Government Matters

In the US these days, most talk about government or politics focuses on the high level philosophical stuff, Foreign Policy, Abortion, Church and State, etc. Not to say that this not impotent stuff, but this trip has highlighted for me that there is another dimension to government that is rarely talked about, overall competence.

By overall competence I mean the ability of the government to build roads, run schools, keep basic law and order. Basically its ability to provide a stable environment for people to live and work. As I have seen on this trip, the ability of governments to do these things is not necessarily related to how they are selected or what high level positions they believe in. At the highest level we have been in countries that range from stable, multi-party democracies like Japan and India, to Vietnam and Thailand, which are both currently run by unelected governments. All are basically capitalist countries, with somewhat of a socialist bent (Vietnam is officially communist, but that is not very true in practice).

In terms of overall competence I would have to obviously rank Japan as first. The infrastructure is top notch all over the country, the trains are amazing and crime is non-existent. Thailand I would also give high marks to, because it does a lot for how much money it has. Most things there seem to run at more or less a US level of quality, but I assume that they spend a lot less money to get there. India and Vietnam are similar in a lot of ways, because things seem to run OK, but you still run into some substandard roads and bad trash collection. Also, while some people in these two countries are doing very well, others are left behind in substantial poverty. Cambodia's one-party democratic government is basically a failed state. No one has any confidence in the government to do anything, and almost every road and school in the country has a sign out front thanking the country or NGO that built it for them, usually Japan.

The interesting thing about all these countries, as well as the US, is that a good number of people in all of them think the government is run by a bunch of crooks. Most of the time these thoughts are backed up by evidence. The accusations very from the money just disappearing, like in Cambodia, to the usual shady government contract deals that exist pretty much everywhere there are politicians with money to spend. Pork barrel stuff also shows up pretty much everywhere, like Shinkansens (bullet trains) to nowhere in Japan. However, even if crooks run the show everywhere, their output quality varies immensely.

The aggravating thing about this is that although the competence of government matters so much, I am not sure how one controls it. Why should India and Vietnam have similar public services despite the fact that one government is elected, and the other is authoritarian? As a voter in the US it is annoying that this never even really comes up as an issue. We know politicians positions on almost every philosophical issue, but not if they can build a decent airport.

My last thought is as to how the US fits within the ranking of countries above. Overall our government is fairly competent at basic service. We have very good roads, there are a reasonable number of cops and garbage does not stack up in the streets. However, we also pay a lot of money to achieve this decent level of service. I think our biggest problem is that our expectations for the final product of the things our government builds is so low. I am sure in Japan, Japan Railways (JR) is a giant pit of patronage and wasted money. I am sure there were all sorts of shady dealing with building the new airport in Bangkok. But, at least in these places they get an incredible train system and a really nice looking new airport. The most upsetting thing is that we get ripped off, as every country does, but often do not even get a world class product.

I guess my conclusion is that Americans should raise their expectations of government and not buy that things cannot be done, or cannot be done well. If the semi-authoritarian government in Thailand can build a nice new subway line, why can't we do so in New York or Boston? We might get ripped off, but it is better to at least get something for your money then nothing at all.

Potty Humor

Seeing as this part of our trip will be a major topic of conversation with the Basu family at Christmas, I will get a head start on the ups and downs of the traveling toilet situation.

The highlight of this part of the trip was in Japan. The Japanese have applied the technology we reserve for $2000 dishwashers to their the porcelain thrones, with splashing results. I had heard rumors of the wonders of Japanese toilets - they have mechanical hands that wipe the nether regions, the seats are made of solid gold, they play music, etc, etc. Some of this was true, though not the mechanical hand. There is a famous 24 karat solid gold toilet in Tokyo. If you have a golden toilet, then why not golden poop as well?

The typical Japanese toilet, the one you find in the homes, hostels, and malls, consist of a toilet bowl, seat, and toilet tank. In the high-tech ones, there is a control panel of sorts next to the bowl. This panel is studded with many buttons in Japanese with small incomprehensible pictures for those less literate. I never really deciphered all the functions, but here are some Ian, Andrew, and I figured out. With this panel, it is possible to receive squirts of water from inside the bowl to one's business areas. These jets vary in intensity, duration, and aim. During my first use, I nearly leaped to the ceiling because I didn't know the previous patron had turned the jet on high. As I became soaked, I found out that it would not cease until I found the off button. These robo-toilets also also would spray a jet of air to finish the job you did with the water and toilet paper. For the discrete Japanese ladies, there was a "fake flush" button that when pressed, would make a flushing sound during which you could tinkle or make whatever other noise you wanted without the whole bathroom hearing. One had headphone hook-up. I never found out what was playing.

Almost more important to me than the actual toilet apparatus, is the ability to clean my hands. This need is inversely proportional to cleanliness of the bathroom. In Japan, there was always automatic soap and water basins. However, I quickly found out that everyone carried handkerchiefs to dry their hands. This lesson is one that I will keep with me in the US. Why use a paper towel when you can carry your own?

Which brings me to my next country. I had the most trepidation about India in this regard. During my 3 prior visits, I had had some horrific experiences with splintered wooden planks as a toilet seat over a vat of mosquitoes and filth. Also, since everyones toilet use increases in India for obvious reasons, I tried to be prepared by always carrying toilet paper and a hanky to dry my hands.

