A Singaporean Cycling Across Japan

October 8th - Present: Sapporo to Rumoi and back HOME

2007-10-20T00:21:00.000-07:00

Well i'm done with the cycling trip and back in Singapore. I should have updated earlier on the last part of the journey but due to a couple of reasons (mainly, personal disappointment at not reaching Wakkanai, among others), i wasn't in a right frame of mind or mood to write up. For the last time, my route map above is updated with my entire journey's route.

Farewell from Hokkaido (more pics here)

I did post that i was feeling a little tired upon reaching Sapporo, and that's why i probably i, to put it simply, gave up at Rumoi, about a 130km north of Sapporo. I took 17 hours worth of trains (6 trains, 5 changes) from Rumoi Station back to Tokyo, and then to Yokohama (Ichikawa-cho Station) for another night stay with the Queks (read this post if you don't remember/know who they are).

1 bicycle, 4 bicycles bags tied together and my 2 other carry-on bags.

People on the train do not seem to mind the amount of space my bicycle and luggage were taking up, but that was actually the least of my worries. In case you didn't notice, i'm packing ALOT of baggage and it was a big hassle getting on and off the trains and moving around the platforms to change trains. The worst bit was when i had 7 mins to cross platforms via an overhead bridge to change trains. I don't know how i did it, but like i have done all this way on this journey, i just somehow managed to clear this last hurdle.

The train arriving at Sapporo station.

I spent a night in Yokohama, including a great shabu-shabu dinner treat courtesy of the Queks and then the next morning it was another 1 1/2 hours train ride from Yokohama station to Narita Airport Terminal 1 for my flight. Thankfully, the Thai Airways check-in counter (like the one in Changi Airport) waived off the extra charges for my overweight luggage and bicycle.

It was an non-eventful plane trip back to Bangkok Airport for transit (and a boring 4 1/2 wait for my flight to Singapore) before finally arriving back in Singapore. That's it i guess. End of the road and suffice to say, this will be the final post on this blog and i wish to thanks everyone, friends, family, people i've been blessed to get to know through this blog for sharing this adventure with me. Thank you very much for reading.

On to my next big adventure! And by that i mean starting to work.

October 2nd to 7th: Morioka to Sapporo!

2007-10-07T06:57:00.000-07:00

I've been cycling through Hokkaido for the past 4 days and am now in the capital of Sapporo for a day's rest. I'm dead tired today, moreso than i have been throughout this entire adventure of mine. I guess whatever my body had been running on (usually chocolate) finally ran out as i just used gravity/inertia to roll myself into Sapporo today. And it certainly didn't help that the entire length of coast from Otaru (about 30km east of Sapporo) served my tired legs a full course of hills and slopes. Man, i really need tomorrow's rest day badly... And since Kenneth asked, i'm only another 350km from Cape Soya. That would be another 4 to 5 days of cycling probably so i'll put myself at 85% complete.

October 2nd: Morioka to Ninohe (pics here) 80km

R4's highest point in Ichinohe.

After leaving Morioka, it was just hills and small mountain passes all the way to Ninohe. Nothing particularly high to climb, just the sheer number of it. Passed the 600km from Tokyo mark today.

One thing i missed coming out of Central Honshu are the clean toilets; up North, every toilet i've stopped at is just filthy, some of the toilets are literally just a hole in the ground. Here's a sample. If you clicked on the link, just note how there's no flush lever or anything. And i didn't dare to use the tap water. This isn't just a 1-off example, i would say 7 out of 10 toilets i've been too are around this standard or just slightly better (but most do have flush levers, this one is particularly bad), a very far cry from when i was raving about how clean toilets are in Japan.

October 3rd: Ninohe to Aomoro, and ferry across to Hakodate (pics here) 125km

More time spent going up and down mountains. Fairly long ride today and i passed 2 key distance markers today, 666km and 700km from Tokyo. I was just wishing for a sign saying "Welcome back to Sea Level" and finally, 30km from Aomori i got my wish.

Man, it felt great to be back on level ground. About 15km from Central Aomori is Asamushi, the English sub-text was Sunset Beach so i hung around and watched the sun dip down and disappear into the horizon. Really beautiful place. I already checked the ferry timing in Morioka so i was in no rush to reach the wharf. The ferry across to Hakodate was for 8:30pm.

Unfortunately, once in town i chanced upon another 2nd-hand shop so i went for a look-around and by the time i came out, i was 10km away from the wharf with under an hour to go, so that meant i had no time for dinner. Rushed to the wharf, got my ticket and by the time i got to the pier it was just nice for boarding.

One thing i learnt is that you should buy your own food onto the ferry. There is cup noodles for sale on the boat (150JPY) but i had 2 and my stomach was still growling so i just slept for the entire 4 hour ride (110km from Aomori to Hakodate). Bike was tied to the side of the loading bay below where all the trucks were parked.

It's a good thing i don't smoke because the non-smoking room was empty except for me. All the smokers were in a seperate room drowning in their own cigarette smoke. Sleeping on the carpet was suprisingly comfortable, or i was just very tired; i had been up and cycling since 7am.

Reached Hakodate central at 1am and checked in to a random hotel. Room was cheap, 3500JPY (i later found out it was because the room had no window, but that's perfectly fine by me since the first thing i do everytime is shut the blinds).

October 4th: Hakodate (函館, can anyone tell me how to read the name in Chinese?) (pics here)

Morning was a visit to Asaichi, the local fish market, which had a lot of live crabs (and big ones at that, some of the legs were the length of my arm!), salmon (and salmon roe) and live squid (a Hakodate specialty) for sale. A lot of restaurants on the side were serving raw dishes (1000 to 2000JPY a bowl) and i just settled for the cheapest place i could find. Yummy!

Next, a walk along the bay and the nearby lower slopes of Mt. Hakodate. Supposedly from the brochure i took, alot of movies used this slope (below) because it offers a full view of the bay from the top. Lots of foreign churches and the likes around the slope. A really picturesque city.

It started to rain near sunset but since i already purchased the 1-day pass that included the bus up to Mt. Hakodate, i decided to just brave the rain and go up for the night view of Hakodate, which is suppose to be quite spectacular. I got soaked taking pictures (good thing the hotel had a very effective clothes dryer) but i didn't want to hand around cause there were a bunch of Taiwan and Hong Kong tourists crowding up the place.

I was trying to get back indoors from the rain but they just jammed the doorway (they were trying to come outdoors, they all had umbrellas) and refused to let me back in. One girl even said (in mandarin), "Look, he's getting wet. Let's hurry." You don't HURRY, you just have to stop for a second or two and let me through. Seriously... .

October 5th: Hakodate to Oshamanbe (pics here) 105km

Started out on Route 5 towards Sapporo today. I think this needs to be said (again), but Hokkaido is a really beautiful place. From lakes to open fields to mountains and to the sea, i really got to experience the full nature package in just 1 day of riding.

Not to mention that there are little cars on the roads and that the shoulder lane for half the way is about as wide as a regular car lane. Perfect for cycling. And i got to experience a light drizzle when the sky was completely blue without a single cloud. Afterwards, there were rainbows on both sides, 1 over the sea to my right and 1 in the mountains on my left. Truly amazing.

Ryokan tonight was cheap and the lady was telling me i was the first Singaporean she's seen. Very friendly and the tatami rooms were squeaky clean. No need for air-con because the night air just cooled the whole room. Cheap too, 3000JPY.

October 6th to 7th: Oshamanbe to Kutchan to Sapporo (pics here) 79km, 98km

In Hokkaido, it's not a question of how far can i cycle today but how far do i need to cycle to get to a town. There's long empty stretches of roads without a house in sight and some small sections of town are made up of a handful of houses and that's it, back to empty roads again.

A really tough ride through many hills today to Kutchan, which is a popular stop in winter to the Niseko ski region and also to Mt Yotei, which is pretty hard to miss when cycling because it has such a prominent shape (it looks like Mt Fuji, except it's about half the height at 1898m).

Mt Yotei from Kutchan Town.

Another stay at a Ryokan in front of Kutchan station (3500JPY) and then it was off to Sapporo. 50km later i was back on the coast and through hilly Otaru. Met a group of road-cyclists at a 7-eleven and they invited me to follow them to Sapporo. Yeah right. They dropped me 3km up the first climb.

