Tag: Japan

Traveling Japan can be hard. I don’t mean that in terms of the language barrier and figuring things out. That is actually not such a problem. The problem is accepting the psychological pressure of traveling. Japan is awesome, but no matter how awesome a time you have, you are always painfully aware of those experiences just beyond your reach. Perhaps you are limited by budget or language or not having a car. Or maybe you are just in the wrong place at the wrong time. It’s good, but there is an unshakeable sense of FOMO here.

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A post shared by @danwu248 on Apr 20, 2019 at 4:28pm PDT

After two cups of coffee in the morning and no breakfast (I was getting used to free breakfasts), I headed over to Kumamoto Castle, which is still under repairs following the devastating earthquake some 3 years ago. One is able to walk around the outside of the castle, and to be honest, I was grateful to be spared an entrance ticket. I skipped the nearby Art Museum, and headed northwest to a Buddhist temple, up a bunch of stairs, around the back of the temple and up another bunch of stairs to find myself on top of a mountain looking over the city. There is a statue of the same guy on top of the mountain as there was outside the castle. Some history stuff, whatever.

I took a city tram over to the next area I wanted to explore, which was on the other side of the city. As it was nearing the lunch hour, I decided to swing by a sushi place that was recommended on Wikitravel. It was also well rated on Google Maps. I was half tempted to flee when I realized that the 2000/3000 yen lunch specials were just sushi platters. Seems a bit expensive when I just had sushi for 1000 yen. Nevertheless, I was looking for horse sashimi, and they had a sampler set including two other local specialties (lotus root and spring onion). I was warned up front that the size was small, but do I really want to argue over how much raw horse meat I get when I just want to try a couple pieces? I was of two minds about not getting good value for money, but also being okay with a light lunch.

As I was headed to Suizenji park around the corner, I passed by the residence of some famous novelist (Natsume Soseki). It was free to enter so I got a minor education in his biography. He only lived in Kuramoto for a couple of years teaching English, so he didn’t write any of his books here.

Suizenji Garden is super nice and super touristy. The walk up to the gate is flanked with shops and stalls, at one of which I purchased some sweets, also a Kumamoto specialty. They were made of lotus seed paste and (purple) sweet potato and roughly reminded me of mooncakes.

There was a shinto shrine inside the park with full English signage teaching the proper rituals of purification and worship, a small carp-filled lake in front of a hill that represents a mini Mt. Fuji, and plenty of garden grounds. There was not a single blossom left in the cherry tree area. There is the odd tree around still in bloom, but I would have needed to arrive 2-3 weeks ago for the full effect.

I walked around for about 2 more hours after the garden, noting the menus at various restaurants (some of which included a bit a horse sashimi as part of a more substantial set meal, some of which just seemed like good value), browsing super markets, and walking the arcade. I passed by two currency exchange machines, one of which had the same rate I got in Fukuoka, the other only marginally better, so I feel slightly less ripped off.

I was still a bit hungry, so I was searching the arcades for a bakery or cafe to sit and have some “afternoon tea.” Eventually I found a little bakery with decent prices and picked up a bun and a tart. I carried them back to the hostel, and after a quick nap, made myself more coffee while researching buses to Mt Aso, a volcano which erupted just Tuesday (so I won’t be visiting the crater).

I decided to go to the bus station in person where the information center clearly lists out all the routes. I reserved a ticket for the next day, which was a good thing, because the ones that leave at nice hours were either full or nearly full already.

For dinner, I thought I’d graze at Sakurano baba Johsaien, just next to the castle. It is a tourist complex, but is supposed to have a bunch of food stalls and restaurants. In fact, it was mostly just shops selling prepacked gift item food and ice cream. So, I tracked down a supermarket and picked up a salad and salmon sashimi on sale.

I spent the evening researching the next week of my trip. I have everything booked out through the start of the big holiday, but I’m starting to get worried about what is going to happen for those ten days. I’m starting to think that Japan is going to do its best China impression by having everything (accommodations, trains, and buses) fully booked out. If I didn’t have luggage to worry about, I might just do ten days of the pilgrimage trail on Shikoku, though that wouldn’t necessarily solve the accommodation problem.

