Kerstin MedardLet me just start by saying, God & The Universe always has my back! And that’s why I become more and more fearless by the day.
So here’s the thing. When I decided to move to Japan, I requested from my employers to live in a smaller city (NOT Tokyo). I wanted to live in a smaller city, more urban and a little countryside. I wanted to be as close to nature as possible. Somewhere with as small a population as they could manage. With approximately 20 million people Tokyo is the BIGGEST city in the world, population-wise and honestly, I really didn’t want to share space with so many people. So when I got placed in Gifu, which is near the 3rd biggest city in Japan (Nagoya), I was more than happy. It was a perfect balance of city and nature with tons of access to sightseeing, bullet trains and night buses to take me on any kind of adventure.
Of course, Tokyo was definitely on my bucket list! I didn’t want to live there but I definitely wanted to visit. Within my first year, I planned to visit but it never happened. Something always came up, the timing and my budget never seemed to match up. I wasn’t too fussed either way *shrug*
*NOW stay with me as I sew together an incredible thread of “coincidences”*
*JULY 2019*
One year in, I wrote an anniversary blog about my journey to Japan. (The Story Of My 1-Woman Journey to Japan). My DAY 1 Kersverations supporter and good friend Faustina shared the blog post to her facebook page. A friend of Faustina’s (also from my country Saint Lucia) saw the post and reached out to her (Faustina) saying that her cousin (Maggie) is currently living in Japan and it would be nice to be able to connect her cousin with me. Of course, I was thrilled at the idea. I was already blessed with a great support system but it would be really incredible to meet up with someone from my VERY OWN country!
Fast forward to one week later after numbers were exchanged, Maggie calls me up for a quick chat! We hit it off immediately! Even over the phone I could tell that we would be very quick friends. Loved her vibe! And I think she felt the same because after a few minutes on the phone she invited me to visit her home and family….and guess where she livesssssssss…YEP! In Tokyo! What are the odds?!?! The one place I had been meaning to visit and hadn’t gotten to yet!
*Fast Forward to September 2019*
After finally getting our schedules to line up, I made my way to Tokyo. I booked the Shinkansen (bullet train) to go there and then the Kotoku night bus to return home. I wanted to experience both methods. I’m all about trying everything at least once! The Shinkansen is a lot more expensive but faster and more comfortable. The night bus was much cheaper and a few hours longer but it wasn’t too bad either. It’s pretty comfortable and they provide you with a blanket and even turn the lights off so you could sleep.
I got to Tokyo about 10pm and I walked off the train and was swept off into a SEA of people. My crowd anxiety instantly kicked in and I thought to myself “Yep, this is exactly why I didn’t want live here lol” But one thing I was really happy for is that, there was a lot more English in public spaces than in my home city. So it was pretty easy to navigate the crowd and get to my destination. Maggie, her daughter and her son met me at the train station and it was like…wow…another Lucian…The last Saint Lucians I saw were my parents dropping me off at the airport! Man…listennnnnn I was on Cloud 9!
*PAUSE* STAY WITH ME BECAUSE HERE IS WHERE IT GETS REALLY FREAKY*
When I first told my Mom about Maggie back in July when we first connected on the phone, she said that she may actually know her. And this is just from the little info I got about her like where she’s from, her former job etc. My mom also said I should ask her about certain relatives of hers. I wrote down the names she told me on a piece of paper and totally forgot about it.
*PLAY*
Maggie and I are at her house, approximately 11:30pm. Chatting away and getting to know each other over some tea. I remembered that piece of paper with the names on it, and got it out my bag. After asking her about the first name on the list, we realized that were are ACTUALLY BLOOD RELATIVES!!! Listen…I really cannot make this up! LOL.
The next morning, I had to call up the big guns (Mom & Aunt Laurine) to verify, clarify and reconfirm. And yup…in truth and in fact we were quite closely related. What are the odds?! So I thought I was gaining a friend and in fact I gained A WHOLE FAMILY! Man…I was tripping!
So, If I never started that blog, if I never wrote that anniversary piece, If Faustina didn’t share it on her page, if Maggie’s cousin didn’t see it…Bruhhhhh…coincidences my foot! I went from knowing not a single person to gaining an amazing group of peers, friends and NOW a whole family! Issa different kind of happiness yowww!! Like wah…You can never get me to believe that Universe ain’t got my back 100000%
And man did we have a blast that weekend! But I will share with you two major activities.
-ACTIVITY ONE – Chokai Omikoshi Matsuri (Festival).
An important element of Japanese festivals are processions, in which the local shrine‘s kami (Shinto deity) is carried through the town in mikoshi (palanquins). It is the only time of the year when the kami leaves the shrine to be carried around town.
Maggie lived in a small rural community in Tokyo, which was actually a pleasant surprise to me. It wasn’t the hustle and bustle-crowded-busy downtown. The community spirit was quite similar to back home. With friendly neighbors, curious senior citizens asking “Where you going?” and children playing outside. To think, maybe I was a little wrong about Tokyo. It’s not all chaos. There is also quite, beautiful, small communities.
Anywaysssss…. Maggie and I took part in the Omikoshi; which meant wearing traditional Japanese wear and helping to carry the shrine around the community while chanting and stopping every couple minutes for refreshments. My favorite part was when we visited houses, and had to life the shrine above our heads to send blessings to that household. Afterwards everyone from the neighborhood gathered and shared delicious food, drinks and loads of laughter! So much fun! Though my shoulders paid the price afterwards LOL.
-ACTIVITY TWO – Tokyo SkyTree
Of course! If in Tokyo, one must visit the Tallest Tower in the !
The height of Tokyo Skytree — 634 meters — has symbolic meaning for the area known long ago as Musashi, covering Tokyo and parts of Saitama and Kanagawa, because the figure’s syllables can stand for 6 (“mu”), 3 (“sa”) and 4 (“shi”). The goal steel weight is approx. 36,000 tons. This is the equivalent of 200 Jumbo Jets weighing 180 tons each. It took 1325 days to build and has 2523 stairs. I don’t even have to tell you that the view at the top was BREATHTAKING. I was legit speechless. I wish I had a camera that could capture that nighttime view of Tokyo. My eyes, my brain, my heart…everything was in awe of this. Man…it really is a testament to the human mind. Kudos to the brilliant minds behind this man-made wonder! It really is indescribable!
Defo bucket list worthy. If you ever get a chance to come to Japan, its a MUST SEE!
This link can take you there for a web view but trust me, nothing beats the live view 😉
http://www.tokyo-skytree.jp/enjoy/yakei/ja/
All in All…Twas a great first trip to Tokyo! I’ll be back soon I’m sure!
Thank you for reading!
Peace, Love, Light
– Kers
PS: This will be the last post for a while, I am going to rebuild the site from scratch using a different domain. Bear with me as I do so. Thank you. <3
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