The Fish Market - take 2
On Thursday night I got about an hour's sleep as I was readying myself for a second attempt at the fish market auction with Anh. I woke up at close to 1am and saw she had sent me a message saying she dropped something on her foot and couldn't make it anymore. My first reaction was to disbelieve her, but then I told myself not to be too sceptical and accepted her story.
A small part of me said it was an excuse not to go (I really could've used the sleep) but I thought, damnit, I'm on holiday, this is one of the things a lot of tourists do, and I'm gonna do my damndest to do it!
So at about 2:30am I left the hotel and again caught a taxi out to the fish market. Again, the taxi driver dropped me off at around the same spot, which was nowhere near where the auction actually was, so I had to walk a bit. I was a bit afraid I would miss out again, as I feared more people would try to come earlier.
However, I felt relieved when I saw only about five people lining up. The guy Anh and I had talked to in the line for the restaurant that morning was there at the very front. We waved at each other and then I just stood in the line playing on my phone.
At about 3:20am the security guard let us into a room where we donned a hi-vis vest and were shepherded into a rectangular area to wait. I was glad there was progress, until I realised there was another two hours to wait!!!
I went to talk to that guy, and this Asian chick near him joined our conversation. She was kinda cute. Found out she was Malaysian, living in New Zealand. She appeared to be there by herself. The three of us chatted a bit, before we were all told to sit down. After that, some older couple started talking to her, so I talked with the guy for the rest of the time.
I don't think I have sat with my legs crossed for a few years, so naturally I started to feel pins and needles, and then proceeded to lose feeling in both my legs. I had to sit behind the cordoned off area to stretch my legs out.
To be honest, talking with the guy made time go by a little faster. Looking back now, it didn't really seem like two hours.
When it came time to see the auction, we were led, single file, out through the fish market area, where one of us could've easily been run over by one of the small vehicles, to the auction area. It was freezing cold inside, which reminded me of the weather back home.
I managed to get a good spot, and took lots of photos of the tuna and the people inspecting them. I couldn't help but think of a similar situation on another planet, except where it would be aliens inspecting human corpses. We would probably find that pretty disgusting.
I found the whole thing to be semi-exciting. I didn't like how it was only for 25 minutes, and there were no explanations given as to what was happening or how things worked. Basically we were just there to watch and not interfere.
I was so tired I went back to the hotel and slept. I woke up in the early afternoon, and finally took the opportunity to get some KFC. The smell was really fresh, something that doesn't happen in Australia. The spicy chicken was spicy, but I think I prefer the Australian one.
I then went to this government building in Shinjuku to do some sightseeing. It was raining so I had to walk there in the rain. The place was relatively easy to find - with the map. Once I got there, I went up to the 45th floor and took in the spectacular view. I also bought some gifts for some people.
After that I went to Ikebukuro to find the elusive Kit Kat factory. My plan was to get some special Kit Kats for Johanna. I figured this was the ideal gift - if I decided to see her again, it would be relatively thoughtful. If not, I could just eat it or give it to someone else, unlike, say, a necklace or something.
It took me a while to find it. I asked a girl for directions, and she couldn't speak English, which led to me walking around the whole block in the rain, when it was relatively close by. To say it was a factory is rather misconceiving - it was just an open stall amongst many other confectionery shops on the same floor.
I bought some Kit Kats and then got a large box of confectionery for my sister. I also bought a cup of what I thought was mango mixed with other fruits, but turned out to be more candy-ish than that. I sat upstairs eating it and resting before moving on.
I went back to the hotel to drop everything off. I was surprised by the size of the box I had bought for my sister. It would now be extremely difficult to fit any pairs of shoes in my luggage!
I checked out Ueno for some possible red light district action, but didn't find much in the rain. There were a lot of gangster looking guys standing around on the street trying to lure customers, but surprisingly none approached me. Even the girls didn't really give me a second look, apart from one who I smiled at when eye contact was made, and she followed me a bit and tapped my shoulder but I ignored her.
I then found a small Japanese restaurant and ordered a bowl of noodles with a bottle of Fanta. Ah that was nice.
I then decided to try to look for some action in Akihabara. I didn't find much but went into one of the adult stores, and ended up buying a DVD of a girl I had seen on a poster previously who looked really pretty. I couldn't believe I was buying porn, but oh well. I then went to one of the gaming arcades. I ended up winning a towel and t-shirt, both with some anime drawings of a girl on it. I decided I'd give one to G as his present lol. I was pretty damn happy having won some stuff.
