Japan travel tips

[bikkuri bahn]

 Not your usual clean Japan

 

Shinjuku especially northeast of the station is one of the grimiest places in Japan.  I reckon the pedestrian surfaces there have about 2~3mm of caked on lung butter, nicotine, grease, and various other residual human secretions...

[JR 500系]

18/10/14

Some event must have been on that day later as they were setting up the 2nd floor for something.  We were only there for about an hour.  Brought a 3 car basic N'EX as it was the first train we rode while in Japan.  Actually the wife's idea.  I wasn't gonna buy any trains unless something special.  But the N'EX was on the list of wants but right near the bottom.  Also brought catenary bases and poles.

 

 

Interesting Log, thanks katoftw! I wished my wife would say the same thing when it's our turn in the Kato Hobby shop...

[nartak]

Welcome to Japan.

If your kids like Pla-rail, go to McDonald's (I understand you don't want to go...).  Now they give you small pla-rail train with a purchase of kid's meal.  If you are lucky they also give you free Pla-rail DVD.

 

Well... I had them also to get them for my kids... for last 2 weekends.

[katoftw]

Welcome to Japan.

If your kids like Pla-rail, go to McDonald's (I understand you don't want to go...).  Now they give you small pla-rail train with a purchase of kid's meal.  If you are lucky they also give you free Pla-rail DVD.

 

Well... I had them also to get them for my kids... for last 2 weekends.

Been twice and got some already.  Great time to travel Japan considering they are offering Plarail stuff.  Thank you for suggesting it though.

[westfalen]

And you haven't even left Tokyo yet. :)

[katoftw]

20/10/2014

Off to Enoshima today.  Arrived at Shinjuku station at 08:30.  Nowhere near as scary in peak hour as made out to be.  But still can see how people with no knowledge of trains can get overwhelmed.  Arrived on the platforms to see the sardines being packed into the trains.  Since we were going on the Shonan-Shinjuku line, I assumed it would be less busy moving away from the city.

 

By Shibuyu there was only 1 or 2 people standing in the carriage.  Very little.  At Yokohama, we only had 8-10 people including us in the carriage.  Got off at Ofuna and boarded the Monorail.  Very interesting looking down at things, and surprised how close it gets to buildings.  At one stop there was a garden shed close enough to touch if the windows could open.  Also a bumpy ride like an old rollercoaster with the gradient changes involved.

 

Walked across the bridge and climbed all over Enoshima Island, which carrying a 11kg bub straped to the front of you is killer.  Nice island to walk around.  Temples and gardens were great.  Caves were awesome.

 

Backtracked over the bridge and took a look at Katase-Enoshima Station.  Ths is where the battery ran out on te camera.  Grrr!  Then back to Enoshima Station and caught the Enoden to Fujisawa.  Got off and stay in the station and had some snacks and a drink.  Jumped on the next tram and rode it all the way to Kamakura.

 

I was very surprized by this railway.  Viaducts, viaduct stations, street running, tunnel, spring points.  And the amount of private crossings was amazing.I wanted to stop at the beach section and maybe do another loop, but kids and 5000 steps didn't mix by the end of the day.

 

Jumped on a train at Kamakura back to Shinjuku.  Day done.

 

 

 

[katoftw]

Also Shinkawasaki has a big freight yard or loco depot?  A large array of electric locos were present.  EH200, EH500, DE10, EF200, EF210, EF64.

Edited October 20, 2014 by katoftw

[E6系]

You are eating McDonalds ?? :o  Here in Japan ??

[katoftw]

Yes unfortunately.  High chairs seem non existent in Japan.  Problem is the good food places do not cater for babies coming through the front doors.  So trying to feed oneself while holding bub is near impossible.  So we are not enjoying feed time.  Even McDonalds don't have them.  The missus and 3yo really are struggling with the Japanese food.  I fail to see the issue.  Myself and 5yo are all fine.  It is just a combo of small things preventing eating the good stuff all the time.  I'll figure something out to solve the problem.

Edited October 20, 2014 by katoftw

[katoftw]

21/10/2014

Off to Kyoto today.  Take Chuo line to Tokyo station, then 700 series Shinkansen to Kyoto.  Walked to hotel. Pretty underwhelmed by the

Shinkansen.  Sense of speed is lost inside.  Surprized at how full it was considering the stories you here.  People standing in the non reserved cars.  And people without reservations being kicked out of the reserved cars.  Funny seeing international travellers with JRPasses being kicked out of the reserved cars.  Why wouldn't you reserve a seat?

