a NOLA girl in a Big world

It’s your lucky day … 1 blog post, 2 days.

Thursday:

I was confident that the Japanese would have the most efficient race day expo of all the major marathons. That was a grossly overestimated expectation. We waited almost 2.5 hours to get our bibs. It was madness. They also ran out of finisher jackets. How sway!? You know how many people are running this marathon, buy enough. But I digress. We walked around the expo for .5 seconds because we had a reservation at an art exhibit. Naturally, we went to the lululemon booth, where you couldn’t purchase Tokyo branded gear, but could WIN Tokyo branded gear by spinning a wheel. I spun the wheel. I WON.

My 1st thought, I shouldn’t have won – I work for lululemon. My 2nd thought, I’ve been doing so many offerings at every temple/shrine all over Japan, this must be one of my blessings. Cool. I’ll take.

Expo being cut short due to inefficiencies and needing to make it to the art exhibit on time, really made for a frustrating morning. But my mantra all week has been – “I’m in Tokyo. I’M. IN. TOKYO.” (If you know me, I think you can HEAR me saying this to myself to calm down.) There isn’t anything that could make this trip less than 100% enjoyable, because I’M.IN.TOKYO.

We made it to TeamLab:Planet. Remember the digital Light and Art show I shared with you a few days ago? We went to its counterpart. While the 1st exhibit was all sites, sounds and smells; this exhibit was very TACTILE. The walls were textured. The ground would go from soft, to hard, to jelly, to unstable, to knee high water. Each room would smell like the environment you were experiencing. It was another WILD Japanese experience that would never happen in the states.

Speaking of things only happening in Japan: the UNKO Museum.

Kawaii is concept in Japan that is essentially the aesthetic of CUTENESS. and they make EVERYTHING cute … even Poop. Don’t be shy, click the link. Your brain can imagine what this museum is like and I promise it’s even more confusing in person.

We ended Thursday with a 7 course meal at an incredible sashimi/sushi spot. And some of you may be asking yourself, “but Lindsey, what did you eat!? You have the pallet of an uncultured 5 year old.” While you may be right, the theme of this trip has been “BE BRAVE.” A little inside joke with friends here, but it’s been spot on while at dinners. And this dinner was no different. I ate EEL. I ate Sashimi. I ate another freaking Mushroom. I was brave.

Friday

We did NOTHING. There’s a point in time, where you must remember why you’re here, and that’s to run a marathon. So, walking 11 miles everyday, ain’t it 48 hours prior to 26.2 miles. So, we shopped … I bought all the SKINCARE.

We then headed to dinner and I’m not sure if you’ve picked up on our dinner themes yet but they have been EXPERIENCES and this was my favorite of the trip. We went to a Tuna Auction and Rock.Paper.Scissors. Tournament.

The chef puts a LARGE TUNA on a cutting board and filets the fish LIVE. He then auctions off parts of the fish for folks to bid on and have as their meal. It was intense and fun and we understood NOTHING. Thankfully, we could order food and didn’t HAVE to win at the auction. Food was PHENOMENAL. I wasn’t brave tonight, I ate noodles, veggies and rice. but Ashley ate octopus. #Brave.

Then! The 🪨📄✂️ started. The premise of the game, the entire restaurant plays against each other and the MC, to win prizes. There was sake, ramen, a book and the grand prize of a gift card for a free meal and 2 expensive pieces of tuna. The MC would throw his hand and if you “matched” or “beat” him, you stayed in the game. It went on until there was 1 winner. It was incredible.

Let me set the scene: it’s the GRAND PRIZE. People are standing up. They want to win.

We are just happy to be there. The game starts.

Round 1: I match him.

Round 2: I beat him. (15 people left)

Round 3: I match him. (9 people left)

Round 4: I beat him (3 people left)

Round 5: I beat him … I WON.

He bangs a drum, the people cheer and congratulate me, the MC calls me the “GRAND CHAMPION.”

I gave the winnings to the table next to us.

Y’all. I don’t want to leave. The people are so nice and respectful. The culture is a bit out there, but also has restraint. And apparently, the Japanese Universe and I are in sync.

Truth be told, all the winnings are because of the MULTIPLE offerings I’ve given up to the universe. Who would have thunk!? (Wink)