Wow, I could hardly believe I was finally here!  It only took 20 years to get this far!  But not just yet…

Once we got off the plane we had to get to immigration, passport control, customs, etc.  To do this we were treated to a preview of things to come.  Namely, walking.

From the jetway we walked. And walked. Around a narrow corridor, down some stairs, down an escalator, maybe some more stairs (another preview!) until we finally arrived at a large room.

We approached the counter after being directed through the short queue.  The man behind the counter placed a sticker and stapled part of the form we’d filled out into our passport.  We placed our fingers on the machine and looked into the camera, and then were quickly waved on.  That was it?! Yup! Awesome.

Then it was on to pick up our baggage.  No troubles there, just your usual game of “wait around the carousel ’til your stuff falls out.”

Ground transport at Nartia Airport.

From there, we had to take our bags to one of the customs counters.  Again, quick and painless.  The woman asked us a couple of simple questions in basic English about our bags, etc. and we were on our way.

Next stop?  Finding our way to the JR (Japan Rail) ticket office to pick up our tickets for the Narita Express to Shinjuku, and our Suica passes for the Tokyo Metro rail system….

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