Brody and I boarded our plane at around 12:15pm in Los Angeles and prepared for our long flight, which happened to be an hour shorter than planned, giving us a landing time of 3:30pm in Japan instead of 4:30. After a comfortable flight with some of the best airplane food I’ve ever had, we finally landed at Narita Airport.

We planned on getting to dinner on time, but our fatigue from the plane combined with our extreme lack of knowledge for the Japanese rail system would prove to be a great enemy. We got onto Narita Rail 38 towards Ofuna, as Google Maps told us to, and we were already a little panicked because our cards were not working with the rail system, so we had to pay on the train. We then learned that, unlike what Google Maps had told us, our train would not be going to Shinagawa Station, meaning we had to find another way from Tokyo Station to the Shinagawa Prince Hotel. After getting off at Tokyo Station, we decided to take a cab, but ran into many issues in payment for trying to leave the metro – our enemy of the rail system striking back once again. Finally, we mare it out onto the street and waved down a cab, only to run into a little bit of traffic, turning our 15 minute drive into a 22 minute drive.

After all the trials and tribulations of Tokyo traffic, we finally arrived at the Shinagawa Prince Hotel and met with Professor Jacobs. Because the JRPass closed at 7, and it was close to 6:30, we didn’t have a chance to set down our bags, so Brody and I lugged our heavy bags over to Shinagawa Station to meet with everyone else. Exhausted and encumbered, Brody and I made our way back to the hotel by ourselves to check in while everyone else went to eat, and after a long line, we missed the final call for food at 7:30. Instead, we went to 7/11 to get some food and ice cream, which we would then eat while walking around Tokyo.

After a long day of travel, Brody and I went back to our room, showered, and passed out like no other. However, our first day of travel did not de-motivate us in any way, but was a good primer for the adventures to come!