Thursday, 3 July 2014
Here Comes The Night Time
Glastonbury Festival, Worthy Farm, 23-27 June 2014
This was my fourth Glasto in total, and the first time I’d done two years in a row, so I totally felt like I had the hang of it by now. But the weather odds did not feel like they’d fall in my favour. With a past ratio of two sunny to one wet, it felt like this was going to swing towards the 2007 swamp fest. But while there was definite moments of misery based around the inescapable fact that I Was Standing In The Pissing Rain, I’d say this was the best one yet, if not for the weather then for everything else.
This year, we went swank. Worthy View lies up two big hills to the south of the site. I knew we were going to arrive to a pre-erected tent, but they even had minions to carry our bags for us. That combined with only being parked 10 mins from our pitch meant most of the standard first day misery did not occur. And the tent was so big I could stretch my ridiculous legs out no problems. That's never happened before, and I found myself scrunching into a sleeping ball out of habit. Miraculously I managed to find my way back to our clone tent every night with relatively little disruption to our neighbours. There’s a brilliant feeling on the first day when you get past the travel fatigue - it always feels like the week stretches out in front of you forever and the end is barely visible.
That said, one of our absent companions said that Thursday is the best day, and I have to agree. No commitments, no schedule, no horrendous journey or anything to deal with other than whatever your legs carry you to. We spent the evening up by the giant Glastonbury sign before pushing our way around Shangri-La with 99% of the rest of the festival. The heaven/hell theme from last year has stayed, with the previous corridors and alleyways being replaced by a dozen or so mini tower blocks. One of them was a nightclub where you could only gain access if you climbed up the wall, and even then they only let you in if they liked the look of you. A lot of people got pushed off the 5 metre drop to the floor. Naturally people just stood around and filmed the falls on their phones. It was all drunken hilarity until someone dressed as a monkey in a suit stuck his head out window and scared the shit out of us.
Friday arrived with the forecast rain which thankfully cleared up by the time we gathered for the “Surprise Act”. Which turned out to be Kaiser Chiefs. Who were already playing that evening. Great. Moving on, Blondie played enough hits to make it a big singalong, Debbie Harry pulling all manner of shapes in her symmetrical wig. I wish I saw more of Deltron 3030, with their full band, choir & orchestra, especially as it didn’t look like it was filmed. But what I did see was catchy as hell.
Haim were back after two triumphant shows at last year’s festival, and although their setlist hasn't changed all that much in a year, they had lost none of their foul mouthed banter. Then came the rain again. Lots of it. And lightning, lots of that too, so much so that the Pyramid & Other stages had to be shut down. So an eerie silence hung around the fields as people either ran for cover or just sat out in it and accepted their fates. I was somewhere in the middle, too lazy to go back and change but too angry to just stand there like a soaking twat.
We were rewarded for our troubles with a Double Rainbow stretching the length of the site and a beautiful set from Elbow. Their guitar-based start-of-album-campaign singles really don’t do justice to the brooding epics that make up the majority of their catalogue. I got the shivers, and it wasn’t just down to being soaked through to my socks. Grounds For Divorce delivered a mighty riff felt right up to the back of the hill, and One Day Like This was the big singalong you expected it to be.
I basically owe Arcade Fire the job I’ve had for the last six and a half years. It was enthusing about their 2007 Glasto set that showed my employers the passion for music I had, which clearly there in larger amounts than any kind of work experience. So they took a risk, and it obviously paid off otherwise I would have left/been given the boot a long time ago. I’d missed Arcade Fire on the Suburbs tour and had initial misgiving about some of the excesses of Reflektor, but I had an inkling their headline set was going to be special.
I’m going to go out on a limb - their Friday night Pyramid set is probably the best thing I’ve seen at any festival, ever. It flew by, the combination of fireworks, theatrics and multi-multi instrumentalists coming to together to provide an overdose for all the senses. Bits of it are still echoing through my head now. It’s hard to pick just one song as a highlight, it was a series of highlights. Perhaps it could be Keep The Car Running as I thought they’d ditched it from their performances. The New Order sample in Afterlife was a great touch too. But mainly it was all down to being in this huge crowd of people, all united in adoration for this band of lunatics. To describe some of what went on could easily sound like art school excess, but it worked. It all worked. I’m still in awe. And I’ve no idea who or what will top that.
