Who Cut The Cheese

Okay, so these Internet Cafe's, the "I Love You" ones, there's one here in Beppu as well. Can't go wrong here.

Anyway, I caught the ferry down to Beppu, which is on the east coast of Kyushu. Just from the first impression, I reallt like it here. I hadn't caught up with the unique smells yet though. Although it cost way too much money, it wasn't too bad. They had this section of carpet in the middle of the deck (inside, with the seats around them) for people to sleep on. I'd heard about this before on some of the overnight ferries. Anyway, for a 3 hour trip someone came in, grabbed a pillow shaped bit of foam, a blanket and went straight to sleep. These Japanese have a thing about the floor, how they sleep and all that. When I get home, I'm sure I'll be doing some weird things in relation to furniture.

I've only got about 20 days to go. As I'm on the downhill run, I'm starting to pack more into each day. Although today is day one of the new regime, it may not last that long. I think once I activate the 7 day rail pass, and I can start catching the express trains it'll be really good.

Beppu is the Onsen (Hot Spring) capital of Japan from what I can tell, there are thousands of them here. The Minshuku where I am staying seems to have hot water from an Onsen on tap. I think everyine has it. When I came in on the boat, I could see a huge number of smoke plumes. I now realise they're steam. Walking along in the street there are breather pipes for steam outlets, and steam coming up from the gutter. As such, in some parts, it stinks of rotten egg gas. So much so that if I farted, like a really, really stinky one, like a wallpaper peeling extravaganza, you wouldn't notice (except for the noise I suppose, and sometime not then from the noise of the steam pipes.)

I went to this one today (Onsen, not a fart extravaganza) which was more of a sauna. Lets just say, compared to the last place I went to, single sex nudity wasn't an option. This was not a big place. Thankfully I was the only person going in at the time.

The Japanese word for ouch is "Itai." I don't know why. Ouch seems to come out a lot easier.

There was this bloke who showed me the wash room, and after I had stripped off he proceeded to tip hot water over my male bits so I could wash them. Very hot water. Hot Onsen water. The word for ouch in Japanese seemed to fail me at that point.

I put on the bright lime green swimmers they had leant me because I didn't know I needed some. I might go shopping tomorrow for some, as I might actually go swimming down here one day soon as well. I don't know the Japanses word for "boardies."

There was this low wooden door, it seemed important. The woman opens it and points for me to go in. It looked like one of those wood fired pizza ovens, except it had a straw floor on it. Maybe closer to a pit roast. I went in and was shown how to lie down and take it all in. After about 5 minutes of lying in there I was pretty well done, or maybe just medium roast. I smelled like a farm (from the straw), and I think I had sweated about a litre of water. After that she opened the door to let cool air in and I went for a few more minutes. It was, so to speak, very very cool. That's cool as in funky, not cool as in chilly. (More like chilli.)

Did a few touristy things, went to Chinoike-jigoku, which is also called the Blood Pool Hell. It looked as good in the pictures. Really good. It's way to hot to bath in, which is a shame because it'd make a great photo. There were these carp in a fresh water pool just next to it. I wondered how long carp take to cook in 80 degree water. Also went to Bozu-jigoku, which is a bubbling mud place. It really stank. Like, not just room clearing fart, but vomit inducing cavern filling rippers. It looked like the photos as well.

But in a freak co-incidence of co-ordination, as I went to get onto the bus after Chinoike-jigoku, two English backpackers (sisters) I had met in Hiroshima got off the bus. So we'll catch up later for dinner at a Japanese pub called an Izakaya. I went there last by myself, sad but true. When I went in, I wanted the waitress to ask if it was just one person "Hito ri," so I could respond with "So, desu ne." It is so, isn't it. But a little while later, after Bozo-jigoku I returned to the station, and another English backpacker friend was there with her Japanese friend, who's mobile I had been trying to call for 3 days. So, I travel by ferry for 4 hours to get to another part of Japan, and run into two groups of backpackers from England within 4 hours of each other. (Actually, I knew they were going to be in Kyushu, I just didn't expect tere to be here.)

I think someone moved away from me on the bus because I smelt so bad from the bubbling mud place.

Anyway, will probably be here for another day and then off to Mt. Aso which is an active-ish volcano. More sulphur smelling Jim I suppose (like what's new!)

