Japan - Yoshi; Bridges and GoodByes

I woke up and thanked the lord(s), god(desses), and civil engineers for not having the gazillion ton metal bridge fall all around me last night. I am alive.

Even folded into the confounds behind a west facing island hill, the morning sun came to brighten up my day. 5:47 am and I am fully awake.

This picture is from the previous night before bed using Yoshi's Cannon and tripod. Seriously, this guy brought everything with him.

As yesterday, chef Yoshi prepared a new meal to share. Here is a little beef we picked up yesterday night (kept cold by his on board cooler) sautéed next to greens and garlic served with coconut rice. 

I tell you, Yoshi even keeps coffee with him! Sure it's the instant kind but it works for him. Me? I politely declined. I'm turned off by instant coffee the same way a militant vegetarian gets turned off when taken to a surprise steak dinner. 

Off to conquer the remaining four bridges today. 

The first time I faced these "steel behemoths" I was so in awe by the magnitude of their structures and range of distance. I still am.

Yoshi making up the incline to begin the bridge in the background that Sis and I spent the night at our first time across. It's been fun pointing out and reliving the places big sister and I stopped off at for breaks or camps along the way, I feel a little wiser this time around.

Yoshi has more utilities than Batman. Two watches, a cycling computer, two video cameras (one with a special zoom), two cameras (one digital), a MacBook Air laptop, iPhone, bluetooth speakers, and I'm sure I'm leaving some things out. 

There's a special gelato parlor along the Kaidō where tour buses, neighbors, and cyclists all stop for a treat. There, we meet two nice girls tackling the whole series of bridges in one day.

Here I am staring down at a lemon and mango cone. I moved outside and we locked glances, niether wanting to show the other a weakness. Locked into a death stare, it was starting to melt under the hot sun and I thought I'd soon have him. It didn't flinch. Then my eyes began to water and I felt an itch under my nose, I had to brake eye contact first! Damn. What can I say, he was definitely the alpha in that particular situation. 

I'll say it again, these bridges are stunning up close.

We stopped underneath one of the massive upright beems not to snap this photo but to talk with another cyclist who was traveling the opposite direction. 

That is why meeting another cyclist moving in the same direction as you is so precious. I've seen many cyclists zoom past me the other way. Some stop for a chat. Moving in opposite directions, eventually we would meet somewhere down the line. Even if one of us stayed still the other party would move closer and pass by eventually.

But think about what it takes to meet someone going the same way as you. Two parties that travel at pretty much the same average speed, sometimes along the same route. So for the same reason that one subway train wouldn't catch up with another in front of it, we rarely find another traveler (who might just be a day ahead of us but constantly advances the same speed and distance as us) to join up with. 

In shorter words, it's always a joy when it happens.

This time along the water I noticed some natural whirlpools starting to form. At first I thought they were wakes made by some invisible boat. No, they are indeed whirlpools. Cool! I wish I could have watched these a little longer but the sun was falling and we didn't wanted to make it to Imabari on Shikoku island for a nights rest. So on we went.

Arriving right when we were supposed to, the sun began to set as we approached the last, very long, suspension bridge. The green islands, the darkening waters below, the silver beams of iron and steel melted into the romantic atmosphere effortlessly. 

The parting sun. At this point we were just about done with the final bridge. Sun would give a soft glow for another half hour, so we moved on.

On the ascent up to the final bridge, I saw a man walking his bike. Having been in that situation many times (embarrassed to walk my broken bike as everyone else cycled passed) I stoped off and asked if everything was alright with his bike. Seven times out of ten the tube has a puncture and the person didn't bring a spare or the tools to replace it. I did. Happy to help as I've patched, changed, and fixed more than my needed share of bike tubes along the way here.

But no. The reason turned out to be nothing mechanical at all. Sort of anyways. It's a bio-mechanical kind of  trouble. Jason's tendon was hurting him and knew all too wisely that it's better to rest the debilitating injury.  

And wouldn't you know it, we met Jason again that night and invited him to join our campsight. Power in numbers.