Tram	170
Lunch	1620
Ikinaridango	200
Suizenji	400
Pastries	180
Bus to Aso	1500
Supermarket Dinner	586
Total:	4656 Yen (298 RMB) (USD 44.50)

Running Total: 23625.7 RMB (USD 3524)
Daily Average: 284.6 RMB (USD 42.46)

I think a day and a half was probably enough to see the highlights of Nagasaki, but certainly not long enough to sample all the delicacies. I took advantage of 100 yen price (compared to the 3000-6000 won in Korean guesthouses) to do a load of laundry (free soap!), though I should have paid closer attention to make sure there was enough water and the detergent dissolved. When I pulled my clothes out of the washer to hang them up, there were still clumps stuck to my jeans. Damn you speed wash!

I spent most of the day doing travel research and making decisions. Before noon I went out to find some chanpon, a “Chinese” noodle dish that Nagasaki is famous for. Apart from the Dutch, the Chinese were the only other foreigners allowed on Japanese territory for some number of centuries, so much like Incheon, Nagasaki had a thriving Chinatown.

After the noodles, I decided to track down “Castella” cake, a kind of sponge cake brought by the Portuguese (??). It was sold in gift packs in all the tourist shops, and a few of the old stores sold very fancy versions, but I found a sort of packing and distribution center where they sold of the extra bits at wholesale prices. I bought one rather hefty pack and shared it with the people at the guesthouse, while I drank my afternoon coffee.

Eventually, I decided to take a jog and followed one stream which is crossed by a number of old, famous stone bridges, then did a loop around the harbor, which was full of sailing vessels. Two Japanese, two Russian, and a Korean ship had docked for the start of a week-long sailing festival. The ships, all built between 1984 and 2000, appear to be mainly used for training and these sorts of cultural exchanges. The town was overrun by baby faced Russian sailors in their uniforms, though, I am sorry to report that they did not appear to have permission to go drinking.

For dinner, I went to what I suppose was a fairly famous restaurant that claims to have invented a dish called “Turkish Rice,” which is basically just a Japanese take on western food–some rice, some spaghetti, a salad, a steak of some sort topped with gravy. Surprisingly, I wasn’t handed an English menu, and the pictures were hard to make out, so I picked one where I read the kanji to be “True Turkish Rice” and was served lamb chops. I followed the feast with a “Nagasaki Milkshake,” which is another one of those famous cross-cultural culinary specialties of the city. Not so much ice cream based as ice plus cream. Still, quite nice.

Laundry	100
Chanpon	850
SIM card (1.5 GB — 30 days)	2160
Castella	350
Turkish Rice + “Milkshake”	2030
Total:	5490 Yen (351 RMB) (USD 52.33)

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I had a long day ahead of me, so I was up early to have my breakfast pack and get to the train station in time for the 8:31 commuter (i.e. cheaper) train to Isahaya where I needed to transfer to a different railway to reach Shimabara. I must have spent close to two hours researching time tables to ensure that I could have a couple hours to see Shimabara before hopping on a ferry to reach Kumamoto.

Fortunately, I had enough time over my coffee to get a bit of info on the long awaited Mueller Report. Wasn’t that exciting? It’s almost a good thing I had to spend the day out and about to distract me from it.

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I forgot how awesome the trains in Japan are, so many unique ones operated by local companies. Shimabara castle with an action shot of a crane (look closely). Like most castles in Japan, the moat is the most beautiful part. Christian martyrs. Lane of old samurai houses. Local delicacy featuring mochi. Action shot of seagulls following the boat for a free snack with Mt Unzen in background. #shimabara #trains #castle #島原 #島原城 #具雜煮 #日本旅遊 #guzoni #mochi #ferry #japantravel #travelgram #instatravel #시마바라 #일본여행

A post shared by @ danwu248 on Apr 19, 2019 at 4:19am PDT

After getting off Shimabara’s one-car train at its one platform train station, I headed over to the castle with my luggage in tow. It was a short walk over and a short climb up the hill, and fortunately I was able to leave the suitcase with the ticketing office at no extra charge. Japanese castles are usually quite impressive from the outside, sitting up on hill, surrounded by a thick wall and moat that is overgrown with vegetation. Inside the are often mini-museums and this one was special for its display of Christian paraphernalia. The early Christians in the hidden churches really clung to the secret symbols on everyday items. I definitely need to rewatch “Silence,” maybe for Easter.