Reflecting the diverse economic strata in the country, India has a wide spread between completely horrific bathrooms and sparklingly clean ones with attendants. Fancy hotels and restaurants have normal easy to understand Western toilets with paper, a flushing mechanism, a clean dry floor, and a sink with water, soap, and towels. All things taken for granted in the American bathroom experience. When there is a squat toilet in India, it generally had a flusher and a bucket of water to use instead of toilet paper (though I never figured out how to do this without soaking myself in the process). We had a squat toilet for 3 days in our stay in Mapsua, Goa. It really wasn't that bad. When it is your own, you can strip down so as not to wet all your clothes in the process. I can't stay I achieved the Zen of backpacking in India, which is to balance yourself on a squat toilet while reading the newspaper. Only the free public toilets will cause night terrors, as happened with me before our overnight bus ride from Udiapur.

Also, though this may not be evident on a quick vacation to India as your experience will likely be colored by the worst bathroom experiences of your life, Indians do care about washing their hands. This may not always happen in the vicinity of the toilet, but in every restaurant, no matter if it has a dirt floor and is made of blue tarp (the developing world's replacement for the tar paper shack), there will be a sink with soap to wash with before dining. Once you realize this, and have brought your own hanky to dry your hands, your war against the colon twisting germs in India gets a tad easier.

I do feel that I owe India somewhat of an apology about ragging so much on their plumbing in my first blog about our accommodation. I didn't think that the toilet situation could get worse once we left the land of the squat toilet. But again, I was wrong. Thailand has the worst plumbing I have ever seen coupled with a questionable system of personal hygiene as well (from what I can deduce from the facilities offered).

Here in Thailand, virtually everywhere has either a squat or Western bowl. Not really a problem - India trained us well. However, no where are these toilet bowls equipped to flush toilet paper as the exiting pipe is a narrow as a sink drain. There is generally a large bucket of water with a huge bowl or a high-pressure dish sprayer to replace the toilet paper. All bathrooms here have a generally poorly worded sign that tried to communicate to you to throw the paper in the trash. One of these signs read "some napkins go in the bucket." Not fully understaidng this, I thought to myself, where are these napkins, and why do only some need to go in the bucket, as I tossed my tissue in the toilet.

The second enormous problem with Thai plumbing and why it ranks below that of India, is that there are many places that don't have a flushing mechanism on the toilet. That's right, there is a toilet bowl with no tank. You think it's a normal toilet until you go to flush and stupidly pull at the air. Every morning, one has to try in vain to dispose of your handiwork with a bowl full of water that is kept in a bucket next to the toilet. Once hotel toilet was so terrible, that Ian and I had to use the bowl of water, the high-pressure butt sprayer, and the hand-held shower hose to get the toilet to flush. The large downside of this country wide practice is that: 1. you guessed it, your bathroom stinks at all times with the used tissues in the trash can, 2. since there is always a large bucket full of water, the bathrooms are mosquito pits, 3. you never want to flush the toilet since it's such an ordeal, and 4. your bathroom is soaked at all times.

So after a victory with flushing the Thai toilet, all I want to do is wash my hands. Therein lies the 3rd problem. Most public toilets in respectable places - restaurants, shops, etc, either have no place to wash or if they do, have no soap. Maybe I just haven't figured out how Thais wash their hands yet. In India it took me a while to figure out that it was expected that everyone wash their hands before eating in a restaurant. This really is the most maddening thing here in Thailand. From what I can tell, most Thais clean their privates, Indian-style, without the ability to wash hands. Baffling!

I know some of you are thinking, what should I expect traveling to Asia? Maybe avoiding toilet paper is more environmentally correct, I should have more respect for the local customs... I thought you might want the straight story without the social correctness sugar-coating.

Now on to Cambodia. I'm sure the situation can't get any worse. But I said that about India as well.

Nipo-brasileiro

So last night was yet another night of random occurrences and extraordinary chance events that converged for an incredible night. Andy and Ian came to drop me off in a hostel in this normally sleepy neighborhood when re ran into the Asakusa Samba festival - I kid you not. I had heard that there were many Japanese that emigrated to Brazil from some of the school teachers we met, but I had no idea of the extent of influence on the Japanese culture. There are some 1.5 million Japanese living in Brazil or claim Japanese heritage. Apparently , many settled there after WWII. Now many Japanese-Brazilians, called Nipo-brasileiroin Portuguese, are returning to Japan for more opportunities. Interestingly, it was the Japanese immigrants that gave rise to Jiu Jitsu in Brazil.

The 28th annual samba festival held in Asakusa was incredible in its size. There were some 30 odd krewes or troupes that paraded in the streets. Each parading troupe had several samba dancers, a large group of marching dancers, a full samba band compete with multiple singers, and a man-powered float. The crowds were huge, but disconcertingly made up of many men with video and still cameras aimed at the girls. Besides sky-high school girl skirts, Japanese don't normally show that much skin which explains the throngs of old men. I was stunned at the reactions of the crowds though. Aside from the grinning old men, not a single onlooker was dancing, swaying, tapping their toes, or having any other emotion show. I guess it:s pretty typical Japanese that I have come to realize - totally stoic, unless alcohol is involved. These people looked they were at a funeral procession. Well, I didn't let that stop me from enjoying the music as it should be enjoyed. I was the sole dancer in the crowd for the entire parade. Andy and I had great spots near the competition judging of the parade, check out some of the photos.