BUT, it's probably good that i didn't hang around with a big group because when i finally caught up to them again, one of them had crashed into a car. I stopped to see if he needed help but from the looks of it he just had some cuts on his arm. My medic intuition told me he was fine so i just continued on.

Otaru Canal

Somewhere right after that, i just felt as if all the energy in my body drained out. The headwinds were strong and very chilly and i just didn't want to fight it. Checked into the first hotel i found on the way to town because i was too tired to do hotel-hunting tonight.

Coastline, Otaru

Tomorrow is a rest day in Sapporo and actually there's only 2 places i want to visit which would be the Clock Tower (a Sapporo landmark) and the Salmon Museum (who would have thought there would be a museum dedicated to a fish?). Might look around more (time-permitting) but i just know i'm gonna sleep in late tomorrow morning.

Did a little research on Wakkanai and there is no ferry back to Tokyo or Sapporo. My best bet would be a train back down to Otaru and then a ferry from there to Tokyo. Will go to the train station tomorrow and get more information on ferry routes. This is probably a good time to go hunting for a bicycle bag so i can bring my bike onto the trains. Good night (or good morning) from Sapporo!

September 28th to October 1st: Fukushima to Sendai to Morioka

2007-10-01T05:16:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow morning marks exactly 1 week since i packed and left Tokyo for the north and in the past few days i've stayed in all 3 capitals of the 3 prefectures i've cycled through. I'm just really thankful for excellent weather (no rain this whole week! that's amazing!) and i'm 2 days (or 208km) away from Aomori (Aomori Pref.), the northernmost city of Honshu. From there it's a 4 hour ferry ride to Hakodate in Hokkaido. I'm a bit disappointed i won't get to go through the Seikan Tunnel (the longest rail tunnel in the world, 2nd would be the Channel Tunnel between Britain/France).

September 28-29th: Fukushima to Sendai (77km, all pictures condensed here)

I actually spent an extra night in Sendai to recuperate. So for this past week in 7 days (6 if you minus the extra day in Sendai) i covered 529km in total. Sendai is well, just another city to me. I've passed through so many cities that they all look the same. Supposedly, it's supposed to be 'greener' (it's known as the 'City of Trees') than all the other cities, and to its credit i did notice more roadside trees than anywhere else, but compared to the greenery in Singapore, it's really nothing.

Door to Aisaki Ryokan, 3990JPY a night.

The city logo on the way in, was however, the nicest one i've seen so far (it beats all the other city logos of flowers and animals). And before you go thinking "that's just a guy on a horse!", that's Date Masamune, founder of Sendai city, and distinguishable by the trademark cresent-moon on his helmet and also his eye-patch that earned him the nickname the "One-Eyed Dragon". To me he's the 6-sword wielding guy in the PS2 game "Basara 2". Yup, 6 swords.

And because i didn't want to walk the city, i took a train to the nearby towns for a walk and lunch. Much more comfortable riding the trains here than having to always squeeze in the trains like in Tokyo. It's pretty funny how i was waiting for the doors to open but somehow it didn't. Then someone came up and pressed the "OPEN" button on the side for me. And it was in English as well. I just didn't know you had to open the train doors yourself.

September 30th: Sendai to Ichinoseki (85km)

Less houses and more open fields now.

I like how there's much more fields and plantations than houses on the roadside now. It's a nice change from the roads in Central Honshu. The air is also 'fresh', that is, if you consider fertilisers and the smell of cut grass 'fresh'. At least it beats having to smell fumes from factories.

Ichinoseki is the first city in the Iwate prefecture and a nice quiet stop for me. Nothing much to do at night but the fruit stalls on the street were nice. Bought a bunch of bananas for my breakfast the next day and had an early night's sleep cause i planned to start my day earlier from tomorrow onwards, mainly because it's getting dark around 5:30pm.

October 1st: Ichinoseki to Morioka (90km)

Overnight stop at Morioka, capital of Iwate Prefecture and for a change i'm not seeking accomodations near the train stations but in the outskirts of town beccause there seems to be alot of supermarkets and big 2nd hand shops here. I can't resist browsing around 2nd-hand shops, especially for DVDs and CDs, which are about the only things that are cheap (when 2nd-hand) compared to Singapore.

The 'magic' 500km sign. And the many spiders hanging their webbing on it.

Temperature tonight is 11 degrees, which is not as cold as it sounds..until the wind starts blowing, then i start wishing i didn't come out on the streets. Going to rest for a 100km ride tomorrow.

September 25th to 27th: Tokyo to Fukushima

2007-09-27T04:20:00.000-07:00

September 25th: Tokyo -> Saitama City -> Koga (65km + 20km detour to and from Saitama)

Sign along Route 4.

Route 4 which will take me all the way to the the northern tip of Honshu is 739km long (and the longest of the National Roads) according to Wikipedia. I've set myself a 10 day target to reach Aomori so that would equate to 73.9km a day. Thanks to the detour to Saitama Stadium 2002 (home of Urawa Reds) i fell a little short of target but the temperature has fallen to very cooling 24-26 degrees in the afternoon now, perfect for cycling. And the stadium was a ghost town because there was no game today. Not a soul in sight or shop open (apparently the Reds are on an away AFC game)

September 26th: Koga -> Shirakawa (125km)

Out of neccesity i had to cycle over a 100km today because there were no vacancies in the 2 towns i passed through. Riding at night was no fun and the temperature was very cold at 16 degrees so i finally had a chance to put on the jacket i brought. Finally found a place to spend the night in Shirakawa (the 5th hotel i tried, the others were full as well).

Shirakawa has the best tasting ramen i've had so far in Japan. Just found out that the local variation of Ramen here is considered (by some) to be the best in Japan. The cook (who was also waiter and cashier) was stir-frying some onions and then he poured the ramen broth into it. The smell, heavenly, and the taste, fantastic. The set including some tori karaage and a bowl of soy-sauce rice was 850JPY, which was quite reasonable.

September 27th: Shirakawa -> Fukushima (85km)

Told myself before i set off this morning i didn't want a repeat of yesterday's night cycling so i pushed myself to cycle a little faster and reached Fukushima in record time (2:30pm; i always start off at 10am every morning). I'm 272km from Tokyo now and above my average distance to cover a day (~222km) so maybe i can save a day on my way to Aomori.

Lunch today was ramen again and a new style that i haven't tried before. It's cold ramen noodles that is supposed to be dipped into the soup (a little sweet/sour tasting), and at first i wasnt't sure if that was how it was supposed to be eaten so i just observed the guy beside me. And that black patch on the plate is chili! Wow, never though i would get to have chili in Japan! Unfortunately, it's more sweet than spicy. But the dish was very good.

I'm in the capital city of Fukushima, in Fukushima Prefecture tonight and heading to Sendai tomorrow; that would be the most populated city in the north. I'm expecting temperatures to drop soon and already i'm riding with track pants on to keep warm, but im really enjoying this ride up north. I have not seen any real cyclists on the roads so far though.

September 21st to 23rd: Yokohama to Tokyo and the TOKYO GAME SHOW!

2007-09-23T07:34:00.000-07:00

September 21st to 23rd: Yokohama to Tokyo and the TOKYO GAME SHOW! (all photos combined here)

It's when i really get to such a big city like Tokyo that i look back and truly appreciate the kindness and friendliness of the other smaller cities and towns i've been true. Someone told me that the closer you get towards Tokyo the more people are unwilling to stop and lend a hand or give directions. I guess that's generally true. Anyway on the way to my Hotel (which i am very glad is outside town) at Toyo, i saw 5 ambulances, 1 police car and 1 fire truck go wailing by. And that's just within my first hour of cycling in town! Which, by the way, is incredibly difficult with all the people and traffic. There are however, courier cyclists swerving in and out of traffic very skilfully.

Passed Tokyo Tower on the way through town.

Outside the Imperial Palace Garden Park, which is offlimits to cyclists, especially the sweaty ones like me

I'm glad the Hotel is much better than what i'm used to staying in nowadays. Conveniently, the Tokyo Metro entrance is just outside the hotel and i'm 3 subway stops from the station to get to the Tokyo Game Show and Akihabara.

