I am an addict. I freely admit that. I think somewhere it says admission is the first step to recovery. I hope that is so. I thought I had kicked my habit a while ago. Then I got to Japan. The temptation was just to much, with pushers seemingly on every street corner. At first I was able to ignore the temptation, only looking but never partaking. Then I tried one. The rush was to much and before I knew it I was spending 500 yen a pop, sometimes more. No my addiction is not drugs, alcohol or even pornography. Mine is much worse because the satisfaction is so much harder to come by. My problem is claw games, or Chasing the Dragon Claw as I call it. Japan is the Mecca of claw games and I am like a fat kid in the candy store with a fist full of money. With arcades on almost every street corner there are thousands of claw games always on the first floor of the arcade, easily visible from the street for those weak willed individuals that pass by. From 3 prong claws, to 2 prong, to nets, to pushers, grabbers, tilters, pokers, pullers and suckers. You name it and I have played it. The prizes inside are even better. From stuffed animals to food, toys to key chains, iPods to iPhones and my personal favorites women's underwear and anime costumes. I actually spent 6 dollars trying to win a maid outfit, not that I have anyone to give it to but winning a maid outfit from claw game just sounded to good to pass up. I had lost almost all hope of winning anything until I saw the net game. It was a new one to me so I figured I had to play it. It spins a net around, opening it up and then you position it to drop on top of the stuffed animal you want, where a weighted chain around the bottom of the net keeps it closed over the animal. It is quite ingenious and I had to play. On the 4th attempt I was victorious and the proud owner of a blue bear in a bonnet. And as horrible as the prize was I was ecstatic. I was all smiles and good feelings, the dopamine levels in my head sky rocketing. I carried the bear with pride through the lobby of our hotel, not paying any attention the stares coming my way. I did not care because I had caught the dragon.
Claw games will be one of the few things I will miss about Japan as we spend our last night in country. Heading for China next I am sure I will miss the ease of getting Western food when needed (such as the Wendy's I enjoyed for lunch today). I will also miss the bathrooms on almost every street corner and the arcades that I could so easily pop into if the need arose. The signs written in both English and Japanese will be sorely missed as we try to navigate around the rest of the world. And most of all I will miss the fashion sense of most of the young women in this country. I get the feeling girls in China will not dress in tiny skirts or shorts with knee high stockings. Its been a good time in Japan and having been here twice now I will not say that this is my last time coming here. It doesn't quite have the ancient sites of the other parts of the world, but Japan definitely has a style all their own.
Off to China in the morning to continue our whirlwind tour of the world. Some long train rides await us, such as the 22 hours between Xian and Shanghai. If we dont kill ourselves or each other I think it will make for an interesting experience.