We've set up camp in a nice park, plenty of room for all. Even another Japanese random cyclist decided to join the fun. Yoshi and I were welcoming Jason and I was saying goodbye. Tomorrow I travel westward and these two head east. However, the topic we are all concerning ourselves with tonight is tomorrows weather forecast. Rain.

Stay dry my friends. Love,

-A

Japan - Yoshi; Slowly But Surely

I know now why Japan is called the land of the rising sun. Yes, here we see the "first light", we are at the vanguard of confronting the sun under agreeable international time zones. That, and for the sheer intensity of incommodious brightness the day begins to push though windows and micro fabric tent materials at about 4:30 am. By 5:00, the sky is as fully illuminated as it will be for the rest of the day.

That....really doesn't stop me from rolling over in my sleeping bag in an delusive attempt at another half hour's rest. Handkerchiefs made over as blindfolds are a must.

When I did manage to crack the tent zipper to meet the day, I heard Yoshi still sleeping. Oh well, might as well begin.

Where my bike spent the night. 

As per usual, we camp in playground parks because we have access to late night bathrooms and water. That, and, as I've absolutely come to enjoy, we get to play on structures before the children awake. 

Right before Yoshi and I gathered our personals, a baseball team began their warm ups. Militaristic in their morning drills, you can see how serious the sport is taken and loved by the people.

Lunch was had in Fukuyama where sister and I had only passed by the first time through. Today, being Sunday, an ally street festival called to anyone and everyone within earshot. Duh, we went to go have a look around.

Most unique to this gathering crowd of mothers, children, and couples are the select cos-play characters...that just walked around. They weren't hired or commissioned by the event staff, they weren't asking for money. 

This one here simply walked around as if he was on a fantasy quest; every step was cautious, his stares invited you to question his presence/motive, yet dared you walk away. At times, a fictional leather map would uncoil from his rear pocket and he would scratch his head, holding it in new positions as if he were figuring out whether he was lost or not. What's more, maybe just to invoke a reaction further than simply curiously from the people, he would creep up behind an unsuspecting couple, reach for his fun gun, and blow projected bubbles at them until they creeped out and walked away at a faster pace. 

What a character.

Street performers planted themselves at strategic corners and blocked off intersections, dazzling spectators with tricks, gimmicks, and performances. 

This young lady worked the life size wined-up mannequin routine. Girls would run up, drop some coins in the bucket and trigger a mechanical wave or an automated hug from the pink and very well made up artist.

What's an alley filled with performers without the sidewalk chalk muralist? It's been a while since last I saw Merry Poppins though that's what came to mind. 

After a good lunch and sidewalk entertainment, we moved on.

About to cross a bridge that technically doesn't have a bike lane is not a great place to stop for a photo - but we're touring cyclists, we don't do things the easy way.

On a normal unloaded bike, there is a nice incline of about 3% for over a kilometer ramping up to each bridge. On a loaded bike, it's a small hassle. For Yoshi and his traveling box of over-preparedness it's a...well, he was counting down the bridges until the end.

Never complained though, not once. I know he knows what he was getting himself into when he made the decision to bring the trailer. Like my sister with a busted knee, troopers.

So we didn't make it across the entirety of the Shimanami Kaidō in one day. Didn't make it the first time in one day either. It's not a hard cycling feat to accomplish, a mere 70km from beginning to end. All the same, the feat has eluded me for now.

Hey, I'm not complaining - I get to camp out on a beautiful summer night on a small Japanese island! 

That night we camped in the only rest area around, a small park spotted with three picnic tables. Thing was, it's right under the bridge. Its a little nerve raking falling asleep to the sound of passing cars above you, wondering what you would do in the event of a late night earthquake. Somehow, I fell asleep that night but it wasn't easy.

Children at play. Baseball, it's not just America's pastime.

I swear Yoshi has secret compartments and pockets for everything. He surprised me that night with something he seemingly pulled out of nowhere, almond cheese. 

The small block tasted mildly of almonds. I on the other, incorrect hand, assumed there would be a hearty almond waiting for me to bite into it in the middle. There was not. 

Some men walked their dogs at the park we occupied and I of course had to make the owners wait a little longer so I could play with their energetic canines.

