僕の町で迷っている- Getting lost in my town.

Once again it’s been a long time between blog posts sorry. I think as I get more and more used to things here the trivial differences have become, well, just that. It also has a fair amount to do with me being knee deep in data analysis and after having your eyes glued to a computer screen all day the desire to write is somewhat diminished.

I had originally planned a post about Christmas in Japan, how and why it sucked, the soul sucking commercialism of the whole event and blah blah blah. Looking back it wasn’t so awful. I mean it was rubbish but the New Year made up for it. That sums it up better than any ranty tirade I can think of.

Instead I am going to take you on a journey. A journey through time and sp… sorry bit of a Boosh moment there. Anyway I regularly listen to1 a podcast called “The Forum” from the BBC world service. It has many interesting discussions, check it out, but one interesting segment is “60 second ideas to change the world.”. On one such show one of the panellist recommended spending a day getting lost in your local area. I hadn’t intended on it but that’s just what I did, and I came across quite a few cool things.

My goal for the day was to buy a new tin opener, my old one broke, and a new laptop cover, my old one broke. I think you can see a pattern here. I’m really bad at keeping things nice, always have been. With that in mind I left my mountain home and set out to my local City, Himeji (姫路) incidentally It means “Princess street”.

Now I don’t want to sell it short, historically Himeji is very interesting. It has the largest Castle complex that  maintains much of it’s original construction, it is the most visited castle in Japan. This would be wonderful but sadly it’s in a box at the moment. Nearby is Mt. Shosha and the Engyoji temple complex, a very ancient Buddhist site as well as the setting for some scenes in “The last Samurai”. It is the second largest city in Hyogo and I’m sure there are many other things it’s famous for.

Here is the thing though Historical also means old. The price you pay for keeping such things well preserved is that you can’t do much renovation and renewal. There isn’t much of a night (or for that matter day) life in Himeji. For a city there isn’t a whole lot going on and with Osaka and Kobe so close I guess there is no real reason to bother.

Back to Sunday. Now I like most people am a creature of habit. My first thoughts for my shopping trip where to head to Miyukidori, the main high street of sorts. However for some reason when I left the station my body was telling me to go left not right. Sometimes it’s best not to argue so left I went.

Now one thing I really love about Japan is that it is really strong on boutique culture. The big name brands are of course about but they have no where near the presence you would see in high streets back home. For somewhere as homogeneous as Japan it is really amazing that so many niche and quirky stores can make a living. But they do just that. The fashion tribes rule the youth subcultures and it’s a consumer jungle out there so it lends itself well to these odd little stores.

First random encounter of the day was a café that specialised in all things soy. It was a tiny little thing with a Tudor style interior, very old school looking and quite incongruous in the surrounding concrete jungle. The place catered to all things bean, with fresh dried beans, home made soymilk, soy lattes on the menu ad even soy ice cream. I was more than a little happy. I bought some of said soymilk, made about 5 minutes from the till and I have to say it was worlds apart from the stuff you get at the supermarket, delish. The lovely old lady that owned the place assured me that their lunch menu was tasty also so I guess I’ll have to go back.

Returning to my pavement pounding with no real goal other than to find an electronics store I pressed further west. As I approached a bypass the roads started to widen and I was soon surrounded by nothing but car outlets and family restaurants.  It is of course at times like these that Japan likes to throw a quick spanner in the works.

As I crossed the next traffic signal I spotted a mini cooper. It took a second to sink in. A min cooper. In Japan! It’s been almost two years and I hadn’t seen a single one up until this point. Not only that but it was a classic none of this new fangled little big mini cooper nonsense. After the shock subsided I noticed another, and another, and in fact I was outside a mini cooper speciality garage. They even had a mini cooper pick up truck, not entirely sure when it would be useful but cool nonetheless.

 

After a few photos and nearly getting run over in the process I stumbled upon my next surprise. Out in what I can only really consider the middle (ish) of nowhere was an art museum.

Called the Enzan memorial museum of art it is a privately run establishment that specialises in showcasing traditional arts and crafts, including various methods for looming Obi (Japanese sashes) and bamboo weaving. The two curators looked a little nervous when I walked through the door but as soon as they realised I could speak a bit of Japanese they visibly relaxed and kindly demoed some of the techniques for me. It still amazes me a little just how timid Japanese people are about their English ability. 9 times out of 10 they know much more than they think they do and can communicate at least.

The second floor of the museum was a gallery with some wonderful displays of paper craft and intricate Noh masks. At times like this more than others I lament my inability to read Japanese. I really would have liked to know a little more about what was on display but alas I was lost in a sea of unknown symbols. This also meant my trip round the museum was considerably shorter since I wasn’t stopping to take notice of the signs. I did take a few moments to take in the wonderful garden at the entrance way though. The simple aesthetics of Japanese gardens are definitely a sight worth seeing.

And there ends my little detour. It was a nice reminder that life can still surprise even when partaking in the seemingly mundane. I encourage anyone feeling a bit humdrum to go and get lost in their local environs, just see what you can find. As for my shopping, well I at least found the tin opener. That's something.

Mata ne.

Into the Bush, Byron and a bit of surfing

Reunions are usually fun and seeing my cousin for the first time in a fair few years was no exception. Whilst we hadn’t really spent huge amounts of time together in the past, the age gap seemed much bigger when we were younger, I’ve always thought (and been told) we were pretty similar. At any rate he and his girlfriend made me feel so welcome at their home and I had a really chill couple of days.

