NZME rugby writer Patrick McKendry at work in his tiny Tokyo Hotel room, Japan. Rugby World Cup. 17 September, 2019. NZ Herald Photograph by Mark Mitchell
NZME rugby writer Patrick McKendry at work in his tiny Tokyo Hotel room, Japan. Rugby World Cup. 17 September, 2019. NZ Herald Photograph by Mark Mitchell
From the land of the long white cloud to the land of the rising sun; it's warm here in Tokyo where the All Blacks are preparing for their opening game of the Rugby World Cup.
The temperatures are in the mid-to-high 20s but, once out of an air-conditioned hotel orsubway train, the humidity hits like a hot, wet, blanket – even well after 7pm.
The All Blacks' match against the Springboks at Yokohama kicks off on Saturday at 6.45pm (9.45pm NZT), and the heat will undoubtedly be a factor. Steve Hansen's men have had a week's preparation in Kashiwa, just north of Tokyo, but the Boks have been here for longer and played a warm-up game against Japan a day before the All Blacks thrashed Tonga in Hamilton.
The All Blacks gather for a team talk during a New Zealand training session at Kashiwa no Ha Park Stadium on September 11, 2019 in Kashiwa, Chiba, Japan. Photo / Getty Images.
Will the extra time acclimatising help South Africa? I'm going to go out on a limb and suggest that yes it will.
And that's probably not the only thing I will be walking carefully on and around during the duration of the seven weeks of this tournament which is as open as any before it.
Most Japanese hotel rooms are not big – no surprise really when you consider that about 126 million people live in a country only slightly larger than New Zealand. Tokyo's population is expected to hit about 14 million this year.
And so the proportions of my room in a modest but modern and tidy three-star hotel near Tokyo's Metropolitan Shiba Park, and within sight of the Tokyo Tower, which is inspired by, but larger than, the Eiffel Tower, are not big. It would not pass a cat-swinging test.
NZME rugby writer Patrick McKendry at work in his tiny Tokyo Hotel room, Japan. Rugby World Cup. 17 September, 2019. NZ Herald Photograph by Mark Mitchell
But the staff are friendly and eager to help – just as they were at Tokyo's Narita airport – and the hotel itself comes with an extra that would probably not survive in many other parts of the world; a free, help-yourself bar, which is open from 4pm-10pm. From Wednesday to Saturday is open until midnight. Yes, you read all of that correctly.
There is a well-known European lager on tap, plus a bottle of whisky, mixers, and a couple of wine varieties. It is difficult to imagine how the scenario of an unsupervised, free bar would play out anywhere else, but the showing of self-control and respect are important here, and so, presumably, it works.
I only mention it because even a few days away from the opening game of the 2019 tournament - the hosts play Russia at Tokyo Stadium on Friday - the potential for stadium and bar beer shortages is still a matter of concern.
On Tuesday the All Blacks will depart for Oita which is on Japan's southern island of Kyushu, where they will play Canada on October 2.
A few days later, Australia play Uruguay there and the influx of antipodean supporters has some worried as far as the amber liquid is concerned. A shortage would not satisfy hospitality requirements and would be considered shameful to the city.
Sonny Bill Williams of the All Blacks poses for photos with fans during a New Zealand All Blacks Rugby World Cup Welcome Ceremony at Zojoji Temple on September 14. Photo / Getty Images.
A story published on the ABC website and written by two Asia correspondents explains why Oita bar owner Masashi Sano is worried.
"It's an unimaginable amount [of supporters] and we're a bit lost about what to do," he said.
Sano's usual all-you-can drink package, called a "nomihoudai", will not be available during the World Cup. Possibly for obvious reasons. The official one is that he doesn't have enough room for all the beer that would be required.
"The soccer World Cup has been held in Oita before, but they didn't talk about beer shortages then," Sano, a former resident of Australia, said.