Later that night, we again stumbled into heaven - this time sushi heaven. After traveling to many countries, one principle about lines is universal: if there are natives standing in line to a restaurant you had better get in it also. Though we had to wait in a line for about 20 minutes, this conveyor belt sushi restaurant was everything that a non-Japanese speaker could want. Color coded plates held scallops, 3 kinds of tuna, salmon, fried squid, mackrel, brain (I could not tell from which animal, but we ate it anyway), prawn, sweet rock shrimp, clams.... It went on and on until were were all stuffed, a stack of plates in front of us.

To top off the perfect night in Tokyo, we rented a karoke box and sang our hearts out. Then we partied with the Brazilians in some basement bar. Now off to India, no girls in thongs there....

Another Quick Update

- Spent 3 nights in Kyoto, had a pretty good time, but frankly I was
not overwhelmed by the actual sights and tourist attractions. I was
discussing with Andy one night that the real notable experience in
Japan is really just being in Japan. The temples and such were cool
to see, but to some degree I felt that once you had seen one, you had
kind of seen them all.

- I got my first injury of the trip in the most ridiculous was
possible. Basically I slipped on the wet floor of a elevator, in a
sento (Japanese bath) while naked and got a cut on my toe. While we
were in Kyoto there was a sento (which is basically the same as an
onsen, but with artificially heated water) that we went to twice that
was quite large so the locker room was on the first floor and the
baths were on the second and third. As it says in the lonely planet,
probably the only time in your life you will ever have the pleasure of
riding in an elevator naked.

- That sento was also the first I have been to with an electric bath,
which is basically a small bath that was an emitter on each side that
emits some kind of electrical or ultrasonic wave that make your
muscles spasm. We figured out eventually were the emitters were, so
it was actually quite nice to get in far away from them, where you
could not feel anything, and then put your legs near them to get the
electric massage. However at first we did not know how it worked to
Andy just jumped in right next to the emitter and jumped out of the
water with similar speed.

- We also had a fun night in Kyoto with an expenses be damned 120
dollar (total for 3) dinner and some drinking. We went to this great
place where you get portions of meat and grill them on a hot stone
that is in the middle of your table. The steak, chicken, duck and
mushrooms were out of this world. After we were looking for a bar but
stumbled across a band on the street playing sort of jazzy renditions
of Motown and various other songs the street. They must have been
music students or something because the female singer as well as the
guitarist and bassist were really incredible, and were not asking for
any money. We ended up staying until about 2 AM, and drinking a bunch
of convenience store beer with a little group of people. Was really
great, and we did at least buy a round from the convenience store for
the band to say thanks.

- Drinking beer anywhere here is legal in case anyone is wondering.

- Took Nisha and Andy to a baseball game again last night, was pretty
fun, but the Tokyo Yakult Swallows do not have nearly the organization
in the cheering section of other Japanese teams. They did have a
pretty funny dance after a run was scored that involved little
umbrellas, reminiscent of the ones used in second line.

Quick Update

Not so much time to blog now that Nisha and Andy are here.

Quick update on what we are up to:

- Spent a few days in Matsumoto, which was a very nice small city in the valley of the mountains in the center of Honshu. Stayed at a nice hotel and went to the castle as well as Japan's largest Wasabi farm. Wasabi is grown in diverted river beds and is pretty cool to see. Also had the wasabi soft serve ice cream, which was pretty tasty.

- Hiked up a large mountain, who's name escapes me, near Hakuba. It was a pretty challanging hike, the top of the mountain was around 3000m (9600 feet) and the hike up started at only 1350m. The hike up involved a long time hiking on a glacier, and the views from the top were incredible. Definately the coolest mountain hike I have been on. We spent the night at a cabin at the top (for the pricy fare of 6000 yen), and the thin air did not lend itself to a great night of sleep, but there was really no way to do the hike in one day without starting crazy early in the morning.

- We are in Kyoto now and about to check out some of the sites. Will update on this later.

Rundown with the whole crew in Japan

So Andy got here 2 nights ago and Nisha got here 1 night ago, a few random notes:

- Went to Shibuya (giant times square like area) with Andy the first night and just drank beer on the street and people watched. I know for a fact that there is nothing illegal about drinking on the street in Japan, but it is considered a little low class, but what does that matter to me?

- I think Andy and Nisha's favorite thing about Japan so far is the grocery store. Basically, we can't go in there without shashimi being purchased and consumed. They seemed particularly impressed with the 298 yen (about $2.50) sample of fatty tuna that had about 6 good size pieces and probably would have gone for about 15 buck in a US sushi restaurant.

- Last night in Tokyo we ended up in Ginza, which is kind of a Park Avenue high class district. After wondering around a little bit we see a basement bar that says "Country Western" and figured we have to check this out. Anyway, ended up being on of the smallest bars I have ever been in with about 8 patrons and a four piece Japanese old-time country music outfit. Certainly one of the strangest bars I have ever been in, but we did listen to a few songs and have a good time.

- We trucked up to Matsumoto today, which is up in the mountains, and certainly one of the more attractive Japanese cities I have been to. We had dinner at the hotel tonight and once again were treated to horse shashimi, which is evidently the local specialty here. I was wondering what the deal with this was, after my previous horse experience, but evidently I just stumbled into the two places in Japan where horse is the big thing to eat, up here in central Honshu and in southern Kyushu. Anyway, the horse was quite tasty once again, but perhaps I need to move on to a new local delicacy.

