Let's Talk About Tokyo!

 Trip of a Lifetime 

Hello all! I am so excited to be writing this week's blog and getting the opportunity to share my experience at the International Forensics Association's 2023 tournament, in Tokyo, Japan. Over spring break, I was lucky enough to travel with 11 other BUST members to one of the biggest cities in the world: Tokyo! 

Traveling 

The team left for O'Hare International Airport at 2:00 AM Thursday, March 9th. We boarded a 7:00 AM flight for Detroit where we had a short layover and then boarded the biggest plane I've ever seen for Tokyo. The flight to Japan took us 15 hours. I wish I could say they flew by (pun intended), however, they were very slow and painful. All 12 of us had middle seats in different rows, so we were a little squished. However, we all kept in high spirits because we knew an amazing adventure was waiting for us on the other side. We landed at Tokyo Haneda Airport on Friday, March 10th at 5:00 PM. We then ate a quick dinner at the airport as we waited on our transit van to our hotel to arrive. I, unfortunately, got a bit motion sick during our landing so I didn't partake in any airport food, but everyone on the team raved about the ramen they had! At around 6:30 our van arrived and we loaded up and made the one-hour drive to our Hotel the Hilton Tokyo Bay. This was one of the nicest hotels I've ever stayed at. It had an indoor and outdoor pool, a convenience store, a Disney store, and a café in the lobby. The rooms were really big and the breakfast was beyond amazing! I am so glad we liked the hotel because we competed in it all week, so we became very familiar with it. 

Sight Seeing

Saturday morning we woke up early and hit the road for a day full of Tokyo sightseeing. We boarded the train from Maihama station to Tokyo Station, where we met up with one of my teammate's best friends, Emily. Emily is a Tokyo native, who went to an American Boarding School for High School where she and my teammate Julia became besties. We were SOOOO lucky to have Emily show us around. She helped us navigate the massive train/subway system, the busy streets and planned an entire day of Tokyo activities. Our first stop was the Tokyo Tower! I must admit, I didn't think I was going to enjoy the Tokyo Tower that much, because I'm afraid of heights, however, I was so wrong. Tokyo Tower ended up being one of my most favorite spots because of how breathtaking the view is. In my head, I obviously knew Tokyo was a big city, but seeing it from a birds-eye view was insanely cool! 

Next, we visited the Meiji Shrine. I would describe this area a little bit like Central Park in NYC, because it's a beautiful wooded area in the middle of a giant city. The Meiji Shrine is about a 15-minute walk through the beautiful Meiji Gardens. At the shrine to show respect, you throw in a coin and bow twice then clap your hands twice. While we were there, there were two traditional Japanese weddings going on in the Meiji Courtyard, which was beautiful to see! 

Next, we went to one of my favorite spots in Tokyo, Harajuku. Harajuku was full of fun shops, vendors, and restaurants. We ate a delicious sushi lunch and then went to a dog cafe! Tokyo is full of animal cafés - otter, hedgehogs, cats, owls, and literally a million more. We went to the most popular spot - The Shiba Café and were OBSESSED! For roughly $6 USD, you get a drink and 30 minutes to sit and play with the Shiba puppies (a much better deal than a $6 Starbucks drink, in my opinion). It was so fun and so silly. The shibas were, what I can best describe as extremely feisty. 

Competing 

While we had so much fun sightseeing and exploring the amazing city of Tokyo, we had a job to do also. We went to compete and wanted to bring home the International title to Bradley. The competition was pretty big and had a lot of tough breaks and really phenomenal final performances. Luckily though, our team put in the work, dug deep into their performances, and we were able to win the overall team sweepstakes. This is a huge accomplishment and such a highlight for my speech career. I'm so inspired by my teammate's support and hard work, they push me to be better! 

A Magical Ending 

To cap off an amazing week of fun and competition BUST celebrated our win with a Trip to Tokyo Disney Resort. Tokyo Disney was a dream come true! The rides were all in Japanese, which totally makes sense, but did throw me off at first. We waited in line for almost 3 hours for the Beauty and the Beast ride, which is a Tokyo Disney exclusive, but I have to say it was worth every minute of the wait time! The ride is trackless, and 10 people load into a giant teacup that takes you through the story of Beauty and the Beast. The animatronics are so lifelike, and the production value is off the charts, 10/10 recommend. We ended the night with the fireworks show over the castle and then rode the train home. Disney is always magical, but this felt a little extra extraordinary after the great week we had been lucky enough to experience. 

I really cannot say enough amazing things about Tokyo and the IFA experience. I feel beyond blessed to be a part of BUST and that we got this experience. 

Talk Soon!