Year: 2010

My first trip to Japan was in the spring of 2010. I planned it as a 12-day trip, arriving on April 25 and leaving on May 8. It took me much longer than I expected to finally make that journey, but once I did, it changed everything.

At the time, smartphones were not what they are today. International data roaming was expensive, slow, and unreliable. Google Maps was not something casual during that time.

I stayed with my brother in Chiba, which meant my first experience was not a hotel or tourist district, but everyday life.

Day One: A Slice of Everyday Life in Chiba

My first morning started with a simple Japanese breakfast. A bowl of white rice, natto, pickled cucumbers, raw egg, miso soup, and Japanese sausages. It was straightforward, filling, and very different from what I was used to.

That day was spent entirely around the neighborhood in Chiba. No major tourist destinations. Just walking.

What stood out immediately was how clean and organized everything felt, even in residential areas. Streets were quiet. Shops were small and intentional. Convenience stores were nothing like the ones in the United States. I walked into a 7-Eleven and realized this was an entirely different experience. The food, the drinks, the magazines, everything felt thoughtfully curated.

We passed by car shops, my dad’s old house in Japan, the Philippine Embassy, and stopped for lunch at a random sushi restaurant. The quality of the fish was on another level. It was a night-and-day difference compared to what I was used to back home.

Later that day, I found myself at Denny’s. Not because I missed American food, but because I was curious. Even that felt different. The menu, the atmosphere, the desserts. I had my first Japanese parfait and immediately understood why people talked about them.

Dinner was Yoshinoya. My first real one. The rice, the raw egg, the thick slices of beef. It was nothing like the version I had tried in the United States.

That night, we walked around the neighborhood. It felt safe, quiet, and calm. I went to sleep excited for the next day, already overwhelmed in the best way possible.