Akihabara, well i don't have much to say about it except how disappointed i am that i couldn't find the 2 games i was looking for in any of the shops. The electronics portion is like a hyper version of Sim Lim Square, except most stores have salespersons with loudhailers advertising outside. If you are an anime/manga or toy (as in collectible figures and specialty toy) fan than you will enjoy it more. But seriously, 1 anime DVD (which contains like 2-3 episodes) cost 5000JPY upwards while a regular movie costs around 3990JPY. And those toys figures, which admittedly look fantastic aren't cheap as well. I don't know how the prices are justifiable. Personally, i prefer Osaka's Den-den town better. It seems much more organised and chocked with just as much things.

I came with an empty bagpack and left with it full and 2 more (1 bag is in the white bag) on hand

On to the main event: The Tokyo Game Show! Seriously it does not pay to arrive just on time. Just look at the crowds! (another pic)! Either you come very early or come after lunch, like i did on the 2nd day, to avoid getting crowded out. Queue time was 1 hour+ just to enter the hall. To make it worse, it was a hot day and everyone was literally melting under the sun while waiting. They herded us in lanes of about 200 people and lane by lane we were allowed entry. At least i was wrong, Japanese do sweat (a lot) on closer inspection. Some people just squatted on the ground and played their PSP/DS while waiting.

Capcom girls saying farewell at the end of TGS 2007.

Snake look like he lost a lot of weight..

Once you make it through the TGS sign, you're free to wander around the 8 halls of events and booths. TGS was fun, well i say that because i'm estastic that i managed to get the autograph i was looking for. Caught and called out to Hideo Kojima as he was leaving the hall. His security guards told me to go away (politely of course) but Hideo-san came up to me and took my box and marker and signed. My hands were full so i didn't get to take a picture or shake his hand though.

Crowd leaving the building.

If you love games and don't mind wading through huge crowds then you'll love the show. If you want to try game demos, be prepared to wait, and wait, and wait. Queues range from 30 minutes to 4 hours (Metal Gear Solid 4) to try the games. That said, i queued 4 times to play Guitar Hero 3 on the PS3. I even went head to head with one of the members of Activision's GH3 production team. I lost though. The 8 halls are divided into 3 main lanes so i just spent my time walking back and forth each lane and catching whatever's on stage at the time. Stayed right till the end on the 2nd day, that's when every company's show girls go up on stage and take a bow before the show truly closes. Overall a really great experience for me and if i had the chance, i'll come back and do it again next year.

After i get away from Tokyo, i really have no other places (maybe Saitama and Takasaki City, maybe..) along the way that i am planning to stop over at all in Northern Honshu. The region is described as 'backwater' in Lonely Planet. LP also adds that the people are friendlier than people from Central Honshu, so i'm looking forward to that. A little kindness really goes a long way to brightening up someone's (ie, me) day.

September 19th to 20th: Numazu to Yokohama and Map of my Travel Route

2007-09-20T01:36:00.000-07:00

Edit: Yokohama is not 50km away from Numazu as i was so wrongly misinformed by a guy on the street. It's actually ~80km away.

As suggested by Kenneth, here is a rough map of the places i've cycled through up till tomorrow. Please bear with the kindergarten-like scribbles, i just squiggled it out on in MSPAINT on the first map i could find. (Map taken from http://www.ease.com/~randyj/)

September 19th: Numazu -> Hakone -> Hiratsuka (pics here and here)

The name 'Hakone' has always been on the back of my mind since i met a fellow cycle-tourer back in Miharu. He told me he almost thought of giving up and going back home to Yokohama midway while pushing his bike up Hakone-pass. It took him 5 hours to go up Hakone (till nightfall no less) and down again (by my estimation that would be 30km total). I just laughed it off as a joke back then but after yesterday's trip, i have to conclude that pushing up this hill is no shame at all, especially if your bike is loaded with luggage.

Road snaking up to Hakone. That's Mt Fuji slope in the background, hiding again in the clouds.

Within the first kilometre of the climb i already passed a female cycle-tourer conceding defeat and pushing her bicycle up. I told myself that no matter what, i would not be doing the same. I passed a couple more cyclists going up and saw them struggling as well. Seriously, i felt their pain. Countless times while going up, my legs and heart kept telling me to stop and just surrender. Fortunately, pride won out in the end and it took me a grand total of 2 1/2 hours to go up and over Hakone...and i thought i was at the top when i saw this sign but after a 2km descend, i had to climb up somemore to the true highest point on Route 1....

The mist at the top felt like rain.

..and then from there it was a sweet descent to Odawara. And with a combination of late braking and just plain madness, i was surely the fastest idiot on wheels speeding down the mountain.

Fittingly, my Lonely Planet guide describes Hakone as a 'tourist mecca'. Truly a beautiful place. I also tried to spy Mt Fuji while cycling up, but it's more of the same ol' same ol'. The view from the top of Hakone pass of Lake Ashi would make a fabulous picture, if my camera could focus through the mist and capture the moment, which unfortunately it couldn't.

Found a bicycle shop on the way to Hiratsuka and changed my tyres and brake pads which were badly worn out. And on a personal note, i think my new tyres makes my bicycle look even better than it did before.

September 20th: Hiratsuka -> Yokohama

I'm spending the night with Robert Quek and family in Yokohama. Their house is fantastically luxurious and cosy and they were kind enough to invite me to base myself here for the next couple of days while i attend the Tokyo Game Show. But for fear of getting too comfortable (and already i'm reminded of home; they even have a Xbox360..) i think i will move on to Tokyo tomorrow.

Did a quick night sight-seeing trip around Yokohama bay, really pretty place even at night but it would be more ideal for romantic dates and such. So as the lone cyclist shining his LED headlight into the many embracing couples there, i didn't care to hang around too long.

Landmark Tower, tallest building in Japan.
Street performer who juggled fire sticks and extinguished them in his mouth.
Big ferris wheel at the bay.

Honestly, I'm just looking forward to the Tokyo Game Show. I bought the Metal Gear Solid 20th Anniversary collection in hopes that I can get Hideo Kojima to autograph it for me. Just so you know, the game that got me into gaming was Metal Gear Solid for the PS1, so besides being a big fan of Kojima and the series, there's a lot of 'sentimental' value for me. I just pray that i will be able to get a ticket to the biggest game show on Earth (Sat/Sun 10am-5pm; open to public).

September 17th - 18th: Toyohashi to Numazu

2007-09-18T03:33:00.000-07:00

September 17th: Toyohashi -> Shimada (~80km)

The highlight of today was me getting my first puncture of my journey! And contary to popular (family) belief, i do know how to fix a puncture, even though this is probably only the 2nd time in my life i had to do so. Quite quickly too, by my low standards, it only took 15 minutes inclusive of unloading and reloading my bags. Well anyway, this is a load of my mind. Now at least i know i can handle flats.

If you like quiet towns, then Shimada is probably a good choice. The streets were so quiet and deserted at 8pm it felt like a ghost town. And dark too; without my front light on my bike i couldn't make out the pavements. Anyway i had Japanese curry rice for the first time. Better than i expected, and compared to regular curry back in Singapore, more my taste cause its less spicy.

September 18th: Shimada -> Numazu (~80km)

3 days after leaving Nagoya, i found myself once again in the Fuji region. And once again Mt Fuji is hiding amidst the clouds:

Mt Fuji from Kawaguchiko city, Sept 14th. At least i can make out its shape.

Mt Fuji from Fuji city, today. I can just make out its slope before it disappears into the clouds.

Frankly i don't think i want to hang around and wait for Fuji-san to show itself. So instead of going up to Fujinomiya as i planned yesterday, i went ahead and am staying Numazu for today. Had a delicious meal in Fuji for 1050JPY. And the shop lady was kind enough to give me 2 photographs (not postcards) taken off her shop wall of Mt Fuji in all its glory. And as has been the case for my entire trip, whenever i mention Singapore, the first thing that comes to everyone's mind is 'Ah, Merlion!' I never knew the Merlion was so famous.

Tomorrow: Should be a short trip to Yokohama and i'm going to look up a friend of my Uncle.

September 16th: Nagoya to Toyohashi

2007-09-16T05:08:00.000-07:00

Thanks to fickle, soggy weather, today i'm spending the night in Toyohashi, which is about 45km from where i had intended to arrive at (Hamamatsu). Not the best of restarts to my cycling journey but it feels great to be back cycling.