US Forces Give The Nod

Hiroshima. Golden Week has finished, so life was returning to normal. Banks were open (finally) and things were just humming along fine. The Hiroshima Youth Hostel is really good. For 1600yen a night, which has been my cheapest stay so far. I now discover the YH in Himeji was 700yen a night, which is about AU$8.50. And it didn't seem too bad what what I had heard. Oh well.

My kanji skills are improving. After my trouble with the entrance/exit, I've finally created my first sentence/phrase using kanji.

In my room at the Hiroshima YH is a guy named Tom. He's American. He's also very, very large. And as with most Americans, conversations seem to only go one way.

I remember in highschool, this policy came out that in English we were to do more public speaking because someone high up in the education system had been watching too much TV, and everytime an American on the street was interviewed they'd seem really eloquent in their answer. So, we had to do more public speaking so we would be just as good. In reality Americans are more like Charlie, one of Rob's ex-girlfriends in High Fidelity. She'd talk all night, and talk utter crap. And not listen to anyone. Really. So, I don't think I want to be as eloquent as an American.

The expression is (I can't get the kanji to work, so look it up yourself):

yama no kuchi

The first ideogram: "yama" means Mountain. The last: "kuchi" means Mouth. The one in the middle: "no" is a gramatical construct (that you actually pronounce in Japanese,) something like possessive apostrophe s in English. So a direct translation would be "Mountain's Mouth" or "Mouth of the Mountain." It's one of those double meaning expressions that so often appear with kanji. But it is, effectively my generic name for fat Americans now. "Kochira wa yama no kuchi desu."

It rained. Did the Peace Museum and Atomic Bomb Dome. Don't think I can really say much about it. But it really made me come out and and want to do something to change the world. One thing I did learn was that China, the US (with England) and Russia are still doing nuclear testing, just not the big kaboom sort. It is suprising to see who's got the bomb.

We'll all go together when we go.

Hiroshima is really good. I quite like it here. I got caught my two Mormons on the way to the bus centre to go back to the YH. I had a good chat, didn't rip into them too much. The main missionary was an American bloke, who looked Asian which threw me, considering he had very little Japanese language skills. I should have done a "I don't speak English" thing too him, but I wasn't fast enough. Maybe one day they'll learn the truth about the relationship between Whites, Blacks and Asians from the original text of the BOM (Book of Mormon).

Found this Bangladesh shop selling stuff for fundraising. One of the volunteers (a Bangladeshi) who I chatted to out the front was wearing a Nike shirt. I commented on the oxmoron of it.

The Hiroshima food speciality is Okonomiyaki. Japanese pancake. They're really good, and here they make them with noodles. Trust me, they're great. Very filling. There's this building with 3 floors of pokey little Okonomiyaki resturants. Did the 4th floor the first night, the 3rd floor the next and the 2nd floor to finish with. Very oshii.

There's this shrine down south of here on an island called Miyajima. It's one of the top 3 sightseeing spots in Japan, although Fuji-san isn't one of the other two. I think Mt. Fuji is in a super-class of it's own. Anyway, most people say you really need to go at high tide, because the floating torii gate and shrine are in water at only high-tide, and the rest of the time - stinky mud. So the newspaper says high-tide is 12:30 (noon.) Okay. I can hande that. Get there. Low tide is 13:27. No idea what's happening, so I check for the next day. High tide 8:27 (morning). So I try and make the mad dash to get there early the next day. Mostly made it, but for the full effect you need to be there at high tide (note to self: I am a lazy slob.) not one and a half hours later. Also, all the pictures on postcards and books have this bright red gate and buildings. But wait a sec, this thing is a dirty grey/red. Lets check those pictures again. Oh, where's that building in the background, and those ones too. I think the photos were taken about 20 years ago when the torii was newly renovated. Bummer. But I liked it.

Have been meeting more people. Met a retired military American officer and his wife. I decided not to discuss the finer points of American foreign policy with him at this point of our short relationship. But have been meeting lots, and lots of Candians. I don't know why.

Quite a few English backpackers as well. These two sisters today, who are staying at the YH had done 6 months in India, China and a few others and then Japan. Now that's a trip. India sounds really cheap. My budget for a week, would last a month there and that'd be a generous month as well.

Had this Candian girl ask me if I was a New Zealander or Australian. She was wearing a cap with Canada on it. I should have asked if she was from the 51st state of the US. We had a chat about how, as an Australian I can hear a Kiwi frum fufty puces. Just as she could pick a yank from, gosh, you know, like, I don't know, maybe 50 yards, what do you think?

