Here are a few observations my roommate and I made during our recent trip to Tokyo & the vicinity:
1) They really do have 4 foot tall old people.
2) The David Bowie look is still "in".
3) A crow WILL steal your tamago if you don't guard it carefully.
4) Thank heaven for 7-11... no, really!
5) What happens in Shinjuku stays in Shinjuku.
6) They have uniforms for everything, but the uniforms are too cute to be taken seriously.
7) Considering the lack of trash cans and napkins, Tokyo is the cleanest damn city I've ever seen.
8) Screwdrivers (and other cocktails) come in cans, and you can win yogurt from a claw (UFO) machine. Also, why bother to buy vodka & Coke separately when you can buy them pre-mixed in a can (Cola Shock).
9) 50% of the people on any given train are asleep. The other 50% are texting or listening to MP3 players or both. 10% of people will eye you surreptitiously then avoid making eye contact.
10) Nobody wears shorts or red shirts.
11) That blazing light coming in through the hotel window at 4am is, in fact, the sun.
12) 95% of all communication can be accomplished successfully through use of "Thank you" (arigato gozaimasu) and "Excuse me" (sumimasen) when used with some combination of gesturing and a confused expression.
13) Schoolgirls and cosplayers really do exist... and we are too damn old to be watching anime and going into the shops that sell it.
14) Stairs -- Japan's way of telling me to get into shape. Or to take the escalator / elevator.
15) Even the Europeans give us funny looks.
16) Akiba at night = your senses raped.