I might be behind schedule to arrive in Tokyo (was expecting to arrive in 3-4 days), but thankfully the silver lining is that if i delay my arrival till about Friday, i can be in Tokyo in time for the Tokyo Game Show 2007 (Sept 22-23)!

This is a once in a lifetime chance to catch arguably the biggest game show on Earth without really seriously hindering any of my plans and i'm not going to waste it. So barring a natural disaster, i will be taking it slow for the next 5 days to reach Tokyo on Friday and spend 3 nights there to catch TGS 2007.

September 9th to 14th: The Route this past week

2007-09-14T04:53:00.000-07:00

This is the route around Chubu that the 3 of us have been driving around in our rented Tokyota Probox up to today:
(map image taken from http://www.japan-zone.com/omnibus/chubu.shtml)

September 9th: Nagoya

September 10th: Nagoya -> Takayama

September 11th: Takayama -> Toyama

September 12th: Toyama -> Tokyo

September 13th: Tokyo

September 14th: Tokyo -> Mt Fuji

(Tomorrow) September 15th: Mt Fuji -> Nagoya

At least driving around Japan in the car is a different experience from what i'm used to so far. I got to see the Japanese expressways which are off-limit to bicycles and towns that were not on my itinerary so i'm satisfied at least despite losing a week of my own travelling time. Probably by Wednesday i'll reach Tokyo(again) on my own. But it's going to be a real challenge cycling through Tokyo from my preview of it. I'm really looking forward to hitting the saddle again this Sunday!

Appendix to Previous Post; Pictures for September 5th to 8th

2007-09-12T07:53:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the lack of updates this week but if you had read the previous post i've been forced to take a 1-week detour off my plan because my dad and younger brother Brandon are here to tour Japan. It (unfortunately) feels like i've been unofficially appointed as tour guide and program planner for their holiday so i've still been busy (and quite tired frankly) despite the fact that most of the travelling has been in a rented car. As for photos from the 9th to this point, well both of them don't want me putting their pictures online but i'll sort through the photo pile (and there are alot of pics because Brandon is real shutter-happy) eventually and pull out the nice ones that do not feature either of them.

September 5 pictures: Osaka -> Kyoto

Tourists flocking to the top of Kiyomizu Temple, Kyoto.

Kiyomizu temple steps and gate.

September 6th pictures: Kyoto -> Suzuka

Behind me is Lake Biwako, biggest lake in Japan. Unfortunately the area i chose to detour to the lake was decidedly un-scenic.

Instead of room numbers, the rooms in Suzuka are named. Very comfortable tatami rooms w/ futons and a very accomodating host made Suzuka one of my favourite stops so far.

September 7th and 8th pictures: Suzuka -> Nagoya

Sharing a dorm room with 2 others in a Youth Hostel.

Japanese metal band playing at Sakae street; unexpectedly entertaining!

Top left is a no-bicycle parking sign but... This seems to be the situation all over Japan (i myself have blatantly ignored it) and thankfully i have not encountered any enforcement of this no-parking law.

Oasis 21 shopping complex and Nagoya TV Tower in the background.

September 9th - 12th: Nagoya -> Takayama -> Toyama -> Nagano -> Tokyo

TO BE UPDATED IN THE NEXT POST. I think it's really true that a picture paints a thousand words so i'll let the pictures of these places do the talking. Thanks to Brandon for taking most of the pictures for these past few days and some of the scenery up in the mountains was simply spectacular!

September 5th to 8th: Osaka to Nagoya

2007-09-07T19:34:00.000-07:00

Once again i find myself with an internet terminal to use, but no ability to upload pictures. Besides the usual summary here is my guide to eating on a budget in Japan. In my case its usually a matter of filling myself for cycling than eating good stuff. And apologies to my Muslim friends, but i dont think any of this is Halal.

Yoshinoya: Beef Bowl 380JPY/ Pork Bowl 330JPY (both Regular): good for breakfast and for something more filling consider adding a half-boiled egg (60JPY) or just ordering 2 bowls (660JPY). The Large bowls (480JPY) are not good value. Free flow green tea. 24 hours.
Sukiya: Beef bowl 390JPY/ Beef+Unagi bowls 640JPY: The beef isnt as good as Yoshinoya but theres more variety overall. Set meals go for 400-500JPY (usually rice+miso soup+main dish). Free flow iced coffee. 24 hours.
Matsuya: Beef Bowl 350JPY/ Pork Bowl 320JPY (Regular): Better value than Yoshinoya and there's a bowl of Miso Soup with every order. Free flow water and sometimes green tea. The yakiniku set for 640JPY is yummy.
KFC: If you have a 1000JPY budget than the current promotion is good. 5 piece chicken and 2 packs of fries for 990JPY. Very filling. No drinks though.
Mr Donut: A good place for breakfast meals. Lots of donuts going for between 100-200JPY each. 3 or 4 would be sufficient. Free iced water. If you go midday-evening there's sometimes a 100JPY sale for some of their more expensive donuts.
Royal Host: A bit expensive overall but try them for breakfast. A 3 pan-cake, hotdog and egg set goes for 500JPY. Softdrinks, coffee, orange juice etc are free-flow so it makes up for the cost. 24 hours
Joyfun: My personal favourite. Assorted sets go for 399-499JPY and there's free flow of many beverages. Add a side for 199 (Yakitoris, fries, cheesecake) to eat your fill. 24 hours.
Convenience stores: You can find one at almost every corner. Bentos go for 430JPY and sandwiches for 210JPY. No drinks. 24 hours.
100-YEN Shops: You can buy cup noodles for 105JPY (w/tax) and a 1-litre drink for the same price as well. Only good if you have hot water.
SPECIAL MENTION: The 250JPY store in Kyoto. All bentos go for 250JPY and i had 2 big chicken drumsticks for 180JPY. Best value meal i had so far.

September 5th: Osaka -> Kyoto (35km)

My lonely planet guide lists Kyoto and Tokyo as the only 2 MUST visit cities in Japan. Frankly i didn't enjoy my pass through of Kyoto. The exact reasons i do not know but i couldnt wait to leave (spent my night in a net cafe again) the next morning at 7am.

September 6th: Kyoto -> Suzuka (75km)

Today's ride was simply the best i had so far in Japan. Beautiful roads and mountain once i left Kyoto. Weather was 24 degrees at some point and it was fantastic day for cycling. Suzuka is a lovely town as well. Probably if you ask me which place i would want to settle down in Japan i would say (so far) either here or Moji. The ryokan i stayed in was a great experience too. Big clean tatami room and shower areas. The hot bathtub was simply heavenly after the shower! And i forgot to mention but right across the street are 2 gigantic shopping malls so yeah..it was really GOOD.

The lady-owner of the ryokan did not speak English but was extremely accomodating. She gave me a free Onigiri breakfast (even though i did the breakfast rates the day before), gave me a litre of Green tea and a towel and ice pack to wrap around my neck to protect from the sun. I have to give top marks for the entire experience in Suzuka.

September 7th: Suzuka -> Nagoya (55km)

Nagoya is the 3rd largest city in Japan behind Osaka and Tokyo. The streets running from the station has some impressive buildings: JR Central Towers, the largest train station (by floor area) in the world and HQ of Japan Railway Central; Nagoya TV Tower, oldest TV tower in Japan; Midland Square, 5th tallest building in Japan and HQ of Toyata International etc. Good 'sightseeing' if you're a big-city fan.

I'm staying in a dorm with 2 other guys and guess what? One of them is a cyclist touring Japan as well. He's also from Yokohama, which makes him the 3rd person from that area i've met and talked to on the road. Either Yokohama is some cycle touring central or people just can't wait to leave that city. Guess i'll know when i reach there.

September 8th: Nagoya

My dad and younger brother are flying over to Nagoya tomorrow for a 1 week holiday. So i'll be taking an extended break from my cycling trip and touring with them (by train or rented car) around the area to Mt Fuji and maybe Nagano/Tokyo. I'm not really sure how to plan this because of my bicycle but things will work out somehow i guess.

September 2nd - 4th: Kobe to Osaka

2007-09-05T05:28:00.000-07:00

I had my longest ever stop-over in Osaka, which is perfect because i can finally take a long rest and recuperate; i figure its time for me to take a break from just cycling through cities and to start sight-seeing like a tourist. And unexpectedly, after squeezing around Osaka on foot and train for 2 days, i had a rekindling of my desire to get back on the saddle and hit the roads.

