Tokyo - just another metropolis?

When arriving at any new destination we take with us 'baggage' (and no, I do not mean the three suitcases of 'necessary' clothing and accessories PAB and I brought on this vacation); a city we have never before seen takes on an air of mystery and grandeur, fuelled by Hollywood, fiction and a general idea of what 'difference' looks like. Asia was (I can no longer say is), for me, the epitome of difference, the high point of travel when the traveller is plunged into something so unexpected and unusual that they lose touch with what had seemed familiar, easy and comfortable. The thing I expected, if anything, was to be shocked, to feel uncomfortable, to see the different variations that life takes in different spaces.

In the end, the only thing that shocked me was just how similar and comfortable Tokyo felt. While there were buildings and museums representing an architectural history much different to the Western world, the looming metal skyscrapers and crowded pavements, the silent subways where people try to discreetly avoid looking at one another, the McDonalds and Starbucks, the high fashion from France and Italy, all made me feel as if I was transported into another New York, London, Paris. The only difference between the lot being the timezone.

That being said, PAB and I were only in Tokyo for five days, five days in which we did very little outside of the usual tourist haunts. People who have lived in Tokyo or spent an extended, untourist, time there probably understand the nuances and cultural habits which make the city unique and would be appalled at my comparing it to Western metropolises.

However, once I got over my initial shock and slight disappointment at not finding unfamiliarity around every corner, I realized that people, whether in the East or West, are at heart the same. People who live in big cities feel annoyed when lost tourists block their entrance to the subway, and people who live in the countryside are usually willing to give you a little more of their time. People everywhere have the same basic drive for comfort, happiness, family, love, success. I set out looking for difference, but what I found instead is that similarity between all human beings that keeps us moving towards the same goals and ideals.

This is just a little musing on my initial thoughts when entering Tokyo; I didn't spend much time moping in the hotel on the lack of exoticism. PAB and I saw and did amazing things, and those stories are a 'coming attraction' which I will save for moments in my two upcoming weeks of essay writing when I will need distraction and an excuse to procrastinate :)