conark's VirtualTourist Home Page

hmmm...for a website about tourist, i guess i should start off explaining my interest in touring. so far, my biggest exploration to date has been living in Tokyo for 2 1/2 years. went there thinking i could escape bush-onomics but ended up coming back because of family reasons. however, i wouldn't hesitate to return if the conditions were correct. my purpose mainly was to discover my roots as a Japanese descendent and to live a dream. I didn't finish my dream there so there's yet a proverbial unfinished chapter in my life waiting to be written.

I love California. Matter of fact, I love Los Angeles. And I love my hometown. Still I can't get out of my system my love for Tokyo. There's just something about the place that makes me want to go back, although my hometown has always felt comfortable. But perhaps that is the problem- comfort. It's *TOO* comfortable here to the point where I feel indolent and take for granted the lassitude induced by the lack of adventure here.

Certainly, there are many things to see and do out here. However, companionship is more of a motivation when doing things than anything else. In Tokyo, I've always found places where I could meet new people. Yet in my hometown, there is no community nor real sense of a place where people can easily congregate without being held to some ethereal standard of materialism. The people in Tokyo too are materialistic (probably moreso) but my qualities of being a Japanese-American help me increase my confidence as someone unique with an interesting story to reveal. Out here, I'm just another jabronie struggling to engender meaning in my existence.

Funny considering that my Japanese is quite horrible and that I'm probably more alienated in Tokyo in many ways than in California. However, I think it's that need for uniqueness that makes me strive to escape my hometown.