Here's our television for the night; what we watched slowly in the background as the day melted away around us.

Eventually the sun did set and that means lights out for me. Even though we didn't have an extraneous day of cycling, my body falls into a rhythm with the day and night skies. 

Yoshi on the other hand is wide awake. When the sun went down around 7:30, he started pulling out pots, pans, vegetables, eggs, spices, a stove, cutting boards, knives, a potato peeler! What the hell man, that's not a trailer haul, that's a bottomless wagon of trinkets. 

Talking through the night, swapping stories and crass jokes you only pick up along the road, eventually chef Yoshi put a hot plate of deliciousness in front of me. This is soymilk creme sauced pasta with stir fried onions, potatoes, broccoli, and ham spiced and salted to perfection. I didn't even realize how hungry I was! 

Eventually I did fall asleep under the thundering engines of eighteen wheelers traveling along the Shimanami super expressway. That is a different, seperate route than the quieter bike friendly way made for tourists. 

Tomorrow we will hopefully get an early morning start and finish the longest series of suspension bridges in the World.

Rest well, love.

-A

Japan - Travels With Yoshi

Good morning my friends!

I've waken up many mornings in my tent with the rising sun (and very itchy eyes now that spring/summer air permeates the thin walls of my tent with new strands of pollen from nearby vestures). On the days that dew has not accumulated on the inside flaps of my rain cover, I fold it, the tent, footprint, and poles up and secure them all in my rear panniers. To me, this is a normal day, my pre work daily routine next to flossing and teeth brushing. Showers are somewhat of a luxury. 

Yet when I think of other people sleeping in tents in parks and rest stops, I go straight to the associative term "bum." And maybe I am. I certainly don't feel like one. In any case, a tent is a great place to wake up in the morning; a carved out niche of quarters and privacy in the open world made by, and just, for you.

Moving right along, the morning smoothed along rapidly because the tent stayed dry and I was more hungry today than most. Out of Aioi is a good days ride to my next intended stay, Onomichi; the last rest city before crossing the Shimanami Kaidō (again).

I never got that far.

One reason for my delay was that I was stopped by police. My own mistake, I admit that. I was cycling down a highway and well within the cycling lane when the road began to incline. This means that we would cross some river bank or train tracks just up ahead. Rather than slowing speedy traffic down, we'll just go quickly up, over, and back down again. You know what I mean.

Only we didn't come back down again. But there was not a sense that I was in the wrong place. The shoulder was very wide, enough for two cyclists, and the walls of the highway were low and open. 

When I didn't see an intersection, traffic light, or yield sign after a while, I figured something was wrong. Truly, I had made my way onto the expressway and before I could spot the next exit, those red and blue lights flashed behind me along with a loud siren yelling orders I could not understand. 

Five minutes later I was kindly escorted off the expressway and asked questions under the exit ramp that I wish I had found without assistance. My bags were searched. My passport handed over. I wanted to cöoperate and had nothing to hide. I did manage to impress them with my stories as we waited for police HQ to run my passport identification, and maybe I hurt myself because they kept skeptic when I told them how far I had traveled. But when all was said and done the guys smiled as they returned my passport, then proceeded in turns to take photos with this wondering stranger. And off I went.

Now, when I say that if you are truly free enough to live today with no schedule or appointments that you are indeed truly on time for everything, I mean it.

That is how I met Yoshi. Couldn't have happened any other way. A good minute plus or minus from the tiny moment our paths crossed at that seemingly random intersection and we would have missed each other completely. 

Meet Yoshi. Long hair, good vibes, always willing and open to stories, advice, and new sights, he's already in the correct mindset to travel for the long haul. (This picture was actually taken on the last day of our partnership, the day when we would split paths once again - he to explore the East side of Shikoku and I the West. Hense, the champagne).

Speaking of haul, here is Yoshis bike and trailer. It's a Gore model, another Surley! Big, thick steel frame, monster tire diameter, disk breakes, and very strong build dimentions, this bike accepts all terrain challenges easily.

Yoshi's trailer. It's a hell of a weight to be carrying although he doesn't seem to mind. Well, maybe uphill. Cooler, food, supplies, backpack, tools, and yes, even a solar panel to charge his plethora of electronics on those sunny days. 

