From the Feet of Mount Fuji

Japan. Since the evening of August 25th this country has shaken me, pacified me, confused the hell out of me, astounded me, and entirely surrounded me. It is garishly electric. It is stubbornly ancient. It is perfectly spiked hair and sharp designer suits. It is pleated mini skirts and knee high stockings. It is warm and overtly polite yet solitary and cold. It is Kobe beef, sashimi, sake, mountains, fast trains, tiled roofs, bonsai trees, tatami mats, and anime. It's live-action anime! It is a challenge and I love it.

This journey is coming full circle soon. Very soon. I want to publish at least one more entry before I am stateside. Here is it.

When I first arrived at the Kansai Airport outside of Osaka, I immediately felt I a world away from China. Everything and everyone was so orderly. There was no pushing, people lined up and the signs all made sense. First things first, I found a map. The kind woman at information showed me that I was a considerable distance from the center of Osaka. I had no place to stay, so I pointed to the most central-looking part of the city and was given instruction on how to get there. Arriving at the Namba Station, I wandered into the streets of Japan...

Walking around for a while, keeping my bearings oriented to my station of arrival, I came across a sign that would soon become too familiar: Popeye MediaCafe. These wonderous little places are 24-hour internet/media/comicbook cafes that offer a desk chair and a computer from 21:00-06:00 for about $18. Free coffee, a shower, and sometimes ice cream is included. I was set.

The next day I met up with Yohei, an Osaka local I had met in Hanoi, Vietnam. He suggested we make a day-trip of visiting Kyoto. We arrived in the main tourist center and I felt the same way I did about Luang Prabang, Lao, and other UNESCO World Heritage cities...the stone and wood may still be there, but the atmosphere may as well be branded by Disney. Kiyomizu-Dera temple was impressive, anyway, built without nails and nestled perfectly in wooded hills. But I will revisit Kyoto.

Yohei invited me to stay with him at his parents' house, an offer I could hardly refuse considering the Osaka alternatives were an overpriced office chair or an overpriced four-mat tatami room the size of most of your closets. The tatami rooms, by the way, smell pleasantly of a clean hamster cage and include access to a public bath. When I arrived at their modest apartment, the father watched baseball while the mother bustled about preparing dinner. The home-cooked meal of samma fish and seafood hotpot warmed my heart. Conversation was limited but enjoyable before I eagerly fell into a sound sleep. This gracious show of hospitality leveled me out after a bit of a rough start on Japanese soil.

Before leaving Osaka, I would spend one night at the inner city ohnsen (hot spring) called SpaWorld. With online coupon, this place was the same price as my desk chair. Check it out. http://www.spaworld.co.jp/english/european.html I would also wander most of the city's great sights by subway and visit the Osaka Water Museum to learn all sorts of neat things about how the city provides its citizens with delicious drinking water...which is second to the favored bottled water. I only drink tap water in Japan.

Kobe: beef, I'd have it for breakfast here if I could. After another few hours of mediocre sleep in a MediaCafe, I met up with Tak, my host from www.couchsurfing.com
We toured sake breweries and strolled the brightly-lit waterfront. Kobe was humbled by a massive earthquake in 1995, but has since pulled itself up with flashy new architecture and shopping malls. Japan is really into hyperconsumerism, and Tak and I are really into beef, so we combined the two and found a swish little Japanese grill restaurant. It was the night before my Visa credit card expired and I had used it only a handful of times on this trip. Yes, I indulged. Kobe beef is as good as it is supposed to be.

Well fed and well rested, Tak sent me on my way hitch hiking west toward Himeji city, home of Japan's finest castle. This was my first experience hitch hiking in Japan and it worked out great. First lift was a young, hip software guy. He dropped me halfway where I was picked up in five minutes by a mother and her two small daughters. "Wow!" I thought, "Catching rides in Japan is going to be cake!" Somewhere inside, I knew the luck wouldn't last...more on that later.

If you only have time to see one castle in Japan, go to Himeji Castle. It is an inspirational wander as you can imagine yourself a samurai protecting the Emperor or a ninja scaling massive rock walls in the night. Incidentally, I found a ninja shop and had to pull myself away from the ninja grappling hooks...really tempting. Here's a fun fact: while most of the castle walls are made of white plaster, one of Japan's best preserved examples of an oil wall still stands in Himeji after 400 years. An oil wall (or "abura-kabe") is made of clay and sand mixed with boiled rice water...and isn't the least bit oily. School is in every day. After a good stroll of the Himeji grounds, I utilized my dual ticket with the Koko-jo gardens next door. Anyone who has an appreciation for the tranquility of a Japanese garden would fall in love with this place. Oh, and it was built over old samurai houses. Which is awesome.

