The Land of the Rising Sun

Japan has been good for us so far. A bit windy due to the departing typhoon but not enough to put us off our game. Fukuoka was far enough south to avoid damage and allowed us to have our first day in Japan. Our first taxi ride in a Toyota 'Comfort' taxi (their own retro model), time to collect our rail pass and get ourselves prepared for the journey ahead.

Our first dining experience was different. Recommended (by Blair) that we try “ramen” we googled a likely spot and began the struggle. Turns out we had to buy a ticket, give that to a man, then proceed to a cubicle each (a bit like a betting window at the races). We fill out a “betting sheet”, I circled all options, green onions, chilli, garlic, pork and waited. Waitress back 2 minutes later to the ‘window’. I am provided with a bowl of broth, noodles and all the things I ticked. Tasty, it was very nice. We attacked with chop sticks and a soup spoon and cleaned the bowl. You then depart feeling somewhat guilty that you had eaten secretly, on your own, alone, by yourself. No words were spoken, tummy was full, we left the building, brushed ourselves off and carried on as if nothing had happened. A strange dining experience.

Hotel rooms are very small in Japan. They hardly have enough room to get our suitcase open and the bathrooms are about the size of the bathroom in our motorhome. Interestingly they have a modern set up on the toilet with an arm along the right hand side akin to a “collective” on a helicopter. This is the lever kitted out with switches that makes the helicopter rise and go faster. Well, these toilets have a thing like that which activates a water force on your bum, shower, squirt, change temperature and even “feathering”. I have had a go at all settings, including “kids” but can’t say it is the way forward. The warming of the seat though certainly could take off on those cold winter nights for when one has to sit down.

Transporting people between cities they definitely have sorted. Trains are the way to go. They leave the station every 30 mins or so, can travel up to 300 kms per hour, have very comfortable reclining seats and leg room suitable for basketball players. There is no clickety click but just an inspiring whoosh as they power off. This is called the Shinkansen or ‘Bullet train’.

We have had two nights in Hiroshima mainly to allow us to visit the Peace Park. There is a large sobering museum close to the site where the atomic bomb was detonated 600 metres above the ground 6 August 1945. Temperatures reached 3000 degrees Celcius and naturally (or unnaturally) almost everything was burned to a cinder. There were several stories of how families, and people, suffered from the effects of a nuclear bomb. Despite an active build up of nuclear armament after this initial activation, and another 3 days later in Nagasaki, it appears that this isn’t the answer to peace in the World. Fortunately the powers that be have taken action to reduce their number of bombs.

Survived building in the background

We managed to watch Ireland wipe away the Samoan rugby world cup effort despite having only 14 men, in “Mollie Malones”, an Irish pub in the middle of Hiroshima. A good smattering of Irish who took to drinking “Jagermeister” shots submerged and in a glass of Red Bull and skulling them following every Irish try. As expected there was a smattering result on the pavement following the match but it was all in good spirits and a lot of fun.

Our dining experience today was also different. An English lad at the pub recommended Okonomiyaki so after the Museum we let Google do the searching. Great just 100 metres away we entered a non-descript doorway to see a 4 mt long hotplate arrangement with perches to eat beside it. A menu in English was a bonus but it was all still a bit of a mystery. The guy sitting next to us had something tasty in front of him so we said we’d have the same. We watched the chef cook and assemble the pancake/noodle/ cabbage/beansprouts/bacon/egg/cheese ensemble brushed with a tasty sauce. Very tasty and we will add that to the repertoire.

We have been very fortunate to be in the West of Japan while the East has taken such a battering from the typhoon. The TV news of the devastation and flooding are just horrendous. They will have got such a lift from the Brave Blossoms winning their rugby game tonight. Tomorrow we take the train a little further east to another island.