The rising Sun

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Its been a while since I have last written but time has come to complete the Asian leg of my trip.

South Corea

I arrived and spend a couple of days discovering the city. I was strook by how impeccably clean everthing was and the very much german engeneering styled perfection in their road infrastructure. Unlike China, Seouls temples where more humble, but not only due to the uncomparable size difference of the territories but particularily in the humility and subtlness of the architechture. Far less imposing bringing a more relaxing and not overwhelming sights.
Taking a tour to the Demilitirzed Zone (DMZ) which seperates the military armies of both Coreas. Undoubtable it was highly organised and particularily toursity however it was interesting and enabled a more sincere appreciation of the tentions between the two nations. It is suprising the efforts to dig virtually countless tunels southwards at depths attaining over thirty meters. It however still remains to far in the distance to trully appreciate the resiliance and the real fears.

I journeyed then to the eastern coast to the natural park of Sokcho; attracted by its reputable beauty (second most visited park of South Corea). The town laying on the sea was similar to countless other towns with buildings all alike rising high and broad unpersonal streets, however within minutes of leaving town, the park is of stunning beauty. Not entirely unlike parks of europe besides for the different type of vegenation. The umbrella shaped pines cover the ground in a pleasant shad and then lets light to a spectacular sight of strickingly smothened white rocks. Climibing the steep stairs was an experience in itself as the often the the steps that ought to follow are no to be seen untill within a meter. Quite a natrual wonder.
Having seen the coast I was keen to head inland and head to a secluded temple high in a natural Park, journeying through Andong and Daegu providing little to see in the first but the trip in between being quite strunning (quiet hills with undisturbed nature). Amusingly I arrived at the temple amist the evening and the dark having had to hike for a steady hour with all of my bags. The dense forest, the complete stillness and the moon lite roads provided an intreguing experience. Then the sound of prayers in the distance and the at first complete emptyness of the temple upon arriving was trully enchanting. The breakfeast in complete silence (barely possible for me) with the genuinely impossible to swollow cold, spiced vegetables and the sleeping in the room where the lockers are generally (having otherwise no place to offer) didn change the undeniable sereenety of this sanctuary of peace. Quite unrelated to the religion they practice but merely but the abselute tranquility of the park with the streams and few birds made it quite exquisite.

Having heared of the enormous historical importance Gyeongju, I spent a day there wandering the little streets, the huge excavation sights, the huge museum and the nearby hills covered with tombs and status of Buddha. Very vast but once again plesant by its "genuine" feel about the city and its surroundings.

I then headed towards Busan where I took the same evening a ferry over to Japan. Busan is a quiet town and I was amazed by the fact that a market of clothing and accessories was completely silent in spite the hundereds of people crowding the small street. The hilly setting gave a real perspective about the region and the large port was quite unique as it harboured not only freighters but a lively fish market from large ships to tiny vessels.
The journey over to Japan was quite expetional. The sea was quite rough but the with some Australians we joked and nearly litterally rolled from one side to the others accross the broad main hall. The trip lasting 12 hours and it being an overnight journey, we had been provided with dormatories which relied one people being so neatly tucked along side eachother that it would awoid them rolling. They were right. As in Corea its mearely thin mats layed on the floor leaving no leverage to tilt greatly. Arriving with the rising sun a mist lurking about the many islands of Japan enabled a trully unique sight. Quite something out of a film or a book. The mistic feeling only progressively unvieling the various areas, ships and towns; no better way to discover Japan.


Japan

Having arrived early in Fukuoka I decided to head south to Kagoshima with my recently activated Japanese Rail Pass. The journey was stunning and in spite there is only one train on the Japanese Railway Group which one is not allowed to board, well I did. Conveniently it raced at speeds over 300km/h. Japan imediately strikes as a logical followthrough of the from China to South Corea. It is further less "Chinese" distictively increasing the aspects which South Corea strook as so different. All is even more perfected and there seems to be an unbelievable self regulating system within the gloablity of the population. Arriving in Kagoshima I discover that that day in the midst of the "Silver Week", week during which ALL Japanese are on vacation. No single accomodation bellow abselutely outragous prices. I then headed to the Southern most tip of the Japanese mainland to camp instead. I had taken just over two hour to cover 90% of that peninsula but it took me another two and a half hours and two hours walking to reach the last settlement (as no fast train operate there). The tall bamboos and the unique silence and quietness of the area makes on loose ones timely attachment to the XXIst century, enabling the imagination to wonder freely in what the region would have resembled hundereds of years earlier.

Following a suprisingly warm and starry night at the foot of a volcano I headed towards hiroshima famous for the first trial of the Atomic Bomb. It is a booming city with nothing to tell that it had witnessed one of most terrfying experiment of human minds. Luckily I arrived to a hostel and they told me that they had truned down 43 people before me for sleeping but minutes earlier someone had canceled offering accomodation for one night. I visited the memorial museum of the A-Bomb and the single remaining edifice following the blast. In the utmost curelty it did effectively bring an end to that war but the human sufference resulted from this and the haunting endured by its radiation are just terrifying.