Here's the visible sign on the rear of his trailer. The foreign letters say something to the effect of, "cycling the entirety of Japan."

I say to check out his website filled with cool pictures. Yoshi definitely has the photographer's eye. 

He's also sporting these really cool Keen breathable sandals - with build in recessed SPD's (standard cycling clips)!

Yoshi and I talked the whole way West until we found this campsight late last night. A few brews to commemorate the chance meeting and we set off to bed. Tomorrow, Shimanami Kaidō awaits me a second time and Yoshi's first. 

A new companion makes for a new experience down a familiar route, like having to retake a class course with a different teacher. We're off again to challenge the day.

Much love, 

-A

Japan - Solemn Travels South

Sadly, perfections cannot be held everyday. 

Our return from Fuji rewarded Go and I a small celebration with friends (my birthday got worked in there somehow) and now it was time for him to walk back into class, and for me to move my ass.

Here's the situation as it stands: after Fuji I still have about a month left of tourist time on my visa. I've thought about returning to Bangkok where work and friends are (May 23 update - Thai military ousts gov in successful cou, indefinite detentions of political leaders including former PM Yingluck, and mandated curfew - dodged that bullet), but I don't want to take too big a step backwards. So, this wandering hippie moves on in no particular direction or motive, no traveling companions, and no obligations further than my June 18 visa expiration. 

This will be a long post. Here we go.

Solum travels for me again, at least, for a while. Just me and my thoughts. Alone with them is part productive in that I can peacefully sort out the ideas and conversations that I have filed in the back of my mind, yet part distractive in that I easily get lost in what's going on up there. 

When I travel alone, I travel on impulse. I leave decisions up to Nature when I come to forks in the road. There's a bird on that sign, I'll go left. Or, this way looks greener, I'll head right. If no obvious sign reaches me, I'll pick up a stick, fling it dramatically high in the air, and cycle down the path that it points to once it's set safe again on the moist soil. 

From Kyoto to Obama:

Out of Kyoto is a pleasure. You never see the tourists who've confined themselves comfortably to the center of the city, the trees grow taller out here, there are less cars, and something tasty comes about in the air.

I heard of Obama, or "little beach," town before I flew to Osaka oh so long ago but never really considered visiting the beach town with sis or Go because it was so far away from our routes. Yet now, cycling through the woods, pondering, listening, I didn't know where to go first after leaving Kyoto. That is when this sign literally presented itself over my head, almost in a blaze of glory, snapping myself out of a daze. So let's go!

Oh and what would a town named Obama be without a small tribute to the leader of the free world....hidden behind a vending machine.

It's a coin toss; which do you prefer? This one, or the statue of him as a child in Jakarat, Indonesia (see "They Say I Met Barak Obama).

 

At least the vending machine out shadowing Barak isn't a Romney supporter. 

Wouldn't you know it, Obama even has it's own shrine and castle ruins.

The Obama river feeding into the ocean. I'm off to win a little sleep before the mosquitos get to my ankles for dinner. 

From Obama to Ine:

From Obama it is not far to one very special tourist destination I never knew about: Amanohashidate. A thin strip of land bridging across the Miyazu Bay that by tradition, you must see upside down. 

There are more and more fields and farmers, more open spaces and patches of untouched forests, more rivers and lakes along the northern coast of Japan. I love the Nature scene, unfortunately there is also a killer head wind pushing me back.

There are also fewer towns along this way. So when I happen to find a nice place to sit down and eat, I doubled up on Okonomiyaki and a twelve order of Takoyaki.

So hungry but couldn't finish.

Hmmm, let's see, according to this child's hand drawn map, I need to keep going left. 

Well, there it is. Amanohashidate. What? It's not taking your breadth away? Your not impressed? Granted today (or most days along this coast) is overcast with beefy clouds, I agree that it's still not that impressive...from this angle.

Here's a new angle, one taken from the starting point of the zig zagging straightaway. You can see how the sand from this land bridge makes up most of the ground, some soil and soul for the pine trees too.