Buoyed by a fantastic previous night and a more forgiving forecast for the last two days, Saturday began with a lesson spiky pop from Charli XCX. Only 21 and already a co-writer of two number one singles, she feels like she’s already conquered a large section of the universe. I Love It was always going to get the biggest reaction, and why not? It’s one of the best pop songs in years. An added treat was her first attempt at an Iggy Azalea-less Fancy which made me dance like you only can when pissed at 1pm. Away from the collaborations, her songs are laced with hooks and catchy as hell. She looked like she was having the time of her life, and so did we.
Kelis is responsible for one of my other favourite festival moments - her set at 2010 Big Chill was an unforgettable combo of electro and trouser wine. But she’s never one to do the same thing twice, so the beats are out in favour of a soul revival. And she totally carries it off - a vision in a flowing pink dress with a tight unit of musicians around her. Beginning and ending with Feeling Good, it was great to hear the old tracks re-worked, especially Get Along With You. Acapella sounded amazing, but then it always does.
I ended up stumbling across the BBC Radiophonic Workshop performing music from the original Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy series, among other things. It was a charming meeting of polite old men and reel-to-reel tape machines. Later on, John Grant brought the beard and the dry wit, and Bryan Ferry took fucking ages to get to the hits. The Brothers helped. Then the Brothers hindered. 7% cider can give and it can take away.
Sunday is always going to be a struggle, so when you’re cage-fighting a comedown from a week of excess, of course sharing a Dolly Parton set with 100,000 others is going to do the trick. She performed the Benny Hill theme on sax and described her family as “a bunch of horny hillbillies”. Beautiful insanity.
I didn’t really pay enough attention to anything else until a festival-closing set from Disclosure, who have been responsible for some of my favourite tunes from the last year. Ed Macfarlane came out and thrusted in all sorts of directions like you knew he would, and he was followed by several other guest vocalists until a triumphant Sam Smith at the end for Latch, which was a massive singalong.
On the walk back up the hill to our site, everyone was turning around at the top of the hill to take one last look across the valley. Lights were still on all over the place to entertain crowds with far more stamina than I possessed. Someone next to me struck up conversation and we swapped stories about what we’d been up to for the last few days. It ended on an agreement - “same time next year?”
This was another week of unforgettable memories. Glastonbury remains the greatest show in the galaxy and the time of our lives.
WTF WUR U BIN AT???
So, two years later and all that. I don’t really know what happened. In the autumn of 2012 I went to six gigs in close succession and tried to review all of them, but I could barely string a sentence together. Even going to Glasto 2013 couldn’t get a review out of me. Perhaps Twitter has fucked my concentration span, but here we are, typing again.
Last year I was very fortunate to leave the country five times, and I already have posts coming together for the Norway and France jaunts, so hopefully they’ll appear soon, among others.
Or I could just show up in 2017 making more excuses. LET’S FIND OUT TOGETHER.
Friday, 6 April 2012
The End
Some final general observations:
- All the figures depicted in road signs are wearing hats
- Automatic doors open just that little bit later
- Apple hasn't dominated here yet
- Food is over-packaged in the extreme
- The landscape is either flat or mountains, there's very little in-between
Thursday
Hiroshima was in full bloom. The river near our hotel was lined with dozens of Sakura trees and had even more parties gathering underneath them. When we returned in the evening a lot of them were still there, shivering in coasts and passing beers around. I guess its the equivalent of our BBQ season taking place regardless of the weather.
Just the name of the city invokes so much history. We paid a trip to the A-Bomb Dome and the Peace Museum. To be honest I found the whole experience a bit overwhelming. I've seen countless reports and documentaries about the atom bomb before, but seeing it up close...lumps of roof tiles with the description that they boiled and melted together, mannequins depicting flesh melting from the body...it was not pleasant. But I guess it's not meant to be pleasant.
There's been a few occasions where we've obviously looked very lost, as helpful locals have then pointed us in the right direction. We weren't looking particularly lost when someone approached us in the park. She mentioned that she had been to the British Museum and it was beautiful. We nodded in agreement. "Have you heard of the bible?" Oh, right. Closer inspection of the park saw dozens of them at work. I'm sure they're lovely people, I just wish they wouldn't.
