Above and Below in Taiwan

Sorry, to all those that were following my blog. I have been working hard to win the Taiwan Best Trip contest. For those of you that don't know, Nigel and I traveled Taiwan for 4 days and documented it all. We made 10 minute videos of each day and a final highlights video for the finals which I'd like to share with you!

Have a look! I swear you'll love it! Please share it with your friends, vote for us and help us to be Taiwan's Best Trip! You can vote once for EVERY registered email until October 31st. Enjoy!

Taiwan Best Trip

Since I left Japan, I have been very busy concentrating on the Taiwan Best Trip Contest. Taiwan is trying to boost their tourism so they devised this competition. They had chosen 52 teams, each travel for 4 days taking pictures and documenting their trip. Then they upload it onto the internet and get others interested via facebook, blogs, my space, etc... We did a lot of preparation so we knew exactly where to go, what to say and did a whole lot of filming. We have 4 days of exciting, informative, fun-filled videos and pictures. Have a look!

Here is Above & Below Day 4 video, or pictures from Day 2 & 4 and also Day 1 & 3.

If you like this video, watch the other 3 days of videos and vote for us in October, 2009.

A Change of Plans

I flew from Osaka the next day. It was a smooth flight. I landed in Naha early and had an entire day there. The plan was to go back to the 1000 yen cubicles and just worked on my computer. I luckily got the last bed available that night then came the bad news. There was a typhoon passing through Okinawa that night and it was heading towards Taiwan. All I could think was, “Noooo, why??? Not now!!! Muthaphukinshitegoddamahole!!!” Sure enough, my fears came the next morning.

I dragged my boxed up bicycle to the airport just to have my flight delayed until 10am the next morning. My box was in such bad condition from too much use, and leaving it for a month in a moist hiding spot between 2 buildings that I had to tape it up excessively. I decided it was best to leave it at the airport in a storage room. The problem was I thought it was for each 24 hour period but the end of the day counted for one day so I had to pay 1200 yen for 2 days. Luckily, I took out more money than I needed and I would still have enough for the extra day.

I strolled around Kokusai Dori that day. It was busier and had cuter woman around this time around and was thinking we should have come in July instead. As night came and the typhoon started getting stronger, the streets got emptier as the night progressed. I went back to the hostel, ate dinner and did some socializing. I ended up meeting a couple of Polish girls. They were supposed to go out with some Japanese girls and an Aussie so they invited me too. I said I would love to but I didn’t have enough money, no banks were open and I had to leave the next day super early so if they lent me money, there’s no way to pay them back. They came back later and offered to pay for me to join them because no one else wanted to go anymore. I half reluctantly, half gladly accepted so I went to get ready.

The streets were dead. Saicolo, the biggest club in town wasn’t even open. They asked a local where to go. They directed us to reggae club. There were barely any people in there but the music was good. It was a small joint but looked massive at that time. We drank, talked, and danced until 3am when I ran out of steam. They were 22 so they said they could have stayed all night but I needed to wake up at 7:30am so they came with me. Too bad it wasn’t in more than one way.

So that was my last day in Japan. I was sad to leave in many ways but I was eager to go to Taiwan for the first time in a long time. I am in the Taiwan Best Trip contest and planning to win so there is much preparation and work to be done.

32nd DAY: Kobe & Himeji

There weren’t many choices for accommodation in Kobe in my price range. The hostel I wanted was fully booked and a small ways out of the city so I chose convenience. I was right in the city center but it was 3800yen for a capsule hotel. The beds were definitely small no doubt but it had great facilities. There was an onsen, a sauna room and a cold pool. A room with TV, internet, comics and magazines. The bathrooms had all the toiletries you needed. Your sleeping space was so tight that they provided lockers and best of all, it was clean. As a matter of fact, most public space is clean. I’ll miss that!

After I dropped off my stuff at the hotel I was supposed to meet Akmed, a guy I met from Nagai Hostel at Himeji. It was a 45 minutes ride but the train was a shocking 950yen each way. This made me so glad to have a scooter before, just wish I still had it then. I was supposed to be there at 2pm and I was late 30 minutes. Later I found out he had been there since 1pm, seen everything, and was hungry. That meant I had to do it alone, which was fine. We were to meet back up at the train station and see Kobe together.

It looked like the timing would be perfect. Nigel called and was supposed to arrive 30 minutes after us in Kobe. We hung out near the station at an optimal position for some good sightseeing. There were plenty of sights to be seen, arguably the best in all of Japan. They were well dressed and were left, right and center. They say Fukuokua is quite scenic as well with bigger chests as an added bonus but I’ll have to see it to believe it.

Nigel still had all his luggage so we dropped it off first. We checked out the China town, had dinner and strolled down to the mosaic, where all the action was. Kobe is a port city so their harbor is quite the sight at night. We got some amazing pictures, heard some live jazz, saw a light show, and wandered around the small amusement park for kids. Now that I found out where all the talent is, I wish I had gone there earlier.