It's a very nice strip of land. I can't say I ever remember feeling like I was walking my bike through the woods, then be able to step out of the crowded tree line and straight into the beach. It's a pulchritudinous (yeah, it's a word) place to wonder through.  

You notice my bike in the picture previous this one. Here it is again from the opposite angle, so you can see just how narrow the land becomes at points. Don't like the view of one coast? Not more than a thirty second walk to the other side.

The beach is amazing, and I wonder why more people arnt jumping in the water? So I go to investigate.

And here is what I see as I walk right up to the water; a huge dead jelly fish. Question answered, don't go into the water.

Riding my bike across the land, I still wasn't in awe of the land strip. I loved it, but there must be a reason why this place was so touristy. 

So I get to the other side, off the land bridge, and I see a temple in the distant hills. Next to it, a type of cable trolley up to an observation area. What's better than a cable car ride up to the top? How about a colorful, individual seat ride to the top - yeah! 

If the brightly colored conveyer seats aren't sign enough, que the theme park music! 

The ride actually lasted a long time. Enough for me to take plenty of cool shots. If I had to title this one, it would be Flying Over Flowers.

And this one, What's That Sound?!

Aha! This is much, much better! From the top of the gondola exit point you turn around and immediately see why this place is so attractive.

It's an amazing feat really, to see it from up here after cycling across. It's one of those moments where you can only appreciate the gift from afar. 

Here we go, the official stand from where to take the traditional upside down view....

So what do you think? Yes? Looks like heaven to me too.

I pranced around uptop a while, ate some ice cream and enjoyed the view a while longer. Eventually, it was time to leave again, and I had a new CouchSurfing host waiting for me to arrive!

Hey, remember those Takoyaki I bought seventeen pictures ago? Well I never finished them. So when I stopped at this dock to gander at the water and use the restroom, I took out the octopus treats for a snack. 

When I came back from the bathroom, I stood in fear.

I giant hawk swooped down inches from my scalp. It wasn't after me. It was after my takoyaki. Help!

Not once, twice did this massive bird of prey try to pick up my treats from the protective shell of plastic which encased them. It tried twice and failed; I felt bad. 

I - ever so quickly - opened the case, pushed my bike away and watched the enormous birds have at the treats. I heard the hawks fighting as I cycled off back into the woods. 

I've arrived in the very small town of Ine. Made up mostly of fishermen, the town contains young children and senior residents; all the young adults have fled for the major cities or are out chasing their dreams. 

I've made it here on half a whim. It's a lovely place, quiet. The kind of place a famous writer would want to live for a year to be left alone aside from the infrequent thirty second conversations that go along with trips to the convenience store for refills on coffee grounds and grocery meals.

I stayed with a martial arts master and restaurant owning chef, Mr. Alex. Always willing to pour another cup of beer or sake from behind his bar, I spent that night entertaining an impromptu dinner guest party at his restaurant.

Stories were shared and laughs passed around, the night crept on but no one seemed to notice or mind. Another glass poured before me.

When the night finally called the guests away, I was surprised to find that I would spend the night in his place of work. It won't be my first time sleeping in a restaurant (thank you Indonesia, you've taught me so much), I threw Alex off by how OK I was with his proposal. And I really was, I slept great that night.

Ine to Toyo-oka 

See? Well, I might have been ready for this picture. Nevertheless, I was rested and ready to tackle another long day of wandering. But first....

But first we had to visit the early morning Fisherman's haul. You won't believe me but the place didn't smell of spoiled fish like you might imagine. 

Here, the giant suction tube lifted out the day's catch and splatted it through a machine which seperated the scaly cargo by size.

Further sorting was completed by hand. So many fish to see! I was amazed at how quick the workers were able to identify, distinguish, and separate the multitude of fish. 

Remember that dead jellyfish I saw on Amanohashidate beach line? Yeah, here's the rest of them!

Mr. Alex's wife sent me off with some home made onigiri - score!!

I feel like I've taken many pictures along the way here. This one is among my favorites. This one is going on my top ten list and I almost didn't stop to take it.

Out of Ine, the rode is still rural. Well, rural for Japan. This means well kept public restrooms and snack vending machines.

