The route to the Japanese Alps (Kamikochi, Central Honshu, Japan)

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(Day 166 on the road)After finishing the trek on Hakkaido, I spent a couple of days in Asahi-dake onsen to relax. It was here where I also encountered my first heated (!) toilet seat. I could have never possibly imagined the mere existence of such a thing, but I guess if it was to be found anywhere, it had to be Japan.

From Hokkaido I made my way down south to the Northern Alps in Japan, the area around Nagano in the Central Honshu province. I have read about a few great long-distance hikes in the area and was keen to check them out before winter sets in and it gets too cold up on the mountains. From Asahi-dake onsen I took a bus to Asahikawa, a train to Sapporo, another bus to the port of Tomakomai, an overnight ferry to Akita (where I spent two days and picked up a better tent), another ferry to Niigata, a bus to Tokyo (argh, got on the wrong bus somehow and made a big detour, completely unnecessary!), a bus to Nagano, a local train to Matsumoto, and finally a bus to Kamikochi, where I was to start the hike across the Northern Japan Alps (see next entry). In Akita I had a very nice experience with a bus driver on a local bus: I showed him where I wanted to go when I got on the bus, and he nodded and I sat down. As I was about to leave the bus at my stop, he was handing me a detailed, hand-drawn map. It showed the bus stop where I was getting off, the street, a bridge, traffic lights and my final destiantion. He must have drawn it during the stops at some traffic lights along the way, and I thought it was the sweetest thing - thank you so much!

The journey gave me some time to savour my first impressions about Japan. I have been here now for about three weeks, and there are some seriously strange things going on in this country! The first things you notice when you travel in Japan is the omnipresent politeness and the high-tech (I have mentioned the technology before, so I will focus on the politeness for now). The way you notice the politeness first is by the continuous bowing of the Japanese. I have been practising it myself quite a bit I have to admit (much to the amsusement of Ann when she was still with me in Kyoto and Tokyo), but I will surely never be able to do it with as much grace as the Japanese, who must start practising at young age. There is this old joke about two Japanese who just cannot stop bowing, as no one wants to be the first to quit. There is some truth in this, I have seen people bow to each other for six or seven consecutive times, it is quite something to watch!

The funniest bowing however definitely goes on in trains: Whenever an attendant enters a train carriage, they open the door, stop on the spot, bow, and only then enter the carriage. It is even funnier to watch when they leave the carriage: They walk to the door, stop, turn around on their heel, bow, turn around again, and then leave. No customer however pays them any attention. One has to wonder how much of it is honest respect for the customer or simply required by their employer, as in many cases it seems quite superficial.

Speaking of superficial: One thing that annoys me by now is entering or leaving a shop or restaurant. The first attendant in the shop that spots you starts to say shout or mumble (depending on their mood I guess) a long spout of Japanese, and all the attendants in the shop, no matter where they are or if they can even see you, fall in. The same happens when you leave. They do it 100%!m(MISSING)echanically without even thinking. Nothing about it seems like they really mean it, but it's just something they do (or have to do). So I try to sneak in or leave without them noticing me to avoid all this, but it almost never works - they must have eyes in the back of their heads!

One other thing that is very different from countries like China for instance is that nobody takes much notice of me. To the contrary, I sometimes feel as if I simply do not exist, as 90%!o(MISSING)f the Japanese will not acknowledge my presence unless I approach them. When I do however, they are extremely friendly and polite. But in all my time here so far I have never once been approached by a Japanese person, like it happens so often in China, when local people just approach you out of curiosity.

Next stop: Hiking across the Northern Japan Alps (Central Honshu, Japan).



To view my photos, have a look at pictures.beiske.com. And to read the full account of my journey, have a look at the complete book about my trip at Amazon (and most other online book shops).

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