Da didadum, the Tokyo train is running around

The German Railway is not exactly known for... German values. But I could pick them up here. Punctuality and efficiency that is second to none. How can you imagine that? Follow me on a little journey and I'll show you. 🤗

To the train station

You start at the hostel and head towards the train station. You wait for the traffic light to turn green and you immediately notice: something is different here. A bar goes down until it turns green or red again. 'Beep! Beep! Beep!'?! Beeping is for beginner blind people. Melodies are played here when the traffic light turns green.

Your pocket navigation

Before the train station, you grab your Google Maps and enter your destination.

If you're not spoiled with information here...
You take the next entrance and follow the color and letter of your line, which can sometimes be 300m from the entrance to the platform. Eventually you will reach the ticket counter area.
You can either buy a single ticket or a rechargeable prepaid card that you can also use to pay in stores.

In the mouth of the monster

Ticket gates that only open when you insert your ticket or slide your card, phone or watch over it? Naaaah, beginners. Takes too long. Here the gates are open. Until you redeem your ticket and try to go through. Only then the flow is stopped. Simply ingenious.
Once you're through the gate, you're in train limbo. Only when you go through another ticket gate will the bill be settled. In between, you swim like a fish in the system. Following the color and the letters (each line has its own letter, the first of the line name) you will eventually reach the platform. In a hurry? Prrrffff, no stress. The next train will be coming back in ~ 5 minutes anyway.

Now you line up in front of the automatic gates. The train always stops in front of these gates, no pointless running to the doors. In the middle, the masses flow out of the trains, with the passengers to board on the right and left.

There are even 'Women Only' compartments. Usable by anyone outside of rush hour, but only by women inside.

The ride

Grumpy and incomprehensible announcements at the stops? It's different here. Each station has its own number. As you can see in Google Maps, you board S2, travel through your stations, and get off at S5. In between, you check out the travel information. At first glance, you see:

• what's coming, by name and number
• where you are right now
• how many minutes it will take to the next station
• where the next exit is in the station

Does the next one look familiar? You're sitting on the train, either on a Saturday night, totally drunk, or on Monday morning still half asleep. And then you realize with horror that it would have been your stop and you wave goodbye in your thoughts as your exit passes by. We have something for you here too. During the boarding and alighting phase, a certain jingle is played at the station. Each station has its own melody. After some commuting, it will definitely wake you up and snap you out of your thoughts. Greetings to all dogs and Pavlov. 😅

And goodbye!

Finally arrived at the destination station, you go out towards the ticket gate. Insert ticket or slide card over it and into the labyrinth. But even that can be mastered. Google Maps lets you know the right exit, then you just follow the signs. Et voilà!