Osaka

Just a quick thing, that I really liked Osaka when I was there. In retrospect, I probably should have done more planning to avoid going to Tokyo, and rather flown into the Kansai airport near Osaka and Kyoto.

Basically everyone says that you need to go to Kyoto when you are in Japan, which we are doing later this week, but I did kind of want to experience the big city neon lights of a Japanese city as well. For this reason I set things up so I would have to go to Tokyo several times while I am here. As I found out however, Osaka (which is only 30 minutes from Kyoto) offers much the same crowded neon experience, with cheaper accommodations and over a much more compact area.

Basically, my main problem with Tokyo is that because it is so big, it takes a lot of train riding to get anywhere, and cheap accommodations are not in the best parts of the city. In Osaka I was able to stay in the heart of the entertainment district and everything of note was only a few subway stops away. Also, while Tokyo may have more of the Rodeo Drive kind of high class stuff, Osaka is kind of grungy in a pleasant way that I actually like a little bit better.

Anyway, just a little advice to anyone who every makes it out to Japan.

Summer Koshien

Having a free afternoon in Osaka, I decided to go out to Koshien stadium (about 20 minutes out of town) and check out the National Summer High School Baseball Tournament, or Koshien.　　For those not framiliar, this is the big summer tournament that is broadcast of TV every day here and is where Matsuzaka became a legend.

Koshien stadium is supposedly one of the more historic stadiums in Japan, so I wanted to also check it out. I was pleasantly surprised when I got there that general admission seats on the side of the outfield were only 500 yen (~ $4), so I could still have a few large size Asahi cans and still be under the 2500 yen budget I had in mind for the game.

Pretty cool tournament. Imagine having teams from every high school in the country play to get to a two week tournament that is played in Fenway, in front of a more or less full crowd. It must be incredibly exciting for the kids who get to play.

Showed up in the 3rd inning of the 3rd game of the day, and unfortunately just got there in time to see the team who's section I was in give up a 6 run inning, to make the score 6-2. I sort of felt like I had to root for the team who was down, because I was in their cheering section, although only about half of the section was up and chanting with every at bat, so I could just relax and drink my beer. The first game was pretty ho-hum however, ended up being 9-2, with the starter for the other team going 9 and never giving up another run (I think his name ended in -shima based on my limited knowledge of Kanji). He was throwing 147kph (91 MPH) gas and seemed pretty dominant.

Luckily though the games go very quickly, since the pitchers throw a lot of strikes and work fast. So, despite sweating off about 2 pounds in the hot Japanese sun, I decided to stick around for some of the next game, at least until the winner was obvious.

This time my team was from Meikun, which I could tell because their Jerseys were in English rather then Kanji, which about half the teams do. Of course a mini rally in the 1st makes the score 1-0 for the other guys, so I am starting to think that I am a jinx or something. Anyway, a couple of clean innings on both sides, with Meikun's pitcher ringing up quite a few guys and we start to see a classic pitchers duel in the making. In the 5th, a guy for Meikun hits a solo shot down the line, and now we are at 1-1. Both pitchers now settle in, and you start to get the sense that this game might finish under the lights.

Both starters finish the 9th, as the sun sets behind the mountains. I took note of the pitches on the last at bat of the 9th thrown by the Meikun pitcher (someone told me his name was Nagai) to see how he was doing.

- 144 kph (89 MPH) fastball, swing and miss.

- 90 kph (55 MPH) looping curve/ephus pitch, batter frozen for a called strike.

- 146 kph (90 MPH) fastball, out of the zone.

- 120 kph (75 MPH) breaking ball, swing and miss.

Needless to say he was still going strong.

Evidently there is no word in Japanese for bullpen, because we pressed on to the 12th with both pitchers still in. The other teams guy was more of a 120 kph junkballer, but obviously quite effective as well. Finely in the 12th, the Meikun pitcher hits a ringing single from the 9 hole, and is eventually pushed across with the help of an error to make the score 2-1. Then, you guessed it, Nagai comes back out to finish it in the 12th, finishing them 1-2-3. An incredible performance by Nagai, and most in my section leave happy.

Hiroshima

I spent yesterday checking out the sites and the city of Hiroshima.

Ironically enough of the big cities I have visited in Japan I thought Hiroshima was actually one of the nicest. The Peace Memorial park in the middle of town is actually quite unusual for Japan, where large city parks are pretty non-existent except for castle grounds and temples. Also, the city is built across many islands on a river delta, so you often have a nice view down a river.

As for the memorials themselves, the A-Bomb dome in particular is probably the most touching monument or memorial that I have ever seen. The fact that is was created by the event that it is there to memorialize is a large part of that. Even though it was not created by some architect or team of designers, it is better then anything that anyone could have created.

It is obvious that the building itself was quite attractive when it was built, and the fact that it is half destroyed, with rubble strewn still inside it and around the perimeter lets you imagine what it must have been like to see it soon after its creation. But then resting on top, created by destruction as well is the metalwork of the dome, which at the distance that you see it from, appears to be perfect and untouched. The intricate ornament of curved metal sits on top, like it is rising from the ashes. Quite perfect.

The museum is quite well done as well, conveying a lot of the pain from that day as well as the moderate Japanese view of the situation, but stays away from wading too deep into all of the complex webs of blame that lie in war.

However, one similarity that I did find interesting between this and the right-wing war museum I visited earlier is the nuanced version of the endgame of WWII that seems pretty accepted in Japan. In the US we are pretty much told as kids that the point of the atomic bomb drop was to force and end to the war and avoid the even greater casualties that would occur during an invasion of mainland Japan.