Almost had to use a squat toilet today, but was saved in time when I found a Western Toilet, which I was very, very thankful of.

I had bought this two day pass for the tram, ferry and ropeway (cable car.) Considering I got value for money the first day, I got excellent value using it the second day. Probably one of the best buys I had for vouchers. It makes up for the zen 500yen from Kyoto.

The ropeway goes to the top of Miyajima, and gives you a view over the other side towards the inland sea. All these really good looking islands with yellow sandy beaches on them. I've only just discovered how to get to them and I have to leave Hiroshima for Kyushu. Perhaps in Kyushu I'll get to go to a sandy beach, on a fine day and go swimming in my underwear. But there were supposed to be these monkeys at the top. Boths days there was a sign saying they had gone into the forest to feed (and I'm sure the second day, it was exactly the same as from the day before.) I'm beginning to think there were no monkeys.

I've been getting more through the Kafka. I still don't fully understand it. Perhaps that's the point.

Off to Kyushu and the final part of my trip. I've been thinking about a few lists of things I need to think about, so here's the start of my first one.

Top n things I won't miss from Japan

1. The smell of raw sewage: in Australia we have breather pipes high up for the sewage lines. Here, they are at ground level. In Tokyo, every now and then I'd walk around a corner at be hit with the smell of raw sewage.


2. Smoking: they are about 10 years behind New South Wales in anti-smoking laws.

Like I said, it's a start. Well, as much as I love being in a place called "I Love You," I must go and eat, pack and get ready to go to Kyushu tomorrow. I can either catch a ferry (catamaran), or the train. The ferry is about twice as expensive, but takes less time and drops me in Beppu, which is like the Las Vagas of Onsens (Hot Springs). The train will take me where ever I want to go, but much, much slower. Which doesn't bother me, but were talking about 6 hours travel so I might either pay for the ferry, or cough up the cash for the Shinkansen (which will cost about the same as the ferry in the end.)

The Tim Tam Suck

Yes, back again at "I Love You."

There's not a lot to really talk about with that night, mainly because I drank too much beer and stayed up too late. So I'll try and sketch out what I remember. Before the beer started I was about to show Sam and Alvin the Tim Tam Suck, when a couple walked into the dining room area, and I asked if they were Australian. They said no (they were Canadian), but pointed to their travelling companion as she walked in. I casually commented I had some Tim Tams. She ran over and scoffed one fairly instantly. (Although, she'd probably describe it quite differently but it was a good scoff.) Anyway, none of us doing the actual act of the Tim Tam Suck had a major chocolate explosion, which is a shame because that's what makes it so good. Sam didn't really understand the significance of it all, thinking it was just another chocolate biscuit. Heathen.

We stayed up pretty late talking about things like squat toilets and drinking cheap beer. There was a Japanese guy with us, who didn't say much most of the night. His English was okay though. He was flipping through my Lonely Planet phrase book, and in a pause in the conversation he just says "I'm not religious, but I believe in God." (Which is in the section on religion and politics.) It was funny at the time.

Most of the conversation had to do with me and Karen (the Aussie shelia) using expressions and terms that were new to these Candians. And trying to dispel common myths, about Fosters Beer mostly.

We also consumed a lot of Tiny Teddies. And beer.

I was travelling to Okayama the next day, hung over. Not the best thing. Also had way too much stuff to carry again that I had bought at the Astro Boy shop (on the second visit.) I'm starting to miss things like my CD collection, but I'm glad I didn't bring (or buy here) a portable CD player. Just another thing to lug around. And I didn't get a seat for most of the trip, so I sat on the floor and read my Kafka.

At Okayama it was raining. It's starting to be a trend really. I go somewhere, it rains. Perhaps because we're getting into the rainy season, it might rain more. I don't know, it's just a hunch. Also needed to wash clothes and wash self. When it rains, I just forget about the personal hygene thing, there's no point. Especially since it was a humidity rain.

When I arrived at the Youth Hostel the guy who runs it freaked out, he thought I was coming the next day. I got the last available bed. I wouldn't have minded going back to the station and finding a business hotel, at least I'd get a private bathroom, and a decent bed. I had dinner and brekkie there which was really good, but I had to watch the other people (not the students) to see how they were eating, so I didn't do a fox paz, so to speak.

