A brief foray into Tokyo

Tokyo has maybe more build up than any city I can  think of.  It is a city that I relate with it's pop-culture references, it's famous fashion and subcultures, its electronics.  I had rented a small apartment in a quieter part of the city, which we were very happy to poke around in.  On that note, we had a pretty chill time in Tokyo in general.  The thing about riding through a country and seeing so much is that for Bruce and I, by the time we get into a city we don't feel a huge need to see all the sights.  So we wandered  around some different parts of Tokyo, saw some of the sights, and got a very small experience in the giantic city that was the end-cap of our Japan journey.  Tokyo, at least the parts that we saw, struck me as a very clean and orderly city, with  visual interest all over  the place, teeming with young professionals in starched white shirts.  It is very cool, but also very expensive, so we were limited in what we were able to experience in Tokyo.

Bruce riding into Tokyo, Ginza area.

The best tako-yaki ever! (little douggh balls with octopus inside).

The busiest crossing in Tokyo, Shibuya area.

A Cute little area named Setagawa-Kitazawa, narrow streets with lots of second-hands stores and cafes.  I bought asuper yellow checked shirt from the 70's to cycle in.

      

Big crowds and colorful shops in Harajuku

Gorgeous brewing museum and tasting room at Yebisu brewery.

Huge tori lead to a beautiful temple nestled in a park.  One can almost forget they are in the city.

Next up.... Taiwan!

Family Matters

The weather in Nippon has finally broke in our favor and Fall seems to be upon the land.  Cooler days, breezes and regular rain showers fill our days.  It felt like quite a 180 from the first half of our tour of Japan.  The more comfortable conditions started straight away when we left Toyohashi, this time by train, and headed north into the mountains as we discussed in the last post. The true value of our choice in bikes comes out at these times as we were able to simply fold and pack the bikes and bring them on the train with us free of charge.  Something to think about for those that may be considering a tour in Asia.  There are trade-offs, ie. slower riding pace, but if there is even the remotest possibility that you will move throughout the countries any way other than by pedaling, one of these bikes might be for you. The  southern 'Japanesee Alps' turned out to be more a place of beautiful scenery with a series of lazy rivers, bridges, steep forested hills and small towns and villages.  

     

Leaving this area to head south and toward Mt Fujisan we found fantastic fall riding conditions.  This was short lived in the quickly changing and mildly manic Japanese weather as clouds quickly rolled in for the second half of the day and we started the longest climb to this point in our tour.  Over a 2 hour period we climbed about 1000m, or 3000ft up hairpin winding roads on a friendly grade.  We entered the 5 Lakes area of Mt Fuji just in time for the real rains to start.  Here is what we saw at what is said to be one of the most picturesque places in Japan...

Here is an artists rendition that is on the 1000 yen bill. 

 It would have been a nice view but one thing you learn is nature is truly the one thing that you can't fight and will drive you mad if you allow, so you smile and move on to find your camp.  Which we did at a local camping ground and went to sleep in order to fight another day.

A long night of torrential rain led to a morose wakeup and thoughts that we may not be able to move that day.  We waited out the worst of it and were however able to make our break in between the downpours.  The riding along the 5 lakes region was highly enjoyable and we encourage those touring this area to put it on their list.  We also, however, encourage you to check the road grades prior to setting out.  We were lucky to choose the correct route as we headed out of the region and back down toward the coast we encountered amazing views and unrideable grades...18%!!  That is 18ft  of vertical for every 100ft horizontal.  That may not mean much to most of you but if you have ever tried riding an extended 10% grade and know the misery that can create then 18% is about a hellacious as it comes.  We were luckily descending this and enjoyed the hell out of it...especially Chiara who was a bit weary from being wet and hungry but found a new found energy after this amusement ride style route.

  

Our destination after the all this riding was the home of a friend of a friend, Bee.  Steven, Bruce's ex-coworker and buddy let us know when we entered Japan that an old friend of his lived there.  We contacted Bee early on in our trip, assuming that we would stop there for a night or two.  As it turned out we stayed for 4 nights, and we both felt as though we could stay longer.  Bee, her husband Jun, and their two children live in a small village named Yadoriki, high in the hills at the bottom of the Fuji area.  It was breathtakingly beautiful at thier house.  Lush, mountainous, verdant, with singing insects, visiting monkeys (that we weren't able to see) and steep, narrow roads, they live in a pretty remote area in a comfortable, expansive house near Yun's family.  

Bruce and I were so excited for a room and our own bed, and the family made us feel comfortable right off the bat when Jun picked us up at the nearest 7-11, rushing forward to give us a big hug and sheparding us into his van.  What a great 4 days.  We cooked great food, lazed around, watched movies, visited places in the village and in the nearby town, cycled around, and most importantly, hung out with people that started to feel like family by the end of our stay.

  

Hard to tear ourselves away is the understatement of the trip thus far.  Morning rain, a hot breakfast and the prospect of another day of perpetual wetness meant we once again dragged our feet on departing from Bee and Jun's place in Yadoriki.  The 'Crack of Noon' Tour strikes again...

We nevertheless made our way to Tokyo, the longest single day of riding to date on this tour (106km), in intermittent rain and traffic.