On the castle grounds, there was also a gallery dedicated to the artist who made the main sculpture in Nagasaki’s Peace Park and a museum of “Folk artifacts” that turned out to be way more interesting than I thought it would be, a warehouse of tools and household goods both ancient and “near ancient” (i.e. 20th century). I took the secret back exit out of the castle to visit the nearby street of old Samurai houses, many of which have people living in them, but a few are preserved and open to the public for touring. The most interesting thing about the alley is probably the stream running down the middle of the gravel road. I saw cars in garages that open up to the alley and I don’t know how anyone can drive that.

I swung by a restaurant to grab lunch before picking up my suitcase. With suitcase back in tow, I headed to the city’s central arcade, and mostly followed it south with a detour to the “carp stream.” Shimabara is blessed with so many springs, that the city basically has streams running everywhere. I checked off a couple of other items on the tourist itinerary and found myself at the ferry terminal well before I expected to. There was a ferry to Kumamoto leaving in about ten minutes, and although I had noted nearby foot baths on the map as an option to kill time until the ferry, I decided to go ahead and take the earlier boat.

Apparently, it is a thing to buy seagull food (only available November-April) to kill time on the hour long voyage. I noticed signage that there was a free shuttle bus available to take passengers to Kumamoto Train Station so I was excited to save money, but there was a bit of confusion with the woman taking tickets on the boat. She spoke no English, and I could gather that she was asking me about the shuttle bus, so I kept nodding and saying yes. When we pulled into port she handed me a ticket for the shuttle bus, which was a fairly short ride into town.

I didn’t feel up to walking the half hour to where my next hostel was, so I hopped a city tram. This is one of those cold, but functional Japanese hostels. I thought it was weird that it opens directly into a shopping arcade, but there isn’t much choice of budget accommodation in Kumamoto. After checking in, I had a brief rest and headed out for a run along the river, which had some paths, but not really suitable for jogging. Dinner was a bowl of local-style ramen, but I am not quite a connoisseur to really appreciate the differences.

Local Train	460
Shimabara Train	1430
Shimabara Castle	540
Lunch (Guzoni)	1180
Ferry	870
Streetcar	170
Hostel (2 nights)	334 RMB
Ramen	700
Cold Tea	100
Total:	682.8 RMB (USD 101.79)

Running Total: 23327.7 RMB (USD 3477.85)
Daily Average: 284.5 (USD 42.41)

These two days mark the end of the 52nd week and the year of a “weight bet” I had going with a friend, where we would weigh in every morning and pay money according to how far above our target weights were. Not only did I fall far short of my goal, but I’ve actually been gaining weight week on week for five consecutive weeks. These first couple days in Japan have been depressing unless I want to reconsider a career as a sumo wrestler. Despite the fact that Japanese customs looked at me askance (“Why are you carrying a bathroom scale?”), I am glad to have the daily reminder (apart from my wallet) to take things in moderation.

It’s a good thing I am staying at a guesthouse with a healthy turn of backpackers. I learned that Japan has a golden week coming up, and not just the normal golden week, but a super long one because of the impending abdication of the Japanese emperor and coronation of the new one. The entire country is going to have 10 consecutive days of public holidays. I’ve gotten the next 5 or so days figured out with booked accommodation, but I have to really plan things out so I am not caught somewhere unable to get a ticket or a bed.

I spent most of the morning hanging around the guesthouse and went to check out SIM cards at a couple shops, then grabbed a sushi platter lunch special from a fancy restaurant. Afterwards, I caught a streetcar up to Peace Park. I was supposed to meet up with a couple of other backpackers, but because of Internet issues, we couldn’t get in touch. I waited around for a while, enjoying the beauty of spring and its on the nose metaphor of rebirth while steeling my nerves for the museum.

I passed by the hypocenter of the blast on the way to the museum, which to be honest I was glad to go through alone, though there were tons of children (not necessarily running around, but asking lots of questions). It was rough, but I channeled my guilt and grief into fury and fire. You cannot be qualified to hold the nuclear launch codes unless you have visited at least one of the two sites and borne witness to its horror. On one of the final exhibits tallying the number of atomic bomb tests per year/per country (which I guess we should be grateful has dropped significantly since the end of the cold war, apart from some random flurries of tests by India, Pakistan, and China in the 90s), they had to repeatedly put stickers updating North Korea’s stats. I want to know whose job that is and what they feel about it.

