Small cities, rice fields and the final vestiges of autumn foliage blanket the Earth beneath. Even on an overcast and chilly morning equivalent to this, it’s a refreshing sight. With little melded metallic and glass jutting out into the sky, I’ll admit this isn’t the surroundings I’ve come to affiliate with Japan. Despite having lived in Ibaraki Prefecture for six years earlier than shifting to Tokyo, the longer I stay within the latter, the extra it begins to really feel like the middle of the world (don’t inform any New Yorkers that).