Back in Kobe I found myself wandering the Kitano neighborhood looking at popular Japanese tourist locations such as the American Teddy Bear Museum, Holland House, Brick House, etc. Basically, a bunch of late 19th century architecture that isn't Japanese...not too thrilling. So I walked along a sidewalk that led toward the hills. The sidewalk ended and became a footpath. This was interesting...I marched on thinking this trail could lead to the top of the hills of Kobe's northern border. Indeed, forty sweaty minutes later, I was looking down upon the city and its port. Atop the hill to my east was a big glass observatory and tudor-style tourist complex. With nothing in particular on my schedule, I hiked through a forest the likes of which I had never seen. The raven calls were all but drown out by the deafening song of hidden cicedas. Twisty trees clung to steep ridges as I picked my way down and back up again. My efforts were handsomely rewarded. Proving once again that Japan knows gardens, I found myself in a colorful and fragrant patch of land known as the Nunobiki Herb Park. The nearby observatory also housed an herb and spice museum...complete with mortar and pestle exhibits. Overall the hike was a great way to end my tour of Kobe.

Actually, my tour of Kobe ended in bitter defeat of my attempt to catch a lift to Nara. After a long wait in hot sun, I caved in and caught a train. I am, after all, hitching mostly for the experience. Upon arrival in Nara, the sun was setting and the clouds were leaking. Soon a mild drizzle turned into an unbridled rainstorm. A lovely woman gave me her spare umbrella and I trudged around searching for the Ugaya Guesthouse, the cheapest tourist board-recognised bed in Nara. I couldn't find it, so I found shelter in a cozy little bar boasting a Sapporo sign. Not 30 feet from door to wall and wide enough only for the bar and a few small tables, I figured this a good place to wait out the storm and enjoy some of Japan's best brew. Instantly, I became a celebrity to a friendly drunken trio at the far end of the bar. A tall mug of draft amber was placed before me as I began writing in my notebook. After the limited possible conversation had played itself out, I found myself engaged in battle with miniature Transformers toys presented by the seven year old son of the only other pair at the bar. They sat quietly downing glass after glass at the barstools nearest me. This was not a pleasant sight. I finished my beer quickly, strained a smile, thanked all involved, and left after presenting the boy with a simple little gift. He gave me his Optimus Prime figure in return, which I still carry with me.

I did find that guesthouse, slept a good sleep and took off the next day to wander Nara with two girls from Tokyo. Conversation was limited but lively. Nara Park is the highlight of the city, boasting well over 1,200 tame deer. I fed them some "deer biscuits" and was at once surrounded by very nibbly and demanding creatures...some with antlers. Escaping the deer, the girls and I strolled through Todai-ji Temple. One of the world's largest wooden structures, this temple houses a giant bronze Buddha. We posed and took photos, just like everybody else. Once they departed, I wandered more around the park and found a nice bench on which to spend the night. It was a warm, pleasant night, and I only woke once as the backpacker a few benches over jumped up to chase a deer that had run off with his provisions bag. Following the deer biscuit incident, I knew better than to bring food into their world. I rose with the sun and climbed the nearby peak for a great morning view of the whole city.

Still in the morning hours, I sought out the Nara Cafe for breakfast. Run by Mayumi, the Couchsurfing Ambassador of Nara, this pleasant little cafe was a great break and offered a delicious meal prepared by Mayumi and her staff. I had a good chat and got directions to an advantageous hitch hiking position.

I must have made a deep withdrawal from the kharma account for my Nara-Kyoto ride. A forty minute wait ended when a family sedan pulled up to offer a lift. Dad quiet but welcoming behind the wheel, mom eagerly working through her limited but impressive English from the front passenger seat (it's on the left side here), and 19 year old son doing the same in the back with me, I was offered a place to stay in Kyoto within ten minutes of pickup. That night, Masami (the mother) prepared okonomoyaki, a delicious egg/cabbage/pork/flour/seasoning pancake and yakisoba noodles. The next day, Keisuke, the son on university holiday, and I set out on an ambitious schedule of sightseeing. We had a good stroll through several main temples, including Sanju Sangendo. This long building houses 1001 Buddha statues, each about a meter and a half in height. There are also 28 guardian spirits (including my personal favorites, the gods of Thunder and Wind) which are regarded as national treasures. Impressive, to say the least. More impressive, I believe, than Kinkaku Golden Temple which I saw the next day on my own.