September 2-4th: Kobe -> Osaka (pics for Sept 2nd, Sept 3rd, Sept 4th)

A somewhat famous place that i did not expect to pass leaving Kobe for Osaka was Koshien, which is 'hallowed' ground for Japanese high school baseball players hoping to make it pro and has been featured prominently in many Japanese baseball movies, dramas, anime, manga etc. I just saw the sign while cycling and took a detour.

Osaka, Osaka..where do i begin? I'm going to try just give an all-in-one picture of my stay there. First thing, the hotel i booked online turned out to be superbly high-end (high end considering what i've stayed in so far perhaps?). All the front-desk staff speak English and there were athletes for the IAAF Osaka 2007 meet staying there as well. Service is top-notch and there's even a hotel shuttle bus every 20minutes to and from Shin-Osaka station.

September 2nd happened to be the last day of the Osaka 2007 (PHOTO) meet so i thought i would head down to Nagai stadium to catch the night's events. Change of plans went i saw the ticket prices: 10,500JPY for the cheapest available seats! That's like $150 SGD to catch a few hours of running! Cheapskates like myself unfortunately, can't get close to the stadium so i just wandered around the fair grounds (PHOTO), had dinner and some Takoyaki (8 octopus balls for 200JPY, that's the most reasonable price for food i've paid in Japan so far!) and went back to the hotel.

I bought a 2-day subway/bus pass for 2700JPY which comes with free tickets to 24 attractions in Osaka. The pass is real good value since the subway costs a mini-fortune to ride on. 3 stops from Shin-Osaka to Umeda costs 210JPY (~3SGD) and the ticket to the stadium the previous day was 310JPY. I had a little merry-go-round in the train lines in the maze that is Umeda station before i finally got orientated with the rail system. First stop:

Shin-Umeda City and its Floating Observatory (normal ticket 700JPY, free with the pass!) 170m up that offers a 360 degree panoramic view of Osaka City (PHOTO). Spectacular! And the building design really looks unique. I met Yannick who's from France (Paris) up on the roof of the Observatory and since both our next stop was Osaka castle we decided to go together.

Osaka castle looks fantastic from the outside but inside (my first visit inside a castle since its free with the pass) is really really disappointing, in the sense that it's been so renovated that i hardly felt any shred of the past remaining. More like going back to the future.

I had dinner with Yannick (PHOTO) and we exchanged e-mails and said goodbye. Next day was a visit to the other places on the pass, including Shintennoji temple (oldest temple in Japan), Tennoji Zoo (been so long since i visited a zoo, never thought i would enjoy myself) and WTC Tower Osaka at night, among others.

Quite frankly, the place i enjoyed the most was Den-den town, Osaka's version of Akihabara. Best find was Metal Gear Solid for the PS1 for 1000JPY. Been looking all over for that to complete my MGS collection. The best place to look were the 2nd hand shops. Wish i had more put aside more for shopping, but i would never be able to carry it on my bicycle anyway.

It's getting late (0014) so i think that's all i can write for tonight. Tomorrow i'm on my way to Nagoya which is around 150km from here. Should be a 2 day ride if my mood doesn't swing. Good night from Kyoto!

August 30th - September 1st: Miharu to Kobe

2007-09-01T08:13:00.000-07:00

This is the cyclist i met in Miharu while writing the previous post. We went for an Okonomiyaki dinner together (a specialty of the Hiroshima prefecture) and had a nice chat. He used to stay in Singapore when he was small. He made me laugh when he said he missed bak ku teh. In the midst of everything i forgot to catch his name (i do know he's 20 though, and from Kanegawa). And he starts riding at 6am everyday so we shook hands and said goodbye before i went to sleep.

August 30th: Miharu -> Fukuyama -> Okayama (90+km, pics here)

Despite the "-yama" (yama=mountain) in the 2 cities name, today's journey was relatively flat. No real climbs and overall the weather has really gotten cooler so it's much easier cycling. It's also a good sign that i'm cycling lesser hours and covering more ground since the first day i started.

Okayama JR station just before sunset.

Nothing particularly special about Okayama (modern, big blah blah) but there's alot of Karaoke joints around the station. Unlike Singapore, Karaoke establishments here take up entire buildings and blocks and you really cant miss it cause there's lots of lights and neon signs around each.

August 31st: Okayama -> Himeji (90+km, pics here)

Before leaving town, i had a little sight-seeing detour in the morning to Okayama castle.

Okayama-jo, also known as Crow's Castle because it's painted black.

I appreciated this castle much more than the one in Hiroshima because the surroundings are more 'natural'. In Hiroshima, everywhere you look in the background you can see modern buildings which kinds of spoil the magic. In Okayama, the castle is flanked by a lake (PHOTO) and Koraku-en Garden , which according to the pamphlet is one of the 3 'great' parks in Japan. The park was too big to explore (there's a hill and even a tea plantation on its grounds) and it was getting late so i left for Himeji.

Route 2, which i have been on since i came on Honshu, can be a real pain sometimes. Like the road leading to Hiroshima, there are certain portions where, despite it being a national road, cyclists and pedestrians are not allowed on and i have to make a longer detour below the flyovers or by-passes. Well, just look where today's detour led me to:

I've been tricked!

No kidding.. that small fence on the top right is where Route 2 leads into a by-pass, and this is the 'road' that the cyclists and pedestrians get to take. Its understandable if you're walking but this is ridiculous! (by the way, this is 15km from Himeji) Sometimes when i'm tired, i even have difficulty pushing my bike up a single kerb to rest.

It took a Herculean effort to drag my bike up and around the by-pass into a small village, where i followed Route 179 into Himeji. Of course, this added an additional 5km into my trip. Note to others who might be taking the same path; at the previous town of Aioi, hit #179 straightaway and save yourself a lot of trouble.

No entry to latecomers!

Himeji is also famous for its castle, Himeji-jo, which has been voted as the most splendid castle in Japan. It was 5 mins to closing time when i reached Himeji so i couldnt enter the castle (stupid detour earlier). The grounds and park however, are really grand and well maintained. Very nice.

This is the only place so far in Japan where some people actually smile and say 'Konnichiwa' when they see me cycling on the pavements. And while in the castle grounds, instead of me asking people for help, this nice lady approached and volunteered to take a picture for me. Lastly, when i was asking a man for directions on the street, some passerbys actually noticed and joined in to offer assistance as well. We will call that being kaypoh in Singapore, but that's really fantastic service for a tourist like me.

Interesting bit of news i got on TV. The blue line indicates the normal temperature for Kobe (about 60km from Himeji) in August (it gets coolers) and the red line indicates what they're experiencing this summer, which is just crazy erratic.

September 1st: Himeji -> Kobe (65km, pics here)

Toydeath and me in my sexy riding tights.

Had a great chat with some Australians staying in the same Hotel (they saw me the previous day wandering in the castle grounds). They're performing tonight in Himeji and asked whether i would like to come along. I had to decline but their band is really 'wacky' from what i read on the Internet. They're called Toydeath and they dress up in outrageous costumes and play on stage with sounds from hand-modified toys (they call it 'circuit bending') they collect from all over the world. I didnt hear any of their music but i got to look and touch their 'instruments' which are really cool in a weird sort of way. Of course, i had to ask: have they got around to modifying a Guitar Hero controller? Answer: Not yet, but he's planning to.

What was planned to be a short 3 hour ride turned into one of the longest days i ever had so far. Firstly, bike trouble: my headset suddenly became much looser than it already was; my bicycle stand finally gave way to my bike's weight and for some reason, after lunch, my brakes just drastically faded. Fortunately, 13km from Kobe i found this huge bicycle store (Trek Concept Store), the biggest i've seen in Japan so far, which has great service akin to a car showroom (they have this waiting area (PHOTO) on the 2nd floor with drinks/food and Tour De France DVDs playing) while they service your bike. I burned about 3 hours watching a Lance Armstrong documentary there because it seems alot of people were having their bike serviced.

Sannomiya, next to the station and next to Motomachi (Chinatown). The amount of people on the street is overwhelming.