Kyoto being one of the must stops on ones journey through this continuously mesmerising country, I arrived and was delighted by the lively hood and yet uncomparable hirstory of its streets. It is said that there are no less than 1600 temples about the town spread in every smallest yard. With a french travellers we sighted some of the unique temples and streets riding bycycle through these impecable but attrociously uncoordinated architectures. Some endlessly large, another guilded with gold leaves but all distictively unique. We also witnessed a large procession of traditionally clothed children and monks being thankfull for the good times. The osens being a large part of the culture was an odd experience but notheless quite enjoyable. That is besides the electirc bath.... (undescribebly painfull and suffocating if carelessly brought to ones chest). The night live was equally electic (this time in a postive and figurative way) with suprising european architechtural modernity combining cubic cement to bamboo facades.

My birthday being the following day, I decided I would head towards Mt Fuji. I was fisrt expecting to see the famously snowcapped mountain and thereby momenterally dissapointed. However once progressively approaching through very dence forests and pounds, the sight was just getting more beautiful over time. At the hostel I booked two nights but then met a German who was intending to glimb it night over byhereself. Along came a Polish girl and a Dutch guy all detemined to do it that night. Well following a massive spagetti cheese dish I concented to go along and thereby see the sunrise atop Mt Fuji for my birthday. Taking a very expensive taxi (140USD) to the base 5 (2300meters) was rewarded by sighting countless dears and stags wandering about the road. Not quite the Scottish impressive builds but nontheless a delightfull sight. One had huge difficulty and following our endless encouragements abanded half way refuging at one of the huts (many on the way). The path is easy at day time but requires further concentration overnight as the light didn give the panorama day time would provide. The mooneless hike was unbelievably beautiful though long. We had a margin at the begging of nearly 2 hours but due to the delay of one we made the top gate fifteen seconds before sunrise. Without a doubt it was the most stunning and envirograting sight of a rising sun I have ever seen atop the Mts 3700 meters. A dence fog lined the low lands letting the hilltops peak out in a elegance and charm which cannot be described (-5c just before sun rise). The decent was long as none had slept and the exercise had left us somewhat stiff.
Arriving back in the village early and having all my luggage with me (hid it at the bottom of the mountain, not to have to carry it up) I was eager to see Nagano. My rail pass only being valid on further day I headed there but was again struck by a lack of luck for accomodation. I therefore arrived a day early in Tokyo actually quite relieved from the tireless travelling.

It is an astonishing city which I took time to discover having just over a week before heading onwards to Singapore. I discovered the magnificient park near the empors residence and wandered about its small narrow streets filled with markets or shops selling tacky clothing or suprisingly expensive electronics. The people are quite unique too. They are so self preseved that withing my stay I didn even merely see the slightest glimps of anger or anytype of emotion. Quite sterile but somehow prefected to its minutest detail. I went to the semi final of the third competition of the year of Summo wrestling. I was suprised when I got there to see an american ice hockey type of arena essentially empty meanwhile sumos when combating. Well quickly the crowed appeared as the professional and then top ranked summos entered the ring. Some fights are just tremendous. The weight and the brute force employed when confronting one another. I had expected a rather dull sceen but was astonished how competitive and fast minded the top fighters were. Providing long spectacles. Much naturally is the show about the final fights; the salt trowing, the clensing and the intimidating. Generally a fight at the final rounds lasted about a couple of minutes meanwhile the excitment was stimulated for a tidy twenty minutes. Trully exciting and well worth it.
With some of the hostel (hostels are unbelievably expensive, 30USD for a dormatory bed) we headed out into the night life and were hugely entertained by the Japanese nightlife. I heaeded from there straight to the famous fish market. Its amazing. Its huge but completely different that what I had expected. The trully life threatening flow of load carts made the excitment all the greater and when the sight is brought of tunas of my size, finely shaped but somehow unnaturally wide. The best show of live, frozen and deforsting fish to be witnessed in Japan with the intimidating proximity to the town centre. With a Venezuelan we headed to Nara, a famous sight full of temples sitting quietly in the shadows of the immense trees. It was really unusual as it just spread so greatly leaving vast spaces from one another (contrary to the others I saw). The drizzle gave a charming atmosphere which could not be undermined. During my stay I met a friend from home (very nice to see a friendly face) and mey with a Japannese I met in Seoul thereby getting a bit more of the living experience rather that merely the toursity sights. Japanese are curious people with a huge variety of self expression some through cloths, others through intelectual enrichment, however sighting the latter relies on much speculation having not lived there.

Both these countries are humbling and one could image of huge humility. Living in Japan particualy must be culutrally facinating.

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