31st DAY: Nara Park

I decided to spend the last day with my scooter to drive 45km each way to Nara Park. It was much different driving without any luggage and Nigel. He is very cautious when he drives so I have to tone it down while driving with him. You could say I like to take more risks but I still feel like I drive safely. I guess you can say it depends on if you are used to driving in Asia or not. I had a route picked out via google maps but when it came to it, all the signs pointed to Route 25 to Nara so I changed my route. Nearly the entire 2 hours was heavy traffic. There wasn’t much of a shoulder but I still had enough room to squeeze through and make my own lane. It was a good feeling to drive past car after car and avoid the traffic jam.

The park was very nice. I saw a multi level temple, pagoda like temple, a bigger typical looking temple, a few shrines, many many reindeer, a pagoda in a lake, artificial waterfall and river, and a couple Japanese gardens. I even got my picture with a couple cute girls in kimonos. There was much more to see but I ran out of time and the park is big so I was getting tired of walking anyways.

I had to drop off the bike at the shop by 7pm. It was already 4:30pm so it would be tight. I knew that but I was starving so I had to scarf something down quick along the way. Traffic was worse on the way back but in a way that was better. That meant that the cars weren’t moving so I could pass by them more safely. This time there was the jam was never ending except for a 3km stretch through the mountains. I almost felt sorry for the people in the cars as I scooted past in my scooter.

I stopped for gas in the city because you needed to bring it back with a full tank. I looked for the company phone number to tell them I'd be 5-10 minutes late. I couldn't find it. Luckily, I was close and I knew exactly how to get there. I arrived at 7:05 but there was no point to worry at all. They were still busy doing stuff. I walked in with the bike before they even noticed me. While I was emptying my seat of my things, I realized I forgot to bring my receipt to the headlight I had to buy. I knew it was in the high 2000's. He offered me 1500 yen because I didn't have my receipt, I laughed. After some research he came up with 2625 yen, I accepted. I found out when I got home that it was 2940 yen but that was my fault so it was ok. I walked away from the bike shop glum. I now had to take the public transit.

I got back to the hostel, took my onsen bath and prepared for my next day in Kobe and Himeji Castle. I would be my last day in Honshu. My trip was coming to an end and it was time to go to Taiwan to do the Taiwan Best Trip contest.

30th DAY: Osaka Castle

We wanted to move back to the stadium. The price at Banana House was 1000yen cheaper but we preferred the atmosphere at Nagai Youth Hostel. Check out thime was 11am but the managers weren’t there at all on Sundays so we ended up staying until 12pm.

Check in time wasn’t until 3pm so we sat in the main lounge to use our computers first luckily. The original plan was to go to Osaka Castle immediately but the plans changed due to rain.

We didn’t get going until 2pm or so. The sun had come out and it was smoking hot which made me unsure whether rain or sun was better. One was cool but wet and the other was unbearably hot and sweaty. I’d say neither. I prefer overcast.

On the way to the castle there was a martial arts building so we had to check that out. There were some people doing kendo training. Never seen that before so it was kind of cool. Inside the castle was far different than I expected. Everything was normal until we got to the front door. It looked like a hotel or something. There was a big lineup going into a small foyer, a counter like a reception, modern inside a with fancy design, and 2 elevators taking you up. On the way up a stuffed elevator to the 5^th floor was a girl who had to repeat 10 lines a zillion times a day, poor girl. It was a museum inside with fancy screens using holograms telling stories, models and ancient traditional uniforms. At the top is an observation deck. It was cool but I was a little sad there was no evidence of the original castle’s framework anymore. Who knows, maybe it’s just a replica.

There was a big park around the castle that had a trail but we had enough of the place. We went to the back, took a few pictures, and took a break. During that time Nigel finally got his long awaited sms from Maria. She had time to meet him the next day only. In order for that to happen, we had to go back to the hostel, cancel his night there, go to the scooter shop to return the scooter, then catch the overnight bus to Tokyo. Then the next day he’d have to come back because she had to work. It could be done but it was a lot of traveling. He was super excited to see her though. On the way out, we saw a group of people in a drum circle so we stopped and had a listen. I think for me, I enjoyed them more than the castle but I’m still glad I went.

29th DAY: Osaka Fireworks Display

It had been awhile since we had been in the same bed for a long time. I was getting comfortable being in this place. It sucked we had to move again. Getting into Sakai City was the easy part. We only had to follow one road south. Like usual, once we got there, signs disappear and you go right past your destination. We drove in circles looking for this train station. Then suddenly, it was right in front of us and we didn't even realize it because it is so small and unmarked. They came and picked us up. From there there was no way we could have found this place. I wonder how much trouble others had.