The place was full of students from a kendo club. I think I freaked them out a bit. I think I freak out a lot of Japanese people. In Japan before someone eats a meal they'll say "itadakimasu," and when they finish they'll say "gochisosama." Think of it like grace, but I don't think it has a religious background, more a cultural one. Anyway these kids did it in unison, with a clap. It was so cool. And at the end, they all made sure everyone had finished, and did it again.

At the YH there were a few blokes doing trips for Golden Week. One had caught a ferry from near Tokyo to Kyushu and was riding his motobike back home. Another was doing a driving trip. Another was doing a cycling trip. This last guy wanted to make an early exit. A 5am exit actually. And all his stuff was packed into those plastic shopping bags that make a lot of noise when they move. And he was repacking his bag, which had all these shopping bags of stuff in them. At 5am. In the morning. And because we had all these students staying there, as 16 year old boys are won't to do, in the next room they stayed up quite late the night before just chewing the fat. So, at least breakfast was yummy even if I couldn't identify the food, nor how to eat it. Or focus properly from lack of sleep.

Okayama has one of the Top 3 Gardens in Japan. I saw one of the others in Kanazawa. It rained on me there as well. The Okayama garden was okay, at least it wasn't too packed full of tour groups with microphone weilding tour guides. Reminded more of The Botanical Graden in Sydney, except this one had really lush green grass which was roped off and you couldn't walk over most of it. But being the Sunday of Golden Week Holiday, there was a festival amosphere. I got to see some Taiko drumming which was really good. It's Japanese traditional drumming, but very active and rythmic. There were a few blokes dressed in full Samurai gear for photo taking too.

I went north to Takahashi as that afternoon. I think I keep finding these little towns where I'm the only Westerner to visit for years. There was a poster in the Youth Hostel for this really, really good looking zen rock garden. It's in Takahashi. So I decided I'd got for another train trip. Very zen, or maybe not, that's the question. It wasn't the sort of rock garden like before where you end up questioning the nature of existence, but more of a reflective point where the nature of things come into focus. The whole shrine was opened up as well. I wished the Shinto Abbot could have spoken English because I'd have loved a chat whit him. As it was all I could do was ask if it was okay to take photos, and did they have any postcards for sale. Sometime I feel sorry for these guys, imagine if the minister at your local church for 5 days a week sold tickets to people to visit and gawk at the church, and on Sunday do all the religious stuff.

My last day in Okayama consisted of walking down to the coin laundry I spotted from the bus. A nice, huge, clean place. When I started walking I came across this small, dingy, disgusting place. It could not have been that. No, I said to myself. So I kept walking, and soon I found washing nirvana. It was the Ying to the other Yang (or the other way around, whatever.) Huge, cheap (well, I think they were trying to compete with the scungy place 2 minutes up the road,) and very cool washing machines. Self sudsing so your clothes get a rinse first, wash, rinse, everything. And the dryers. Properly vetilated, large devices that took so little time. I washed everything. I was tempted to strip off and do the Levi Jeans ad, but I didn't. All these other people were bringing in their blankets and so on. I was folding my underwear. Clean clothes. All of them (well, except what I was wearing, which really, really stank, as did I.) And the magical part, all my socks matched.

And then it was off to Hiroshima.

Black Rain

Am in Hiroshima in an Internet Cafe called "I Love You," which is nice to know. And it's raining, so I thought I'd write up some more from the last week or so.

I went to Himeji-jo, which is the castle everyone seems to rave about. Personally, I thought Matsumoto Castle was better. It was fairly massive, and at least it was a sunny day, which makes a change for me and major attractions. But I did have one significant discovery, I worked out how the trains here are designated. Since all the Gaijin catch the Shinkansen, no one could explain how the system worked, but through powers of deduction, and much luck I now present the JR system for those who can't afford Shinkansen.

