Narita 101

Welcome to Narita Airport!

During your lay over at this east Asia hub, there are several ways to spend your free time. Passengers from the Americas (and maybe Europe?) will arrive in Terminal 1, which has a high concentration of Japanese-y gifts from cute "Welcome To Our Store" kitties to kimono and ceramic knives. (And incidentally, this is the only place in Japan I've seen ceramic knives.) Terminal 2, which serves Asian destinations, may also have these stores, but I haven't been there yet so I don't know.


Pica PiCA!

From the 5th floor you can reach the outdoor observation deck, where you can see one cartoon-adorned jumbo jet pass by every 21.3 hours. (No, I don't have any data to back that number up.) There's also Kaiten Sushi, so you don't have to speak Japanese to order, and you can see before you eat. There's a little conveyor belt that brings sushi dishes by your table. But once you touch one of the color-coded-for-price plates you gotta buy it, so I recommend you enjoy the taste before asking what it is.

One word of caution; Narita is Tokyo's biggest airport, but it is also the name of a Tokyo suburb, right there by the airport. (Which, uh.. is, uh.. well, it might have some reason for the name.) So when you're on the train to the airport from Tokyo, be sure and listen/read the English announcements. I've learned that if a Japanese person has taken the time to provide instructions in English, it's usually to help you avoid calamity or fiery death and should be paid close attention to. (...and because I know you're wondering, No, I didn't miss an international flight before.. but I think it might be hard for someone in Japan who didn't know Japanese and English well.)