[katoftw]

22/10/2014

Got moving early and to Ohijo-Omiya station to get on the Randen.  It was magical to ride this tram.  Was lucky to arrive and have the wooden tram awaiting us on the platform.  Jumped off at Arashiyama Station and had a walk around Arashiyama and explored.  The Komono Forest was light up, so worked well in the low light overcast day.

 

Reboarded at Arashiyama and got off at Arisugawa Station due to not paying attention t the actual station we wanted to get off at.  Hit up a Lawsons for some sandwiches and rice balls.  And returned to the station to tram watch a little.  When lunch was finished, the boarded another tram to Kurumazakijinja Station an had a walked around Kurumazakijinja Shrine.

 

Then onto Randen-Saga and visited the Torroko-Saga station, Piano and Steam Museum and model railway.  Booked our tickets for tomorrow on the Sagona Scenic Railway.  Back to Randen-Saga and onto Kitanohakubaicho.  Bus to Kinkajuki.  Walked around and explore.  Then bus back to hotel.

 

 

 

 

[katoftw]

 

Last 2 photos are of tubes that hold booms for the crossing gates.  Some had up to 3 booms in it.  Guessing for quick fix if the are damaged by vehicles.  Easy just to undo 2 bolts and remove busted one and slide in new one.  Smart thinking.

Edited October 22, 2014 by katoftw

[katoftw]

[katoftw]

 

I wonder if you get you coin in the cup, do you win all the money? haha

[E6系]

Yes unfortunately.  High chairs seem non existent in Japan.  Problem is the good food places do not cater for babies coming through the front doors.  So trying to feed oneself while holding bub is near impossible.  So we are not enjoying feed time.  Even McDonalds don't have them.  The missus and 3yo really are struggling with the Japanese food.  I fail to see the issue.  Myself and 5yo are all fine.  It is just a combo of small things preventing eating the good stuff all the time.  I'll figure something out to solve the problem.

 

I appreciate the problem. 

[E6系]

21/10/2014

Off to Kyoto today.  Take Chuo line to Tokyo station, then 700 series Shinkansen to Kyoto.  Walked to hotel. Pretty underwhelmed by the

Shinkansen.  Sense of speed is lost inside.  Surprized at how full it was considering the stories you here.  People standing in the non reserved cars.  And people without reservations being kicked out of the reserved cars.  Funny seeing international travellers with JRPasses being kicked out of the reserved cars.  Why wouldn't you reserve a seat?

 

I always recommend travelling in Green Car for longer trips.  Also, I have seen many people removed from Green Car for not having correct ticket - even native Japanese.

[katoftw]

The more I tour Japan, the more I realise the boys from Arashi can sell anything.  Their faces are all over television and posters.

[katoftw]

23/10/2014

Walked to Kyoto Station and Boarded a train for Inari on the Nara line. Jumped on a rapid by mistake and ended up a bit further down.  Jumped back onto a local for the other direction.  Walked around the early sections of Fushimi Inari temple.

 

Then up to Saga-Arashiyama and grabed some lunch.  Boarded the Torroko Sagona Railway.  Tip is to get seats away from the doors as the windows do not open.  Still enough room to walk around and get photos though.  Once detrained, we walked around Kameoka for a little.  Was great to show the kids the rice fields, and the town is rural.  Jump back on a local service back to Kyoto.  Dunno wat was up with this service, but is was busier than any Tokyo service we had riden in.

 

Once back at Kyoto station, I booked our return shinkansen trains to Tokyo.  Took 3 options until found the right one as first two options didn't have enough reverse seats left.  Also booked Tsubame to Kumamoto to ride the SL.  Isaburo booked but Hayato no Kaze had all the reserved seats taken, so will just go with the non reserved seating.  Should be much of a issue as it has extra seating by the café and view windows.  Also booked Tsubame back to Hakata from Kagoshima-Chuo.

 

 

On to Fukuoka tomorrow.  My 3 and 5yo have decided we are to move to Arashiyama and catch the train every day.