In the version of events told in both museums the atomic bomb drop had more to do with the beginning of the cold war and posturing between the USSR and US. Basically the story goes that since the USSR had just declared war on Japan, the US feared that if both the USSR and US were to invade Japan administration of the territory after the war would have to be worked out with the Russians, so it was essential to end the war in Japan before they could get involved. Also, the US was motivated to drop the bomb to demonstrate its power to the USSR and justify the enormous costs of developing it.

This was backed up in the Hiroshima museum with excerpts of later declassified memos that discussed the need to maximise the apparent destructive impact and some memos discussing the possible congressional investigations that would take place regarding the cost of the program if it was never used. That being said, while some of this may be true, the Japanese did have ample opportunity to surrender earlier when it was obvious the war was lost. So once again the truth is probably somewhere in between.

The final thing that I found somewhat thought provoking is that for better or for worse, there is no equivalent place in the US where the damage and the history of war are so easy to feel around you. One has to wonder what the effect of the this is on the American mind (I am excluding I guess civil war battle fields, because, although horrific, they seem so far in the past, and were a meeting of armies, not a primarily civilian event). I also find it interesting that the only place that would be similar, ground-zero (although obviously not on the same scale as Hiroshima), we were so quick to pave over and clear from the earth. I guess the simple answer is money and the price of New York real estate. Or perhaps it is the American tendency to want to move on.

Random Happenings

- Went to an Onsen near Kagoshima where before you go in the tubs, you walk out to the beach in your robe and some people bury you in sand on this beach that has volcanic heat rising up from deep in the sand. I lasted about 15 minutes (which is respectable), but I never really knew what being claustrophobic was like before. It was refreshing after I got out, but was a little unsettling to be in that hot sand deep fryer.

- Met some US English teachers who were taking a vacation down to Kyūshū in Kagoshima and went out until 2 AM. Was pretty nice to get drunk with some fairly normal Americans. Until these guys most of the other westerners that I had run into were either somehow deeply involved with Japan or otherwise Japanophiles. As much as I like Japan, it was nice to be able to make fun of some of its idiosyncrasies without offending anybody or getting a rebuke from someone who thinks that everything Japanese is perfect and they can never do any wrong.

- Also ate some horse shashimi at dinner with those Americans. It was pretty tasty meat, but I think it is actually pretty expensive, since they do not give you very much.

- Camped out and climbed around Aso-san, an active volcano. The volcano was cool to look at, but even more beautiful was the grasslands surrounding it where there was some very expensive Japanese cattle grazing. Check out the flickr page for some pictures. The scene of hundreds of tourists chasing some poor cows around the open ranges was truly something to behold.

Hiking in Japan

Some random observations on hiking in Japan:

- It was nice being at the mountain huts, got a chance to meet and chat with more of the locals then you usually do, which was nice.

- The things I read in my Hiking in Japan book about the crazy sleep schedule and the top notch equipment of the Japanese hikers was absolutely true. Of course on a hike with weather conditions like Yakushima I was definitely a little jealous of their custom backpack covers and various gadgets.

- Japanese women seem to really like to hike. I would say that is was about 50/50 men to women on the trail and in the huts. There were several groups of middle aged women by themselves and a few solo women as well, which I feel like you do not see that much of in the states.

- Those middle aged Japanese women are damn tough. Yakushima was a pretty demanding hike, and carrying all that equipment with the size of the average Japanese woman's body is pretty impressive.

- Japanese hikers seem to like to stick to the well established paths, and if there is a shorter or more efficient way to see the main sites they will do it. I assume this is why on Yakushima most everyone does the trip as a one nighter between the road that goes up the south side of the mountains and one of the roads on the north side. This is really what I should have done because you really see all the good stuff and just miss some tedious hours of low altitude stuff.

- Good rain gear was a life saver (thanks again Susan). Also, being meticulous with your waterproofing on a rainy hike is essential, I should have done a better job of it so I did not have to spend 2 days going commando in rain pants.

- Bringing enough calories for a multi day hike is tough, I never ran low on energy due to not having enough food, but it was close. The Cliff bars I brought from the states were key, as well as copious amounts of PB&J.

Yakushima Traverse - Day 3

Third day, wake up at around 4:30, as that is when the earliest risers, a family of 4, has started up their stove to make breakfast. I was actually a little worried about making the ferry back to Kagoshima on this day at 3:30, so I wanted to be out on the trail by 6 AM. Thus I was not really that pissed off.

So, I packed up and was off by around 5:30, back out into the continuing rain. The only people up were ones I had not made the acquaintance of, so there would be no coffee for me today. This days hike was pretty uneventful. I worked my way down past the area with the giant ceders, which were fairly cool to see and eventually popped out on an area of the trail that was in the middle of an old railroad track. After several days of hard hiking, this was like heaven for my body, and I really flew down the trail.

This was also the time that I started encountering waves of Japanese day trippers who were making their way up to the ceders from the parking lot at the end of the railway trail. 1000 head dips and "Konishiwa"s later and I was off to the next fork int the road that would continue to lead me north. This trail was back to being a little more rustic, but not too bad. It actually was kind of scenic as it had extensive areas of stepping stones that looked like they had been laid in the feudal era. This gave it a nice appearance that made you think that a Samurai could come walking out of the mist at any time.

