I was very happy of course, to welcome him and show him around town.
As a tourist, he traveled Nagoya before coming to Tokyo.
Having asked me, I answered lightly "I've never been there."
I asked to myself if I was disappointed of that fact.
And the answer was surprisingly a negative.
No, I wasn't disappointed I'd never been to Nagoya.
After quite a thought though, I made a hypothesis about where my feelings were headed to at that moment in time.
I realized after years spent in Japan as a student, I forgot one of the factors why I decided to come to study in Japan in the first place; although maybe subconsciously.
The rich culture and tradition in every other prefecture might have been it.
The absence of a trip to the prefecture famous for their unagi or eel is of no bother to me.
In a smaller scale, I also realized after some time spent in Tokyo as a student, I forgot how I had actually been living in the biggest metropolis of Asia!
The absence of just enjoying the view or experiencing new things in big stations around Tokyo area is not, in the slightest, of any bother to me.
Being a tourist for the countless time in Tokyo, I came about rediscovering how the metropolis was an awesome region with unique city characteristics in almost every other station.
Those stations are well-connected though, through 3 major train companies; JR (Japan Railways), Tokyo Metro & Toei Subway.
I enjoyed Tokyo in a different way than I usually did.
I was a tourist in Tokyo.
A simple mindset change, yet that's all what jt takes, really.
To know how that switch could actually turn me into a far more grateful person was an amazing experience.
We went to enjoy Harajuku to just walk, chill and eat at Hanamaru Udon on the infamous Takeshita Street.
Went to the Meiji Shrine to experience the way the Japanese search for their inner peace once more.
Went to Yoyogi Park just to walk around and talk at one of the benches in its central area.
Went to Shibuya walking to get a view of the way's surroundings, ate some fresh sushi at Genki Sushi, crossed the Shibuya crossing and went to look the simplicity of quite a meaningful Hachiko statue.
For short, in those two days, I enjoyed Tokyo more than in the past year or so.
This would never happen, at least just by my own means, if I had been having a student's mindset.
Well, I'm just feeling grateful of Tokyo;)
