Anecdotes #1: Airport

April 25, 2008

Day 1: Thursday, March 20th
Tokyo

It was a beautiful morning. The sky was blue without a wisp of wind. Perfect weather for traveling. It was so warm, it was almost a shame to shrug my heavy coat over my T-shirt—but I figured I’d better bring that coat just in case.

I rode the bus to Kagoshima airport, listening to my ipod and watching the scenery. As we got into the mountain, there was nothing but yellow trees and leafy bamboo—a few houses here and there. I got to the airport early and wandered around until I became accustomed to my surroundings. It didn't take long.

When at last the plane came, I took a seat near the window. I could see the bay as we rose and I could see Sakurajima, our volcano, a wisp of smoke at its top. There were houses and square patches of rice paddy land.

This was not my first plane ride alone, but it was the first plane ride I had planned so completely by myself. I had bought the ticket online. I had gotten to the airport. I had made my way through check-ins, baggage checks, and gate numbers. It was a small accomplishment and caused me no particular trouble, but I was proud. Another form of transportation mastered.

When I came to Tokyo, it was raining.

But that wasn’t my first concern. Haneda airport was large and confusing. There were so many gates and people crisscrossing my path, that I immediately felt disorientated. I got my bags and checked the clock. I was running late.

It was already 2:30. Hedy’s flight came in at 4:40. And I still had to get to Narita.

There are two airports in Tokyo. Haneda is closer to the city and is used mostly for domestic flights. Narita, however, is far on the outskirts, possibly in another city. This is the airport used for international flights.

I bought a bus ticket to Narita airport. Then I stared blankly as the man loading baggage asked which colorful band I’d like attached to my suitcase. Apparently, there were three different locations at Narita that the bus stopped at: Terminal 1a, Terminal 1b, and Terminal B. I had no idea which terminal my friends would be arriving at. The man at last tied a blue band around my suitcase.

By sheer luck, he’d picked the terminal Hedy was arriving at, Terminal 2. (Inside the bus, there was a chart, which rather belatedly told me which flights went with which terminal.) Once there I had trouble finding the Arrivals gate. I asked someone and she told me the floor. Then I had trouble finding escalators. They were all over the place.

I found the floor. I found Hedy’s flight and her gate. I waited.

I should tell you now that Hedy and Jenny were not coming on the same flight. Jenny’s plane was 20 minutes later than Hedy’s and she arrived in a different terminal. The plan, hastily conceived, was that I would meet Hedy at the baggage claim, and then we’d meet Jenny at the gate. This was before we knew that Jenny and Hedy were in different terminal buildings. This was also before I rode my flight to Haneda and remembered one crucial fact: in Japan, you pick up your bags before you go out the gate. In other words, you can’t meet your party at the baggage claim.

I was monitoring Hedy’s flight and I noticed she was taking forever in customs. An hour past, but still I waited. Then suddenly, I heard my name on the speakers. I was being paged. What had happened? Had I missed Hedy?

“Do you know someone named Jenny Wong?” the woman at the desk asked me.

“Yes,” I said while thinking, How did she get in so soon?

The woman made some phone calls. “Jenny will be coming. Wait here.”

I waited, but I was impatient. Hedy should be coming out any minute. I had waited for her for so long, and I didn’t want to miss her now. I conveyed my anxiety to the woman and she paged Hedy.

At that very minute, I saw Hedy walking toward me.

It turned out she had come out of the gate late because she was taking her time at the baggage claim. It took her a few minutes to realize it was not a meeting spot, and she wasn’t sure what to do next. She must have come out the gate just as I was making my way to the information desk, because she didn’t see anyone. She was about to step out of the building and hunt Jenny down—which would have been a disaster since Jenny was on her way here. But she decided to ask information first and then she saw me.

When Jenny finally arrived, we all hugged. I was so relieved. Meeting my friends in Tokyo was the thing I had worried about the most. Now that we were together, the worst was over.