Dinner that night was our first conveyor belt sushi restaurant of the trip. I only had one thing that made me feel sick so took that as a victory.
Friday
We quite literally set sail, on a boat and everything, for Miyajima. Just when I thought I couldn't be any more impressed with this holiday, we went to this mini tropical paradise. The centre of attention was the torii gate out at sea. The tide rapidly departed and we were able to paddle around it.
If Hiroshima was in bloom, Miyajima was ablaze with colour. You couldn't turn a corner without seeing another cherry blossom tree in full life. The island was full of tourists and package tours, but it was amazing how easily it was to ditch them. Quiet little havens of beauty were never far away. Like the beach front restaurant which gave us superb udon noddles.
In the evening we went searching for a Hiroshima delicacy. Okonomiyaki are large pancakes containing lettuce, bean sprouts, meat, noodles, egg and all types of herbs & spices. We went to a building that contained dozens of stalls selling these beauties. Picking one, we saw masters at work. Watching the cooks put these together was like watching a conductor at a symphony. Bloody tasty it was too, all that and the matriarch of the stall complemented my facial hair. I thanked them the only way I know how: by cracking my head so hard on the extractor fan that I nearly passed out.
Saturday
We made our way back through Japan, passing all the places we visited. My thoughts drifted. It's been 2 weeks but that disastrous journey here feels like a lifetime ago. In short: if Holiday Fatigue exists, I have it, and I'm ready to come home. We spent some of the day in a windswept Yokohama, but my attention was elsewhere. Waiting for the train, we experienced our one proper encounter with a local. An old man struck up conversation with us. He said he spent 12 years in America but his English wasn't very good (it was near perfect). A sweet end. We are spending our last night in Narita, just round the corner from the airport. The only thing that soothes my bruised head is that my journey home couldn't possibly be worse than my journey out here. Fingers crossed...
Japan Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 - Part 5
- All the figures depicted in road signs are wearing hats
- Automatic doors open just that little bit later
- Apple hasn't dominated here yet
- Food is over-packaged in the extreme
- The landscape is either flat or mountains, there's very little in-between
Thursday
Hiroshima was in full bloom. The river near our hotel was lined with dozens of Sakura trees and had even more parties gathering underneath them. When we returned in the evening a lot of them were still there, shivering in coasts and passing beers around. I guess its the equivalent of our BBQ season taking place regardless of the weather.
Just the name of the city invokes so much history. We paid a trip to the A-Bomb Dome and the Peace Museum. To be honest I found the whole experience a bit overwhelming. I've seen countless reports and documentaries about the atom bomb before, but seeing it up close...lumps of roof tiles with the description that they boiled and melted together, mannequins depicting flesh melting from the body...it was not pleasant. But I guess it's not meant to be pleasant.
There's been a few occasions where we've obviously looked very lost, as helpful locals have then pointed us in the right direction. We weren't looking particularly lost when someone approached us in the park. She mentioned that she had been to the British Museum and it was beautiful. We nodded in agreement. "Have you heard of the bible?" Oh, right. Closer inspection of the park saw dozens of them at work. I'm sure they're lovely people, I just wish they wouldn't.
Dinner that night was our first conveyor belt sushi restaurant of the trip. I only had one thing that made me feel sick so took that as a victory.
Friday
We quite literally set sail, on a boat and everything, for Miyajima. Just when I thought I couldn't be any more impressed with this holiday, we went to this mini tropical paradise. The centre of attention was the torii gate out at sea. The tide rapidly departed and we were able to paddle around it.
If Hiroshima was in bloom, Miyajima was ablaze with colour. You couldn't turn a corner without seeing another cherry blossom tree in full life. The island was full of tourists and package tours, but it was amazing how easily it was to ditch them. Quiet little havens of beauty were never far away. Like the beach front restaurant which gave us superb udon noddles.
In the evening we went searching for a Hiroshima delicacy. Okonomiyaki are large pancakes containing lettuce, bean sprouts, meat, noodles, egg and all types of herbs & spices. We went to a building that contained dozens of stalls selling these beauties. Picking one, we saw masters at work. Watching the cooks put these together was like watching a conductor at a symphony. Bloody tasty it was too, all that and the matriarch of the stall complemented my facial hair. I thanked them the only way I know how: by cracking my head so hard on the extractor fan that I nearly passed out.