Secondly, i just remembered its Sunday and nearly impossible to get a Hotel unless you're willing to splash alot of cash. Also the Sannomiya area is jam-packed crowded! I couldn't ride on the pavements or on the roads cause people were just crossing at will. I had to push my way through the whole strecth. So i decided to camp in a park at first, which i gave up after an hour after feeling itchy and sweaty in my tent (no shower).

By then it was already 11pm so i just decided to crash in at a Net Cafe in town. 10 hours for 2080JPY is very reasonable, considering i can sleep, surf the net, eat free ice-cream and drinks and most importantly, BATHE for a mere 100JPY (which is actually the cost for the towel). I might just decide to do this more often whenever i can find a net cafe.

2 very fantastic sight around Kobe, the Akashi-Kaikyo Bridge (the longest suspension bridge in the world) and the Port of Kobe Tower:

Longest suspension bridge in the world! Wow!

Looks better at night with the lightings than in the day.

Tomorrow: 35km to Osaka! I booked a Hotel already online to play safe, Osaka Garden Palace, which looks very good for 4900JPY/night. And now it's time to try to sleep in the Internet Cafe! "Checkout" is at 0930 tomorrow.

August 29th: Hiroshima to Miharu

2007-08-29T03:00:00.000-07:00

I posted previously that Hiroshima Airport was 'a couple of km' out of the city . Well today i found that 'a couple' means 40km away, which is still relatively 'near', by car that is. It's almost the same distance as Jurong to Changi Airport.

August 29th: Hiroshima -> Higashihiroshima -> Takehara -> Miharu

As per my regular morning routine, i was so comfortable on the futon bed that i thought of just paying for another night so i could sleep in. Somehow i forced myself up for the free breakfast provided with the stay, shoved my luggage in my bags and rode out of Hiroshima, the exit to Route 2 being a short 3-4km ride from where i was.

As always, nothing turns out as expected. I forgot to factor in the morning traffic in the streets and the insane number of traffic lights i got stuck in. By the time i reached Route 2, it was already 1 hour past when i left my hotel.

Thankfully, today's 75km ride was blessed with near perfect weather; light cool drizzle and 27 degrees weather all the way. Traffic was another story; lots of big trucks on the same roads today.

Tonight's rest stop is Hotel Todai (if i squint it looks like 'Hotel Toda') in Miharu which has free internet access! And i'm posting this as i'm waiting for my laundry to be done. Unfortunately the terminal doesn't allow for uploading of pictures.

Some facts and figures about my trip so far:
Days in Japan: 13
Average spent a day: $89.10
No of days spent cycling: 8
Distance covered: Straight line estimate=675km Actual=700+km probably

August 25th-28th: Fukuoka to Hiroshima

2007-08-27T23:21:00.000-07:00

Greetings from Hiroshima! Took me 3 days of cycling covering over 300km from Fukuoka to get here. Weather has been topsy turvy for the past few days. It can be blistering hot one moment and raining heavily with no dark clouds in the sky the next, and then faster than i can find shelter, the rain stops and i'm in the sun again. I have to thank God that so far, i've not fallen sick from frequent temperature changes. Once again, a summary of the last few days:

August 25th: Fukuoka -> Kitakyushu -> Moji (pics here)

I have officially given up trying to recall the names of all the little towns and cities i've been cycling through. I just know that i started from A and ended at B. Today i rode Route 3 all the way through Kitakyushu prefecture (literally, North Kyushu), which is also a very modern string of towns and cities.

Taken at the clean breezy sea port of Moji.

The highlight was my ending point at Moji, or Mojiko (PHOTO, Moji Port) which is a delightful seaside town and the last stop on Kyushu before crossing the Kanmon straits to the main Japanese island of Honshu. I took a slow ride along the sea soaking in the breeze and sights and then just when i thought that maybe i had to cross to Shimonoseki to find a place to stay tonight, i found this cheap Hotel (PHOTO) just before the Kanmon tunnel road (PHOTO).

Nice big room but toilets and showers would have to be shared. My first time taking a traditional bath in Japan, where you have to sit on a stool and bathe. When i first got in there was this man with a lot of tattoos all over, who i thought would probably be unhappy since i was bathing standing up. However, looks were deceiving, and he graciously showed me the proper way to operate the bath. He even drew the stool and wash basin and laid it out for me. I opted not to go into the small hot spring bath at the end though, mainly because it felt steaming hot and i was already sunburnt all over.

August 26th: Moji -> Shimonoseki -> Ogori (pics here)

The day of the great crossing! I'm leaving Kyushu and arriving on Honshu via the Kanmon tunnel (PHOTO) which is about 1KM long and goes right under the straits. I was just imagining all the tons of sea water above me as i pushed my bike through (no cycling allowed in the tunnel)!

Its hard to smile for a picture when the sun is so bright...

Nothing much interesting today to report. Was feeling unusually tired so i only rode 50+km and stopped at Ogori, which is a town in the Yamaguchi prefecture. Oh yeah, the weather was again scorching, road signs said it was 36 degrees!

August 27th: Ogori -> Iwakumi -> Hiroshima (pics here)

My longest 1 day ride yet! 150km from Ogori all the way into the night to reach Hiroshima and a good 2 nights rest. Its funny, i was so tired the day before and almost decided to extend my stay in Ogori to recuperate more. And i ended up covering so much ground, amidst 2 sudden downpours and 34+degrees sun. Its really a case of mind over matter i guess.

Didn't make me go 'WOW!' but a pretty place overall.

Had a 15 minutes detour in Iwakuni to see the famous Iwankuni Kintai Bridge (the orginal bridge was made entirely of wood, no nails whatsoever). Scenic town but nothing really mind-boggling.

Hiroshima is a funny place. Unlike Fukuoka or Nagasaki where i had to search for Hotels with vacancies or within my budget, the problem in Hiroshima is locating a hotel! I arrived at 730pm and managed to find a place at 1030pm! That's because the only visible hotels are the Love Hotels (big neon lights) or the really grand ones (cos they're big). The normal small business hotels are extremely well hidden.

Anyway found a moderate price place (4700JPY) which had authentic tatami rooms and futons. The owner's daughter speaks almost perfect English. It's also a coincidence because she's going to be working in Singapore from next month onwards at DHL. Anyway the futon was suprisingly comfortable. Actually i wouldn't know. I was so tired from cycling and hotel-finding i just knocked out after my bath.

August 28th: Hiroshima (pics here, no desc. though, will be added next time)

Hiroshima is a big modern city. Big streets, easy to navigate and the airport is just a couple of KM on the outskirts. It's served by train lines, a subway, street trams and buses. However the buses are pretty expensive even for short distances. I'm used to paying 100JPY flat for rides but a short ride today to the Peace Memorial Park cost me 210JPY which is nearly $3SGD! That's the price of a night-rider service in Singapore for a short trip!

10CC - Bloody Tourist; that's the only thing i had in mind.

Like Nagasaki, the main aim of my stop in Hiroshima is again to visit the A-bomb memorial. However, because of the sheer amount of tourists (most had come from the IAAF meet in Osaka, 1 1/2 hrs by Bullet Train) and school children in the area, the 'mood' wasn't really there for me. And the A-bomb Dome was fenced up all around so the closest i could get was 10metres away from it. On the plus side, with so many foreigners around, i got to speak to alot of people today.

'Peace' in the Southeast!

That's a shadow across my face, not my latest tan line.

The other main attraction nearby was Hiroshima Castle (PHOTO). Which wasn't really interesting. I also checked out Hondori (PHOTO) which is supposed to be one of the hottest areas in the city which is where i found this internet cafe to update.

One thing i seem to notice: I think i might be the sweatiest person in Japan! At least from a couple of feet away, i don't seem to notice anyone sweating their guts out like me while walking in the sun. Is it possible to grow immune to this kind of weather? I've been staying in climate like this for 20 odd years and i still break a sweat everytime. How on earth do they do it?

Whats on the cards for the next few days: I'm just thinking whether or not to stay here a couple more days till its September and then cycle to the Kansai region (Osaka, Kyoto, Nara etc). Because i remember that the forecasts for the next few days are rainy. And getting drenched is no fun at all. If i do decide to hang around i will probably visit Miyajima tomorrow which is a 40min train ride away. Otherwise, it will be onwards to Osaka!

