I sometimes wonder if my expectations of travel and experience get in the way of just being with the experience? As I reflect on my trip to Japan, I noticed a few things that have stayed with me.
First, throughout my days there I felt at ease by day 3. The drugged feeling I had coming from the U.S. faded and I was able to enjoy spending time doing nothing. When I look back, it was day 3 that I shifted expectations and started to go woith the flow of the moment rather than trying to build some kind of experience from my itinerary or prior decisions on where to go and what to do. Instead, I let things happen. Once I settled into the trip, I just wandered around.
INnmy wandering what I found was myself. I found out more about who I was than anythign else and, as someone has said in some book, poem, or text, I met myself in Tokyo. It was a beautiful kind of letting go.
The one thing that does stand out more than two weeks after my visit was the exhibtion at the Tokyo Museum of Western Art called Does the Future Sleep Here? That exhibition caught me completely by surprise and the artwork and artists statements brought me to a different place in my heart and mind. I found something new AND something in myself. Maybe THAT is the whole point of travel: to be transformed by the places and people we visit, and then carry that experience with us.
I was particulalry struck by Nakabayashi Tadayoshi and his etchings on display at the beginning of the exhibition. His work is fantastical and detailed. The etchings are remarkable in both their detail and depth. They feel three-dimensional and almost pop off of the cream toned paper that he uses.
As the exhibit unfolded, it openly questioned the whole purpose of an art exhibition and offered the idea that a static display of art takes the art out of the context of the artist, making it isloated and missing a sense of humanity and connection.
I left with a wonderful sense of fulfillment and a slightly lighter step as I walked back into the light rain that permeated my days in Tokyo. I walked back toward Asakusa and followed some narrow roads and alleyways through the neighborhoods that fill this part of the city. As I walked, i was gaining a real sense of the expansiveness of the city and the distances between the various parts of Tokyo. I could feel the differences between the parts and something of the nature of life in various locations. Away from the bustle of a tourist attraction, families went back and forth to school, work, restaurants, and the tasks of daily life. The thing that always strikes me is the deep quiet of the city walking through these streets. One block away from a main street and things are much much slower.
Experientially, I learned more Japanese than I learned in my work at home and I still struggle to initiate conversations. I do know the language will come and I do know that as I gain confidence, that change will unlock more of what I’m looking for in Japan.
I’m waxing philosophical, so I’ll bring this all to a close with some photos of this recent visit. Looking forward to my next visit in June 2025. In the meantime,
May you be happy, may you be well.
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