Saturday
We made our way back through Japan, passing all the places we visited. My thoughts drifted. It's been 2 weeks but that disastrous journey here feels like a lifetime ago. In short: if Holiday Fatigue exists, I have it, and I'm ready to come home. We spent some of the day in a windswept Yokohama, but my attention was elsewhere. Waiting for the train, we experienced our one proper encounter with a local. An old man struck up conversation with us. He said he spent 12 years in America but his English wasn't very good (it was near perfect). A sweet end. We are spending our last night in Narita, just round the corner from the airport. The only thing that soothes my bruised head is that my journey home couldn't possibly be worse than my journey out here. Fingers crossed...
Japan Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 - Part 5
Monday, 2 April 2012
Mountains Beyond Mountains
Monday
Really had to think about what day it was. It doesn't help that I log in to Facebook & Twitter and hear people talking about it being the morning when I'm ready for bed. Anyway, today we went in search of a castle. The more famous castle at Himeji is currently under major restoration until 2014, so we went along to Hikone instead.
The castle was apparently surrounded by around a thousand cherry trees, but alas we still didn't come across a swam in raging bloom. We found half a dozen gently flowering away, but that was about it. I sound disappointed. It was still beautiful.
Beautiful too was the recreation of a Lodge from the Edo era. It felt massive, with unending passageways leading on to silent, minimal gardens. The larger grounds at the foot of the castle hill were also very pleasant to walk around, save for the American tourists. I'm still seeing tourists everywhere. How must the locals feel?
The day belonged to Hikonyan, a Samurai Cat who was everywhere, and even had his own song (which, once heard, will never leave you). Yet again the gift shop did well out of me. What can I say, I'm a sucker for a novelty cat with its own theme tune.
We've actually had quite a bad run of trying to find museums that have since closed down. I'd say around 6 or 7 have turned out this way so far. They've either vanished forever for temporarily closed for refurbishments. So after our latest failure, we went to the Kyoto Manga Museum. The place itself was more of a massive library, and it was great to see kids of all ages with piles of books next to them, sat outside in the sun. There was some informative exhibits and a superb collection of art once again responding to the March 2011 Earthquake.
For the last two nights we've been dining at a great little restaurant not far from our hotel. Like most things in this country, you order your meals by vending machine. It's a great concept: the pictures are descriptive enough and you don't need to worry about the bill at the end. I've had two variants on what was basically a mixed grill. Taste heaven, and cooked extremely fast. Free rice fill-ups too.
Our hotel in Kyoto has been a step up from our other accommodation. When booking the trip this was the only one that fitted our date window and my requirements (sorry, but I don't do shared toilets). The result of which has given us a little 4 star luxury, and the comfiest bed of the trip so far. Example of swank: the bathroom mirror is heated in the area above the sink, so no matter how fogged up the bathroom gets, you can always see your face. But we can't get too comfortable, as tomorrow we move on again...
Tuesday
Osaka seems to get a bad rep in the books I've read. The suburban sprawl hasn't been handled as artistically here as in has in other areas. It's basically Japan's version of Birmingham. We arrived in the worst rain we'd experienced so far. The layout of the main station wasn't too amazing either. It didn't have a proper subway station, just three lines hidden amongst an underground shopping mall (they love these here).
So we were a bit damp and frazzled, and unfortunately our first destination did nothing to help that. One guide book named the Osaka Aquarium the best in Japan. I fear for the rest of them. For our 2,000 Yen entry (that's around £18), we were treated to cramped corridors full of rude children and ruder parents. It seems that we're now in the school holidays, which wasn't the Aquarium's fault, but the whole experience was underwhelming and overpriced.
Thankfully our next trip was a lot better. The Modern Transport museum was showing its age, but it had enough charm to make it a much more enjoyable couple of hours.
The rain had reached the point of forcing its way through the museum roof, so we gave up and went back to the hotel. Defeated but not discouraged, it was good timing to have a much needed quite evening.
Wednesday
Determined to have a better day, we went out of town to Nara. On the train there we passed many cherry blossom trees in bloom. Finally, I thought, I'll get my wish to walk alongside a whole bunch of them in bloom.
I can't recommend more the Nara walk that Lonely Planet suggests in its Japan guide book. It took us away from the main tourist trail and started off at the most beautiful garden we've visited so far. It felt like we had the whole place to ourselves, it was so peaceful.