Edited October 23, 2014 by katoftw

[E6系]

Hello Mr katoftw,

 

Fushimi Inari is best visited early morning,  before the tourists arrive ......... oops!

 

BTW, did you visit the Steam museum in Kyoto?

[lurkingknight]

I will make note of that for fushimi inari.. lol.

 

Yes with the JR pass... best to book seats unless it's a spur of the moment let's go here on the shinkansen. Usually when we did that it was only for 1 stop. We did however take non reserved from osaka to hiroshima and it wasn't crowded.

 

Maybe the foreigners didn't know you can book reserved seating, or were too scared to inquire about it?

[JR 500系]

Thank you katoftw for the log! Really appreciate the daily log with pictures... Now I wished I could go earlier...

 

The more I tour Japan, the more I realise the boys from Arashi can sell anything.  Their faces are all over television and posters.

 

Actually, I wouldn't call them boys anymore... They're more like man now... I was around 13 when they first came out as boys. And yes they are so long lived which I seriously don't know why... Even SMAP lost to them...

[Kabutoni]

Actually, I wouldn't call them boys anymore... They're more like man now... I was around 13 when they first came out as boys. And yes they are so long lived which I seriously don't know why... Even SMAP lost to them...

 

Arashi is still kind of a boy-band, whereas SMAP presents themselves in a more mature way. I don't think SMAP needs to profile themselves so much as Arashi, since they have their own weekly shows with domestic and international celebrities, whereas Arashi doesn't. One of the biggest sources of Arashi's income is probably with making commercials for a certain car company. In that sense, SMAP has won largely over Arashi, as they target a slightly different and broader audience, and have done so quite successfully over decades.

[bikkuri bahn]

Arashi are Johnny Entertainment's cash cow- they are one of the few artists (domestic or international) that can fill up a 40,000 seat dome even in a remote location such as Sapporo on a non-holiday weekend (say, mid-winter or mid-fall), as their fans travel well.  Just this rnorning they were promoting themselves as reps of Japan's tourism campaign of ometenashi at the tokyo intl film festival.  SMAP is remarkable for their longevity, but they don't have that concert drawing power anymore.  Variety shows and some commercials, yes, but they likely have lower fees as a group than Arashi.  Personally, I like Tokio- their program Tetsuwan Dash is one of my favorites- an old episode had one of their members racing one of Hanshin's "jet cars" on a bicycle downslope.

[katoftw]

24/10/2014

So we got going early.  So decided to ditch the reserved seats on Haraku and catch an earlier local to Shin-Osaka.  Got on a Kyoto/Kobe Line 321 series, (I think a good looking train, and was hoping to see one this trip).  Good ride into Osaka and very quiet being a all stops local service.  Had just under 2 hours at Shin-Osaka.  So just explored the Shinkansen platforms and brought a obento and some water (see pics) for lunch.

 

Rode a 8 car JR West/Kyushu N700 to Hakata.  Much better seating arrangements being the 2+2 seating configuration.  Lots of space and a lot more enjoyable to travel in.  Didn't get to see much out the window, as there is a lot more tunnels on the Sanyo Shinkansen Line.  Arrived Hakata and got sorted in the hotel.

 

At about 3:30pm went to AMU/JR Hakata City.  Explored to Pokémon and train shop.  Didn't buy anything as was a huge selection and was too indecisive.  But will return Sunday or Monday to buy something.

 

Edited October 24, 2014 by katoftw

[katoftw]

^25/10/2014

^{Day one in Kyushu.  Up early for breakfast and catching the 0810 Tsubame to Kumamoto.  Got some Bentos, Sushi and chocolate waffles and headed to Platform 5.  Rode the SL Hitoyoshi.  Huge smiles.  Was awesome traveling by the Kuma river and was just a magical experience.  Hitoyoshi town was much bigger than I thought.  Walked down to the river to show the kids, and to a temple and bridge I forget the name of now.  The onto the Isaburo 3 to Yoshimatsu. Awesome ride on an older vehicle. Loved the stops along the way, got out and walked around a few times.  Loved the switchbacks and many tunnels.  Then to the Hayato No Kaze to Kagoshima-Chuo. Kinda boring compared to the last two, but maybe I was just bored of trains by this stage.  Dinner at the AMU Kagoshima.  Then on the 1727 Tsubame back to Hakata.}

 

Edited October 25, 2014 by katoftw