Greetings from Tokyo: What Japan Taught Me
Greetings from Tokyo!
One of the benefits of living in South East Asia is the ability to travel routinely to places that were once too far away for a short trip back home. Destinations once considered "once-in-a-lifetime" trips are now accessible and commonplace. Of all the places I visit most often, no country fits this description better than Japan. What was once a bucket-list destination is now an annual, or even twice-yearly, travel requirement. Food. Shopping. Gardens. Skiing. Twist my arm for any number of reasons and I'll be there, again!
There are no words to describe the intense wanderlust and excitement Japan triggered on my first visit in November 2022. I was instantly hooked. My first sushi meal was akin to a profoundly spiritual experience that made me question everything I thought I knew about food and, well, life itself. My first trip to a 7-Eleven triggered flashbacks to being a child on Christmas morning. I kept asking myself: how is this possible? Where am I?
Japan was the answer — and it clearly spoke to me on a level no place before it ever had. I could recall countless other sights, flavours and experiences that cemented my early infatuation with the country, but I'm more interested in the profound personal changes it helped trigger and sustain in me in the years since that first visit.
I suspect I'm not alone in this traveller's phenomenon — the one where we go somewhere to learn about and experience a new place, and instead leave having learned more about ourselves than about the place we just visited! It can feel as if being there was just a dream — one that acts as a catalyst, helping us start asking the questions we were avoiding, or introducing us to inspirations we didn't know we were lacking. In many ways, this describes what Japan was, and has remained, for me.
One of the biggest changes I felt was the motivation to act with greater purpose, clarity and intensity — not because of an external reward like money or public recognition, but because of the intrinsic benefit and satisfaction. I want to do better in all aspects of my life because it simply makes sense to do better in all aspects of my life! I mean, why else am I here? It also makes sense that I first absorbed this lesson in Japan, a place where everyone around you seems to be striving for perfection. The care and attention to detail are famously unlike anywhere else. The streets are immaculate. The gardens are pristine. The food is a work of art. The thoughtful touches are everywhere, and society flourishes as a result.
Speaking of thoughtful touches, I never knew how inspired I could become by architecture, design or art. The Japanese focus on aesthetics is clear everywhere you look, and its impact on me was instant. I still catch myself staring at simple things here, like doors or entryways. I love how trees and greenery are woven into buildings like shopping malls and apartment complexes. These thoughtful touches shape the energy — or "feel" — of a place, and I found they have a huge effect on my own energy and emotions. I had never made this connection before, but once I experienced it, it became impossible to ignore.
Some other changes were not as deep, but maybe equally surprising. I never suspected I would take an interest in clothing or fashion. Nor did I have "browsing stationery stores and pen-and-ink shops for fun" on my bingo card! Still, that isn't nearly as surprising as my newfound cravings for crispy seaweed, or the almost flavourless sugar-free Hokkaido ice cream I discovered on my most recent trip to Sapporo. Tell this to the 25-year-old version of me and he would have laughed you out of the room — but alas, here we are.
Signing off from Tokyo,
Conner