Actually, it's not that impressive, but I wanted it to sound like it was. As always, I should have read the guide books and other information first. Note to self: I am an idiot. There are several grades of trains, starting at bottom called local, then rapid and special rapid, then express and limited express and then Shinkansen. When you buy a ticket you buy a local ticket. This lets you catch local, rapid and special rapid trains. There are no reservations. Local do what you'd expect, and rapid are local trains that go further, quite fast. If you want to catch express or special express, you buy a local ticket, then an express ticket as well. Express trains are like Shinkansen, but not quite as fast, and travel on the local train lines. The designation of "special" usually means it goes further, and has less stops. All trains are special, just that these are more special than the others. Shinkansen, we all know and love. It has it's own completely separate track, which is a concrete raised platform, sitting on rubber blocks on pylons, and the track is welded together so there are no clicky-clacks. Shinkansen travel fast, very fast. And they look really cool, like they've stopped very suddenly when still hot and rubbery from the friction of travelling so fast, and the nose cone just kept going until it cooled down. (Shinkansen has three levels of seating, Green Car which is 1st class, reserved and unreserved.) Sydney to Melbourne would take about 2 to 3 hours. I've been catching local, rapid and special rapid. The cost is usually a bit more than Sydney travel, but they don't have return tickets like we do, so a day journey can get expensive.

I used my day pass to go to Himeji, as it was the edge of the range it could do, and so it was the best value I could get out of the thing.

(I have a 7 day pass for Kyushu, so I'm going to try and cover every bit of track JR own down there, including some of the Shinkansen, even if it means doubling or trippling up.)

Himeji was good. Rachel, the English girl was in Kobe, and I had agreed to meet her at the castle. I was only 50 minutes late, which by my standards wasn't too bad. At least she was still there. The last person I was late for by 2 minutes had already moved on. We went to Kobe for dinner. There's a description of a building in the Lonely Planet I now want to see:

On the way from Kobe station to Harbour Land, take a look at the Kobe Crystal Building next to the elevated highway, just east of Kobe station. It's a high-rise office building in the style of a Gothic cathedral! It is, to be frank, a monstrosity.

So, went to Kobe's chinatown area for dinner, which was good. Had some beer and met an Australian girl, dressed as a clown raising money for an African war orphan school she worked at by selling balloon creations. She was the first person to tell me I had an accent, which I guess I do, but I think everyone else has been polite about it. I don't mind, 'cause she'll be right mate.

Anyway, one thing I haven't covered yet are the toilets here. For a culture that didn't develop chairs, they also don't have sitting toilets. Oh, no. They have squat toilets. Lots of them. Thankfully one part of Western Culture they have incorporated are the great device of Mr Thomas Crapper, but they aren't as common as you'd think. And when nature is calling for a Number 2, the great and mighty search for a Western Toilet begins. Anyway, to cut a sordid tale of busting guts and bladder bursting jocularity I did manage to find one after about 20 minute of searching. I've learnt to control my bowels enough to hold a number 2 for quite some time. It also helps to have a diet that doesn't consist of curries, read meat and potatoes. (But when I return, watch out.)

The next day, after Himeji-jo was a shopping and general excusion day in Osaka. I wanted to do some last wandering around Osaka before I left. Anyway, I had found previously in the week the Sony Building of all places sold Tim Tams, Tiny Teddies and a few other things like Milky Way Bars. There were these two Canadian guys at the Youth Hostel (The YH, if anyone was confused what the YH was meant to be.) And I was telling them about Tim Tam Suck. So I went out and bought some Tim Tams, and I wanted to get some good coffee to drink rather than instant stuff. I also tried explaining cricket to them, but after I started with "Well, first there's a pitch, and at each end there are the stumps with the bails on top and the crease." They lost it. I ended up using baseball as a reference point, which was not easy but I think I managed. Anyway, I hassled them about Lacrosse.

Anway, it was my last day in Osaka, and although I didn't get lost (which I was really, really happy about) I did forget to try and get a day pass for the subway, which I'm kicking myself for. The subways were cool, they made the City Circle look like a joke.

One of the places I went to in Osaka is called Doguya-suji. Outside all the not so expensive resturants in Japan, they have plastic models of food on display and a price. In this arcade there are a few shops that sell those models. Lets just say, they were expensive. But what I really, really wanted to get but didn't was a cast iron frying pan for takoyaki. The 6 to 8 ball ones were about $15, and the other bits needed would have pushed it to about $20. But (a) I've no idea how to cook them, and (b) being cast iron it was too heavy to bring home. But they looked really cool. This whole arcade had heaps of resturant equipment, like the flashing signs outside a resturant, menu boards, cheap bowls and so on. The Japanese love their arcades, and it's proff that John Nash's work of co-operative capitalism actually works.

