[2019-09-27…2019-09-30]
It all started leaving my city (Cali, Colombia) on the 27th of September, full of anxiety but also, I was extremely excited knowing that I was fulfilling a years-long dream.
Since I was a child, I’ve always had a great fascination for Japan and its culture; and a year before I had decided not to wait anymore; so, packed with some clothes, a tent, and a camera (later I would add a bike to my stuff), I was embarking on this adventure, that would last around two months.
First, a couple of hours of transit in Medellin, then a 4-hour flight to Mexico City and, to end the first day, a 20-hour wait in its airport. I took the opportunity to eat delicious food, rest, and shower.
After what felt like an endless delay, a long flight of 14 hours was waiting for me. Before I started all of this, I tried to be as much prepared as I could, so I read every article about jet lag and how to beat it; the most appealing idea was to get accustomed to the destination time some days in advance, but with a lot of unfinished work, shopping, and packing, I didn’t even try it.
But there’s something I can recommend: from the moment you board the plane, change every clock you have to the destination time, and sleep ALL that you can. I did it for most of it, I even missed lunch, but it was worth it at the end. If you’re a person who can’t easily fell asleep, I’ve always heard that melatonin can help.
I woke up an hour and a half before the arriving, just in time to experience my first sunrise above the clouds, and it was extraordinary; it was weird that I was the only one interested, everyone else was sleeping or watching movies; I was just pleased for being awake at that precise moment.
It was September 30th, 6 am getting close, and so the landing; everything I felt was so unreal until the moment I saw land; my eyes filled my tears seeing everything getting real with no chance of going back.
We landed, but everything felt so long; the tracks of Narita International Airport, walking across under-construction corridors; but it felt wonderful; illustrations started to pop out at every corner, Nintendo characters welcoming me, cute drawings showing you the way. I couldn’t be happier.
In the airport, I’d never felt so nicely attended, everyone took extreme care of my belongings and tried their best to communicate with me. I was completely grateful. And the best thing was that I felt fully rested, ready to start enjoying all from the first minute.
Don‘t hesitate to ask any questions in the comments below.
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