It was a little old but the rooms were private and quite cheap. We were still tired so we took a siesta. The fireworks in Tondabayashi didn't start until 19:45 so the plan was to leave by 18:00, that didn't happen. We rushed out some time past 18:30. Traffic wasn't so bad until we got closer. We stopped at a rice patty farm where there were no buildings but decided to go closer. Soon after the road was blocked off so we parked our bikes. It was 19:15 so we jogged part of the way. We reached the top of the hill where there were many people sitting in open fields so we stayed there. It would have been better to go a little closer but it was still good.

The entire country competes to put on the best fireworks show. Each city has its own style. Some even shoot them from within the water. Ours was going to be about an hour long. They were going to blow 12000 fireworks in that time. It started off with a big bang and was continuous except for a few short breaks in between. They blew off so many that they created a new cloud of just smoke that obstructed the view. This made it real difficult to get a good picture. It was also somewhat repetitive. I didn't feel they used enough variety of works, just only big loud ones. Can't complain if I compare it to any show we have in Canada.

As we were leaving, it started raining. I didn't bring my rain dress so I got soaked. It was okay though because at least I had a room with a shower.

28th DAY: More of the Same

The room wasn't quite what we wanted for its price so we went searching for another guesthouse. There were few on the list. The one near the park and zoo seemed like a good choice until we got to the park. We followed the directions but there was no guesthouse to be found. Did I mention, it was raining the whole time we were searching? Well, that made me done of Nagoya already. We just kept driving onwards to Osaka. It looked easy. Follow Route 1, change to 25 all the way to Tennoji Station where we're supposed to call Sara of the Banana House Hostel and get directions. Sounds simple doesn't it?

We were doing great following 1 but 25 was a different question. There were 2 of them which we already knew about but we ending up finding the wrong one. They started in different places. One was for normal traffic and the other was an expressway which we've been avoiding the whole time because we aren't allowed on them. Problem was, we were heading directly towards the expressway and there was no turning back, unless we wanted to backtrack who knows how many km's. I had a closer look at the sign. Apparently, according to the congi, it said 125cc and below cannot go on there. I saw it from the positive perspective and read nothing under 125cc. I was so wrong but I was glad to make that mistake, otherwise the police would never have found us.

It was excellent! There were no traffic lights, the limit was 60km/hr which we were the only ones following, except for 1 truck that we trailed. That made me feel better about going so slow in comparison. I was feeling a bit tired and I had some coffee in my bag so I signaled to stop and take a break. When we started up again, a few km's down the road we saw the police. We kept going but they were behind us. Eventually, they called on the loudspeaker for us to pull over. We obliged. They talked to us for a brief moment but we didn't fully understand what they wanted. What we got out of it was they wanted us to stay on the shoulder, so we did. Then they called us again telling us to go into the off ramp, so we did. That was when they seemed more forceful in their voice. But then they realized that we were baka gaijin (stupid foreigners) and their faces changed immediately. They didn't even ask us for license and registration at all. This is when you apologize profusely and say, "sumimasen" and "gomenasai." That is when I found out that you need a 250cc to be on there. They were not intimidating whatsoever. They shockingly were willing to escort us to the Route 25 we were supposed to be on. We followed behind them through farm fields and small back roads until they stopped and left us on our way. Unbelievable! The best thing about it was we drove about 60km on the expressway and made great time although we still arrived at Tennoji Station at 9pm.

I called Sara as soon as we arrived. She asked me, "Where are you?" Dumbass! I told her I'd call her as soon as we got there. I asked for directions. She said she'd call me back because she wasn't sure. Dumbass! Within the 8 hours, she didn't even prepare a way to get to her own hostel she manages. 15 minutes later, no call so I called her back. She asks me, "Where are you?" Dumbass! I just told her I didn't know where to go. She finally tells me it's still 30 minutes from Tennoji so Nigel decides against it and we'd look for another place. We search frantically but nothing. We had some brochures of Osaka so he pulls them out. I found Nagai Youth Hostel which was in the Lonely Planet but again he said it was too far. It was half the distance. Then he found the Nagai Youth Hostel on his youth hostel map and it was okay. It was 10:30pm and they were open until 11. They were our last hope. So in the end, we got there just on time and it was a blessing. Boy was I relieved. The cool thing about it was it was inside a big park in an actual soccer stadium, and baseball stadiums, outdoor swimming park, track, etc... Unfortunately, the next day was fully booked so we still had to move and find that crappy in comparison Banana House in Sakai City.

Boy was I glad to get that day over with. I took a bath in the onsen and went straight to bed.

27th DAY: Last Chance at Fuji

When Nigel finally got up, it was about 9am. I had already taken a glance around the corner if we could see Mt. Fuji, nothing but a big white cloud. That was our last time sleeping for free. We drove and drove that day. We followed Route 150 for what seemed like forever and took a rest. We followed 150 for another eternity until we reached Route 1. Then we reached thick traffic still 40km away from Nagoya. It was not fun.

