I was awake at half seven, and purposely missed coffee in garden at eight. The family I met last night had finished when I came down, meaning I could enjoy my coffee, fruit (melon and two bits of orange) and bread chunk without feeling the need to make polite conversation. Once I was done and packed, the woman drove me at great speed to the station. Here, I had planned to get a train to Tsuwano, a supposedly tranquil town further north. However, again realising the shocking train links this area had, and under the owner’s advice, I cancelled my plans. [View Full Entry]

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I ignored the alarm at seven, and almost the one at eight, until I realised that the sights of Miyajima island awaited me. I packed the semi-dried clothes that I had washed in the hostel sink, checked out of the hostel and put my bag in the train station locker. I was already sweaty, and the day was only just heating up. It’s going to be a scorcher! The ferry to Miyajima island was short and cheap, and as the mainland grew more distant, the island grew nearer. The details of the temple gateway (or 'torii') became ever present, and I [View Full Entry]

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The main disadvantage of going to bed at six in the evening was that I was awake at three in the morning, quite unplanned. I climbed out of my capsule and went to the toilet in the eerie silence of the capsule hotel, where not even the sound of snoring was heard. I was woken again at seven by the alarm I had set in preparation for two hours sightseeing. That never happened, and I stayed in the capsule until half nine, when I realised that I had been in it for around fifteen hours! It was time to leave this [View Full Entry]

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With a mother and young son on the seats opposite me, I desperately tried to get comfortable enough to close my eyes and doze off. Just as I was about to fall asleep, sprawled across two seats, a man tapped my knee and claimed I was laying in his seat. Now with nowhere to sprawl, and forced to sit upright (in case I leant on the man occupying the seat next to me), I was so uncomfortable. The train journey was hour after hour of nothing more than light dozing. The lights in the carriage remained on for the entire journey, [View Full Entry]

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The full soreness of the sunburn hit in the morning. It was a hot, sticky and uncomfortable night. I peeled myself off the bed sheets, and prepared some cookies and milk for breakfast. My brother, David, left for work shortly after, and wished me luck on the rest of my travels. I was leaving Tokyo today, and he would be at work until after I’d gone. It was a rushed goodbye. Having moisturised for the umpteenth time, I headed to the massive Tokyo station with my cousins, Simon and Becky, to ask about a night train to Kyoto for myself. Having [View Full Entry]

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I took more and more deep, meaningful breaths the higher we climbed. The route was now becoming harder, and the gradients steeper. On one long stretch, we were walking on rubble, with a waist-height stone wall running alongside. In another part, there were rocks that we had to scramble up. With me in the lead, an “avalanche” threat was very much prominent. On numerous occasions, I teetered over the rocks, threatening to fall backwards and take out my family behind me! Myself, my cousins, Simon and Becky, and my brother David were trying to get to the top of the 3,776 [View Full Entry]

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The karaoke bar we found was perfect. Located on the second or third floor, it had an all-you-can drink offer. After paying a very fair price, we were shown to our own private booth, and the drinks began to flow as we started discussing what songs to sing. There were five of us in total; David, his female Japanese friend (I never did find out her name), Simon, Becky and I. We started in earnest with Johnny Cash’s "Ring of Fire", before descending into Scatman and at least three Muse songs, all the time downing more and more drinks. We sang [View Full Entry]

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The four of us - David, Simon, Becky and I - caught a taxi back to Ichikawa in the small hours. With David and I lapsing into sleep in the back, the journey didn’t seem very long. We were all very drunk, and it took a lot longer than it should have when it came to paying the driver. Simon got lost on the way back to the flat, apparently taking a nap in the middle of the road whilst he was at it. When we did somehow all make it back to the flat, I put the kettle and made [View Full Entry]

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Returning back to David’s flat from a day looking around the Odaiba port and Shimbashi areas of Tokyo, I found my cousins asleep outside the door. Not being able to get into the flat, nor wanting to cause too much of a disturbance, they had simply collapsed on the walkway. Slowly arising from their slumber, I let them in. They, like me, had come to visit David in Tokyo. Simon, David’s age, is from Manchester. Becky, from Hull, is a year older than me. The three of us met David at Ichikawa station at half seven. We headed to the same [View Full Entry]

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My brother, some of his friends and I were in a small, second-floor rock bar that had been recommended to us. It had decent prices, and judging by the graffiti on the walls, had been guest to many bands. Cold War Kids, The Cooper Temple Clause, Interpol, Razorlight, the list went on. All messages written on the beige walls and ceiling, in black marker pen, covering them. Had all these bands really been here? I was sceptical, but the owner of the bar was insistent. We got talking to some American and Canadian stage production youths. I’m sure they said they [View Full Entry]

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