I should probably read that New Yorker article that was doing the rounds not that long ago which I understand questions the widely held belief that travel is part of a well-rounded life. I haven’t read that but I have read the Alain de Botton book ‘The Art of Travel’, several times in fact.

Why do I travel?

Because now my children are independent and my work is flexible enough to take time off. Because I once had a world map pinned to my wall with a tub of coloured push pins below. Because growing up there was a set of hardback encyclopaedia that I would dip into if really bored but more often than not just get distracted when doing some homework research. Because I find cities exciting and stimulating in so many ways: their fashion, their coffee culture, their drinking culture, their markets and grocery stores.

I don’t travel to wide open spaces, high mountains, pristine beaches and so on. I’m an unabashed bustling city tourist trying to find their way into a place. What do locals eat/drink/wear and ultimately value?

I’m happy to return to a city as I know I’m a different person when I visit, regardless of the changing dynamics of said city. New (to me) cities can sometimes feel familiar. Is it the way the streets are laid out? The trees that line these streets? The cafes and bars that spill onto the streets? Is it something more ethereal, unknowable? Have you ever been somewhere and swear it feels like you’ve been there before even though you – and Google maps – declare you have not? New Orleans is that for my partner; Milan felt like that for me.

We are literally in the air as I write this winging our way towards Tokyo. It will be my second visit and I’m pretty excited, if I’m to be honest. Nine years ago we spent a bit over a week here and that was no way near enough time. The megalopolis was confronting, overwhelming and amazing. I didn’t even feel like I got to scratch the surface.

I do remember the food wonderland that seemed to exist around every corner. The dark wood-lined okonomiyaki place we stepped into when the light rain turned to steady drizzle. The 24/7 sushi joint with brightly lit screens advertising the longest list of nigiri, sashimi and maki rolls that I still to this day have ever seen. That small unagi (eel) restaurant that we struggled to locate only to find a closed sign and shuttered windows when we finally came upon it. The delight of Lawson convenience stores and the seductive cornucopia of Isetan department store’s basement food hall.

Last night was our anniversary and we went out for fancy burgers. (Life has been less than stellar recently and we feel like celebrating small wins.) The burgers were fine, but honestly we probably would normally go to the fabulous sushi train over the road from us but I’ve been avoiding rice, raw fish, noodles and dumplings in the last several weeks. As though I would avoid ‘being over’ all these delicious foods I normally happily eat before we even took off. I know, this sounds stupid to me now as I write it too.

The thing is, I know Tokyo, and most modern cities frankly, offers a wide range of cuisines so there’s no guarantee we will exclusively eat foods I think of as Japanese. It’s although I didn’t want to spoil my appetite for ramen, for pork katsu curry, for a simple donburi bowl, for freshly prepared breakfast sushi, for okonomiyaki cooked on a flat grill in front of me, for the comfort of a plate of steaming gyoza and frothy lager.

Does appetite in general even have a limit? I obviously don’t mean how much can I eat in one sitting. That certainly does have a limit, particularly while seated on a plane which must be one of the most awkward places to eat comfortably.

On that subject, I have questions: Is the food served on planes actually more bland or does it just taste that way due to air pressures (blah, blah, blah, science-y speak)? Do I actually pass wind more or am I just more aware of needing to because of the whole human sardine can thing? And finally y’all know breakfast Bailey’s is actually a thing because time is just a nebulous concept when in transit?

I would love to know your thoughts on these questions, really I do.