Reporting live from the frontline

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Ten long hours after boarding the Scandinavian A340 we dove into the thick overcast hanging over Tokyo. As usual I hadn't spent more than an hour or so slumbering between the itching and boredom of being stuck in a rather cramped seat. Beware of the window seats on Airbus A340s carrying inflight entertainment systems as there is a boxed in computer stealing some of your legroom. For ten hours I didn't really know where to put my right leg in a comfortable position, and it started to drive me nuts. The captain finally made an announcement regarding our arrival time. We had gained 30 minutes but were still more than two hours behind schedule. I had allowed for four and a half hours to transfer smoothly between the international terminal at Narita and the domestic terminal at Haneda, from where my flight to Fukuoka would take off. I now had just under two hours in which to complete immigration, baggage reclaim, customs, money exchange, finding an ANA desk, spend seventyfive minutes on a limousine bus and complete check-in over at Haneda. It looked pretty grim to say the least.

I spoke to my neighbour onboard about what he thought of the chances of reaching Haneda within this timeframe. It turned out he was heading down to Fukuoka as well and he thought it well possible which calmed me somewhat. But then again, he didn't have to stand in the long line for foreign passport holders, nor get an enthusiastic screening by the customs official. Not only did everyone assume I was a terrorist in Japan; as usual everyone in Scandinavia had greeted me in English starting at the check-in desk in Gothenburg, continued at the security screening and airport transfer desk, all the way to the blonde flight attendants onboard. It is partially amusing, partially frustrating, knowing that you have been placed in a box because of your looks, and it doesn't matter if you address them in Swedish, you will get replies in English. Somehow it never fails.

Anyway... after clearing customs I exchanged all my euros and dollars to yen just in case I would have trouble finding ATMs accepting foreign cards. One of the peculiarities of Japan is that the banking community seems somewhat reluctant to accept foreign cards; and most ATMs only accept VISA or Mastercard cards issued in Japan. Citibank is often mentioned as one of the progressive banks and here on Kyushu island they have one ATM per fifteen million citizens, unless you count the one sitting at the international airport arrival hall as well. (What are the odds then that I managed to choose a hotel which is located just one block away?)

I stumbled on to the ANA information desk to ask if I could reschedule to the next available flight, but the girl only spoke limited English and pointed me to a second information desk, where I learnt that I would have to do this at the ANA ticketing office at Haneda. I rushed to buy a bus ticket for the limousine bus for Haneda, which seems to be one of the fastest, easiest and cheapest ways of getting there with a minimum of hassle. As I paid my 3000 yen I noticed that the next bus wasn't due until half an hour. I thought it seemed strange, recalling that they left four or five times an hour. That's when I realized the previous buses were already full. As the 13.35 bus pulled up to the stand, only a handful of passengers were embarking, so I attempted to get onboard trying to explain that I would only have twenty minutes to departure once arriving at Haneda, but solly solly, it wouldn't happen. So I watched a bus filled to half its capacity head off towards Haneda, while standing around cursing my bad luck waiting for the next one.

The bus was quite punctual at departure, and we made good progress through the freeway. A speaker announced that using your mobile phone would be offensive to the other passengers, finally someone telling it like it is. The complimentary bus magazine went on to explain how a ride on the limousine bus is like an outing with the family in the station wagon. Nevermind the fact that most of the freeway is hidden behind four meter tall noise reduction walls. And what little there was to see was mainly industrial suburbs, Karoshi-inducing megacorporations and the occasionally large residential complex. The palette in use was grey, dark grey, brownish grey and brown. The sky remained light grey and the rain continued to trickle down upon us. We passed by toll road booths from time to time and the road would duck under several layers of bridges and elevated railway lines. As Haneda terminal two was announced I noticed we were some twelve minutes early, and a little piece of hope was lit in my chest. I was definitely going to make a play for flight NH257, which would leave in 30 minutes time. An ANA service attendant pointed me to a short line and some ten minutes later I had a boarding pass in my hand. Ah, the sweet smell of victory.

I got some problems in the security screening, as I had a pair of scissors in my bag which I would normally check in. But rather than just confiscating it, the friendly security guard put it in a yellow little envelope and gave me a receipt to collect it once we landed in Fukuoka. I just stood there and stared at this concept in bewilderment. I'd like to see that happening inside the European Union... (Oh, and as it happened... I completely forgot about this when we reached Fukuoka and now I sit here wondering if I am enough of a cheapskate to go out there and claim it tomorrow.)

Fukuoka Itazuke airport is directly connected to the city by subway, and 250 yen and twenty minutes later I had arrived downtown Tenjin. I couldn't exactly put my finger on it, but I did get some Eastern European communist-era vibes from the underground trains. There was something about the old and boxy cars and long and empty corridors. I will attempt to return and dive deeper into this topic.

When I arrived at Tenjin station I had already google earthed the location of the hotel and proceeded directly on foot. I was not amused when I found that there was indeed a hotel at the location I expected, but a completely different one. I started getting cold fears about having been taken for a ride when I booked it online. I continued down the road dodging other pedestrians and a slew of bicycles careening through the crowds at will. Just as you'll see rows and rows of parked scooters in Taipei, it appears you will see bicycles in Fukuoka. I reached Akasaka subway station and knew that I had walked far enough. The hotel must be here somewhere, or it changed name and face. The explanation was simple, I had reached the correct longitude, but I was off the mark by one street in latitude. My room was ready for me and the purser handed over a green envelop for me, I had completely forgotten what it was; my pre-booked sumo tickets!

V I C T O R Y

(Status: Jonkoping - Gothenburg - Copenhagen - Narita - Haneda - Itazuke - Fukuoka - Transfer time 29 hours)

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Photos

Daddy McFried
Twentynine hours later...

The room at the Monterey Le Soeur Hotel
Room breakdown:
Electricity: Reliable. Japanese style two flat pin plugs (100V).
Toilet: Heated ring, auto-flushing and deodorizer...
Hot water supply: Reliable.
Air Conditioning: Yep.
Food: Didn't try the restaurant. Room has a small refrigerator and a water boiler.
Spoils: Hairdryer, free Internet, IDD telephone.
Pets: None observed.
Price: 11.200 JPY (100 USD)

Comments

[Margareta]

Victory, sweet victory!
Hava a really long good night's sleep!

[Moster Yster]

Oh dear !
29 hrs later and you look marvellous !! Hope you will have a nice stay.