July 16th: Air travel

Today I left Canada and went to Japan. The flight from Edmonton to Vancouver went well - it was only one hour. Then we stayed in Vancouver airport for 4 hours. Then the JAL flight came. It was a big plane with an upper cabin. Below is a picture of it. The flight had a TV and a game control phone. there is another picture below. The flight was 9 hours, but I slept for about 4 or 5 hours. They served us two meals: one was rice with chicken, and the other a spicy fish sandwich. For the first meal, the supper, they showed us a picture and we could choose which one we wanted. They do have movies and TV channels to watch in English. Also, the stewardess spoke some English. When we arrived in Tokyo we went out the exits, there are two exits from the plane to the terminal. I took the wrong one, but then my dad called me and I found the right one.

Then we walked to the train shuttle stop and got on an automatic train that took us to the main terminal. There was cool Japanese art with kanji on the airports walls. Then we went up and down a few floors. First we went through customs. There, we had a fingerprint scan that was new to me and a picture taking test when we gave them our passports. Then we got to the baggage claim and got our bag. We had two checked bags, however, Air Canada did not send our second bag, my parents' suitcase. The way we found this out was there was a sign on the luggage carousel telling us that we had to see the baggage services. We contacted them and told them to deliver the suitcase to our hotel. Then we got my dad's phone and tickets to the Nippori station. Then we got on the train and phoned the friend we were meeting. This took several tries. I recommend not talking on the phone in the subway, as it is considered impolite. Then we got to the station and switched trains a few times. I bought a ticket and my parents bought passes, which are an easier way to do it than tickets. Then we saw a few sites in the area of the restaurant. Then we got to the restaurant and had real sushi. It was quite different: the fish was fresher, there was a salad that came with the meal, and there were steamed soybeans. You only eat the beans, not the outside. Then we met our friends and gave out gifts. Then I went to my homestay. The house is like a modern New York apartment, except there are separate rooms for the toilet and the shower and bath. The shower and bath are like the ones here. The toilet is very advanced and automatic, with no need for a button. Also, there is air conditioning in the apartment. I slept well on a bed.

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