People often say to me “you’re so lucky,” to which I always quickly respond with “Born lucky.” I say that because I do indeed feel like a lucky guy on many occasions and I am always thankful for my good fortune. However, today my good fortune was not with me.

I have lost my passport!

I’m not sure how this has happened. I’m usually VERY careful with my passport, but to be fair I’ve been so tired these last few days that I forgot to put it back in the inside pocket of my luggage, and instead left it in my small backpack. The thing is I don’t even remember with any degree of certainty when I last saw it. Maybe it was after I went through immigration at the airport, but it might have been in as I ran around trying to get to the F1, or perhaps it was stolen on the night bus while I slept? It could be anywhere, all I know is that it it’s not with me.

Losing my passport has left me feeling, not only very foolish and angry, but also dispirited. I like Japan, but the cultural and language obstacle makes me feel quite isolated in this situation. So from here, my onward travel plans to the USA and Canada are now in serious jeopardy. At the very least, this surely puts and end to my plans to travel across the USA, then up into Canada, and over to Iceland before landing in the UK.

The British consulate in Tokyo will issue me with an ETD (emergency travel document), but they are unable to issue a new passport and have informed me I have little choice but to head straight back to the UK to get a new passport. This news is hard to take as I was really looking forward to catching up with my friends in the USA and Canada, and the thought of having to get on a plane and simply fly over those places makes me feel really sad, like I’ve failed or something.

Thankfully, my couchsurfing host here in Tokyo has been a fantastic help. Sephrine has been wonderfully helpful and tirelessly called various police stations, public transport services, and restaurants to see if my passport had been handed in anywhere. This afternoon, she accompanied me to the police station to help me file a lost property report, and that’s the picture of the day, though I wish it wasn’t.