Today I am buying a bicycle in Japan. To be honest, I still have no clue what I’m doing here or what my purpose is. But I’m here—and I want to figure it out as I go. This bike will help me explore towns freely as I travel along the most important of the Five Routes of the Edo Period—The National Route One, a.k.a. Tokaido Road. Some deem Japan a racist society. Others claim there’s a double standard. Many say, “You may be here, but you’ll never enter the true secret life of the Japanese.” And finally, a very popular opinion we often hear: “Japan has got to be one of the most culturally rich and kind-hearted cultures.” Well, I’m here to find the truth for myself. As a foreigner with no chance of entering Japan’s secret heart, I’ve made it my mission to find the splinter in the cultural wall that’s gone unseen. With $1500 to my name (and even less at this point), I’ll be seeking to enter Japan’s inner circle—not to exploit or sensationalize, but to show the real truth about the heart of Japan as a whole. There are many videos about Japan’s culture, its landscapes, and breathtaking night scenes—but that’s not what I’m after. I’m tired of seeing the same story told the same way. These episodes of I Am Cooked are meant to reveal the hidden truth you don’t know about the Japanese.