I've also been having some sake here. They sell the stuff in these really, really big bottles. When I caught the subway back to the YH, I discovered to my amazement a supermarket. So, I bought some beer and they had Tiny Teddies too, and I asked about the coffee they had. You can buy here these coffee bag like things which are disposable. When I asked in my poor Japanese language skills what the different was, the woman ran away and returned with probably the third Westerner I've met who works in Japan, but not teaching English. After the coffee experience I walked around looking at this place I discovered and found a bottle shop, which was where this guy worked. We talked a bit about sake, and he recommended a book to me to buy (which I now have,) because I want to buy some of those really, really big bottles to bring back. Anyway, while there I saw they had some Lindemans Bin 65 Cahrdonnay in their top 12 pick by the chain store's wine expert. Well, I don't think much of the wine, and I told this guy that. It sold for about 3 to 4 times what it is in Australia.

I've also been asking other Gaijin if they drink Fosters, or at least have heard of it. Then I tell them the joke. The reason you can buy Fosters oversears is that no one in Australia drinks it, because it is disgusting. It's exported because there's nothing else to do with it. I told this wine guy this, and I alluded to the fact that Bin 65 Chardonnay is the Fosters of wine.

Anyway, the last entry in my journal for that day, and the one for the next day should apply as a good introduction to the next installment, which I'll do tomorrow. You must remember that I had bought some beer already from the supermarket, and we had a beer vending machine at the YH. Sam and Alvin (the Candians) were also buying some beer. Also, two more Candians and an Aussie girl who were English teachers on holiday turned up that evening as well (after I wrote the first entry.)

3rd May 2002: ... But tonight I get to show Sam and Alvin the Tim Tam Suck. Woo Hoo.

4th May 2002: Go shitfaced last night with Karen (the Aussie girl) and the Candians. Tops fun ... So much fun getting two Aussie's together with a Candian audience. All these new words.

Zen and the art of Takoyaki

Osaka's specialty food is takoyaki. Octopus Balls. They're everywhere. Street vendors have these special frying pans with .5 of a sphere depressions in a grid pattern, which the mixture is put into. When it is cooked they roll the spheroid over with a pointy stick to cook the other half. It's a skillful art, and they are quite tasty. At the subway station near the youth hostel each night, there's been this bloke selling them from the back of his van. Very cheap, very tasty. Anyway, I went up to buy some (this was the second night I had done this,) and I saw he had just started to cook them, so I asked if they'd be 10 minutes. His response was "So, desu ne." Which mean, "It is so, isn't it."

That day I had been to Kyoto to see a really good zen rock garden.

It has 14 rocks.

It depends on how you look at it. I looked at it for about an hour. They also had a really, really good garden around the temple which I wandered around in, for about 1000 years ... it's all time, and time is relative.

Or 15.

I met this American family at the bus stop going to the rock garden. I saw them inside when the father asked his daughter wanted a drink of water at the fountain. Outside shrines and temples they have a fountain with running water, a ladle and a pool of water. It is for a ritual purification before entering the grounds. You ladle water out and wash one hand, then the other. Finally you sip some water and spit it out onto the ground. Anyway, I corrected the Father (probably a bit too tersely.)

I didn't see them again after that. I wondered if they really existed.

Or 12.

As a result of the trip the day before to Minoshima, and all this zen rock watching, I was very blank.

In Kyoto there are 500yen day passes for the bus. When I went to buy one from the driver, I gave him 1000yen note, and he handed me the day pass, and a 500yen coin as change. When I got out of the bus, I had the ticket, but not the coin.

Sometimes 10.

I wondered if the coin ever existed.

When I left the youth hostel I took an umbrella with me. Umbrellas are like the bikes here. Everywhere you go there are stacks of umbrellas exactly the same. Towards the end of the day I noticed I didn't have it with me any more.

I wondered if the umbrella ever existed.

I went back to the Osamu Tezuka Shop at Kyoto station to do the last of my big spending. There were these really, really cool Astro Boy/Mighty Atom mugs where the handle was a rocket ship. But they didn't have them anymore, as I think it was old stock.

I really hope they did exist, otherwise I've sent home an empty box and have a visa bill for a non-existing object.

I think I lost my mind.

I wondered if it ever really existed.

