Eating alone in Japan, Part 1

origamiunicorn ♦ July 25, 2018 ♦ Leave a comment

I set some goals for myself this trip. Trying to address a lot of fears, I set a goal to go out to a bar and a get a drink and food and start a conversation with someone. Tonight I tried and failed twice, but I knew this would not be easy. The first place I went, I thought had a bar when I looked into the window, but they sat me at a table and it was not easy to make any conversation. The menu was entirely in Japanese and had no pictures. I stared at it, slowly reading anything that was written in katakana. I forgot my pocket wifi so I couldn’t translate the kanji. I guess I looked lost so they brought me an English menu. The dishes on the English menu were all Chinese dishes so I ordered some tofu. I went back to the Japanese menu and was able to read enough to see things like edamame, etc but it was too late. The tofu dish had pork in it and came with chicken soup. Oops! I ate around the pork. I felt pretty embarrassed and uncomfortable. On the way out I tried to salvage the situation by saying, in Japanese, “Thank you for the English menu. I’m studying Japanese”. The waiter laughed and smiled and I felt at least a little better.

By now the temperature had cooled down some. There was a nice breeze. I could hear the cicadas. I really didn’t want to go back to the hotel. I started walking. The area I’m in, Minato-mirai, seems to be less residential and more business-y. I walked past a lot of office buildings and just a handful of shops of restaurants. Off in the distance I saw a giant building all lit up.

I set my sites on it and started walking. It turned out to be a multi story shopping center overlooking the water, with restaurants, outdoor patios, shops and grocery stores. I went into a Kirin Beer pub. This time I sat a the bar, but there was no one else there to talk to. I got a beer, practiced reading the Japanese menu (they brought me an English menu as well – I guess I kind of stick out here). I had a nice walk back to the hotel.

I have a long way to go, but I can also see that this is going to be slow process. If I continue to travel alone, I’m hoping these experiences are all good practice and eventually I’ll be better at putting myself out there. Or maybe not. It’s all ok.