Carrying on through herds of wild/tame deer who harass tourists for biscuits, we visited several temples, including the largest Buddha statue in the country. It was an awe inspiring sight, especially seeing so many people offering a prayer.
To the side of the hall, metres away from the statue, was a gift shop. Now, this isn't the only tacky stall to encroach on an historic landmark, but for some reason this really got to me. This was a place of worship, fair enough I'm not the slightest bit spiritual and I was taking pictures like everyone else. But the whole vibe of "You've offered a prayer NOW BUY THE T-SHIRT!" just didn't sit right with me.
We had another 2 or 3 miles to walk, so I had plenty of time to forget about that and just enjoy the scenery as it unfolded.
Back into Osaka, we decided to pay the city's castle a visit. Just as we were walking out of the station, something caught my eye. There, tucked away behind a mound overlooking the bay, was around a dozen cherry blossom trees in bloom. And Sakura parties were in full flow underneath them. Children were playing, drinks were flowing, it was quite a sight. And I finally got to see it.
The climb up to the castle and back down again was pretty impressive too. It's one of the highest points in the city, and some people joke that it's only the most visited site in Japan because Osaka has no other places of interest.
We went out in the evening to try and prove this wrong. And after one of our trademark wrong turns, we found the main shopping district: a 2 mile long covered stretch that feels like a busy street as opposed to a soul-less shopping mall. It was surrounded by neon signs and street vendors. It sure beat staying in.
Since Tokyo we have been moving on every other night. It's weird, just as you start to get a handle on a place, you leave. It's hard to make any real conclusions. The only definite is we are about to journey to our final city of the holiday. The end is looming, and hanging heavy in my mind.
Japan Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 - Part 5
Really had to think about what day it was. It doesn't help that I log in to Facebook & Twitter and hear people talking about it being the morning when I'm ready for bed. Anyway, today we went in search of a castle. The more famous castle at Himeji is currently under major restoration until 2014, so we went along to Hikone instead.
The castle was apparently surrounded by around a thousand cherry trees, but alas we still didn't come across a swam in raging bloom. We found half a dozen gently flowering away, but that was about it. I sound disappointed. It was still beautiful.
Beautiful too was the recreation of a Lodge from the Edo era. It felt massive, with unending passageways leading on to silent, minimal gardens. The larger grounds at the foot of the castle hill were also very pleasant to walk around, save for the American tourists. I'm still seeing tourists everywhere. How must the locals feel?
The day belonged to Hikonyan, a Samurai Cat who was everywhere, and even had his own song (which, once heard, will never leave you). Yet again the gift shop did well out of me. What can I say, I'm a sucker for a novelty cat with its own theme tune.
We've actually had quite a bad run of trying to find museums that have since closed down. I'd say around 6 or 7 have turned out this way so far. They've either vanished forever for temporarily closed for refurbishments. So after our latest failure, we went to the Kyoto Manga Museum. The place itself was more of a massive library, and it was great to see kids of all ages with piles of books next to them, sat outside in the sun. There was some informative exhibits and a superb collection of art once again responding to the March 2011 Earthquake.
For the last two nights we've been dining at a great little restaurant not far from our hotel. Like most things in this country, you order your meals by vending machine. It's a great concept: the pictures are descriptive enough and you don't need to worry about the bill at the end. I've had two variants on what was basically a mixed grill. Taste heaven, and cooked extremely fast. Free rice fill-ups too.
Our hotel in Kyoto has been a step up from our other accommodation. When booking the trip this was the only one that fitted our date window and my requirements (sorry, but I don't do shared toilets). The result of which has given us a little 4 star luxury, and the comfiest bed of the trip so far. Example of swank: the bathroom mirror is heated in the area above the sink, so no matter how fogged up the bathroom gets, you can always see your face. But we can't get too comfortable, as tomorrow we move on again...
Tuesday
Osaka seems to get a bad rep in the books I've read. The suburban sprawl hasn't been handled as artistically here as in has in other areas. It's basically Japan's version of Birmingham. We arrived in the worst rain we'd experienced so far. The layout of the main station wasn't too amazing either. It didn't have a proper subway station, just three lines hidden amongst an underground shopping mall (they love these here).
