The past 10 days have been spent all over Japan. Here’s the quick rundown of what happened:
Day 1 – Tokyo
Landed in Narita Airport at 3PM local time after a 12hr flight from London Heathrow. Couldn’t get a wink of sleep. Still, on the bright side, I got to watch Yes Man again! The Narita Express took a further one hour after passport control to get to Tokyo station and took the JR to Gotanda where we checked in and I passed out.
Day 2 – Hakata
The early hours beckons as 2 bullet trains and 5 hours later, we had to arrive in Hakata station, Kyushu. With speeds of up to 300kmph, the Shinkansen beats any train in Britain willing to take me a fraction of the distance in half the time. Still, we made it and a speedy journey later, we had travelled the world, Japan, and I passed out.
Day 3 – Jono
Just a small town near Kokura. Had a wee look around, got thirsty a lot so glad there were loads of vending machines plotted on every street corner. I had a grape Fanta. Exciting times!
Day 4 – Kokura
Kokura castle is amazing. Large, old and picturesque. Then, you turn around and see a big yellow shopping mall in the backdrop… weird. There also lives a lady with “magical powers”. I was a bit skeptical. She said I had a chin injury. I had a dressing on my chin… She said she will cure it. It’s still healing… She also said I have a history of incredible stomach problems. I’ve not vomited since I was 6. She’s not very good… Also failed to notice my leg, back and shoulder hurting. All she did was push air in my direction.
Day 5 – Nagasaki
The home of the first Western house built on Japanese land. Was great to have travelled so far to visit an old English home where Madame Butterfly is set. Great views from the top though…
Day 6 – Yufuin
Among the mountain tops was one of few ryokans that accompanied guests such as I. It’s filled with onsens (a public hot spring) and we were fortunate to have our own private one. It was weird having a bath stark naked on top of a mountain out in the open. A helicopter flew by…
Day 7 – Tokyo
7 hours of bullet trains led us to Tokyo. I passed out.
Day 8 – Nikko
Another ryokan but with only a public onsen. I didn’t go in this time, but opted for the in-house shower instead. A small town indeed with speakers plotted all over the few streets to signal shops opening and closing.
Day 9 – Edo Wonderland and Nikko
Edo wonderland is a reconstruction of Tokyo during the edo period. All the death that surrounded me through figurines made me a little dizzy. The theatre had a few shows, the most impressive being a ninja martial arts show that physical theatre should be worried about!
Day 10 – Tokyo
I saw a baby that looked like a Potato. I was in a buffet.
Today – London
I’m about to pass out…
