is a ferris wheel. And it is ENORMOUS. Have your camera ready!
I don’t remember much from either airport (was only in the Narita airport long enough to pick up my baggage, and not a very long layover in the Haneda airport by the time we got there), but I did have some kind of fancy udon noodle soup in the Haneda airport. Best $5 ever spent in an airport. Not tea-related (though, they did sell green tea to go with your meal), but boy was that ever good. That’s where I learned how to use chopsticks. Not a word was exchanged between a Japanese businessman and I; he could see my frustration at not knowing how to use them and being forced into it within an hour and a half of being in the country. He put the chopsticks in my hands, showed me how to move them, and then I happily ate my bowl of noodles. Thank you, random Japanese businessman.
That was my first of many, many experiences with just how friendly complete strangers are in Japan. One rode the streetcar with us 3 stops past where he wanted to go because my friend Diana and I were lost in Hiroshima. Another lady helped us buy fish in a market because we couldn’t speak the language and so couldn’t get across how much we wanted. Apparently hand gestures are not universal. lol. And that’s not counting the many people that stopped to help us with directions on our map. Granted, we also couldn’t read the map so that was somewhat a lost cause. :D
Thanks for the advice. We do think we’ll have enough time to make it to Narita Town. My understanding has been people are very nice in the cities. I will see when I get there, but I’m going to be working most of the time. I think we have 3 days off in 4 weeks or something like that.
Jen M, that’s awesome! When I went, we had a 2 hour train ride (no washrooms, so no drinks!) and a drunk businessman challenged me and I had to eat a bunch of kombu. I was SO THIRSTY. :)
Oh, I was also challenged by a drunk businessman. In a ramen bar. To eat a whole bowl of that spicy red stuff that reminds me of Kimchee except more ouchie-burny. I knew right away I couldn’t do it, but my friend successfully did it. She said every time she farted for almost a day and a half it was like farting fire. Even drunk businessmen in Japan are fun!
There are a lot of restaurants and shops at Haneda Airport, It’s also a short train ride to central Tokyo, Shinagawa. If you have the time to make it to Ginza/Yurakucho on the Yamanote train line, there are lots of food stores and tea shops, both Western and Japanese, in the basement floors of department stores. Narita Airpot is on the outskirts of Tokyo, Chiba, and trying to get to Tokyo by train will take you over an hour.
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