It's an acquired taste.

Not many people see Tokyo the way I do, but luckily I've found friends who love it as much as me. Maybe my enthusiasm for it has rubbed off on them. It all sounded like mere puff to hear it from me, but once they've been there, they fell deep. This is the Tokyo I've grown up loving.

1. Having woken up from sleep, and then hearing the captain point out the snowy peak of Mt Fuji peering out from the clouds, and all the airsickness is momentarily forgotten.
2. Standing still at the arrival hall at Narita Airport and just listening to all the Japanese coming from the large TVs.
3. Walking down the street at quaint Narita town and seeing how time hasn't changed much there.
4. Checking out the souvenir shops at Nakamisedori while on the way to Asakusa Kannon.
5. Loving the weather during Spring and Fall and wandering around in the streets with no sweater.
6. Shaking my head at how seafood stalls can look perfectly normal being located next to cheap secondhand goods stalls at Ameyoko Ueno.
7. Hanging around Ikebukuro just to collect as many free tissues as possible, but steering clear of dubious looking ones.
8. Feeling fashionable walking along Omotesando while on the way to Meiji Shrine.
9. Raising an eyebrow at how a tiny shrine could be erected in the middle of two neon-filled buildings at colourful Shinjuku
10. Feeling the groove and wishing I was a Japanese teenager at Takeshitadori Harajuku.
11. Experiencing the vibrance of the famous crossroad at Shibuya.
12. Always having tears in my eyes while walking out, hands full of goodies, from Disneyland.
13. Eating the same Japanese fare all the time, but never feeling sick of it.
14. Looking at the panaromic view of the drab and grey concrete jungle that never ends from the 52nd floor of the Tokyo Met, and realising how beautiful it looked.
15. Feeling really poor and stingy when browsing the boutiques at Roppongi Hills.
16. Staring at spotless blue skies and eating the all familiar Chinese cuisine at Yokohama.
17. Getting blissfully disoriented at the subways.
18. Disbelieving how the entire of Odaiba is manmade.
19. Feeling at home with the friendly service at the simple yet comfortable ryokan.
20. Wishing I'm there right now.