A trip on the subway

Have you heard about the people pushers they have in Tokyo?  The ones that push people on so they fit enough to close the doors?

We didn't see them. 

We left from here after visiting the Ueno Zoo. 

We hopped on the first train and were thrilled with our luck. We were all able to sit!  At 5:30 pm on a Wednesday afternoon!  

Usually seats are scarce for anyone.  Amy taught us to stand away from the doors in the middle of the aisle. That way you have the best chance of getting a seat when someone gets up. 

However, it gets so crowded that they actually have special cars for women so they can be pressed against other women rather than someone with different anatomy. 

But we had plenty of room. 

As an aside, the Japanese, though incredibly polite and well mannered are more immersed in their phones than most American teenagers. Seriously. I've been run into by texters a few times. 

Olaf pointed out that the Yamanote, Ikebukaro, and Shinjuko were three of the top five busiest train stations in the world. 

Interesting. 

So I took a couple of pictures of the sea of humanity I witnessed. You know, fascinating tourist stuff. 

People in the doorway of a train we wouldn't take. 

This leg of our route, though I couldn't back up enough to photograph the whole pole. 

Here we are, lined up to get on. 

I took this picture by holding my hand up and snapping. You can see the pole in the background. 

The train was a bit late.

Not when I took the picture though. 

It finally came and we got on. People pressed in. People were getting very familiar. I had Seamus at my side, perpendicular. Bryn was in front of me. Keagan had been in front of my but got pinched off in the press 

We couldn't stop giggling and cracking whispered jokes. Bryn and I never knew each other so well. 

I knew I needed a picture so I reached into my hip pocket. 

Seamus urgently whispered, "Do you have to get something out of your pockets NOW?"   

Amy was shushing us because the train was silent. 15 people per square inch and it sounded like Mass after Communion. 

But I snapped some pictures. 

Here's Keagan, so close, but trapped behind a pinstripe suit.  That's Seamus' purple Kotzschmar t-shirt you see. 

Bryn and I know an opportunity for selfies when we see it. 

At one stop a woman fell off when she stepped off. Poor thing had the humanity press tension released like a rock from a slingshot. 

We stepped off to let more people out and then squished back in. It was roomy in comparison. 

Here's Kai

I'm sorry for the blurring. But we were squished.  

And Keagan had a bit more room. 

Anyway, that was a once in a lifetime experience. That's what this trip is all about. Once in a lifetime experiences. 

But I think once in a lifetime on a Tokyo sardine subway is enough.