I was surprised by the number of tour groups of … let’s say older… Americans. I later learned that the Queen Elizabeth was docked on a port of call, so it made sense in retrospect as the excursion of choice. After visiting the Memorial Hall and rooftop garden, I meandered back towards the streetcar stop, but decided to walk after seeing how crowded it was.

I had half a mind to swing by another park with a memorial to the 26 Christian martyrs, but was a little pressed for time to rendezvous at the train station at 5 pm for a journey to the observation deck of Inasayama to watch the sunset and see bay at night. The group of us, composed of two Americans and two Germans, were of half a mind to walk the hour to the top, but took a bus most of the way and followed the “trail” to the top. Mainly because we didn’t want to shell out 1000 yen for a cable car ticket. There was a pen of deer and a pit of monkeys between the bus stop and the trail, which is a little bonus for the people willing to put in a bit of exertion. Unfortunately, due to construction, the footpath was closed, so we had to walk along the road. The observation tower sits with three radio towers on top of a 333m hill where we can look down on Nagasaki to the East and the Sea of Japan to the west. It was gorgeous. There was a “light show” with music (the official theme song of the Nagasaki Inasayama radio tower light show) and though the city itself didn’t have anything particularly special in its night scenery, it was beautiful nonetheless under the nearly full moon.

It was chilly, and we headed down and caught a bus back to our neighborhood, heading directly to a well-known dumpling restaurant. We ate a bunch, and I did not join the rest of the party in celebratory beers, either on the mountain, in the restaurant, or back in the guesthouse. I hung out and continued laughing and chatting with them until about 10:30, when I decided to call it quits and head to bed.

Sushi Set Meal	1080
Tram	130
Entrance Ticket	200
Milk Soda	160
Bus tickets	180+220
Monkey Food	100
Gyoza	1460
Total:	3530 JPY (225.9 RMB) (USD 33.8)

Running Total: 22293.9 RMB (USD 3331)
Daily Average: 278.7 RMB (USD 41.6)

Welcome to Japan! Though I didn’t quite reach the level of proficiency in Korean I had hoped for, I am finding that I actually learned quite a lot in comparison to how little Japanese I have so far.

After a last meal (of Korean food) on the border of Chinatown and Texas Street in Busan and a cold brew at Starbucks, I sauntered over to the International Ferry Terminal, which looked like an airport. I was a bit early. The ticket window opened at 4pm, and I purchased a ticket to Fukuoka with now problem other than the fact that boarding would not be until 7:30. I killed time by accessing free WiFi, charging my electronics, and attempting to game out a purchase in 7-11 to use up all the change in my pocket.

By 6, the departure hall was pretty packed with at least 3 distinct tour groups. The tour leaders sorted through stacks of passports and tickets, while the guests, all in their 60s, chattered away noisily. Fortunately, half the crowds left on an earlier ship heading to a port on the tip of Honshu. My biggest concern was with how crowded my second class cabin would be. A few people is fine, but it would be very uncomfortable if filled to capacity.

The New Camellia Line appears to be Japanese-operated, or at least Japanese-built. The mini shop was priced in Yen, and I had a little sticker shop seeing a 40% premium over Korean prices. Otherwise, it was much the same as the other two ferries I have taken so far this trip. I enjoyed a simple dinner of cup of noodles and a cookie and did my best to relax before getting to bed at an early hour. Lights on at 5:30, where one could see the ship already berthed. Nonetheless, we couldn’t disembark until 7:30, which gave me enough time to make coffee and read through some download materials on Japan.

Galbi Soup	7000
Ferry Ticket	99400
Snacks	1950
Total:	108350 (655.5 RMB) (USD 97.66)

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Japanese Immigration and Customs gave me a bit of hard time, questioning my itinerary and drug testing my luggage. On the other side, I decided to visit a currency exchange because I knew I will need more money at some point and I figured it would be better to do it while it was convenient. I strongly regret that decision as the rate was really crummy and I talked myself into it.