So we were a bit damp and frazzled, and unfortunately our first destination did nothing to help that. One guide book named the Osaka Aquarium the best in Japan. I fear for the rest of them. For our 2,000 Yen entry (that's around £18), we were treated to cramped corridors full of rude children and ruder parents. It seems that we're now in the school holidays, which wasn't the Aquarium's fault, but the whole experience was underwhelming and overpriced.
Thankfully our next trip was a lot better. The Modern Transport museum was showing its age, but it had enough charm to make it a much more enjoyable couple of hours.
The rain had reached the point of forcing its way through the museum roof, so we gave up and went back to the hotel. Defeated but not discouraged, it was good timing to have a much needed quite evening.
Wednesday
Determined to have a better day, we went out of town to Nara. On the train there we passed many cherry blossom trees in bloom. Finally, I thought, I'll get my wish to walk alongside a whole bunch of them in bloom.
I can't recommend more the Nara walk that Lonely Planet suggests in its Japan guide book. It took us away from the main tourist trail and started off at the most beautiful garden we've visited so far. It felt like we had the whole place to ourselves, it was so peaceful.
Carrying on through herds of wild/tame deer who harass tourists for biscuits, we visited several temples, including the largest Buddha statue in the country. It was an awe inspiring sight, especially seeing so many people offering a prayer.
To the side of the hall, metres away from the statue, was a gift shop. Now, this isn't the only tacky stall to encroach on an historic landmark, but for some reason this really got to me. This was a place of worship, fair enough I'm not the slightest bit spiritual and I was taking pictures like everyone else. But the whole vibe of "You've offered a prayer NOW BUY THE T-SHIRT!" just didn't sit right with me.
We had another 2 or 3 miles to walk, so I had plenty of time to forget about that and just enjoy the scenery as it unfolded.
Back into Osaka, we decided to pay the city's castle a visit. Just as we were walking out of the station, something caught my eye. There, tucked away behind a mound overlooking the bay, was around a dozen cherry blossom trees in bloom. And Sakura parties were in full flow underneath them. Children were playing, drinks were flowing, it was quite a sight. And I finally got to see it.
The climb up to the castle and back down again was pretty impressive too. It's one of the highest points in the city, and some people joke that it's only the most visited site in Japan because Osaka has no other places of interest.
We went out in the evening to try and prove this wrong. And after one of our trademark wrong turns, we found the main shopping district: a 2 mile long covered stretch that feels like a busy street as opposed to a soul-less shopping mall. It was surrounded by neon signs and street vendors. It sure beat staying in.
Since Tokyo we have been moving on every other night. It's weird, just as you start to get a handle on a place, you leave. It's hard to make any real conclusions. The only definite is we are about to journey to our final city of the holiday. The end is looming, and hanging heavy in my mind.
Japan Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 - Part 5
Saturday, 31 March 2012
Your English Is Good
Friday
Train Observations:
- THEY ARE HUGE. The Tokyo subway trains all had 11 carriages. The Shinkansen seem to have around 20.
- The average delay for trains in Japan is 30 seconds.
- Subway trains seem to run every 2 minutes.
- On the main lines, all station signs are also in English and tell you what stop is next. So navigating isn't as difficult as it could be.
- Each city has characters for their Oyster-style cards. Tokyo had a penguin and a robot, Nagoya had a chick and a lemon.
It was tough leaving Tokyo, and literally tough to work our way through rush hour. It had been a frantic week of no sleep and a lot of walking, so a change of pace was needed. Luckily, that was just what we had planned.
We took a Shinkansen to Shizuoka, and a local train on to Kanaya. You really start to notice how lucky you are in the bigger cities to be surrounded by tranlations, subtitles and people who understand you. We had a slightly awkward exchange at the ticket office, but luckily they really don't seem to mind if you just point at things.
We then got on a huge old steam train. It was full of families on package tours, tucking into bento boxed lunches which looked and smelt amazing. The train guard had metal teeth and played old folk songs on his harmonica. The train took us up a valley surrounded by Sakura (cherry blossom), tea fields and bamboo trees. It was quite the combination.
We came to a stop at Senzu, and got on a tiny little train to go further up the valley, clinging to the cliff as we climbed higher. We passed three massive hydroelectric damns, and a painted sign that could be roughly translated as "if you hear an alarm go off at the dam, run for your life!" Igawa was our last stop, and we had little choice but to do the whole journey back again. I'll never forget the train guard's energy, bounding up and down the track as to check we hadn't lost a carriage on the way.