August 22nd - 24th: Nagasaki, back to Fukuoka

2007-08-23T22:57:00.000-07:00

Welcome back to Fukuoka! Where the number of traffic lights outnumber motorbikes! I think it's fitting that i'm back to where i started exactly 1 week from when i landed in Japan. I'll take the first week as a prologue before i really make my way up north. Journey back here was largely uneventful except for my night camping up Mt Hirokouka. It was all nice and good until 3am when there was a downpour all the way to 7am. Was wet and soggy all the way till the afternoon sun came and dried me out.

August 22nd: Nagasaki -> Isahaya -> Omura -> Ureshino (Mt Hirokouka) (photos from this day here)

A beautiful lake up Mt Hirokouka in Ureshino.

Some extremely nice guy named Nakamura (PHOTO) from the Ureshino city office drove me up 10km up Mt Hirokouka when i asked for a camping site (and because it was getting dark). Beautiful scenery all around and a lake smack in the middle of the mountain. Unfortunately, there wasn't any reception in the area so i couldn't SMS home to tell them i was safe (something which kept me up all night worrying..)

The 'happy' camper.. and this was before the downpour! (Check out the tan-lines on my hands!)

After setting up tent and trying my best to fall asleep, suddenly a torchlight came shining into my tent. It seemed that i had dropped my bicycle glove in his car and he drove all the way up from town again to return it. You can't imagine how bad i felt. My hats goes off to him for all the trouble he went through in helping me. If i was in his situation, would i have done the same i wonder?

August 23rd: Ureshino -> Takeo -> Saga -> Tosu -> Fukuoka (photos from this day here, only 3!)

After the Takeo, the rest of the road back to Fukuoka was flatlands all the way. Which was good. Covered over 110km today because i started extremely early (thanks to the morning rain). Just a long ride with nothing interesting at all happening.

Leaving the coast and heading inland to flatter (whew!) roads.

Back in Fukuoka, it was extremely difficult to find a hotel to stay. Most were fully booked or priced out of my budget. Eventually, after 2 hours of hotel-hunting, found a twin room for 5,900JPY. Like i said, most rooms (single rooms especially) were full everywhere. Very nice having such a big room and 2 beds to myself (the 2nd bed being for me to throw my clothes all over). Had Ramen for dinner (the shop owner gave me a 2nd bowl free!) and then a well-deserved night's rest. I also called Mom before sleeping to tell her how i was.

August 24th: Fukuoka (photos here)

Today is R&R (Rest and Research) day! Basically an excuse foｒ me to find an Internet cafe and update and to find out more on how to get to my next checkpoint (Hiroshima). Also did my laundry this morning.

I've been craving for regular fast food for the past few days and today i went all out on KFC! Taste as good here as it does back home. I walloped 4-piece chicken, 2 pastas and a drink. I'm glad my appetite is back. Haven't been eating much for the past few days.

Some interesting things i've observed in Japan the past few weeks:

Dust bins (or dust-box as they call it): Japanese are very into recycling (bottles and cans esp). Which is a good thing, except that it's nearly impossible to find a regular rubbish bin on the street! Most of the time i just chuck tissues and plastic wrappers into my bag and empty it when i get to a hotel.

Toilets: Even the most desolate and run-down petrol stations out in the rural areas have fabulously clean toilets! Some even have air-conditioning in them, even when the main station shop doesn't have it. Truly incredible.

Public transport: As i learned the embarassing way, trams and buses in Japan are all ride-first, pay-later. Also, the entrance to public transport are the rear doors, and you leave and pay your fare from the front door. Most fares for inter-city transport are 100JPY ($1.30~)

Service: It amazes me how people in the service industries are so courteous and enthusiastic. From the people on the street giving out flyers to just about any waiters in restaurants to the gas-station attendants, everything is done with a big smile, a loud voice and plenty of gusto. Just how much are they paying these people an hour to give such good service i wonder? What a stark contrast compared to the people working in Singapore.

Day 3-5: August 19th-21st, Fukuoka to Nagasaki

2007-08-20T22:51:00.000-07:00

I actually reached Nagasaki yesterday evening at around 1815 and checked into a youth hostel for 2 nights. Which means i'm due to hit the roads again tomorrow morning, a very boring trip back up to Fukuoka on mostly the same roads to really start my cycling journey. Nagasaki is a just a (very long, 320km+ to and fro) detour because i wanted to visit ground zero of the A-Bomb attack (coincidentally, it was on 9th August (1945) as well, same as our National Day). Before i write my impressions of this city, a recap of my last 2 days journeys:

August 19th: Fukuoka -> Karatsu City -> Imari (pictures from the 19th here)

So much for my intention to get up early. Alarm set for 0645 but by the time i was downstairs loading my bike it was already 0930. Said goodbye to Fukuoka and finally mustered the courage to ride on the roads. Took route 202 which arched along the coast to Karatsu (PHOTO, Karatsu City in the BG) before cutting back inland to Imari (PHOTO). Terrain is generally hilly, full of valleys going up and down (i felt they were mostly going up..) but once in the areas out of Fukuoka traffic is relatively low. Moderate head winds which made cycling all the more difficult, not to mention the weather was HOT (as usual).

UMI!

HOWEVER, despite tough conditions, the best thing that made cycling in Japan feel good is that motorists are super mindful and respectful of cyclists. Despite most of the road being single laned, i never once felt squeezed to the curb because every car/truck/lorry would swerve around me (some quite dramtically, right into the oncoming lane!) so that i would have space to cycle. It's funny how i have some sort of invisible barrier around me that no cars will go near. Again, roads are very safe to cycle. Road sides are also relatively clean from sand, glass, gravel etc.

One thing you should know is that the hardest part of cycling with heavy loads is having to stop and then accelerate again. This made me think twice before stopping everytime i wanted to take a picture, so i suppose unless i stop for a break or there's something really eyecatching there wont be many pictures on cycling days.

All in all, covered quite a lot of distance for my 1st day. The only thing of note is how some pigeon 'bombed' my helmet (PHOTO) while i was riding under a bridge. Didn't even notice till i took off my helmet.

August 20th: Imari-> Hasami -> Omura-> Nagasaki (pictures from the 20th here)

Again, a late start at 1000. Had lunch in Kawatana, yummy Yakiniku (PHOTO) (the sauce mainly, which even made veggies taste superb). There was this really helpful old man in Hasami who insisted that he escort me all the way through town in his car (i just asked whether i was going the right way) and even offered to give me money to buy a drink when we parted. I think i will have fond memories of this small town because of this experience.

Hasami +1! Nice country-side town.

Omura is a nice city as well. Modern and uncluttered. The main street has basically every kind of shops on the side and the streets are wide as well so even with so many cars it didn't feel messy. Was very tired by then (and about 20km to Nagasaki) so seeing a Mr Donut shop (PHOTO) was a GOD-SENT... I ate 3+2 donuts. Thank goodness for sugar! Asked some school girls for direction out of town. Very helpful.

This road was so steep i had to rest halfway...

It may seem like all i do is complain about how hard the ridings conditions are, but so far, the climb up from Isahaya to Nagasaki City is the worst! Talk about shooting a guy when he's down. Anyway i'm glad i managed to finish this 160km+ trip in 2 days, way over my 50km/day plan but at least i saved 1 day journey.

August 21st: Nagasaki City (pictures from the 21st here)

This is just my general impression, but so far i feel that Nagasaki is the least friendly city i've passed through. Some people actually avoided and me walked away when i approached for help (maybe i look like some kind of wacko?) . Sort of like Singaporeans standard in terms of helpfulness. Maybe because i'm already conditioned to believe that everyone in Japan will go out of his/her way to help tourists.

I still need more practice with my phone camera..Missed out her friend completely..

But enough about the people, the main reason i came to Nagasaki was to see the A-Bomb site. I truly felt quite emotional when i walked into the Ground Zero memorial. And Nagasaki Peace Park was beautiful as well (i didn't expect the Peace Statue to be so big!). Was worth the journey to see this place.

Ground zero, hypocentre of the A-Bomb explosion

Peace Statue, i was tempted to pose like the statue but thought better of it..

That's all for this update. Like i said, at least another 2 days of cycling to reach Fukuoka again, and then on to Hiroshima!