After two great nights with my Kyoto host family, I was dropped near a highway interchange that they believed to be the best for my hitch to Nagoya. Though it didn't feel right, I stuck it out...for six hours. Call it stubbornness, but I pushed through into the night. Finally, I turned my piece of cardboard over and copied down the characters for Kyoto Station. Arriving there, I found the cost of the train to be extortionate, so I went directly to the nearest convenience store, grabbed a beer and some snacks, and headed to Mount Inariyama. Tak in Kobe had mentioned how he climbed this temple mountain at night, and how eerie it was considering the paths are lined with densely packed tori-gates (those characteristically Japanese red arches). Sure enough, I found a path that led up a big hill that was lined with tori and shrines. I made it to the top with the feeling that I was being watched. And I was. Several cats were prowling around their shrines, keeping an eye on me from the dark. So, too, were the monkeys. I heard the rustle in the trees, but my only glimpse was that of a long brown tail slipping up into a nearby branch. I considered stringing up my hammock for the night, but wasn't sure if I was welcome. I opted for a bus stop bench instead.

Determined to hitch to Nagoya after a few hours of bench sleep, I set out hiking along the expressway until I found a suitable position near the entrance. I was picked up by a 26 year old guy with his younger sister as they were returning from a visit with grandma. After a great conversation about snowboarding and music, I was dropped at a rest area en route, the rest of the trip was picked up by a young looking dad with his wife and four kids. We carried on well and after a while, even the shy boy of the litter opened up to me a bit. The dad called in his brother to meet us in Nagoya and lead our caravan to the nearest subway station for me. These people are lovely.

My time in Nagoya was pleasantly spent at a couchsurfing host's small apartment. I went to the theatre to see Batman: The Dark Knight. Wow, epic movie. I strolled the city, which has a bit of a Portland vibe to it. I read a good third of Dostoyevsky's The Brothers Karamazov. I turned my nose up at the toll gate for the Nagoya Castle, knowing full well that I had already stormed Japan's best back in Himeji. I dined on an outstanding chef-recommended four-course meal at a little Okinawa restaurant. Oh...and I did laundry. This is a big deal. I hadn't done the wash in a while and the last of my respectable clothes had been used during my last hitch. Such a great feeling to have a backpack full of clean clothing.

Well, this is really carrying on, isn't it? To bring this up to the present, I'll mention that my arrival in Gotenba (at the feet of Mount Fuji) included a 12-hour, four-part hike/wait/hitch combination. The truck driver who spoke exactly as much English as I do Japanese was my third hitch of the day. He dropped me on an expressway rest area about a mile past the Gotenba exit. This is after he was pulled over by the police for something--swerving maybe?--he was doing a lot of that. Simple enough, I thought, I walk a mile back to the Gotenba expressway entrance, make my way to the train station, from which I follow the directions given to me by my soon-to-be couchsurfing host. Simple, that is, until the Highway Safety Patrol showed up. I was overly polite with them, working through all of the pleasant Japanese I know including, "I'm sorry, I only speak a little Japanese."

Then the police showed up. And they look serious here, with white helmets and everything. Again, extra nice with a big smile...this isn't China or anywhere in SE Asia, this is Japan...I'll be fine. In fact, the thought came into my mind that this could be very advantageous. I had no idea where the Gotenba train station was from the expressway entrance towards which I had been walking. Perhaps the police would be my last lift of the day? Given that I had been friendly and cooperative and the conversation was limited to "Nice Toyota police car. Fast?" Laugh laugh, "Yes. Fast," I was, indeed, dropped front and center at my destination. I was given a quick reprimand at the last moment, "Japan, no hitch hiking," but we shook hands with a smile. I, of course, interpreted this as "Do not get caught walking on expressways or seen by police while hitch hiking." Deal.

I celebrated my arrival to Gotenba with David of Australia by joining him at the local brewery for a real all-you-can-eat buffet. And we ate all we could. It was necessary fuel. Last night, my fantastic host drove me to the Subashiri 5th station (one of five starting points for the summit ascent), saving about $30 bus fare and ensuring perfect timing for sunrise at the summit. Under clear skies and led by a plump moon, I walked without my flashlight once out of the forest. The lava fields became a moonscape and the surrounding city lights twinkled far off in the distance. And it was COLD! David had loaned me his scarf, hat, and jacket, so I bundled and trundled up the mountain face. Charging past hordes of Japanese tourist groups, I found my little perch for the sunrise. Sheltered from the wind and granted a eastern panorama, I balled up in my warm clothes and blanket and watched as the best sunrise of my life stretched out before me. Golden rays pierced the sky as fog crept through the valleys below. Colors splashed across the east changed with each glance as a new Japanese day sprawled itself across my view. I could not have asked for a better reward for the climb.

After breakfast of and english muffin and cheese with a banana, I walked the crater rim with a French guy named Philip. The decent was hot and I was exhausted, but a long straight stretch of sandy volcanic gravel made for an extreme pace. I am now back at David's as he prepares tonight's curry. Later we will visit an ohnsen to rest the week's weariness.

As it is now dinnertime and I have clearly written too much. I will end here. This may be the last major post of this trip, but more will follow upon return. Thank you, all, for reading. I hope it's been a pleasant distraction.

Over and out.