Drowning in Sakura Petals

This was it. This has been my dream ever since I saw my first anime on a Saturday at the crack of dawn. This is why I’ve always wanted to learn different languages. This is where my 1,636 daily streak on SpoopyGreenOwl.com has gotten me! Everything has come down to this moment.

“Welcome to Japan. We hope you enjoy your stay here, miss.”

I smile nervously and bow my head. “Domo arigatou. Boku namae wa, Crystal desu?”

The attendant’s smile doesn't waver as she points to the door. “That was very good, Crystal-san. But you need to hurry, or you’ll miss the shuttle to your hotel. Keep practicing and enjoy the Sakura trees. They’re so relaxing.”

I couldn’t bring myself to try speaking Japanese again, so I ran to where she pointed and snagged a window seat near the back of the shuttle. My brand-new red rolling suitcase and favorite backpack/purse dominated my lap as I waited for the other passengers to board. There weren’t many Sakura trees, but I felt excited regardless.

This was going to be the best week of my life, and I wasn’t planning on sleeping at all! I’m not sure how long I was sitting there with my cheeks going numb due to the excessive amount of smiling I was doing when a hand lightly tapped my shoulder, making me jump as I spun around to see my best friend, Amy, grinning at me.

“There you are. I thought we agreed to pick seats together? How long have you been sitting here?”

My smile refused to wilt under Amy’s teasing tone as I shrugged. “Don’t know. Japan's time is different from regular time. I did save you a seat, though. See?”

I invitingly patted the seat beside me, but Amy sighed and tapped my suitcase with a sparkling blue nail. “Are you seriously planning on keeping that in your lap the whole ride? Don’t you think stashing it in the luggage rack above you will be easier? That’s what they’re for.”

I looked up at the rack above my head and sheepishly at Amy's waiting hand. “Would you believe me if I said I didn’t notice it until now?”

“Yes.” She said without missing a beat as she gently tugged my suitcase away from me. “Let me help you put this away, and we’ll go over our plans, okay?”

“Where’s your suitcase?”

Amy laughed as she shoved my suitcase in place and sat down. “Right next to yours. I’m surprised you didn’t hear me. These things aren’t the biggest, and you look like you want to buy more luggage already.”

“Is that an option?!” We’ll be here for a whole week, six days, and five nights of bliss before leaving on Sunday. Should I have brought more luggage for all the cool things I want to buy?!

Amy shook her head. “No, Crystal. You can’t buy more luggage. We haven’t even gotten checked into our hotel yet. Why would you need to buy more luggage when we haven’t done anything?”

“Because we’re in Japan!” I threw my arms in the air, ignoring some looks I received as I continued. “This. Is. Awesome! We’re in Japan. Amy, do you know what that means?!”

“That we’re in Japan, and you’re going to go nuts?”

“HECK YEAH, I AM! WHY AREN’T YOU MORE EXCITED, AMY?!”

“Crystal, stop screaming. I’m right here!” She rubbed her ears dramatically as I bounced in my seat and laughed. “Sooo, what do you want to do after checking in?”

I pulled out the brochure my travel company sent me when I booked our trip with a proud flourish. “I’m delighted you asked! I was thinking that since our hotel is near Tokyo, we can check out some of the nightlife! I want to try some of their street food, eat real ramen, and honestly pig out on anything. I want to check out Shinjuku and Ikebukuro! Two of my favorite anime showed locations there. I need to see it!”

Amy tugged the brochure away before I accidentally ripped it and started reading. “So, you want to get something to eat? I’m down with that. Shall we be good friends and post a bunch of pictures for the group back home?”

“You read my mind!”

“No, I just want to make as many memories as possible while we’re here. And what are we doing tomorrow?”

“I need to find Mappa Studios and thank them for making my current obsession!”

“I don’t see any tours listed in this brochure.”

“Then I want to visit an anime-themed cafe or the amusement park. There’s bound to be one or two there!”

Amy nodded, turning a page while looking at me with a knowing grin. “What about seeing a tea ceremony and looking at the Sakura trees? You think you can keep your inner nerd in check long enough to enjoy some classic Japanese culture?”

I looked at her and slowly shook my head. “Amy, I love you like a sister. But do you realize what you just said? There is no keeping my inner nerd in check. We’re in Japan. Arguably the birthplace of nerd paradise. And, of course, we’re going to do those things! Do you think I’ll look good in a kimono, or would that be too trashy?”

Amy smacked me with the brochure and laughed as I rubbed my head. “You’ll look good in anything, you weirdo. I’m surprised you’re not screaming at me in Japanese. Did you forget about immersing yourself in the holy language?”

I blushed and looked out the window. “I didn’t forget. I introduced myself to the flight attendant earlier. She told me to keep practicing and to enjoy myself.”

“And are you going to do that?”

“The SpoopyGreenOwl owns my soul, Amy. I refuse to let the lessons go to waste!”

Amy nodded, flipped another page, and smiled as the shuttle doors closed. “Atta girl. Don’t let yourself get discouraged. You’ve been practicing for so long… You’re going to do another lesson, aren’t you?”

“Not today. I’m set until midnight. I’m not going to sleep during this trip, Amy. Every second shall be spent with me trying to translate everything myself instead of using an app!”

“You’re going to sleep. This is not up for discussion.”

