Despite being heavily jet lagged, coming down with a cold, and a typhoon making its way inland bringing heavy rains, I was determined to make it into Tokyo. My husband, K, found a vegan food festival, “Vegefood Festa” (abbreviation for festival? Trying to say Fiesta? Who knows (not me)! What’re the chances?! My ears perked up at the thought of a vegetarian friendly event, and we decided that would be our destination for Saturday.
We’re stationed about 1.5 hours from the center of Tokyo, between walking to the metro station, switching train lines a few times, and the metro ride itself. We were packed like a can of sardines on the train, with every seat taken, a hand on every handlebar, and each consecutive stop adding more passengers as we neared our stop.
When K had initially told me that it was considered rude to talk on the train, I thought this was crazy! No talking? How else would we pass the hour on the train? But with the multitudes of people packed into the train, I was suddenly grateful that everyone rode in a mutually understood and comfortable silence. The hustle and bustle that awaited us in Tokyo would more than make up for the quiet train ride.
As soon as we stepped off the train at our stop in Harajuku, the crowds of people pushing past us immediately overwhelmed me. Holding onto K’s backpack so I wouldn’t lose him, we weaved our way through the crowd. Keep in mind that out of the 50 busiest metro stations in the world, all but 6 of them are found in Japan.
Thousands of people formed a steady stream up and down the halls of the metro station, and to try and cross the stream to get to the bathroom was a stressful endeavor in itself. After waiting in line for ten minutes, it was my turn to use the bathroom! It wasn’t a toilet by our standards at all, but a ceramic hole in the ground to squat over. I saw another American woman walk into the stall and then walk right back out. Not me–since I’ll be here for 3-4 years I might as well get used to it!
We walked through Yoyogi Park rather than along the road. It was a relief to be in a calm and serene environment after the hectic metro station.
Vege Festa was smaller than we anticipated and the rain had picked up, so we grabbed some seitan kebab wraps and decided to find a more rain-friendly activity for the afternoon. K had a plan up his sleeve (as he usually does) and we ended up in front of the most magical place in Japan I’ve laid my eyes on so far!
For those of you who don’t know, cat cafes are cat themed cafes where you can go to pet, play with, and watch cats. In Japan, many apartment buildings don’t allow pets, and to own a pet is significantly more expensive than it is back in the States. K told me that one pet store he went into had cats for sale for $1000+!
We had the choice to get coffee if we wanted, as well as purchase cat treats to buy the cats’ affection. Agreeing to some rules upon entering (don’t chase the cats, take your shoes off, no bags in side, etc.) we were in!
This was the most satisfying cafe I’ve ever been inside of! There were cats everywhere! Not only that, but you could tell the cats lived a comfortable life; there was an escape door to the staffroom if they were overwhelmed, as well as perches well out of the reach of pesky humans.
But escaping didn’t seem to be on the forefront of the cats minds, as they snuggled up against us and purred happily with the constant attention.
Another interesting thing we noticed was that these cats weren’t your typical calico cats, they were mostly long haired, exotic cats with distinct features. I guess if you’re going to charge people money to spend time with cats, might as well have the best! There was a book section as well, with anime and manga books you could read while you snuggled up with your new furry friend.
After our need for furry snuggles was satisfied, we decided to start the long trek back to base. Sure, it was a lot of work and energy to get into the city, but it was 100% worth it . All in all, it was a wonderful first weekend to start off our new life together in the Land of the Rising Sun.
OMG!! I want to go to the cat café! I love cats:) The toilet not so much! Ugh, how barbaric but I guess you don’t have to worry about sitting in someone else’s tinkle!