Column: One night in Tokyo

Backpacking across Japan took me from admiring the infamous cherry blossoms along the peaceful Philosopher’s Path in Kyoto all the way to the innovative, exhilarating and vibrant streets of Tokyo, always bursting with energy.

With too little time to fully explore Tokyo, I used the city’s energy along with excess amounts of sushi as fuel and experienced a day of business in Tokyo.

After frolicking in the streets of Harajuku (famous for its futuristic fashion trends), observing the crowded intersections in Shibuya, visiting Tokyo tower to get a glimpse of the skyline and experiencing nightlife in the Roppongi district, I took a local’s advice to catch a break at an Internet café. This “café” was a whole different swig of sake.

Upon entering, huge shelves stacked with manga and anime comic books loomed above me, making the small aisle to the main counter barely visible.

Trudging to the front, I paid about $10 for a three-hour stay, which included a cot mattress, a computer, free fountain drinks and access to the cluttered copies of comics. In each small pod around me, locals were partaking in their own “matters of business.”

Some were passed out in their own pods, others watched stacks of anime films and still others completed school assignments while sipping green tea. I felt as though I had entered an anime version of the Herman B Wells Library during finals week. In this noisy, crowded chaos, I somehow caught a few hours of sleep at this new favorite and highly recommended travelers’ “hostel.”

At about 3 a.m., just as those returning from the club scene finished their night out, I checked out of my café accommodations and made my way to the Tsukiji fish market, the largest wholesale fish market in the world, where 4 a.m. means time for business.

With fish transported globally, auctioneers prepare frozen tuna to be presented to wholesale bidders at the open market beginning sharply at 5 a.m.

In the pitch black, wholesalers and buyers bustle around the market in organized chaos, hacking at the huge tuna fish and inspecting it for its possible value and price.

With a snap of their fingers, customers bid on a tuna fish and, if approved, have it wrapped and shipped to the final destination, anywhere from a corner sushi stand to a five-star Japanese restaurant. Within an hour, hundreds of buyers inspect the daily source of tuna before banking on their best bet, finishing the busiest hours of business before the clock strikes 8 a.m.

Either smiling at a successful slice and snapping for a bid or frowning with disappointment, the buyers moved from one seemingly identical tuna to the next, finishing their business and grabbing a bite of morning sushi before the majority of Tokyo townies had opened their eyes to greet a new day.

My travels taught me one thing: Tokyo is always open for business. From the crowded rooms of the 24/7 Internet café to the tuna fishermen selling their catches of the day to the thriving market streets where business men are packed like sardines, the clocks in Tokyo are always ticking.

­— espitzer@indiana.edu