While waiting for a bus to Hakata train station, I noticed an empty space in my backpack and had the sudden sinking realization that I had left my toiletry bag on the ship. When I went to the bathroom in the morning, all the old men were washing their hair in the sinks and splashing water everywhere. Because my bag got soaked, I didn’t pack it away immediately, instead putting it in an empty shoe cubby to dry. I went back inside and asked the woman at the information desk. She made a call and told me to go to the ship office on the third floor. They made a call and after about a 20 minute way, it was delivered to my hands.

I did a quick half-loop through the mall attached to the Hakata (Fukuoka) train station to see about finding a SIM card. Spotting a tourist information desk, I uncharacteristically decided it would be easier to just ask rather than spend a lot of time wandering around. They quickly pointed me in the right direction, but noted that the store didn’t open for an hour. So, I went to the bus terminal and purchased a ticket to Nagasaki.

An hour later, after the bus swung by another location to pick up more passengers, it was finally pulling on to the highway. I looked out the window to see the New Camellia sitting in the harbor right there. Life sometimes goes in circles, and sometimes spirals.

The bus to Nagasaki took about 2.5 hours and passed through typical Japanese country side, hamlets surrounded by fields in front of a backdrop of densely forested hills. My guesthouse wasn’t far from Nagasaki station so I went by foot. I dropped my stuff and immediately went back out to find food. I had some homemade ramen at a little corner shop. It wasn’t a huge portion, but it hit the spot. I headed back to the hostel, where I was offered tea and chatted with the people in the common room. Its a good place. The staff (3 Japanese girls) as well as the guests are all quite friendly. I checked in, changed out of my jeans into linen pants because it was so hot outside (barely 2-3 degrees more than Busan, but feels like early Summer as opposed to early Spring) and took a sightseeing walk.

There is Dejima island (though not really an island), where the Japanese restricted Dutch traders to for 200 years and now we have to pay to enter. It is pricey and maybe not really worth it, but it is kind of cool to walk down what feels like the main street of an old west town, and like most historical places in Japan there are guys walking around dressed up and armed. Half of the buildings were historical reconstructions and the other half housed exhibits covering history of Japanese-Western relations and historical trade routes.

Heading south from there, I walked along the harbor (though technically the entire twisty coastline of Nagasaki is an endless stretch of harbor, docks, and wharves. Tourist cruise vessels and a three mast schooner were docked near the main stretch of cafes and bars that open out to the water. Tons of locals were enjoying the afternoon sunlight with a refreshing glass of beer. I was thirsty, but kept walking around the seaside park where teams of workers were setting up tents and a stage.

Without even realizing it, I had walked to the southern end of Nagasaki where there was a collection of historical buildings, such as an HSBC bank and a cathedral. I headed up a cobblestone tourist stretch observing the snacks and kitsch on display before deciding to shell more big bucks to visit Glover Gardens, but by a Scottish merchant back in the day. The gardens are on a hill offering a good view of the bay and house a number of historical buildings.

I head back to the hostel going over “Dutch Slope” (which didn’t really have much to see despite being so famous) and skirting around Chinatown. I had a rest for a bit, chatting with a young guy from Hong Kong in Japan on working holiday before heading up the street to get some curry from Coco.

Back in the hostel, I studied a bit of Japanese and chatted with the international assortment. It could have been a late night, but it was already a long day.

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local bus	230 Yen
Express bus	2570 Yen
sparkling water	120 Yen
Ramen (White)	750 Yen
Guesthouse (3 nights)	468 RMB
Dejima ticket	510 Yen
Glover Garden Ticket	610 Yen
Pocari Sweat	150 Yen
Coco Curry Beef cutlet	886 Yen
Asahi Clear Cooler	153 Yen
Total:	850.6 RMB (USD 126.75)

Running Total: 22068 RMB (USD 3287.75)
Daily Average: 279.3 RMB (USD 41.62)

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Two notes:
1) I’m wondering if I should start a separate daily average per country I visit.
2) My “personal” exchange rate for JPY to RMB is 6.4 (e.g. 6.4 RMB = 100 Yen). Google says it is currently more like 5.99 and it would be so much easier to just mentally multiple by 6, but when I exchanged money in January the rate was north of 6.2 and the terrible rate I got from a Japanese bank pulled the average up even more).