There are railways stations, and there are railway stations.
Trying to navigate your way around Tokyo's Shinjuku Station and its satellites is like traversing a small underground city.
Shinjuku is the world's busiest train station with over 3.6 million passengers daily and 36 platforms on several levels.
I'll admit that we got well and truly lost trying to find a hotel that was just metres from one of the station's many exits.
Shinjuku holds a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records for the most passengers a day - understandable given rail is the main mode of transportation in Tokyo.
The Japanese capital boasts what is widely regarded as the best urban railway network in the world.
Shinjuku, opened in 1885, now has over 200 exits to help ease congestion, along with several shopping malls.
It is served by no fewer than five different railway systems: JR East, Keio Corporation, Odakyu, Electric Railway, Toei Subway and Tokyo Metro.
Throw in restaurants, those shopping centres and department stores, a tourist information centre, lost and found offices, currency exchanges, ATMs, police boxes and luggage storage and you have a destination on its own merits.
Beware: at rush hour it can be chaotic. But most of the time it is a model of public transport efficiency. If you can find the right exit.
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