I left the hotel room at about 4pm and took the Yamanote-sen from *Shinjuku to Shibuya, three stations. The Yamanote-sen is the loop line that goes around Tokyo. It is so convenient, but also very crowded at rush hour. I think that if you travel the whole loop, it will take maybe an hour and a half. Maybe less. Anyways, at Shibuya, I switched trains from the JR Yamanote line to the Tokyú Toyoko Line. This really confused me. The reason is that these two lines are operated by different rail companies. So, when leaving the JR line, you have to exit through the gate, then you have to buy another ticket for the Toyoko Line. I just equated one station with having only one rail line. Actually, Shibuya station also has the Ginza Line, which is "chikatetsu" or subway, another line. I ended up buying the Toyoko Line ticket, at the time thinking I got a raw deal.

This was the first of many many trips on the Toyoko-sen. It travels from Shibuya through Kawasaki Prefecture towards Yokohama. Sasami-san's directions said to get off at Moto-Sumiyoshi. I did so, and followed the rest of his instructions to get to his office. He operated a Juku, or cram school. His specialized in mathematics. Parents often send their kids to Juku to get extra instruction outside of normal school. Sasami-san was very nice, and spoke good English. He explained a little about English House and rent, which was ¥65,000 per month. He was heading over there in his car, so I went with him to check it out. I was surprised that his car was a Ford Taurus wagon, with steering wheel on the left side, just like in the States.

English House is nestled in the maze of suburban Kawasaki. The nearest station is Musashi-Nakahara, on the JR Nambu Line. I would guess that Kawasaki City Station is about 25 minutes from Musashi-Nakahara. From the station, you have to navigate small streets and alleyways to find English House. The building itself used to be company housing for a manufacturing plant. It is kind of like a dormitory, with perhaps 16 rooms, a shared kitchen and dining room area, shared bathrooms, shared shower room (with two showers), and shared tv room. Each room was six tatami mats big, maybe about 12' x 20', with a closet, sink and tiny refrigerator. The place was small, but I was expecting it to be small, from all the books I have read. And, it was CLEAN! I decided to rent a room at English House.

I thanked Sasami-san, and told him that I would come back the next day with my suitcases and deposit, then started my stroll to the station. I remember that I was totally stoked to find a place! The train ride back was again frustrating for the same reason as before. This time I started on the JR Nambu Line, then switched to the Tokyú Toyoko Line at Musashi-Kosugi, then switched back to the JR Yamanote Line at Shibuya. That night I just walked around Shinjuku, taking in the sights and sounds of the big city. Oh, I also bought a hanko, which is a stamp/seal of my last name which is used for documents. I needed it to sign my lease agreement. I got it at a stationery store for about ¥800. I thought that it was amazing that this cheap little hanko would be used to sign for lots of things just as a signature.



In the morning, I checked out of my posh Keio Plaza hotel and grabbed a taxi. I gave him the address of English House (on a meishi or business card) and he didn't know where it was. When I said it was in Kawasaki, he said something that must've have meant, "are you serious", and I said I didn't speak Japanese. He was perplexed that I couldn't speak the language, then started up the car and we took off. I had no idea what streets he was taking, or even what direction we were heading, but I figured that taxi drivers in Japan are not going to cheat you on the fare, so I wasn't worried. At journey's end, the fare came out to be about ¥7,500. I gladly paid it, knowing that it would have been hell to bring my two huge suitcases on all those trains in the July heat. I later found out that when native Japanese arrive at Narita airport from traveling abroad, it is not uncommon to have your bags shipped from the airport home. In fact, Mariko and I did that a few times. That service is worth every yen.

I met Sasami-san again, and carried my bags upstairs to my room. Sasami-san said that his wife was making some lunch downstairs so I went down and sat at the table. She had prepared somen, which I have had before, but not like this. Somen is a kind of white noodle, but this type was prepared cold, in a big bowl, with ice cubes on top. She had also put some sliced luncheon ham and corn kernels on top. Man, that was so good! Perfect summer food. While I was eating, a young woman walked in from the front door and said, "Konnichiwa". Sasami-san introduced her to me. This was Akiko, whom I became good friends with. She spoke good English too, which surprised me. I later learned that most of the Japanese who lived at Gaijin houses spoke English. That night, I met most of the other tenants, Yukiko, Arisa, Matt, Mihoko, Karen, and Koji. Everyone was great, and we were all about the same age too.



The next day, I went to the bank to open an account. There was a Sumitomo Bank just a few minutes walk from English House so I went there. Japanese banks are pretty strange. You spend a lot of time sitting, waiting, and reading magazines there. There is a "security guard" near the door and ATM, but he mainly just greets you, and directs you to the next available ATM machine. Then there are the tellers (all women) to whom you tell what kind of transaction you would like to make. Then, they take your bank book and ask you to wait. Then they go ask a man at the desk in back something. He then takes your bank book to a back room. About ten minutes later, he comes back and give the bank book back to the girl. She then calls your name, and finishes the transaction. I actually had to open a new account by signing some papers (with my new hanko!), depositing some US dollars, and get an ATM card and bank book. This took about an hour. I actually didn't get my bank book. That was delivered the next day to English House. What I did get, though, was a Sumitomo "Bankoo" toothbrush, toothpaste, and tissue paper. It was really cool. I still have the toothpaste for old time's sake.

Episode 3 - Around the Neighborhood