A little bit further down this trail I once again run into big groups of tourists, and as I find out I have merged onto a 2km nature walk trail that starts at a parking lot up the mountain. I had not idea how far this was from the perimeter road of the island, but like a horse that knows that the barn is not far away, I picked up the pace a little and started flying down the trail.

You can imagine my disappointment then when I cross the parking lot and discover that the trip down to the main road is another 4km, and once again it is on a pretty rustic trail. So I was a little disappointed, but soon the lower elevation made the sun pop out and I could see the ocean again in the distance, so things were not that bad. Also, about 1.5km down the rugged trail I came out on a logging road, which being Japan was beautifully paved. Coasting down this lonely logging road in the mountains of Japan, all I could think about is how unlikely it was that some kid from NH would ever be here.

The next thing you knew I was flying across the waves on the Hydrofoil and back in my comfy bed at the inn in Kagoshima.

Yakushima Traverse - Day 2

So I woke up after a not so restful sleep, at around 6 AM with is quite late for Japanese hikers. Thankfully my roommates offered my a cup of hot coffee, which was just what I needed to get going.

I ended up going with rain gear (and since all my other cloths were soaking wet, and it was pretty hot, nothing else) and this was the correct decision, since it was either drizzling or raining all day long.

The hike was great however, all on a trail with an impressive amount of stairs and ramps that really made things much more pleasant. First you ascend to around 1600m, where there are a couple little alpine marshes that look like a sort of natural ornate Japanese garden. Then you ascend further to the high ridge of the island, which is a little similar to the high mountains of New England, but incredibly lush, with a carpet of thick plants and grass over everything but the giant boulders that would stick threw. I saw a couple of deer up here and was quite excited as they seemed not to afraid of me, and I got some nice pictures.

I finally did make it to the top of the highest mountain, around 1950m. The wind was pretty strong up there, and it was tantalizingly close to breaking threw the top of the cloud cover, but it was not meant to be. Still got some amazing views along the ridge when the clouds would break for a moment.

Then descended down to the next hut on the other side, seeing several more deer, which I was now getting used to seeing. More exciting, a pack of Monkeys was crossing the trail right before the hut, and I had close encounters with several of them as they crossed in front of and behind me, but alas no good pictures.

I was the first one to the hut (I am a pretty fast hiker in Japan). This one was nicer then the last, with higher ceilings and more light. I was hoping a few more people would show up, so I was not solo, but I figured that it was pretty early, so nothing to worry about.

I did not have anything to worry about because eventually the hut filled with about 30 people, which was just about capacity. Met a few nice people there like a outdoorsy older guy from Chiba who spoke pretty good English, as well as a friendly solo girl who's English was not so good. I ate my second dinner of PB&J, which horrified the Japanese hikers, who carry all the best equipment, and would probably not hike up Mt. Major without a stove. Needless to say, the girl set me up with some Miso soup, which was nice. I few rounds of Whisky and Sho-Cho later and I am in bed by 8:30, true Japanese style.

The only catch was the middle aged women next to me decided to re-arrange her pack next to me from 8:30-9:30, which was pretty annoying, but still got to bed pretty early, knowing that the rustling in this crowded cabin is going to start pretty damn early.

Rest of Yakushima Story

Rest assured that my trip accross Yakushima greatly improved over that last post, but I have been unable to spend any quality time in the Manga Kissa the last few days, thus the lack of posts. This will probabaly continue for a little while because I am not out at this big Volcano Aso-san and there is only limited internet out here.

Yakushima Traverse - Day 1

So after a dip in an Onsen and a nice breakfast I headed out on my 3day hike to traverse Yakushima island. Basically this hike wouldcross the island, taking me through rain forests with giant ceders,and up a mountain the size of Mt. Washington, starting and ending at sea level.

Before I left the guesthouse the owner warned about the difficulty ofthe traverse, but because of the limits of his English I did not knowexactly why. Anyway, I figured I would start up the trail, and ifthings got to hairy I could always go back. Also, another layer ofdifficulty is that the only English language info I could find isLonely Planet's Hiking in Japan from 2001, so I knew that someinformation could be out of date. However, the goal for today seemedpretty straightforward, hike to the Yodagama hut at 1250m.

So, I started off on a hot sunny day, looking up at the clouds andknowing that rain would come eventually. But this is one of therainiest places on earth, so what are you going to do? The firstcouple of hours of the hike were uneventful. The trail was a littleless well cleared then what I am used to in NH, but was well markedwith florescent tape markers. The rain also held off until I made thenice waterfall at 450m above sea level.

After the waterfall however, things started to go downhill (despitethe 800m of uphill climbing to go). It started to pour, as I hadexpected. The forest got denser and denser, also as I had expected.

The trail got worse and worse, this was not expected.

This trail was the worst of both worlds. It continued to bewell marked with tape, and even had occasional signs indicating, inJapanese and without distances, that I was going in the right direction. However, the track seemed close to abandoned. I had to circumvent numerous giant ceders that had fallen across the path, noeasy task in a rain forest I assure you. The underbrush had not beencut, meaning I had to brush up against vegetation with every step.The other problem was that with the hard rain and the overgrown trailI could not figure out where I was on the trail based on the descriptions in the book, so I had no idea how far I need to go. The only landmark that I knew I could not miss is the road that ends 1km before the hut.