We finally got to the outer city of Nagoya and took a much needed break. I found on hostelworld a place that said it was 630yen. It sounded impossibly cheap but we searched for it anyways. We got a little confused along the way but when we got there, of course we were wrong. That price was for the parking fee for cars. The rooms were 4200yen each. It was old and felt dirty but it was late and there was no way I was going back out there to look for another place. I hadn't slept the night before and I was ready to conk out after an onsen bath and that was exactly what I did.

26th DAY: The Final Stretch

It rained hard at night but it was fine when we woke up. Wasn't no clear day but the good thing was, we were able to dry our tent before we put it away. Apparently, Fuji only shows itself 60 or so days of the year so it was no surprise we didn't pick one of those days, especially with our bad luck.

We didn't drive far before the rain came again. Nigel was being extremely cautious and was driving 40km/hr so when I saw a place we could stop, we parked the bikes and hoped the rain would at least die down. We were there for awhile and it didn't so we kept going. Little did we know, we only had to drive 4-5 km further out of the mountains and the roads were dry. I was ahead and I fell asleep while driving and hit a plastic marker with my side bag so we stopped again for some coffee. Our goal was Nagoya but it was a fair ways away so we stopped at Miho for a 3rd break. It was at the tip of a peninsula and there was a lighthouse so I thought it might be a good photo opportunity. I was wrong.

We did find a beach with 2 tents for shelter and it seemed like it would be a secluded place to rest overnight but we were wrong about that too. We ate dinner and waited for the sun to go down. Then came some people, then more and more. They were having a BBQ and firework party. It was dark now so we decided to stay there anyways since they had facilities. The tents were low so we tried to sleep in the open under the tents. That was a mistake. It soon was drizzling so I set up the tarp to block that off. Good thing it didn't last long.

Then Nigel became paranoid people would hurt us every time a car pulled up so he prepared his utensils in case. Of course, nothing happened. Then worst of all, came the mosquitoes. Mosquitoes love me and so even with one buzzing in my ear, I can't sleep. There were more than a few. The mosquito repellent wasn't good enough so I only got 1-2 hours sleep that night. But when the day broke, and the mosquitoes were most prevelent, that was when Nigel finally got comfortable. I was not so fortunate. I had to wait until he woke up.

I took advantage of that time. I did a little writing on my computer, went for a walk and saw the sunrise, saw that all those cars were just people coming there to go fishing, experienced a wicked fog come over the area, took a shower, ate breakfast and even cleaned up our mess. Funny thing was, I was fine to drive for the rest of the day.

25th DAY: Fuji Q Highlands

I couldn't sleep so well so I got up at 7am. I was disappointed but it was no surprise. It was another cloudy day. In the next 2 hours before Nigel got up, Fuji's peak decided to make an appearance twice for just 5 minutes at a time and I got to see the size and shape of Japan's highest peak at least. I met a Japanese couple that were going to the amusement park too. They were leaving at 9am. I wish I asked to join them and woke up Nigel at 8:30 instead because we didn't start going until noon. The main reason was that the rain hadn't started yet. It still worked out in the end.

We arrived at 12:30 to the biggest amusement park in all of Japan and the ticket lady had a sign saying they were expecting rain in the afternoon and they don't operate the rides in the rain. There was no turning back though.

The rides looked awesome.

They had one 79 meter traditional roller coaster which was the 4th biggest of its kind. As we were waiting for it, the rain came. We were able to go on that one but they shut down all the other big rides. We had to settle for the crappy shows, inside ones and a river raft one that was not worth the 1.5 hour wait. So about 2.5 hours later, they finally started the good ones. We ran to the record 4 across seater that made you completely lose your sense of direction. The seats twisted around as well as your chair. I would have gone on it again if the line up wasn't 1.5 hours long and they didn't close it early. At least by the time we got off that ride, most people had left and there were next to no line ups anymore. We did a pendulum one where the seats turned in a circle while being swung up and completely upside down. (below)

Next was the one where you're in a chair hanging from a long chain and it swings in a circle and goes up and down. By that point, I was nauseous and had enough. Nigel was angry they would let him on this white one that we tried getting onto before but it didn't look so exciting anyways. I left satisfied and about to puke.

Now the only thing missing was a good view of Mt. Fuji.

24th DAY: Mt. Fuji

The previous day was a gorgeous sunny day so I figured today would be the same. It was cloudy but they didn’t look so ominous. We didn’t have far to go so we prayed we’d have a clear day so we could get a good photo of Mt. Fuji. About half hour into our trip guess what happened? It’s quite predictable. We stopped to try to wait it out. We had to do some things on the computer anyways. About an hour later, we were good to go. It was clear for the rest of the ride until we got to the mountain. We had to stop again at a supermarket, under a sheltered area and waited some more. Of course Fuji wasn’t visible so all we could do is pray for a clearing in the next 40 hours. Nigel has seen it from the air before and wasn’t nearly as concerned as I was.