Day 2: August 18th Fukuoka

2007-08-18T04:03:00.000-07:00

Note: If you were looking through the photos and couldn't make head or tail of what was in the photo i don't blame you. I went back and added some descriptions to all the pictures and uploaded the remainder of yesterday night. Today's photos (w/description) are here.

As proposed, i took my bike and tried to cycle to Momochi Beach/Seaside Park, forgetting that it's Saturday and both road and pavement are crowded! Effectively, my cycling speed through town was just a little faster than walking.

I had control of when the shutter would be pressed and still managed to look more surpised than him...

Did i mention that i forgot to pack a cycling helmet? I was looking for a bicycle shop as i rode along and i stopped someone to ask. He turned out to be someone who spoke above average English (by Japan standards) and EXTREMELY helpful. He went out of his way to guide me to a bicycle shop and served as translator for me in the shop. Oddly, they didn't sell helmets. Guess it wouldn't sell in a city where no one wears it. As my guide remarked, "Do you see me wearing a helmet?"

Anyway, cycled through to Yahoo! Dome (PHOTO), Momochi Seaside Park (PHOTO), Fukuoka Tower (PHOTO, the tallest seaside tower in Japan, i don't know how they defined it), the Fukuoka City Museum (PHOTO) and Library (PHOTO), all of which are magnificently impressive buildings. I never thought a museum or a library could looks so cool. As for the beach (PHOTO), well... if you know me, you'll know i hate the beach. So i just took a quick look-see from above and left. Didn't want to get sand in my shoes. And there were more guys than girls anyway.

A very beautiful museum

Tomorrow i'm waking up early (to beat the sun) and cycling to Saga City! Not sure where i'll end up (not in a hotel though) cause it depends on how quickly i reach my goal. Might travel further if i reach earlier than planned.

Day 0-1: August 16th - 17th, Changi Airport, Bangkok to Fukuoka

2007-08-17T04:09:00.000-07:00

NOTE: All the photos i've taken and will be taking will be uploaded to my FLICKR account. Today's Photos in full res can be found here. Check them out but keep in mind: 1) it's hard for me to appear in any of my photos without having to lug a tripod around and 2) i'm not a great photographer to begin with so don't expect much.

First post from Japan! Said farewell at Changi to family and friends (PHOTO) and transited through Bangkok airport (Suvarnabh) which is a super modern shopping extravaganza of an Air Terminal (it puts our Changi to shame in terms of shops and boutiques (PHOTO)) but the architechture feels really drab (grey) and cold, much like the Thai people. I think everyone from the flight stewards to the airport was super unfriendly (some quite rude). So much for my impression of Thai hospitality and warmth. And due to me taking a wrong turn i had to walk a total of 1.37km to reach my gate (no kidding, they even had distance signs as if to boast that their airport is so big)

Reached Fukuoka Airport in the morning (about 845am after going through customs). I went around to some secluded spot at the end of the airport to assemble my bike. After nearly an hour my bike was up (PHOTO) and i went to find my hotel. The weather is HOT! Or to be more precise,　it's exactly like Singapore. First lesson learnt: Keep off the roads in town! Cars and trucks were aplenty and everything was quite confusing. I stayed on the bicycle and pedestrian friendly sidewalks all the way to the hotel (Fukuoka Toei Hotel, PHOTO).

My bike mingling with the other bicycles on the street

As a mode of transportation, the bicyle is KING! Everyone from businessman in suits, old grannies, OLs and teenagers were zipping here and there on the sidewalks. And as i was just taking my own sweet time to explore, old grandmas (the most unlikely of speed maniacs..) were overtaking me all over the place. In my defence, it's not easy mingling with cyclists and people on the sidewalk when my bicycle fully loaded weights a good 45kg. Swerving with the weight is highly difficult. Trying to ride with one hand is just asking for a kiss with the asphalt.

Kego Park, beside Fukuoka Station which is the busiest human traffic place i've seen so far

Checked in and took a long nap cause i couldn't sleep the entire flight. I went out of the hotel around 6pm to do some look-see and find dinner and found myself at this Internet Cafe, which is a super great place to hang out and be entertained(games, magazines, manga, movies, Internet, showers, tanning salon and food!). It's open 24 hours as well. A great way to spend the night (~$25SGD for overnight use)

As per my friend in Fukuoka's recommendation, i will be checking out the beach tomorrow(Saturday) and the sports stadium. Sunday i will be cycling down to Saga (50km away) and probably camping a night there before continuing on to Nagasaki (100km from Saga) early Monday morning. Here's to better cooler weather tomorrow!

All my bags are packed and i'm flying off to Japan tomorrow!

2007-08-15T09:04:00.000-07:00

This is it! T-20 hours to takeoff and the beginning of my 'grand aventure'!

I've been doing packing and re-packing over the last 2 days because it seems everytime i think i'm done, i'll remember something else that i forgot to pack. And it's not easy cause I've never had to pack for any trip as long and with so much restrictions as this. Anyway as of an hour ago, this is the bulk of my luggage..

..which are basically the 4 bags off my bicycle, which has been packed as well:

Whether i'm under or over packed only time will tell.. Possible 11th hour additions might include a fishing rod and equipment, and whatever else i'll 'suddenly' remember tomorrow. And of course, in the worst case scenario, i can always purchase whatsoever i'm lacking in Japan itself (space permitting of course).

After some reading today, i've decided to set Cape Soya (the northern most point of Japan) as my goal. However it will be nearing freezing; 8degC (high) to 0.5degC (low) if i reach Hokkaido in November so for skin and bones sake i hope i reach it as fast as i possibly can on a bicycle.

For anyone interested, these are my flight details tomorrow. I'll have to transit at Bangkok (cause it's Thai Airways, which is ~$300 cheaper than a 1-way SIA flight):

Changi Airport Terminal 1 Flight TG410 departing 2040 16th August
- arriving at Bangkok Suvarnabh, Thailand 2200

I'll have a 2hr50min break in Bangkok before transiting:

Bangkok Suvarnabh, Thailand Flight TG648 departing 0050 17th August
- arriving at Fukuoka, Japan 0800 17th August

That's it! My last post from Singapore. Barring me finding an Internet cafe in Bangkok (and not dozing off in the airport), my next post will be written in Japan! Wish me luck on my journey!

Introductory Post

2007-08-08T11:23:00.000-07:00

First post! And it's just a short intro for those of you who might not know me or the purpose of this site:

Me and my bike, somewhere in Fraser Hill, Malaysia.

My name is Gabriel Chin, i'm a 22 year old Singaporean, born 29/06/85. I studied at Bukit Panjang Primary, Chua Chu Kang Secondary and took a diploma in Information Technology in Ngee Ann Polytechnic before serving my National Service. My ORD was just 2 months ago (June 8th) and i'm flying to Japan next Thursday (August 16th) to begin a cycling trip starting from Fukuoka (Kyushu) towards Hokkaido.

My trip's duration is planned for 3 months and i am cycling ALONE. I have never been to Japan before and i do not speak Japanese (i have taken 1 semester of Basic Japanese in Ngee Ann Polytechnic though, though besides that fact no other memory of that class remains). Put it down to foolishness or maybe a bit of over-confidence on my part, but any factors that stack up against me completing my trip will only make my journey more challenging and exciting.

Why Japan? Since about 5 years ago i picked up this interest in anything Japanese; anime, music and J-dramas etc and i've always wanted to make a trip over to see the country. Of course anybody can just fly to Japan and have a nice and proper holiday, so to make my trip more memorable and meaningful, i will be doing a cycling tour by myself instead.

This will be a massive learning experience for me as well. I would be lying if i said i'm well-prepared in terms of route, accomodations etc but since i'm not hindered by budget or time-constraint i intend to make plans as i go along. So besides booking a place for my first night stay upon arriving in Fukuoka, everything else will be 'ad-libbed'. Only time will tell (and God-willing) whether my confidence in my abilities will translate to a successful trip.

The purpose of this blog is to record whatever experiences i encounter during my trip. My plan is to blog daily (or when i can find Internet access) and post pictures whenever possible as i progress. Hopefully i will have good memories and experiences on my trip to look back on when i get back.

In case you were wondering, this is the bike i will be using on my trip. And it weighs a ton even without a full load in the bags:

This picture was taken quite a few months ago when i first bought it. I'll post pics of my trusty steed after i pack and gear it up.