So I was getting more and more aggravated, and this is when it gets really bad. I reach what turns out to be the largest stream that Ihave to wade across, it was no big deal to get across the stream, butI looked down at my legs, and there were at least 3 leaches on me. Ifound the nearest stick and swiped them off, luckily before the reallygot settled in. For the next 2 hours I was hiking threw more heavyunder brush, now having to swipe off a leach every 5 minutes. Where they were coming from I have no idea.

At this point I am really questioning my decision to come up here,because if there is going to be 3 days of hiking like this, it is justgoing to be miserable. I am seriously considering finding a ride back down the road when I get to it or worst case walking back down. Anyway, at about the lowest point I pop out at the top of the road(about 1000m elevation). There is no drink machine, which is very disappointing, but it is incredibly nice to know where I am for once,and to be out of that jungle.

I decide at this point that since it is only 1km or so to the hut, I will see what the trail is like up there and then decide what to do. Starting on the trail to the hut, it is entirely different, in fact itis one of the best maintained trails I have ever been on. It is stillraining mind you, but the trail is cut very wide and there arecountless wooden stairs and ramps to keep you out of the mud and to make the climbing easier.

In a few minutes I get to the hut and since the trail is improved I decide to spend the night as planned. My spirits are greatly improved by some dry cloths and a place to sit out of the rain on the porch of the hut. The hut is an unmanned cabin that is about a 20 foot square room with sleeping lofts on either side. I did not really want to be solo out in the woods, so it was really nice that a couple from Tokyowere staying there as well, they were also very friendly and spoke English, which was nice.

The only downside of the cabin I was first turned on to by a sign in English and Japanese that read in English "The rats haunt near theYodagama hut. Please keep your foodstuffs in your rucksack". Ghost rats sound pretty scary, so I ask my new Japanese friends for a better translation and they tell me that the word for rat and mouse in Japanese is the same (Nazumi) and the sign just says to keep your food in your bag because of the mice. I am happy because this is a lot less scary.

We all go to bed at around dusk, as Japanese hikers do, and then the noises start. I got only fits of sleep all night long, because some animals, that were a lot bigger then mice, were banging around outside the cabin. Needless to say, I think ghost rats was actually a pretty good description. Anyway, I am glad I was not alone, or I might have headed for the hills.

Onsen Adventures

I just got back from Yakushima, a small island south of Japan.

In the next post I will start describing my long hike, but before then a few words about my first two trips to the Onsen, or hot spring bath.

The guesthouse I stayed at the first night in Yakushima was near many well known Onsens. So, I knew that I was going to have to try one out at some point, but I have to admit I was a little nervous the first time because it seems like a time where the rules of etiquette would be easily broken. For those who do now know, the basic idea of the Onsen is this:

1) Go in the men's side (they are usually broken up into two sections).

2) Get naked in the little changing room.

3) Go into the main Onsen room with only your little Onsen towel (about the size of a small hand towel, I got mine for 200 yen at the Onsen).

4) Soap up and wash off sitting on a little stool with the buckets and showers provided.

5) Go into the Onsen.

6) Get out, go to the locker room, dry off and put your cloths back on.

So, I did as instructed and did not ruffle any feathers (as far as I know). The Onsen near the hotel was quite hot, but pretty enjoyable, once you get over the strangeness as a westerner of being around a bunch of naked Japanese guys. I also did deduce the etiquette for the little towel, which I had kind of wondered how it would work. Basically, you keep it covering everything up front whenever you are just walking around, but it seems that you usually leave it aside when showering or in the Onsen itself.

So the next day I wake up at 6:30, because all of my roommates have as well, and someone tells me to get up and come with them to this famous Onsen. I was up anyway so I figured why not. Anyway, 8 of us head out there, and I find out that the reason we are going so early is that this is down by the ocean, and you have to go at low tide. We get there and it is really cool, basically there is a concrete ramp down to a pad with several baths that are nestled in the rocks, just a few feet from the crashing waves.

However, I know was going to have to feel out the etiquette once again, because this was just one outdoor onsen, and we were a mixed sex bunch of people. So, I did the usual and just waited to see what everyone else did. The result is less exciting then you would hope, and kind of sexist actually.

So for the guys, you basically do what you normally do, except you bring the little towel in the bath with you and stay more vigilant then usual about keeping everything up front under wraps. The girls basically bring a big beach towel and wear it like a dress, keeping it on at all times. I say it is a little sexist, because basically the guys don't change anything at all, but the girls have to totally change the onsen routine. I am guessing however that they probably prefer it that way.

A World Without Jerks

So one of the most stunning things about Japan is the adherence that everyone has for the rules. To some degree it almost sounds too good to be true:

- Sick of pedestrians stepping out in front of your car and making you stop or slam on the breaks? In Japan no one crosses a street without being at a crosswalk and having the walk light be on. Even if there are no cars around. Really. You would look like such a Jerk if you walked without the light, that even I don't do it anymore (except for at 5 AM this morning, where is was really ridiculous. I did it, and I know that I have brought eternal shame down on me and my family, and it was worth it).

- On an escalator, if you are going to stand, you stay on the left, if you are going to walk up the stairs you stay on the right. This one I really like actually, I hate when people block up a whole escalator or moving walkway. In Japan you may actually have to fall on a sword if you block an escalator, they take it that seriously.

- Bikes are left unlocked all over cities, or if they are locked it is with a really chincy cable lock.

- Most train ticket gates do not even have anything to keep you from just walking through. But everyone puts a ticket in every time. Even when there is no one watching.