Hey, is that snack you just baught cold or even room temperature? Heat it up from this village's community microwave. Seriously, why can't we have nice things like this back home?

Speaking of nice, this is what kindness looks like. 

While stopping at a mini store to empty my bladder and refill on water, a man pulls up and out of his car, smiling. My father taught me many things, and one of them was that you shouldn't trust a man who smiles at you right from the beginning.

I've come to understand further that what my father meant was to watch out for slick sales men. I know the type, I used to half be one when I worked for the Bank . Now I am a better judge of character. So I didn't feel wrong sparking a conversation with this smiling stranger as he approached. 

Well, my Japanese is improving a little (choto). I was able to figure out that twenty years ago this guy had cycled across Arizona. Bravo! He was impressed that I was solo cyclo-touring, congratulated me for my efforts, then disappeared inside the store to rummage for what he came to buy. A moral pat on the back always puts one in a better mood - I was ready to pedal onwards. 

Just as I plopped my leg over my bike frame, the man returned. He had baught me some breakfast and coffee. My favorite - pan dulce y café - how did he know?!? I thanked him tremendously for the treats. It seems some one treated him just as kindly in Arizona. 

Serious tunnel vision. At this point I didn't know that I wouldn't make it to Toyo-oka, the route there is punctuated with tunnel after tunnel. And this usually means only one thing: hills.

After my fourth or fifth tunnel crossing I came to an eerie realization; the angle of gravity is very hard to judge when you're traveling inside these dark tunnels. Up feels like down and vice versa. 

Ramen! Ramen is available almost everywhere in Japan and I'm so happy for that. I can always stop in and ask for a big bowl of miso ramen knowing that the answer will most often be "yes."

As it turned out that day, right after the huge bowl of ramen actually, it began to rain. Shoot.

Nothing this guy hates more than cycling wet and cold in the rain. Your chain gets rusty, your grip becomes slippery, and if it ain't sweat it's just not fun to be drenched in. Well, I was in between cities at this point, maybe another 15km to the next possible hotel.

For some reason, I thought it might be a good idea to wait out the rain at the beginning of the storm. That was stupid. The weather only took a turn for the worst and I ended up cycling through pushy wind and slick grounds the while way there.

I finally did make it to Toyo-oka, soaking wet and short tempered. A hotel took the last of my cash and I layed wondering, spread out on my hotel bed after a warm shower, what surprises tomorrow would bring.

Toyooka to Aioi

The night before I decided it was time to do laundry, so I hauled my stink pile to the local laundry cleaner machines and quickly realized that....that I had no cash. 

Hm, no worries, I'll go down to 7-11 and use the ATM like I always do. Thing is, there's no 7-11's here. There's not even one in the prefecture! Shit!!

Oh, what to do. I still had a few savings to use but no way to reach the billfold. Least to say, I went hungry that night.

And the this morning too. Although I awoke in the comforts of a decent hotel, it was one of the worst mornings. In the iconic words of Cash, "I put on my cleanest dirty shirt to meet the day." No breakfast, and a long way to go before another ATM that would take my MasterCard.

(Side note - I called my sister on the way down south, the fastest way out of the prefecture, and she reminded me how foolish I was. Indeed post offices scattered even in the loneliest ghost towns will take international cards.)

Off again I was to the southern coast sister and I had explored a month earlier. I would have felt like I was missing out more if I hadn't disliked the northern coast as much. Always cloudy, windy, and/or rainy, disagreeable coastal roads if at all, I was ok with traveling South again.

Finally running into some money, I stuffed my face with treats and drinks of the unhealthy variety. Popcorn is my friend. There will be plenty of time for healthy eating soon. And that's my way of telling you that I'll likely live out a few months in Japan. That's right =) I believe to have secured a job on Shikoku with great pay, little work, and an apartment by the beach. Need a reason to visit Japan?

In the end, it's all in the cards why I hurried out of Toyo-oka with no money, sped through Himeji and rested at a Michi No Eki in Aioi that night. Tomorrow, I will find that rare case of life on the road: meeting a cyclist traveling in the same direction as I.

Until then, much love,

-A