Day 5 : Nagano, One-Night Disaster
Today was mostly a travel day as we spent one night in Nagano before heading to the snow village of Nozawa Onsen, the site of the 1998 Winter Olympics.
The real bummer is that I cleaned out the cute jar I used for my yogurt on Day 3, but sadly left it on the drying rack when we checked out.
Once we arrived at Nagano Station, our hotel was conveniently right across the street. We decided to stay in a hotel this time because of its location and affordable pricing.
Travel Tip: Hotels in Japan are usually quite expensive and very small. I recommend checking out Airbnb, there are many affordable and really nice options, including renovated buildings and guest houses!
We didn’t have any specific plans, but right away, we noticed crowds of people heading in one direction. Naturally, we followed them down a long street to a temple. It turned out to be Zenkoji Temple, and we got in line for a good luck ceremony, where a man touched our heads and blessed us.
Feeling hungry, we wandered down a side street for an hour without realizing that nothing was open, until we stumbled upon an Italian restaurant. Surprisingly, JJ had been saying he wanted to try Italian food in Japan, so we thought, why not? We ordered pasta, pizza, wings, garlic bread, and drinks. The pizza was AMAZING, so we ended up ordering two more! The fate of the pasta, however, was a back-and-forth argument between me and JJ about who had to finish it to be respectful.
By now, it was late, and you know what that means in Japan… time to hit up a convenience store. JJ decided to watch anime on his phone in the hotel room, but I chose to explore a bit more.
The story you’re about to hear is a quick one, and honestly, it’s a bit embarrassing for me. I was walking around, taking pictures as it started to snow, when I met this nice Japanese guy who seemed to be around my age. He tried to speak to me in English, and I tried my best in Japanese. Eventually, he said something like “Come with me?” and I’m always up for an adventure, so I agreed.
So, the guy, his sister, his girlfriend, and I walked down some steps into an izakaya. It’s a type of bar/restaurant where you order things like skewers and fries. At first, everything was great, and I was really happy to be there. But as time passed, the language barrier became more and more apparent. I didn’t really know what was going on, and there was a sense of awkwardness around all of us. I wanted to leave, but one of the girls kept asking if I wanted more drinks or if I wanted to take pictures.
Then, some foreign exchange students showed up. They spoke better Japanese than I did, and one of them even spilled beer all over my hoodie. At that point, I definitely felt like I had overstayed my welcome, but I couldn’t find a clear, respectful moment to leave. The guy who originally invited me also seemed annoyed by my presence.
In the end, it wasn’t a great experience, but it was definitely a learning experience.
Life Lesson: Live in the moment but also know when the moment is over.
