Getting Lost

I love getting lost. I've been constantly at crossroads everywhere I go. I remember at the very first orientation at uni in Tokyo, the speaker suggested to try and get yourself lost. I took that to heart and never turned back.

One of the things I loved about my life living in Japan was that everybody turned to biking. I had one, a bike I bought from a friend who was leaving Japan. I constantly got myself lost many times. I can't even remember the thought process I was going through then. All I remember now was that I just found myself out in a highway surrounded by scattered buildings and empty lots. I must've been somewhere in the outskirts of Mitaka 三鷹. I think I was headed to Kichijouji 吉祥寺on one of those lost forays. Alas, here comes the regret. I only remember figments of those moments now. I wished I'd kept this blog up as much as I could have to write down those memories I thought were insignificant during those moments. But they're absolutely not. Compound that with losing almost the entire photos I took in my year in Japan to an expletive-inducing computer virus. The photos I have left are those I uploaded on facebook. I was crushed when I found out but I've gotten over it.

But yeah, I cannot emphasize how much getting lost benefited me in the end. I explored places I would have never imagined seeing or going to. The thing is, was, being a student, I had so much time in my hands to get myself lost and not worry about the time it will take me to find my way back. That was the best part. I slept in cafes, train stations, outside train stations, or wherever when I missed the last train home. I walked in the middle of the night until morning around Shinjuku 新宿 by myself with only the moon as my company.

I got myself lost a number of times since then and every time is a different experience.