We had many campsites around the lake to choose from. We chose the one across the lake so the view would be good if it decided to show itself. By now, it was already night so we’d have to wait. We had a quick drive around the lake and checked out the surroundings. It was cool it wasn’t overly developed, as I thought it would be. It just had small pockets of towns sparsely located. It still had its natural feel. We then went into town for dinner and that was the end of the day. We were going to Fuji Q Highlands the next day, Japan’s biggest rollercoaster amusement park.

23rd DAY: Rest Day

I kept waking up worried that Maria would miss her plane but I was too tired and kept sleeping until 9:30. Some strange reason she felt obliged to wake up then when her plane wasn’t until 6pm. I got up unwillingly. Nigel came in soon after. He told me he was watching her pack but suddenly passed out. Who knows for sure but he felt she wasn’t the type to do something the first time. Maybe he missed his chance. She suggested we meet her father downstairs in his office. I hate meeting the parents, it’s one of my worst fears. Atleast Nigel was the one on the spot, not me.

His office was outside in a small little shack with barely enough room for one. The 4 of us squeezed in there with their dog trampling all over our feet as he ran in and out every 2 minutes. He ended up being pretty cool. He used to own a guesthouse and was used to meeting people from all over the world. He’d also traveled to many places and was very open minded. He was just happy to show us his pictures of his trip to Iceland. He talked for an hour straight. We just sat there and nodded and said yup, right, etc… When he was finally done, our reward was breakfast. We ate while Maria showered and finished packing. When we were all done, she walked us to the train station and as we said goodbye, I could hear Nigel’s heart breaking in half. Poor guy!

We went back to pick up all our stuff. Luckily, our scooters were still there. We looked for a hotel as far out of town as possible hoping it would be cheaper. That was not the case at all. I talked them down to 4000yen ($45US) a night each. They were a super nice old couple. I felt good about giving my money to them rather than some big chain hotel.

I spent the rest of the day working on my Biking Okinawa video. Unfortunately, it’s 20 minutes long so if you want to see it, I can file transfer it but I don’t think I’ll put it on my blog or youtube.

22nd DAY: Tokyo City

The hotel reception wanted to assure we left by 10am, bikes and all. They didn’t like the idea of us leaving any bags or our scooters there while we were in central Tokyo. Our plan was to stay up all night and go back early in the morning as soon as the day broke. We went to the station to put our bags in the lockers, and find a place to park our scooters without having to pay. We found the perfect spot amongst some other scooters and bicycles at an apartment complex near the station. We put them license plates facing the wall in case anybody noticed our Osaka plates. As we were getting ready, someone came home and saw us there. We got a little paranoid they might call the towing company or something. We left trying not to think about it.

It was a long train ride but I was excited to see what the boast about what the most expensive city in the world offered. First on the list was Shibuya where the famous pedestrian crossing is. Not so interesting, unless you like to shop. We found a good Indian restaurant and filled our bellies with nice warm curry. Other than that, there isn’t much to see so we walked towards Shinjuku where there are more malls, some nightlife and the Japanese style red light district.

On the way there, we stumbled upon this stadium. There were many people walking in so we followed. Inside was a big wrestling competition for children. It was real entertaining to see so many children interested in such a sport in Japan. I figure it’s because it’s similar to sumo. Nigel thinks it’s because they’ve got a bid in for the Olympics in 2016 and they’re preparing.

Either way, it gave us something to do other than the usual tourist stuff. The stadium was next to the park so we ventured in. There were people doing all sorts of activities, such as, tap dancing, hip hop dancing, playing catch, running, cycling, bubble making, and even 2 fenced off areas for dogs, separated by weight. I’m glad we decided to walk from Shinbuya to Shinjuku, otherwise, we wouldn’t have seen this common life.

It was now getting dark so we made our way to Shinjuku.

Apparently, you can find used girls underwear in vending machines and other strange things but we found none of that. We just saw the normal cigarettes, drinks, and food tickets for restaurants. We walked into one business thinking they’d be in there but to my surprise, we found a small stall full of girl’s pictures. I’m not sure but my guess is you choose one of the girls and the owner calls her to meet you for services. Dangerous to have one of these around after you come out of a bar, drunk and horny.We walked around the small area just to check it out. One of the hundreds of hustlers on the streets trying to pull people into their establishment started talking to us. He could even speak Chinese. I was impressed. His Chinese was better than mine but that’s not saying much. He followed us for about 50m telling us we can get in for free, the girls take off all their clothes, many beautiful girls, etc… I would have had a peak if it weren’t 12000yen ($130US) for an hour. The girls probably didn’t even speak English anyways.