I also did the Kinkaku-ji again, which was really full of people being May 1st, the first day of Golden Week Holiday. I also rushed to get to another zen garden, but got there too late. It made me wonder if the garden really existed, because I didn't get to see it. Maybe it never did exist. Garden, what garden? There was also a May Day march in Kyoto, the celebration of workers rights, solidarity and all that. So to celebrate returning to the cultural centre of Japan, on May Day, May the 1st, the day of Workers Solidarity I had KFC again.

After two days of zen rock gardens and long train trips to the middle of nowhere I was very blank. By asking if the takoyaki would take 10 minutes, it was like my question defined the answer, and the answer was the question. It's not the game show Jeopardy, but perhaps it was.

Maybe I should have asked if it would take 5 minutes to cook.

Not the 9 o'clock News

I know, it's been a while.

Quick Summary: Osaka -> Okayama -> Hiroshima. Am having fun, Youth Hostels much more interesting.

So, what I'll do, is just update from where I last posted for about 2 days of material, and then tomorrow I can do some more. Am very hungry at the moment, so I really, really need to do this quickly.

Mighty Atom is the Japanese name for Astro Boy. I went to the Osamu Tezuka Museum in Takarazuka. For me, it was one of the main reasons to come to Japan. And although the place was not too big, I did spend way too much money in the store (again.) Inside it was like it was a Manga/Anime itself, some bits Space Ship (knobs and levers), some Jungle Emperor Leo. The museum is for Osamu Tezuka, was esentially kickstarted the Japanese craze for Manga back in the 50s and 60s. And although that's all I really did that day (it was about an hour to get there, and I didn't get lost finding it!) It was for me, a fairly important part of my journey here.

I have finished High Fidelity. The second half is quite different to the film, which is odd. But you get inside the main characters head quite well. Have now started reading Kafka's complete short story collection. Very weird, very dark. I think it's a good pick for Japan, especially Metamorphosis. (If you haven't read it, I can't explain it ... yet.)

I'm doing a lot of travelling, I think I prefer the travelling over the destnation or arrival. More travelling than I did in Australia I think, and when I talk to Japanese people they seemed amazed at how far I have been going. I wanted to use my rail pass and get value for money, so I picked a little fishing village south of Osaka for a day trip. The urban/rural landscape is so different. There are tiny rice paddies wedged inbetween homes along the train line, wedged inbetween the mountains. There was (trying to get tense right here) an English girl at the YH that I asked to come with me, because I've been doing all this seeing, and no one to share it with. Her name is Rachel, she's from England, somewhere east of London. So we went south to Minoshima, which is a little dot on The Map. The reason I wanted to go was to see some beach, or ocean, or waves, or something watery. Anyway, Minoshima wasn't what I wanted. So I walked into the Travel Agent at the station and asked for a local map, which they had. I pointed to a lighhouse and said I wanted to go there, which would have been difficult since there was no roads leading to it. They instead pointed to a smaller fishing village, that had an Onsen (hot bath) and a few other Tourist Attractions (and I use that term loosly, very loosly.) Anyway, 20 minutes buy bus and we arrive that this little alcove with about 50 houses, 25 fishing boats. Just what I wanted, spot on middle of nowhere with a fantastic ocean view. We walk down to the water and out onto the newly constructed concrete (the Japanese love their concrete) breakwater. We sit there for about an hour, cursing that we couldn't get fish and chips (she was English) and more so that we didn't bring any beer. There were no beer vending machines that we could see, and only a very small shop selling fruit and veg. Anway, with the train trip, the ocean breeze and view it was a fabulous, off the beaten track day. You'll just have to believe me, and see the photos.

I also discovered that the rail pass didn't actually cover anywhere near as far south as I went. Oh well.

The only think about it that was weird, was I saw my first bit of WWII, an old bunker on the other side of the cove.

Just as we were about to go, this crusty old man came up to us. It took me a little while to work out if he was speaking Japanese (they have regional dialects as well.) I thought he was, but after a little while I think he was also deaf. I didn't want to ask. He was talking about something. I think it was to do with fishing with a rod and reel. Maybe. I don't know. I don't speak that good Japanese. I also think they hadn't seen a Westerner since WWII in this town as well, if at all. Since leaving Osaka we hadn't seen a Gaijin at all, and we were in a fairly remote part of Japan. It made Hamlyn Terrace look like the centre of the world.

There were two blokes from Denmark in my room in the YH at Osaka. They thought Japan was a huge place. Well, I guess they would.

So, next installment will be from the 1st May. Kyoto, May Day and all that. Oh, and KFC again.