“You can’t make me!”

She made me. Amy is more into K-pop but is just as much an anime fan as me. We’ve been to many conventions together, so we decided to treat this trip the same way. With Amy being in “mom” mode, and making sure I didn’t get lost. Which is harder than it sounds because I wanted to see everything!

I had to see the shops, the streets, and every sign in every park. Amy kept her translating app on just in case we needed extra help, but for the most part, everything was fine. I had six disposable cameras, and I was going to use them all! And at least one of those cameras was going to be for Mt. Fuji!

I had to shake Amy three times to get her up, facing her glare with a wide grin as I held up my phone. “We are going on a beautiful trip that includes a cruise on a lake, a ropeway, busses, and most importantly, Mt. Fuji. I already bought the tickets. You have no say in this. Let’s go!”

“I’m going to kill you, Crystal.”

“It’s Mt. Fuji, Amy! We can’t leave without visiting it. And if you don’t get up, I’ll book a hiking trip to the summit. And trust me, you don’t want that. We don’t have the equipment for it, and it’ll take at least two days! We can only dedicate a day to this infamous treasure!...” I trailed off as Amy grabbed a pillow and glared at me. “What’s wrong, Amy?”

“I need to shower, and you’re way too hyper in the morning. Did you already do your daily lessons?” I nodded, shifting out of her way so she could get out of bed. Amy groaned, but her glare was half-hearted at best. Neither of us were morning people, but this was Japan. And I wasn’t allowed to leave the hotel room by myself.

That meant my only option was to wake her up so we could unleash our inner geek! Amy wasn’t amused, but she started to relax on the bus.

“Wouldn’t taking a bullet train be faster, Crystal?”

“Nope. The trip is about the same. Plus, I got these really cool passes that let us use the buses for three days! We can see so many neat stuff in this area alone!”

Amy shook her head and turned to me with a mischievous grin. “Does that mean you’re giving up on some of your plans? You made it sound like you wanted to see everything in Japan.”

I took a deep breath and leaned back in my seat. “I always knew that was impossible. But I would like to see a couple of cities besides Tokyo. Which ones have the best spots for Sakura viewing?”

“I’m not sure.” Amy turned her phone to me, showing a confirmation screen with the Studio Ghibli logo in the center. “I was too busy getting us some premium passes to one of the best theme parks and museums ever created. And it just so happens to be located in Mitaka, which is known for its Sakura blossoms. What do you say we focus mostly on the Tokyo area and get the most of those bus passes you bought us?”

I may have screeched worse than my cat getting a shot as I hugged her. But the resulting experience was worth it. The bus stopped at an amusement park, but Amy and I didn’t get off until we reached our destination, Kawaguchi Station. The array of shops nearly blindsided me, especially the restaurants. I didn’t ask for an ingredient list. I was here to take pictures and eat food.

And I was in my fifth bowl of ramen before I slowed down long enough to ask Amy about the Ghibli passes. “I thought you had to buy those in advance? When did you get them?”

Amy drank some tea and smirked. “The same day you told me you had tickets to Japan. I wanted to do something nice for you, and I know how much you love that dragon movie and the one with the cat bus. Did you know they have little cat buses you can ride?”

“No way. Really? I think that was in the first Ghibli film I ever watched. This is going to be amazing! When are we going?”

“If we head to a Lawson store, I think we can get the actual tickets today and visit as early as tomorrow. We’ll have to get there pretty early if we want to get some of their exclusive merch. Is there a particular character you like, Crystal?”

“Honestly, I love all of them! Those films never fail to make me feel like a little kid, you know?” Amy nodded, taking another sip while I finished eating. I may have used two cameras instead of one, but the views were worth it! I was thinking about taking out the third camera when Amy gasped, looking at me with dismay as she read from her phone.

“We won’t be able to take photos or videos in some of the locations. How is that fair?!”

I shrugged and put my camera away. “You mean at the Ghibli place? I’ve heard of other places doing that. They want people to visit, not just use the internet to see everything for free. It’s not a big deal, Amy. We’ll pick up more souvenirs and have a picnic or something while looking at the Sakura. We can pretend to be in a Ghibli movie. It’ll be great!”

Amy nodded, but I could tell she still wasn’t happy. This trip had mostly been a rare spur-of-the-moment thing. We’d always talked about traveling and seeing different countries. But Amy hadn’t expected me to call her saying I had tickets to Japan. That nearly gave her a heart attack as she promised to kill me if I was lying.

Did I mention this was around three in the morning? We did a little hiking, just to say we touched Mt. Fuji, and almost regretted it due to the weather constantly changing. But I was starving by the time we headed back to our hotel. My arms didn’t know if they were burning or freezing as I collapsed on the bed with a groan.

Amy had a bit more energy than me as she proudly declared, “Dibs on the shower,” and ran into the bathroom.

I looked at the used cameras with pride and shouted, “Amy! I want to go to a hot springs, too!”

I could barely hear her over the K-pop and running water. “Let’s save that for day three or four. That way, we can sleep in after enjoying a long soak!”

“Alright!” I shouted back and began looking up some good places to check out. I was willing to give up a few things so we could actually relax instead of rushing everywhere. But one thing was for certain. This week was going to be the best moment of my life, and I would need more luggage for the things we’re going to buy!