We were a little curious what the fascination was to Japanese men so Nigel really wanted to try one with Filipinos. The poster said 980yen for 40 minutes all you can drink, which sounded reasonable so I agreed. It was a brand new bar so it was quite well decorated. The problem was the girls all looked too old for my liking. They ushered us to a seat with a bottle of whiskey. I failed to realize that that was what they were offering for all you can drink. I naively ordered a beer, then 2 more. During that time we chatted to the women, and sang a couple songs on the karoke machine. It was fun but you know these women were only talking to you because it’s their job. The 40 minutes were up and after declining to stay longer, they gave us the axe to the jugular. Each beer was 1500yen ($16US). Our bill came out to 7100 yen ($80US). We left there feeling completely robbed and furious at ourselves for not being more careful. This is after the women were telling us that we should be careful for the African hustlers at Rapongi, the place with pubs and discos where we were heading to next. It was them that we needed to be careful for. Never will I make that mistake to go into one of those places again!

We got out the station, turned the corner and bam, there they were. The street was lined with Africans. They weren’t afraid to talk to anybody but I was happy to know that they’d leave you alone if you asked, unlike the other Japanese guy. We stopped and had a conversation to one of them. He was real nice. He told us how they’d come here to make money and look for a Japanese wife to get away from the strife in their own country, fair enough, makes sense. The next guy we talked to is named Dennis. He was happy to meet me but we kept going. We saw Kingston Reggae bar so we stopped there and finished off our beers from 7-11. In the process, we talked to another guy. He talked about his previous business but went bankrupt and how he has a wife there and how he’s trying to start something new. He was from the delta in Nigeria so he must be happy to get away from that.He escorted us up to his bar. It was still happy hour until 11pm so drinks were a reasonable 500yen instead of the usual 1000yen in that area. You weren’t allowed with no beer in your hand, either, otherwise, they’d kick you out. I had a bottled Guiness. There weren’t many people inside but the music was good. We were having fun but it was time to go to 911.

We’ve been searching all over Japan for a real disco where there is a dance floor or one that’s bigger than 3m squared. The search was over. I’m pretty sure Rapongi is the only place in the entire country. I wanted to test the rule about the beer so I didn’t order a drink until they asked. It took them about 30 minutes before they approached me but I didn’t want to go as far as to see if they’d boot me out. As the night continued, it got super congested in there. Many girls but I couldn’t find one that stunned me. I approached a few but was unsuccessful. Nigel on the other hand met a cutie. Unfortunately, she didn’t have a friend that could entertain me. She felt tired and offered us to sleep at her place since she knew our situation. Nigel gladly accepted. I accepted not so gladly but the alternative seemed bleak. I waited outside for them to get ready. In that time I talked to a cute Korean. She was positive, and offered to introduce me to her friends but then Nigel came and said he was leaving and if she could take care of me. She said it was cool to hang out as long as I didn’t latch on to her. It didn’t look so positive anymore so we got into a taxi and left.

We had no idea where she lived but 15 minutes, and 4500yen later we arrived. She lived with just her father. She had the entire upstairs to herself. We hung out in the living room for awhile but she had to pack to go to Hawaii the following day and she said she had to wake up at 9:30am so they left. I happily slept on the foldable couch with a blanket and air conditioning.

21st DAY: Rainy Season is over, so STOP raining already!

It rained over the night furiously but it stopped by morning. We had a long drive ahead of us to make it to Lake Sagami. We figured the best thing to do was camp there and take the nearby train into Tokyo to party, check out some sites, and of course, some local talent. Boy were we wrong!

We got to Sagami by 4pm. We went to our trusty computer to look for a campsite. We saw one posted on a local map that wasn’t on the internet. This one was definitely closed down. It was down a steep hill a fair ways from the away anyways. As we were leaving, it started to rain. It came down fast and hard. We drove to the next site. It looked more promising. It was in a big park. It even had gates. We waited under the shelter of the entrance hoping for the rain to subside. It didn’t. Nigel went in to see how much the camping was. It was a joke. 6500yen ($70) if you had your own tent, 12000yen if not. Then I checked the other 2 sites up the opposite side of the road. Again, no luck. Both of them were closed with no one in sight. Other than that, there were nothing but LOVE hotels everywhere. We weren’t about to take that option. I figure it’s the secret getaway destination for young couples, or mistresses or something along those lines. The rain slowed so we opted to continue forward towards Tokyo to see our other choices.

The first town we hit was called Takao but we headed further for Hachioji. We ended up at Nishihachioji Station before we stopped. There found some lockers we could ditch our bags into while we ventured into the city but the problem was we still couldn’t find a hotel or guesthouse in sight. We kept going to Hachioji and kept looking. We searched for up to an hour and the only thing we could find was 4900yen each. We were tired, hungry and wet so we unwillingly took it. Nigel originally wanted to party that night but there was no way. Neither of us had any energy for that. The good thing was the room was clean, warm and inside in another comfy bed.