- People do not litter. If you buy a can from a vending machine, you hold on to it until you find a trash can. Also, there are less public trash cans here then anyplace else on earth. Basically the only ones are next to vending machines.

I am kind of undecided if I think that this is a good thing or not. In most instances I like that everyone follows the rules. It is really nice not to have some jerk block the moving walkway, and I am sure that the government here saves a ton of money by not having to prevent people from sneaking on the train, or pick up peoples trash from everywhere.

However, sometimes it gets really ridiculous. Like when you are sitting at a crosswalk waiting for a car that is a half mile away. As opposed to the other things, there is really no victim of you saving a minute by walking across the street.

I guess the message is, why can't we find a happy medium? I do find the Japanese way very restricting, but on the other hand it is nice that people here really try to never be a jerk to anyone else, even if it sometime gets a little silly.

Random Happenings

- Randomly met a bunch of 20/30 something guys from Boston in the Sopporo Museam beer hall in Tokyo, was pretty nice to drink a few beers with people from back home, and get to speak english.

- Stayed in a Capsule Hotel last night in Tokyo because I wanted to be closer to the train station and get up early to catch the train. All in all not a bad deal, but you basically get woken up every hour until 4 AM by a drunk stumbling in, and then starting at 5 AM by people leaving to get the first subway. I just got up and 5 and got a really early train down south.

- Took my first ride on the Shinkansen (bullet train) today, it is really nice, basically all the speed of a plane (in a country the size of Japan) and all the convinence of a subway or commuter rail. Imagine having a mode of trasport that would get you from Boston to New York in about 2 hours, that leaves every 15 minutes and does not require reservations, pretty nice.

- I am now down in Fukuoka, which is on the south island of Japan, called Kyūshū. So far I like it down here better then Tokyo, size is a lot more manageable and people seem nicer and happier, sometimes the sleepy mobs of worker drones in Tokyo can be a little depressing.

- Fukuoka is famous for its Ramen, which they sell everywhere. I just had a bowl and have to say that it was the best $5 food dish I have ever had. There is actually a stong possibility that I will be having another bowl from a street stand before I go to bed tonight.

Japanese Baseball

I got out to a Japanese baseball game last night. It was a blowout win by the Ciba Lotte Marines over the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles. Baseball in Japan is different, actually pretty much everything but the game itself is not the same.

Tidbits:

- Each side out the outfield stands is dedicated to one teams super fans, during the entire game when their team is up to bat, they stand up and sing special cheers for each batter, accompanied by a drum and a trumpet. The entire game, and keep in mind it was 12-1 at one point.

- There are a million tiny girls with mini keg and tap backpacks that roam the stands and sell beer. It was actually only 600 yen ($5) for a glass, not bad.

- You can bring in outside food.

- My outside food was a boat of Takoyaki, or as we would call it, fried octopus balls. They were quite good ballgame food actually.

- Everyone releases long balloons during the 7th inning stretch.

- There is an army of people who pick up all the balloons in about 1 minute, including the players. Also, no one, and I mean no one leaves trash in the stands. You are expected to pack all your trash in a plastic bag and bring it to the trash bins.

All in all a really fun experience. The singing of the super fans is really something else. Makes a Fenway crowd seem downright boring.

Just like back at the office... War from the other side

Just killing some time before trying to get out to Chiba on the commuter rail to catch a Chiba Lotte Marines baseball game. Found one of these Manga Kissa (comic book cafe) places that I have heard about in Shibuya (so that I do not have to truck all the way out to the hostel before the game). It is a pretty good deal, 500 yen an hour for your own little private cubicle with a PC and a nice office chair. It reminds me a lot of the office, except here my cube has a door.

Did a little more wondering around Tokyo today, which takes a while because this city is really big. One of the more interesting things I checked out was the Yasukuni Shrine and museum. This is the place that the prime minister gets in big trouble with the Chinese and Koreans for visiting because it commemorates all of the soldiers from WWII, including executed war criminals.

The shrine itself is not that notable, it did seem to have a more cold feeling then the few others I have seen, but I do not know if that is just because I know that its purpose is to celebrate the old imperial army. The only other notable thing was the regular appearance of the imperial seal, which it not seen all that much elsewhere that I have noticed.

The museum was a little more interesting because, even in the English translations of the exhibits (I would love to be able to read the Japanese), it is set up from a very right-wing, pro-imperial point of view. First of all, they defend the aggressiveness of Japan in the WWII era from the standpoint the the US and Europe we unfairly dominating Asia, and a strong Japan was necessary to stop them. This more of an opinion then anything else, but it was interesting to see if from another point of view. Second, they defend the pre WWII operations in China as necessary because they were just trying to go to bat for ethnic minorities in Manchuria. Included in this is a defence of the rape of Nanking (this name not used in the display, obviously) based on their claim that Chinese solders were dressing up like civilians in order to retreat. Third, they blame US sanctions on them for the China actions for starting WWII, basically defending Pearl Harbor on the grounds that the US was being belligerent in trying to get them to stop their perfectly reasonable actions in China. Last, they claim that Japan was willing to stop the war before the bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, but the Russians pulled a fast one and killed the possibility of a deal, so that they could take over more territory before the war ended.

Anyway, a museum that dedicates the heroes of a lost war, including artifacts like a Kamikaze torpedo and glider is certainly not something that you are used to seeing as an American. But it certainly does show what effect who writes the history has on what impression you get about who were the good guys, or at least who were not the bad guys.