That night was a good night.
A small part of me said it was an excuse not to go (I really could've used the sleep) but I thought, damnit, I'm on holiday, this is one of the things a lot of tourists do, and I'm gonna do my damndest to do it!
So at about 2:30am I left the hotel and again caught a taxi out to the fish market. Again, the taxi driver dropped me off at around the same spot, which was nowhere near where the auction actually was, so I had to walk a bit. I was a bit afraid I would miss out again, as I feared more people would try to come earlier.
However, I felt relieved when I saw only about five people lining up. The guy Anh and I had talked to in the line for the restaurant that morning was there at the very front. We waved at each other and then I just stood in the line playing on my phone.
At about 3:20am the security guard let us into a room where we donned a hi-vis vest and were shepherded into a rectangular area to wait. I was glad there was progress, until I realised there was another two hours to wait!!!
I went to talk to that guy, and this Asian chick near him joined our conversation. She was kinda cute. Found out she was Malaysian, living in New Zealand. She appeared to be there by herself. The three of us chatted a bit, before we were all told to sit down. After that, some older couple started talking to her, so I talked with the guy for the rest of the time.
I don't think I have sat with my legs crossed for a few years, so naturally I started to feel pins and needles, and then proceeded to lose feeling in both my legs. I had to sit behind the cordoned off area to stretch my legs out.
To be honest, talking with the guy made time go by a little faster. Looking back now, it didn't really seem like two hours.
When it came time to see the auction, we were led, single file, out through the fish market area, where one of us could've easily been run over by one of the small vehicles, to the auction area. It was freezing cold inside, which reminded me of the weather back home.
I managed to get a good spot, and took lots of photos of the tuna and the people inspecting them. I couldn't help but think of a similar situation on another planet, except where it would be aliens inspecting human corpses. We would probably find that pretty disgusting.
I found the whole thing to be semi-exciting. I didn't like how it was only for 25 minutes, and there were no explanations given as to what was happening or how things worked. Basically we were just there to watch and not interfere.
I was so tired I went back to the hotel and slept. I woke up in the early afternoon, and finally took the opportunity to get some KFC. The smell was really fresh, something that doesn't happen in Australia. The spicy chicken was spicy, but I think I prefer the Australian one.
I then went to this government building in Shinjuku to do some sightseeing. It was raining so I had to walk there in the rain. The place was relatively easy to find - with the map. Once I got there, I went up to the 45th floor and took in the spectacular view. I also bought some gifts for some people.
After that I went to Ikebukuro to find the elusive Kit Kat factory. My plan was to get some special Kit Kats for Johanna. I figured this was the ideal gift - if I decided to see her again, it would be relatively thoughtful. If not, I could just eat it or give it to someone else, unlike, say, a necklace or something.
It took me a while to find it. I asked a girl for directions, and she couldn't speak English, which led to me walking around the whole block in the rain, when it was relatively close by. To say it was a factory is rather misconceiving - it was just an open stall amongst many other confectionery shops on the same floor.
I bought some Kit Kats and then got a large box of confectionery for my sister. I also bought a cup of what I thought was mango mixed with other fruits, but turned out to be more candy-ish than that. I sat upstairs eating it and resting before moving on.
I went back to the hotel to drop everything off. I was surprised by the size of the box I had bought for my sister. It would now be extremely difficult to fit any pairs of shoes in my luggage!
I checked out Ueno for some possible red light district action, but didn't find much in the rain. There were a lot of gangster looking guys standing around on the street trying to lure customers, but surprisingly none approached me. Even the girls didn't really give me a second look, apart from one who I smiled at when eye contact was made, and she followed me a bit and tapped my shoulder but I ignored her.
I then found a small Japanese restaurant and ordered a bowl of noodles with a bottle of Fanta. Ah that was nice.
I then decided to try to look for some action in Akihabara. I didn't find much but went into one of the adult stores, and ended up buying a DVD of a girl I had seen on a poster previously who looked really pretty. I couldn't believe I was buying porn, but oh well. I then went to one of the gaming arcades. I ended up winning a towel and t-shirt, both with some anime drawings of a girl on it. I decided I'd give one to G as his present lol. I was pretty damn happy having won some stuff.
That night was a good night.
posted by toey | 01:26
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