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April 28

The Trip Begins: Taking the Train to Kyushuu

I'd like to say "I woke up early", but really, I never fell asleep. I got home at 1 a.m., using a taxi, since the train was closed by the time I left my new friends of last night. After that I spent all night packing my bike, packing by stuff, updating this silly page, and making my Bike Trip Business Cards. You may be laughing, but business cards here in Japan ain't no joke. Besides, it'll be a convenient way for me to give others my information (aka cell phone number) in case I meet cool folks to hang out with.

The train leaves Tokyo station at 12:39, and I arrive in Hakata, in the far south, around 6 hours later. Around 7 p.m. I will catch the next train from Hakata to Nagasaki, and will arrive in Nagasaki around 11 p.m. Of course this means I'll be staying in the tent later tonight, since it usually isn't too easy to find a place to stay late at night.

I'm not sure when I'll be able to update this page. So, until then... sayonara!

I'm back. After lugging my big bike box all over Japan, my word of advice to you is: Don't Do It!. Buy a cheap rolling device for the box, or use a bike bag. The box was pretty heavy with the bike and all the luggage (clothes, tent, sleeping bags, etc.), and large and awkward to carry. After going from station to station with it, I am still sore a day and a half later.

Got to Tokyo station (like I said, lugging that huge crappy box), bought my bentou box (i.e. take-out lunch), and ate on the train. I slept for the next 4 or 5 hours, waking up only for the minute that we stopped at stations. When I was awake, the last hour or so, I saw some beautiful countrysides. Kyushuu looks beautiful from the train windows, and I'm sure it'll be nicer in the flesh, so to speak.

Transfered trains in Hakata (near Fukuoka) and then onward to Nagaski, arriving there at 9:30pm or so (not 11pm like I thought - I read the ticket wrong. All the times here are in "army time").

The first thing I noticed as soon as I exited the train doors was the smell. It was either fishy, or oily, or somethingy, but either way it was a smell of the sea. And it was humid. Alot more so than Tokyo.

While putting my bike together, I was talked to and stared at by a few people. I had an interesting encounter with a bunch of teenagers who were asking what I was doing, etc. They were pretty rude, punk types, but this being Japan, I don't think I even got to the point of being uncomfortable. They weren't very intimidating, especially as I was ignoring them.

Afterwards to the Nagasaki Peace Park (near the epicenter of where the US dropped the atom bomb in World War II), and I slept behind some bushes. I had a nice 6 hour sleep, and wasn't bothered by anyone (I tried to make myself not visible and was succesful).