Arrival

The first thing Ryan and I saw after disembarking the plane was a Starbucks. The next things we saw were a row of vending machines labeled “LET’S KIOSK!” and then a trash can with a neatly hand-lettered sign on it, instructing us:

I’ve not decided if it would have better or worse if the word “trush” had been spelled correctly.

The vending machines inviting us to kiosk were full of such wonders as Pocari Sweat, milk tea, and the ubiquitous Boss Coffee. But we didn’t yet realize just how valuable these commodities were, so we stopped, timidly, at the Starbucks (which was almost exactly what you’d expect of a Starbucks) and then found our way to the JR office at the airport and traded our exchange vouchers for rail passes dated February 29 of the year 16. Then we went to the airport train station and boarded the Narita Express.