Thank you for the wonderful description of a place I may never visit (although now I may put it on my bucket list). A real treat, your descriptions never disappoint, "I felt like I had entered a liminal space in time."
I'm going to go off on a tangent on this reply, however. I noticed in the first section, you wrote in 2nd person, "You did this... you did that..." I encounter that a lot in multi-path adventure fiction. I know it's not your style, but keep an eye out for my next post where I will write about that in some detail.
Even though I personally try to avoid the second person perspective in my multi-path adventure writing, your use of it made me think you might want to try your hand at it one day.
Hi Timothy! Thanks for your kind feedback. I sometimes like to challenge myself by experimenting with different points of views. I rarely write in second person as well, but in trying it out, I find that it feels quite natural to me. I also like how it thins the pyschological barrier between the reader and the characters by--to an extent--making the reader the character. I'd love to hear your thoughts on multi-path adventures. I've only encountered one other person on Substack who writes in that space, but I was quite impressed with the way he incorporated reader feedback into his narrative choices. Please feel free to share your article with me when it's up!
I have been to Japan in 2019, and my favorite place in Tokyo is Ueno Park! I have been to Meiji jingu and it is a beautiful place, thank you for sharing with us your experience there!
I love Ueno too! Just went there a few days ago and dropped by the Tokyo National Museum as well. My fave exhibition was this super long scroll depicting a story about a mouse who marries a princess 😆.
Some lovely writing here, Macy. I'm so glad you are enjoying Tokyo, despite the deterioration in the weather in the last week or so. I think your image of water running through your hands is a good one for exploring a new culture and city. It's hard to take it all in, much less sum it up and just letting it flow over you sounds good to me. I hope you get a chance to explore the beautiful countryside in the north of Honshu. Have fun!
Thanks Jeffrey! Yes, Tokyo is a lot to take in all at once. Writing helps me organize my thoughts. There’s so much I want to share! I’ll be checking out the countryside down south actually. Might run into some snow brrrrrr.
I went to Tokyo a few (a number of?) years ago and would love to go back. The convenience store onigiri, the bakeries, the Yomiuri Giants game (I'm a baseball fan), and the TeamLab Planets experience were definitely highlights, but there were a lot of others.
The onigiri in my home city (Vancouver) are definitely not on the same level or as widely available. They are missed! And I'd definitely try to fit in TeamLab, though there's no shortage of things to do there. Loved Planets enough that we went to a second TeamLab thing before we left.
Macy - your writing continues to develop, and I felt transported to Japan during Part 1. I have only been to the airport in Tokyo so I appreciated reading your insights. It is a city I would like to visit at some point in time. I find the customs and traditions of other cultures to be a fascinating insight into the minds of the people. Thanks for sharing your adventure with us.
Hi Matthew! Thank you for your kind feedback. I’m glad to hear you felt transported in part one! That was the effect I was going for. Tokyo is a bustling metropolis with lots to see and do. Visiting shrines and temples and eating at izakayas (Japanese bars—I recommend Shinjuku, Shibuya and Nakano for this) have been some of my fave activities. Japan has a lot of natural beauty as well, so I’m also excited to explore the countryside in coming weeks. Will share more pictures in future posts 👋!
Thank you for the wonderful description of a place I may never visit (although now I may put it on my bucket list). A real treat, your descriptions never disappoint, "I felt like I had entered a liminal space in time."
I'm going to go off on a tangent on this reply, however. I noticed in the first section, you wrote in 2nd person, "You did this... you did that..." I encounter that a lot in multi-path adventure fiction. I know it's not your style, but keep an eye out for my next post where I will write about that in some detail.
Even though I personally try to avoid the second person perspective in my multi-path adventure writing, your use of it made me think you might want to try your hand at it one day.
Hi Timothy! Thanks for your kind feedback. I sometimes like to challenge myself by experimenting with different points of views. I rarely write in second person as well, but in trying it out, I find that it feels quite natural to me. I also like how it thins the pyschological barrier between the reader and the characters by--to an extent--making the reader the character. I'd love to hear your thoughts on multi-path adventures. I've only encountered one other person on Substack who writes in that space, but I was quite impressed with the way he incorporated reader feedback into his narrative choices. Please feel free to share your article with me when it's up!
I have been to Japan in 2019, and my favorite place in Tokyo is Ueno Park! I have been to Meiji jingu and it is a beautiful place, thank you for sharing with us your experience there!
I love Ueno too! Just went there a few days ago and dropped by the Tokyo National Museum as well. My fave exhibition was this super long scroll depicting a story about a mouse who marries a princess 😆.
Some lovely writing here, Macy. I'm so glad you are enjoying Tokyo, despite the deterioration in the weather in the last week or so. I think your image of water running through your hands is a good one for exploring a new culture and city. It's hard to take it all in, much less sum it up and just letting it flow over you sounds good to me. I hope you get a chance to explore the beautiful countryside in the north of Honshu. Have fun!
Thanks Jeffrey! Yes, Tokyo is a lot to take in all at once. Writing helps me organize my thoughts. There’s so much I want to share! I’ll be checking out the countryside down south actually. Might run into some snow brrrrrr.
I went to Tokyo a few (a number of?) years ago and would love to go back. The convenience store onigiri, the bakeries, the Yomiuri Giants game (I'm a baseball fan), and the TeamLab Planets experience were definitely highlights, but there were a lot of others.
I still need to visit TeamLab! Definitely on my bucket list. And yes, the convenience store onigiri are 🔥🔥. I’m gonna miss them when I leave hah.
The onigiri in my home city (Vancouver) are definitely not on the same level or as widely available. They are missed! And I'd definitely try to fit in TeamLab, though there's no shortage of things to do there. Loved Planets enough that we went to a second TeamLab thing before we left.
Macy - your writing continues to develop, and I felt transported to Japan during Part 1. I have only been to the airport in Tokyo so I appreciated reading your insights. It is a city I would like to visit at some point in time. I find the customs and traditions of other cultures to be a fascinating insight into the minds of the people. Thanks for sharing your adventure with us.
Hi Matthew! Thank you for your kind feedback. I’m glad to hear you felt transported in part one! That was the effect I was going for. Tokyo is a bustling metropolis with lots to see and do. Visiting shrines and temples and eating at izakayas (Japanese bars—I recommend Shinjuku, Shibuya and Nakano for this) have been some of my fave activities. Japan has a lot of natural beauty as well, so I’m also excited to explore the countryside in coming weeks. Will share more pictures in future posts 👋!