So the great idea to camp works really well if:

1. The campsites are open.

2. It’s not constantly raining.

3. Maybe get there a little earlier so we’re not always looking for a place in the dark when they may be closed because it’s at night but I doubt that. It’s just been a bad year. Slow economy, later rainy season so there’s been cooler weather so no one wants to camp, except us.

20th DAY: Blessed Day!

I woke up to a terrific surprise. We hadn’t seen the sun for what seemed like a long time. It was essential to go for a swim in the lake with blue skies like this. The sunlight heating up my skin felt joyous. I lay there soaking up heat like I was a lizard. It didn’t take long until the clouds came back. That was our cue to blow this joint. At least it didn’t rain.

Nigel saw an indoor batting practice place and had the urge to try it. I remember my childhood and how bad I was at hitting so I felt hesitant to go in. I felt more confident after watching him go. You could choose the speed of the pitch, thank god. He chose the 70km/hr machine. It looked like a reasonable speed so I did the same. The machine was very accurate. It even switched up location and speed slightly. I did far better than I ever expected. Even got some better hits than Nigel did. I guess I wasn't as bad as I thought. It was my 2^nd pleasant surprise of the day.

We got to Nagano and it was blazing hot again. We decided to park the scooters at the station and walk to the closest temple. Amazingly, it was free. It was similar to most other temples we’ve seen except for the massive 20 feet wooden guardians at the front door. We took our time and got some nice pictures. Next we went into town for lunch. We were sad to see the Indian restaurant we wanted was closed. We settled for Italian food.

In our short stay in Nagano, I was thoroughly impressed. It is right in the middle of Honshu. It held the 1998 Olympics in surrounding ski hills. It’s the location for the famous macaque monkeys that bath themselves in the onsens (hot springs) and it’s close to many outdoor adventure kind of stuff in the nearby mountains. I’ll without a doubt be coming back to this area for the snowboarding some day.

We drove into the night looking for a campsite that was not tended as usual. It was dark, roped off, and a little creepy looking so we went back to a rest area that Nigel had seen on the way. It was huge! There was even a go cart track, a swimming pool, pond, and walking trails. The best was that there was light so we didn’t have to set up the tent in the dark. We found a quiet spot tucked into the bottom corner next to the bathroom and also a cover for our scooters. It was perfect except for the strange people who like to leave their engines on while they’re taking their rest. I got used to it after awhile. It was a great campsite for the end of a great day!

19th DAY: Outlook Positive

You should have seen our room. We had splayed all our stuff all over the room to dry. We had to get out of our comfy hotel by 10am so we got up at 8:30. With the amount of packing, eating, washing and of course using the computers, we were late 30 minutes to check out but luckily, they didn't care. Our day started real good. The sky looked like there possibly could be no rain, for a few hours anyways. We didn't have to go far so we hoped we wouldn't get wet. Myoko Kogen was only 35km away. This is the town that Tom and Nazomi from Niss were supposed to open their new ski school. And we were foing to help them find customers from Taiwan so we wanted to go there and check out the scene.

We started at the info center at the train station. They were real helpful. One man even knew Nazomi. He helped us find the hotels we needed to talk to and answered the 100 questions we had. Next we went to the resort and looked around a bit, took some pictures and videos but too bad, there was a big cloud hovering over the mountain peak. After that we went to the 4 hotels they suggested. 1st and 3rd were super nice and sounded like they were willing to do business. 2nd sounded like an option but we'd need a Japanese speaking person to talk to him again because he didn't speak English. 4th was more classy and more expensive so it's probably out of the question unless that's what the people are looking for. We left there feeling like this can very well be possible and this gives us more motivation to make it work.

We decided to check out Lake Nojiri. As we got there, guess what happened? Why of course, it started raining. It looked like a nice place to stop and I wanted to stay but as always there's also the pressure to keep going in case we don't give ourselves enough time to make it back to Osaka. In the end, I'm glad we stayed because it really started to come down an hour later but this time we didn't get wet, thank god!

18th DAY: Rain, Rain, Rain

There was a big lightning storm all night. We woke up with a break in the rain. We ate breakfast, packed up our stuff and tried to let the tent dry but the rain gods wouldn't have it. Luckily, they gave us a trickle before the heavy rains started coming and boy did they come. It was so hard we had to stop. We were backtracking back to Toyama so I could buy my ticket from Osaka to Naha. We eventually got there but I got my shoes soaked in the process. The cheapest flight I could find was 25000 yen ($280US). Super expensive considering I paid 16000 yen to go the opposite way. We hung out a bit more in a coffee shop because we were both dreading driving in the rain some more but we had to go even if it didn't slow and it didn't. We drove for 4 hours til we got to Joetsu not Myoko where we wanted to go another . We were wet and cold so we stayed in a hotel and lived it up for the night. It was 5000 yen each ($60) but it was dry, and comfy.

