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.

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.

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.

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!

12th DAY: YAY! Freshly Baked Western Bread!

Gero spa is famous in Japan for its high alkaline onsens. If you mention Gero to a Japanese person, their immediate response is onsen. They even have a free, public, outdoor, mixed, nude onsen under a bridge. As you probably know, I have a difficult enough time going into male only onsens.

We started on the tourist street with all the souvenir shops just to look. We found nothing and no one. It could be due to it being aweekday, not sure. But we were told by Rocky to go into the gallery where we could make our own postcards. I went in reluctantly because I suck at art but I ended up having a lot of fun. The lady inside was 75 years old but had the most joyous smile. She couldn’t speak English and was talking a mile a minute in Japanese. We understood some but Nigel ended up showing her Rocky’s card and she called him and gaveher the scoop. She brought over a bookletof her international friends but mainly because she had a good friend from Taiwan which is where we are going to in August. She wrote down his contact info and gave it to us. So sweet!

We had a look on the walls of all the other postcards and was even more intimidated. I don’t remember the last time I picked up a paint brush. It took me awhile for me to know what

to draw but once I started, it was easy. It was nothing special but I was happy to complete something. 2 Japanese girls from Nagoya joined us midway but they were much better and faster than us and were gone in a flash.

When we were done, we wrote in the guest book, took a few pictures and she gave us a

bag of treats. It was great to see her kind face lighten up just to have people come into her gallery. I hope to meet her again.

Next we went to a hotel info office. We were looking for prices of local hotels

for future use. One man spoke English very well. He had everything we needed. He even gave us a DVD of the local area, and CD of hotel info such as pricing and what they look like. He was so helpful! He came outside with us to take a picture together and say goodbye. He will be coming to Taiwan in October to set up a booth in the World Travel Fair in Taipei. So there’s a chance we’ll meet again.

We went back to Rocky’s house after that and made some videos for a skit we’re making. You’ll get to see it one day when it’s done. It should be funny. We used David Peyrot as a special guest. He does a fantastic job!

Then we went to Ikumi’s little, once a week, outdoor bread stand. She had gone to France and learned how to make proper bread and is one of a small populous that knows how to do this in Asia. She opens at 16:00 and goes to 21:00 but takes all of the previous day to prepare it. Many locals of Hagiwara, where she sells it, comes not only for the bread but also to hang out and chat. At one point there were about 11-12 people there. We were only missing the beer. So Rocky introduced us to many people and we truly enjoyed ourselves. That’s what’s so great about such a small town. Everyone has time to do these kinds of things. And once you get introduced, they treat you remarkably well.

11th DAY: Sick

I did nothing today but stay in bed all day and watched tv or worked on my computer while Nigel got to go for a hike and see 6 waterfalls. He came back with pictures and they looked so nice. A little jealous I didn't get to go but I need to get better. But I probably could have taken some ibuprofen and it would of been all good, but I didn't. I just can't believe there are so many hidden treasures in this area!

10th DAY: Harvesting Wheat

We went to Ikumi's friend Nanako's farm to see what it's like to harvest wheat. She somehow acquired a machine used in the olden days. It's a very rudimentary system but interesting to see. It is similar to a spinning wheel in that you use your foot to push on it and make it spin. There's a thick wheel, which has metal pieces sticking out to knock the seeds out of the plant but there would still be the husk so you need to separate it by blowing it away. We used many methods: throwing it up and letting the air take it, but we kept losing seeds as well, blowing on it but after awhile you'd feel dizzy, and the most effective method was to cheat and use an electric fan.

When we were

tired, we went inside for some tea and snacks. There was sumo wrestling on tv so she told us all about it. There's a competition on right now in Nagoya but unfortunately, we can't see it or we'd have to backtrack and tournaments only happen once every 2 months.

Rocky and Ikumi has shown us

such good hospitality. I only wish him well. If you get the chance, you should come here and get in touch with nature and real Japanese culture. There's so many beautiful things to see here!

9th DAY: Rappelling

David and Nigel went on the river tracing tour again in the morning. I spent the time to catch up on my blogs and do some editing on some videos. They came back at 13:00 along with 3 other guests and we had some traditional style lunch. Ikumi, Rocky’s wife prepared for us sushi wrapped in a leaf with trout, sliced green onions, and spices, miso soup and bread which we cooked ourselves over a fire wrapped around a stick. It was all so yummy! We took a hung out until 17:00 and waited for Rocky to finish work.

We walked over to the bridge near the fishing center, fully equipped and ready to descend. He gave us a lesson on how to link the rope to ourselves and practiced that before he gave us a demonstration on how to do it. He came up and prepared Nigel to go first. It looked easy enough to me. Nigel was willing but still a little apprehensive. I don’t blame him. We were about 15m up. He came down smoothly. Next came David. He too was a bit scared too, but “it was something you just have to try once.” He looked comfortable but he didn’t want to try it again. And finally came me, the only person who isn’t afraid of heights. I admit, at first it really pumps up your adrenaline, relying on a rope to support all your weight horizontally, then jumping off and you’re just hanging there. It kind of feels like you’re suspended in a chair.

