Shinjuku, a bustling district, with the busiest subway in the world, was an interesting place to stay at for the first trip to Japan. We were in the airport bus to the hotel. Immediately upon arriving in the area, you could instantly notice a few aspects of the Japanese culture. Thousands of men and women, clad in suits and blazers swarmed the streets of Shinjuku, each perfectly dressed in near copies of the same outfits as they made their way to work. Every corner of the streets was spotless and cleaner than any city I had seen before.
On our first day in Tokyo, we stumbled upon a small restaurant for breakfast. Outside the restaurant, there was a machine where you place your order before entering the restaurant. Quite an interesting concept to foreigners. However, it did make the process much easier since the staff didn’t speak English, but the machine had an English language setting. Most of Japan catered to people who could not speak or read Japanese. Almost every street sign, menu, shop, was covered in English.
Above the ground, hundreds of people race around, but underground, there is just as much going on. After purchasing a one-way ticket and carefully reading the signs, it becomes pretty easy to navigate the enormous station. The trains in Japan were astoundingly efficient, with trains running every three minutes, and the doors only opened for 10 seconds. During the rush hour, attendants could be spotted trying to push the last few passengers aboard the train. Finding a seat was a rare occasion when riding the subway of Japan