After re-tracing our steps back to Shizuoka, we went on to our next destination: Nagoya. We arrived around 9pm and it was still unbelievably busy. There only seems to be a couple of hours when it isn't rush hour. Our hotel was only a couple of stops away on the subway, and we were greeted with more station jingles to get in our heads.
Saturday
The first day of really bad weather, and even then we missed the worst of it. After another tasty pastry breakfast from the 7 Eleven, we set off for Kinjo-Futo and the SCMaglev & Railway Park. We were met with a massive queue, when it finally clicked what day it was. I had completely lost all concept of time, as thinking about it just cost valuable sleep.
The museum had only been open a year and was a fine experience. The Shinkansen past and present were lined up along with various other vehicles, plus all sorts of facts and buttons. And children. Lots and lots of children. Staring at me, mostly.
At all these sorts of places we've been so far, we've pretty much been the only foreigners there. It does feel quite weird to see another Westerner. It's almost annoying. "What are YOU doing here??" Still, we had another local experience by having our first Bento Box for lunch. For around £8 you get a huge meal. Ours was 8 rice balls, 2 meat things, 1 large fish thing and various vegetables. Rather nice it was too.
After that we went across town to Sako and the Toyota museum. And I actually learnt something. I had no idea that the family behind Toyota started out in the cotton business, and invented the first automatic loom. The More You Know. We also saw our second robot. This time "Harry" serenaded us on his trumpet (seriously) and we got to hear Aux Champs Elysées, the theme from My Neighbour Totoro (still in my head) and When You Wish Upon A Star. All very good, but he was no Asimo. You know you're cynical when you witness a robot playing a brass instrument, and all you can say is "meh".
The viewing platform on Nagoya's tallest building was not only going to charge us rather a lot, it also didn't have a roof. It wasn't really the weather for it, so we just went up and down in the big glass elevator and got giddy. That evening we got lost in search of dinner, and came across a tasty little noodle joint. I continued my home habit of accidentally ordering the hottest thing on the menu. I was left with a tasty beefy dish that was burning my face off. Again.
Sunday
We now only had 2 nights in each city, so we said goodbye to Nagoya and set off for Kyoto. My first impressions were of a fairly faded city that had a bit of a "we used to be the capital but now we're not" feel to it. That soon changed.
Outside of the nationalised JR lines, Japan has a lot of independent railways, and seemingly nowhere more than Kyoto. We had to get across town using three separate companies, none of which were integrated in the slightest. Eventually we found our destination on a charming/rustic/just plain old half train half tram hybrid, which seemed to stop at stations tacked on to back gardens, or just dropped people in the middle of the street.
We came across a park that was having a Sakura party. There were large pergolas to rent and families were gathering. There was a carnival atmosphere, the laughter and music from the gatherings mixing with the sounds and smells of the various food stalls that had sprung up. Alas only a few trees were in bloom. We've still only come across the odd one or two trees flowering. My hope is that we find a whole bunch of them in full bloom before we go.
Walking around the city centre, I've seen more fellow Westerners here than I have in any other city in Japan so far. And with each one I see, I feel less like an explorer and more like Any Other Tourist. I can sometimes see it in their eyes too.
Highlight of the day was making our way around a large park full of temples of every size and shape, Buddist mixed with Shinto, past combined present. I fulfilled a wish by having my photo taken with a massive cuddly Totoro. Happy boy!
Japan Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 - Part 5
Train Observations:
- THEY ARE HUGE. The Tokyo subway trains all had 11 carriages. The Shinkansen seem to have around 20.
- The average delay for trains in Japan is 30 seconds.
- Subway trains seem to run every 2 minutes.
- On the main lines, all station signs are also in English and tell you what stop is next. So navigating isn't as difficult as it could be.
- Each city has characters for their Oyster-style cards. Tokyo had a penguin and a robot, Nagoya had a chick and a lemon.
It was tough leaving Tokyo, and literally tough to work our way through rush hour. It had been a frantic week of no sleep and a lot of walking, so a change of pace was needed. Luckily, that was just what we had planned.