I think I’d like to do this more often. Next time, something a little more challenging.

7th DAY: Heaven!

Sleeping on sand or dirt is one thing, sleeping on wood is another. Funny thing is, I'm getting more and more used to always being on the floor, it's part of Japanese customs. I still prefer the western way though. My point is, our bungalow was nothing but a hut with a light. The campsite was surrounded by mountains, rivers and trees. A part of Japan probably 95% of tourists don't see. We hung out for a bit after we packed our bags because it was still raining. Apparently Gero, where we are going, is famous for its hot spring but that wasn't the reason we were going there. We wanted to see the gorge and waterfall that Rocky had talked so much about in Niseko. We figured it would never really stop raining so we decided to leave when it slowed down. About halfway there, we stopped for about 2 hours to do laundry, buy some groceries, and Rocky a gift (bottle of wine).

We arrived in Gero at about 16:30 and gave Rocky a call. He told us to meet him a bit further up the road. His wife came out to greet us. They were at her parents house preparing fish for a BBQ the next day for his guests. He was wearing a butcher's apron, had fishy hands, but I was happy to see him. We finally fulfilled our promise to visit him. After that, he needed some more groceries, then we went to his house, dropped off his stuff and went to an onsen. Yikes!

I avoided going to onsens while at Niseko because they're separated genders, you're surrounded by stark naked guys, and mainly, I'm a little uncomfortable walking around balls out. Rocky gave us a dinky little towel so to speak to cover up my dong. There were several baths, some were different temperatures, some sauna rooms, a mist room which was my favorite, couple outdoor ones and one very interesting one where you sit in a cubicle and your head is the only thing sticking out. It ended up being a fun experience. I'm not eager to do it again but I'll be more willing.

5th DAY: Wet n' Wonderful

At night, it rained continuously. I had woken up in a puddle. It was soaking through my sleeping bag and starting to get me wet, so needless to say I got up. It was 8am. I didn’t know what to do at first but then I remembered, there’s an outlet under some shelter with a desk at the camp reception that was closed. I brushed my teeth and ate some breakfast as I gazed into the lake soaking up its beauty and sounds. Then I plugged in my earphones, turned on my computer and started working on editing my videos while Nigel lay asleep in the continually growing puddle under our tent.

An hour or so later, Nigel woke up and we sat there waiting for the rain to stop. We talked and used our computers wishing for the same thing in the back of our minds. It didn’t stop until noon. We jumped onto our scooters and filled up our empty tanks for the journey ahead. But before we could even consider that, we moved all our stuff out of the tent and moved it all into some sheltered area to dry. We used that time wisely and did our blog entries.

We were finally ready by 4pm. Sad to say, this night coming is going to be our last night camping aside Lake Biwa. I miss it already. The next day will be in the mountains near Gero, where Rocky from Niss lives. I’ll get to that later. On the way, we stopped at a department store and did more shopping, this time to look for a tarp to solve our puddle problem. While there I bought a chair, batteries for my camera, rain jacket and my favorite ice cream bar for just 88yen.

About 2 hours later, we found our campsite. It was deserted, like the last place. It was the best place we’d found so far though. It had its own tents setup already. It even had a foam mat inside, and best of all, it was super spacious, you could even stand up in it. We also had our personal picnic table right outside our door. It was on the side of a hill looking down at the lake. Can’t wait to see the view in the morning, should be astonishing!

4th DAY: Rainy Season

I woke up early, restless. I felt sweaty and needed to take a bath in the lake. I unzipped the tent. It was going to be sunny, I could tell. I jumped in feeling at one with nature. There were others around so I tried to be discreet with the bar of soap. One guy was fishing, another lady was walking her dog and there was the grounds keeper. After I finished cleansing myself, he came up to me and started talking. I had no idea what he was saying. All I understood was that we couldn’t camp here, we needed to go around the corner. We were leaving that day anyways. We ate, packed, and were ready to go. That was when the rain started. Same weather as the day before. We covered up all our gear, I put on my raincoat and off we went. Nigel got soaked so we stopped under the overpass and waited for the rain to subside.

Not so long later, we were on the road again but didn’t know where so searched for an outlet. We found one, but what do you know, it started raining again, then left. We found a campsite at the north side. It was 4000yen so we kept searching. We found a prime spot further up (3rd campsite). Middle of nowhere campsite, no one around but us and a family of macau monkeys. We went for another bath, hid everything in the tent and food in our bikes, and off we went shopping.

2nd DAY: F#$@&N Fiasco

All I have to say is, “what a series of bad events!” We started the day early. I could not sleep so I got out of the tent to eat breakfast. The caretaker of the campgrounds came over and said to me we needed to leave before 8am. It was 6:30. He said we could stay for free but at 8am when the others came, we would have to pay so we had to leave before then. We packed, and were ready to go but then he asks if we needed to use the computer to look for another place, so we did. Just then the others came and we did have to pay 520yen ($5.50) and they were staring and talking to us so we got nothing accomplished. With no plan we drove off and left our beautiful campsite.

