TokyoShoes: Organized chaos

I would have expected the country that invested just-in-time manufacturing and touts efficiency at every turn to be, well, a bit more organized than the chaos I encounter almost daily in Tokyo. Just one example is the horrific commute to and from Narita airport. For the 9:45 am flight to Phuket, I left my apartment at 6:30 am, took a $20 taxi to Tokyo station for the $30 Narita �Express� train, an hour ride to the airport. The train could make it in 20 minutes, but that would result in too much competition for the �Limo� Bus to the airport. At the airport I then encounter 3 massive escalators up to the departure gates, where I took my flight voucher to one counter to pick up the ticket, then went to another counter to check in, then waited in line to pass through passport control (which always seems stricter than the passport control into Japan). After the monorail to the gate, I finally got to board the plane. Whew!

Gift package Hello Kitty buns at Narita Airport:

Comments

Hi Nadine,

Hope you're having a blast. I saw those exact same kitty gift boxes at Narita. I had to buy something to bring to the offices I planned to visit but opted for more traditional tasties. I say 'planned' cuz I was called back due to that SAR thing going around. Be careful!

And BTW, I totally agree about Narita. It's the worst part of any trip. I mean, if they made those 'beautiful' garbage islands for Odaiba shopping malls, they should've thought about placing the airport there!

Have a safe trip back!

by mie | 03.19.03 @ 07:55 PM

It's not the airport itself that irks me as much as the haul to get there. That is the number one drawback to living in Tokyo for me. I rarely travel any more because the thought of going to the airport puts knots in my stomach!

Conversely, living in Singapore was great because the airport was a 20-minute 10 dollar taxi ride from anywhere in the city-state. Of course, there was little else to do in Singapore, so we were in and out of there all the time.

by kristen | 03.20.03 @ 11:08 AM

Someone told me recently that if you noted down everything that annoys/irritates/irks you over the course of a week, you could come up with a lot of great new product and service ideas.

The problem is that we get used to putting up with irritating things, and that it`s really hard to make notes about EVERYTHING for a whole week.
I think the Narita experience definitely falls into the `that irks me` category.

by Gary | 03.25.03 @ 11:51 AM



« Too many pina coladas \| Main \| NEVER too much Thai food » Organized chaos I would have expected the country that invested just-in-time manufacturing and touts efficiency at every turn to be, well, a bit more organized than the chaos I encounter almost daily in Tokyo. Just one example is the horrific commute to and from Narita airport. For the 9:45 am flight to Phuket, I left my apartment at 6:30 am, took a $20 taxi to Tokyo station for the $30 Narita �Express� train, an hour ride to the airport. The train could make it in 20 minutes, but that would result in too much competition for the �Limo� Bus to the airport. At the airport I then encounter 3 massive escalators up to the departure gates, where I took my flight voucher to one counter to pick up the ticket, then went to another counter to check in, then waited in line to pass through passport control (which always seems stricter than the passport control into Japan). After the monorail to the gate, I finally got to board the plane. Whew! Gift package Hello Kitty buns at Narita Airport: Posted on 03.19.03 @ 01:45 PM \| Permalink Comments Hi Nadine, Hope you're having a blast. I saw those exact same kitty gift boxes at Narita. I had to buy something to bring to the offices I planned to visit but opted for more traditional tasties. I say 'planned' cuz I was called back due to that SAR thing going around. Be careful! And BTW, I totally agree about Narita. It's the worst part of any trip. I mean, if they made those 'beautiful' garbage islands for Odaiba shopping malls, they should've thought about placing the airport there! Have a safe trip back! by mie \| 03.19.03 @ 07:55 PM It's not the airport itself that irks me as much as the haul to get there. That is the number one drawback to living in Tokyo for me. I rarely travel any more because the thought of going to the airport puts knots in my stomach! Conversely, living in Singapore was great because the airport was a 20-minute 10 dollar taxi ride from anywhere in the city-state. Of course, there was little else to do in Singapore, so we were in and out of there all the time. by kristen \| 03.20.03 @ 11:08 AM Someone told me recently that if you noted down everything that annoys/irritates/irks you over the course of a week, you could come up with a lot of great new product and service ideas. The problem is that we get used to putting up with irritating things, and that it`s really hard to make notes about EVERYTHING for a whole week. I think the Narita experience definitely falls into the `that irks me` category. by Gary \| 03.25.03 @ 11:51 AM Post a comment (If you haven't left a comment here before, you may need to be approved by the site owner before your comment will appear. Until then, it won't appear on the entry. Thanks for waiting.) Name: Email Address: URL: Remember personal info? Comments:	Search this site:

Organized chaos

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