We took a Shinkansen to Shizuoka, and a local train on to Kanaya. You really start to notice how lucky you are in the bigger cities to be surrounded by tranlations, subtitles and people who understand you. We had a slightly awkward exchange at the ticket office, but luckily they really don't seem to mind if you just point at things.
We then got on a huge old steam train. It was full of families on package tours, tucking into bento boxed lunches which looked and smelt amazing. The train guard had metal teeth and played old folk songs on his harmonica. The train took us up a valley surrounded by Sakura (cherry blossom), tea fields and bamboo trees. It was quite the combination.
We came to a stop at Senzu, and got on a tiny little train to go further up the valley, clinging to the cliff as we climbed higher. We passed three massive hydroelectric damns, and a painted sign that could be roughly translated as "if you hear an alarm go off at the dam, run for your life!" Igawa was our last stop, and we had little choice but to do the whole journey back again. I'll never forget the train guard's energy, bounding up and down the track as to check we hadn't lost a carriage on the way.
After re-tracing our steps back to Shizuoka, we went on to our next destination: Nagoya. We arrived around 9pm and it was still unbelievably busy. There only seems to be a couple of hours when it isn't rush hour. Our hotel was only a couple of stops away on the subway, and we were greeted with more station jingles to get in our heads.
Saturday
The first day of really bad weather, and even then we missed the worst of it. After another tasty pastry breakfast from the 7 Eleven, we set off for Kinjo-Futo and the SCMaglev & Railway Park. We were met with a massive queue, when it finally clicked what day it was. I had completely lost all concept of time, as thinking about it just cost valuable sleep.
The museum had only been open a year and was a fine experience. The Shinkansen past and present were lined up along with various other vehicles, plus all sorts of facts and buttons. And children. Lots and lots of children. Staring at me, mostly.
At all these sorts of places we've been so far, we've pretty much been the only foreigners there. It does feel quite weird to see another Westerner. It's almost annoying. "What are YOU doing here??" Still, we had another local experience by having our first Bento Box for lunch. For around £8 you get a huge meal. Ours was 8 rice balls, 2 meat things, 1 large fish thing and various vegetables. Rather nice it was too.
After that we went across town to Sako and the Toyota museum. And I actually learnt something. I had no idea that the family behind Toyota started out in the cotton business, and invented the first automatic loom. The More You Know. We also saw our second robot. This time "Harry" serenaded us on his trumpet (seriously) and we got to hear Aux Champs Elysées, the theme from My Neighbour Totoro (still in my head) and When You Wish Upon A Star. All very good, but he was no Asimo. You know you're cynical when you witness a robot playing a brass instrument, and all you can say is "meh".
The viewing platform on Nagoya's tallest building was not only going to charge us rather a lot, it also didn't have a roof. It wasn't really the weather for it, so we just went up and down in the big glass elevator and got giddy. That evening we got lost in search of dinner, and came across a tasty little noodle joint. I continued my home habit of accidentally ordering the hottest thing on the menu. I was left with a tasty beefy dish that was burning my face off. Again.
Sunday
We now only had 2 nights in each city, so we said goodbye to Nagoya and set off for Kyoto. My first impressions were of a fairly faded city that had a bit of a "we used to be the capital but now we're not" feel to it. That soon changed.
Outside of the nationalised JR lines, Japan has a lot of independent railways, and seemingly nowhere more than Kyoto. We had to get across town using three separate companies, none of which were integrated in the slightest. Eventually we found our destination on a charming/rustic/just plain old half train half tram hybrid, which seemed to stop at stations tacked on to back gardens, or just dropped people in the middle of the street.
We came across a park that was having a Sakura party. There were large pergolas to rent and families were gathering. There was a carnival atmosphere, the laughter and music from the gatherings mixing with the sounds and smells of the various food stalls that had sprung up. Alas only a few trees were in bloom. We've still only come across the odd one or two trees flowering. My hope is that we find a whole bunch of them in full bloom before we go.
Walking around the city centre, I've seen more fellow Westerners here than I have in any other city in Japan so far. And with each one I see, I feel less like an explorer and more like Any Other Tourist. I can sometimes see it in their eyes too.
Highlight of the day was making our way around a large park full of temples of every size and shape, Buddist mixed with Shinto, past combined present. I fulfilled a wish by having my photo taken with a massive cuddly Totoro. Happy boy!
Japan Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 - Part 5
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