We arrived around 930 after a fairly uneventful plane ride. I did realize that the leg room for our Asian friends is considerably less than their western counterparts. In fact, the leg room was so little that I had to be moved as I didn't fit in the seat. We didn't fair that much better at the bulkhead, but at least my femur fit perpendicularly to the seat in front.
Clearing Japanese customs and immigration was not just straightforward but an entirely pleasant experience. All smiles and "thank you for coming to Japan during our difficult times". Quite the opposite to the US in their difficult times. Even Britain appears to have gone the route of treating people who intend to act like tourists, like wannabe terrorists. Shameful - well done Japan.
After clearing customs we popped down to the ticket desk for the train. I was rueing not getting my act together and getting a rail pass, which oddly has to be purchased outside the country. There are no other rail passes so we're on Japan fare without Japan income, Corinne offered to sell her toes, I had to go a little further and parted with the left side of my brain to pay for the tickets, apparently its pristine virtually unused condition hiked the price up.
Train ride was lovely, seriously lovely. You can't even begin to imagine how immaculate the train was - private US hospital clean. There was no dirt, everything was polished, the brushed stainless steel was still just that, not a fingerprint or scuff to be seen. The seats had more than enough legroom, enough to stretch out and put our exorbitant Starbucks iced coffee in the well placed cup holders. The train ride into Tokyo took less than an hour and then due to carriages going different ways, (we were in the right one due to their clear explanation) we took ours to Shinjuku which was about another 30 minutes.
Arriving in Shinjuku was a great experience. The conurbations of Tokyo are all separate in character and name, only together do they form Tokyo and Shinjuku is known for its trendy mix of shopping, nightlife, skyscrapers and restaurants. We were able to orient ourselves quickly due to the abundance of helpful wall maps on signs that clearly indicated where you were. After visiting a hotel of identical name to the one we'd booked we were directed to the one we actually had reservations at. Checked in, quick snooze and then out looking around Shinjuku. The place is certainly alive on a Saturday with throngs of people out selling and directing you to their stores. I think being Gaijin must give us immunity to the prevalent placing in your hand of fliers.
We had three objectives during this first day.
1. Try to replace the Lonely Planet Guide that we'd mislaid somewhere along the way from the first desk at the airport, to the hotel. I suspect it is at the hotel...bugger.
2. Buy a sim card so we could connect out ipad to the internet.
3. Eat.
We found a bookstore and replaced the guidebook with one exactly the same, except I was convinced it must have been different, it was the only way to account for the price being doubled. The SIM was a no go for the time being. Eating was an experience.
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