We decided to drop off our bags at the nearest station and drive to Kyoto. Little did I know, Nigel didn’t like this plan. He wanted to take the train in and take public transport. I thought it would be convenient to have our bikes in the city and give ourselves some freedom. Partway there when we got a little lost, Nigel’s top blew off. We eventually found where we were and where we needed to go with some complications.

I wanted to go to the Emperor’s Imperial Palace because it looked big and thought it may be similar to the Imperial Palace in China. Boy was I wrong. The interesting parts were all closed off because it was Sunday and the grounds were nothing but trees and grass, boring! We then decided on Nanken Temple. It was a huge area with many temples surrounding it. We looked around, went for a hike up a trail to another shrine area but still not so interesting. Golden Palace sounded good. It was 400yen to do a 5 minute ircle around the place. The palace was okay but again, meh. We were done sightseeing for the day.

My scooter headlight was busted and we planned to do a lot of night driving so we went to look for a scooter shop. None to be found! We drove circles all over town. We got sent to Autobacs, Leo Moto, saw Honda and others. We called the bike rental place and told them about the problem. By now it was 6:30pm and getting dark. They suggested a shop but it closed at 7pm and it was too far. The 2nd one they suggested was closer but it was off the map. We flew to Kyoto Station, got the location and raced there. We arrived at 3 minutes to 8pm. They had the light, YIPPEE, but it was 2900yen ($30). Good thing the rental shop will pay me back at the end of the month. They’d better!

Relaxed and happy, we went to the mall to find dinner. We had burgers and smoothies. We hung out there to use the computers and charge our batteries. I went to the bathroom, came back and got kicked out at 10pm when the mall closed. On our way back towards the train station to pick up our bags and then look for another campsite 20km or more in the dark, I realized I had forgotten my computer in the restaurant. Smooth move Dennis! I had to go back the next day to pick it up. I was now relying on Japanese people’s honesty to get my computer back.

What a cursed day!

1st DAY: Fun!

We got to the bike shop at 13:30 and were on the road by 14:00. It felt good to be on a scooter again. We drove back to the guesthouse to pick up our bags then we were off, out of Osaka. They say Osaka is famous for their cuisine but I didn’t care. The place didn’t have any visual appeal at all, I needed out. We did Universal Studios and that was enough. We plan to do all the other attractions on a 2000yen special offer when we got back to drop off the scooters. But for now, we’re off to Biwa Lake, the biggest lake in all of Japan to go camping. We plan to do the rest of Japan this way. Sure we had to pay 41000yen for the scooter rental for an entire month but transportation in this country is real expensive and we’re going to save heaps on accommodation which hit me the hardest while in Okinawa. Plus, how do you expect to find campsites using public transport? Where’s the adventure in that? We’re going to be different than the other 99% of tourists that come here.

The road system is confusing as hell. Highways change number then change back later, they’ll take a detour around and come back to the same road as before further up, roads don’t have street names for both streets of an intersection, there are millions of intersections everywhere, and of course, routes aren’t clearly labeled most of the time. We eventually got there without too much difficulty, thanks to a bit of preplanning the night before. On the way, we went through some quiet mountain roads with quaint little Japanese style towns that were nestled in next to the mountains, cute. Lovely small city atmosphere when we got to the river leading to the lake. There were people canoeing, running, strolling riverside all around. This is the scenery and lifestyle I’m going to look for when I stop traveling and working.

When we got there, I was pleasantly surprised. We were on a small island, in the middle of a massive lake. The campgrounds were well kept but had no showers but the location was great! My biggest complaint though is those stupid mosquitoes. Is there a place in this world that mosquitoes don’t live?

Universal Studios Osaka, Japan

This was the first time I've been to any theme park associated with Hollywood. I was looking forward to seeing Goofy, Donald, Mickey n'stuff... But I guess it wasn't Disneyland so, unfortunately, they weren't all there. I saw Betty Boop, Sesame Street, Snoopy and gang, Peter Pan crew there, that's it, but they also had rides. It was like taking a step back into time. They were all from the 90's. These are the rides we did go on:

First, we went into 3D Spiderman (meh), then 3D T2 (well done show but must get rid of weirdo hostess talkin' a mile a minute before the show!), did I mention we're in Japan and everything is in JAPANESE?, 3D Back to the Future (crap), Jurassic Park boat ride (entertaining), Backdraft (fire room was cool but before that, they just talked for 15 minutes in 2 other rooms), Peter Pan outdoor theater show (excellent), Hollywood Dream roller coaster (could be better), Jaws boat ride (some lady blaring her screechy voice on the mike and not so scary), 3D Woody Woodpecker (very good acting & funny!), 4D Sesame Street (lame) and finally Peppermint Patty's waterslide in a boat (got soaking wet ass). It already started raining during the Peter Pan show but this was the icing. Then we found out, the parade of all the characters wasn't happening because of the rain which is why we went there, to waste time. So we left.

On the way to the train station, we hit up a restaurant. Amazingly, we found one that wasn't 200% normal price, great food and free non-alcoholic beverages, I think, we just helped ourselves because everyone else was. I had a great time but it was still lacking the big rides so I'll have to say I'm a little disappointed. There won't be a big recommendation for a $60 entrance. Off to find another bigger, better one than that! Tell you when I do!