17th DAY: Toyama Airport

The day started differently than what we've had recently. The sun was out, and it was hot. We didn't get to the Toyama airport until about 2. We wanted to do some filming to make a small skit for the contest. We needed a shot of a plane taking off. We didn't know which way the airplanes depart so we waited for an airplane at one end. 30 minutes later, nothing came or left so we decided to go in and check the schedule. Nothing was arriving for another 1.5 hours. Luckily, they had wireless. During that time we unfortunately found out that there aren't any direct flight from Taipei to Toyama like we were hoping. This meant that we had to adjust our plans of flying Taiwanese into Japan via Toyama. When the time came, Nigel sped off to catch the plane take off but it was flying away from him and the footage was too shaky. We decided to wait for the next one at 18:10. We did some other filming and tried to book our hotel in Kenting for the contest. We went out again at the right end this time and we both filmed it. It's pretty amateur and not directly under the plane like Nigel wanted but it would do.

It was getting late so we went to look for the next mystery campsite. We found one on the coast, next to the beach and a swimming spot. When we got there, it was dark and it looked like the office was closed so we drove in looking where we could pitch the tent. There were others sleeping in huts so we went to the opposite side. We got there then saw the caretaker heading towards us with 3 others. Of course he was talking too fast for us to understand what he wanted even when we kept saying, "we don't understand," in Japanese. After 5 minutes of confusion we understood that we couldn't stay there. We could not camp at the campsite, nor could we stay in a hut either. He wanted us to leave. So we apologized and said, "gomenasai and sumimasen" for sorry but he obviously didn't accept our apology and started looking at our license plates and saying more stuff. We just took off shocked. We ended up pitching the tent in the dark in some marshy field next to the beach. I had no problems with that. This campsite was free.

16th DAY: Work Day

We woke up fairly early. We had a big day ahead of us. We wanted to sit down and have a proper day of work on the computer. We chose McDonald’s because it’s open 24 hours. We caught up on our blogs, and more importantly, put some ideas on how to win this contest on paper. We didn’t even do any work on learning Final Cut Pro at all, oh well. So nothing eventful happened except that we may not be allowed to do the 4x4 portion of our trip, which is the highlight of our itinerary. This really blows goats! We’ll see what happens.

15th DAY: Traditional Silk Making Huts

We finally went to the morning market on this day. We arrived at 11:30am and many stalls were packing up. There wasn’t so much to buy so all I got was a local doll indigenous to this area, very cute! There was another market but it was too late so it was pointless. We went back to the hostel to pack up. Getting to Shirakawa-go was a little confusing. We were going north on Route 41 and was supposed to turn left on Route 471. I saw a small sign saying 471 so we turned but it started bringing us south so we had to do a circle. We saw another road labeled 471 and took that road.

It cut to the left and brought us back to 41 eventually. And as they say, 3^rd time lucky we found the proper road. Little did I know, this route took us high, high into the mountain ranges on a twisty, turny, narrow road. We had gone so far in that we had thought we had past it for a moment but we got told at the top where there was a man ticketing people to enter a nature walk to keep going down. On the way down we saw a lovely waterfall right next to the road but with no room for a car to stop so we felt special. Unfortunately, there was an accident between a car and scooter. It looked like everyone was fine, no serious damage to either vehicle so they were lucky. I startled the cop as I glided by because my engine was on idle and he couldn’t hear the engine. Soon after that, we arrived at the viewpoint to Shirakawa-go without even realizing it. The only reason we knew is because of the sudden it bustle of tourists taking pictures.

This is definitely a great site to see but I do think it’s a little out of the way and I was hoping the huts were still manufacturing silk but it was just a museum showing the tools they used. It was the most interesting to see the roofing though. They’d use thick bundles of straw thatched together and cut the ends to make it flush. Each roof would be 50cm thick. They even replaced the roof every season.

To do that, they’d need hundreds of people working together to complete this massive task as the frames were large enough to house up to 20 families on the base floors with the top floors for the silk worms and equipment. Very interesting but also very busy. We saw some more gassho villages while going north that didn’t have modern houses between them. I recommend seeing those ones instead. It’s a Unesco World Heritage Site so you can look it up.

Now we were on a quest to find our 5^th campsite, and back in the tent. No more picturesque mountains, mist covered rivers, mesmerizing sound of running water or feeling at one with nature. Back to the real Japan that tourists seem to associate Japan as. We did manage to find a terrific campsite on a widened part of the river that’s secluded and surrounded by rice farms. Once again, thank you docomo for your help! The wireless

internet we use that can be accessed anywhere there’s a phone signal.