Before I continue though, what a home! If my memory serves me my cousin was always a bit of a hippy and that whole idea of being in tune with your environment is something reflected by his current abode. It’s right in the middle of the Currumbin Valley and is pretty much surrounded by the forest on all sides. All the house water comes from rainwater and I’m pretty sure he said that the electricity and heating were solar powered. The toilets are even eco friendly, rather than flush they just go straight to compost.

My favourite thing though? If any of my rubbish was biodegradable I could just sling it over the side of the balcony into the forest for the local beasties to munch on. It was far more fun than it should have been.

So speaking of beasties there was an abundance of them around. Aside from my cousins dog there were also possums, bush turkeys and kangaroos weaving their way through the bush, though in the case of the former I only heard a pair scrapping in the wee hours of the morning. This being Australia there was also all manner of creepy crawly things flitting about. I’ve never been overly squeamish anyway but Japan has certainly hardened me to bugs.

Being the big nature geek that I am it is no real surprise that I was excited to experience some of Australia’s weird and wonderful wildlife. To that end my cousin kindly organised a trip to a nearby wildlife sanctuary for myself and some friends he had staying over.

Currumbin wildlife sanctuary is run by the national trust of Queensland and is one of the oldest of its kind on the gold coast, originally founded way back in 1947 by a beekeeper. Now it is of course a much grander affair and it even has a wildlife hospital attached. As a general rule I’ve avoided things like this whilst in Japan, the Japanese animal welfare policies are pretty abysmal making most zoos very depressing. The sanctuary was a breath of a fresh air however and made me reminisce of times long gone spent playing in Chester zoo. The enclosures were nice and spacious with plenty of nooks and crannies for the critters to tuck themselves away from prying eyes should the mood take them.

Aside from the usual animals; koalas, kangaroos, dingoes e.t.c, I managed to get through most of my checklist of weird Aussie wildlife, including echidnas and Cassowary; the worlds most dangerous bird. Sadly not platypuses (platypi?) at this sanctuary, they are apparently unbelievably rare. The wombats and Tasmanian devils were sadly a no show but that is just incentive for a second visit.

To round the trip off we watched a bird show sponsored by Air Asia. It’s a bit weird really to think such a massive global company would be sponsoring such a trivial thing but I guess all publicity is good publicity. I suppose it would be nice to think they are just trying to give something back, that’s what the less cynical part of me keeps saying at any-rate.

In fact this enviro-centric notion seems to permeate throughout Australia, from water saving toilets, through the large amount of recycling points all the way up to issuing massive fines for interfering with native wildlife. It’s clear to see that there is a big push to fight the wrongs of the past here. This reverence of the natural world is, I believe, very admirable and I hope it’s a growing trend.

There are similar ideals requiring this respect of the natural world in Japan, however it’s always seemed a bit shallow to me. Preservation does occur but, in general, only reserved for things of beauty or areas that can be considered aesthetically pleasing. Some of the older generation of Japanese people seem to be very proud of this but to me it just seems, like a lot of things in Japan, more about outward appearance than anything else.

Once we were all Koala’d out it was back to my cousins jungle retreat to chill for a bit. I really do mean just for a bit as well. With everyone having early starts the next day, my cousin is usually up at 5am to go surfing and his girlfriend has an almost 2 hour commute to work, bedtime was about 9am. In fact since the sun rises at about 4am and it’s too hot to do anything by midday, daily life there is shifted forward a couple of hours. Everything is really laidback as well, a nice change from the 24hr craziness that can be Japanese big cities or life in a synchrotron.

The following day I was up and ready to go by 7am. Today we were travelling through time, well time zones at any-rate, to Byron bay. A lot of people recommended this place to me and, given that I’m a big fan of mister mad, bad and dangerous to be with himself, I should at least have a gander at the town which takes it’s name from his grandfather. It’s nice though, super trendy, in fact maybe a little too trendy for me. It seems like a major way point for rich young backpackers on tours around Aus and the towns infrastructure has built up to reflect this. A bit more wandering would have been nice but I think it would of burnt a hole in my already over light wallet.

My cousin took me a bit further along to cape Byron, the eastern most point of mainland Australia. From here we had a nice wander along the costal cliffs and up to the lighthouse. This was apparently my Grandma’s favourite place in Australia on the occasions she visited. Looking out at the wonderful coastline views, the rolling waves and the impressive skyline of Gold Coast itself I could confirm something I have always known, she has great taste. On top of the views it is also a great spot for a bit of whale and dolphin watching, didn't manage to spot any of the former though sadly.

I finished the day up hanging out in Coolangatta, the Australian equivalent of Liscard. Well that sells it a little short, Liscard does not after all have gorgeous stretches of beach and I’m also told it’s a popular surf point. The high street isn’t much to look at though, but it did have somewhere I could buy new shoes. No surfing for me this day sadly as the wind was all wrong. I did have a good dip in the ocean though. Living up a mountain all the time makes me forget how much I miss the sea.

This trip definitely wet my appetite for a deeper exploration of the vast and quirky land that is Australia. I’m fortunate to have made a fair few Australian friends during my stay in Japan do they should expect a visit from me in the near future.

Yoroshiku ne.

Hilly Manly to Colourful Currumbin

So science over and done with it was time to delve into one of my other great passions, travelling. My plan was to fly out and meet my cousin early but sadly due to the enormous cost of flights on a Saturday I had to leave it until late evening. That left me with an extra half a day in Sydney that needed to be filled.

After a little bit of research in through the various leaflets lying around in my hotel I very quickly decided to head north to Manly by ferry to escape from the city and have a bit of a bike ride. Manly is about a 30-minute ferry ride out of Sydney’s main transport hub, Circular Quay, which was another 15 minutes from where I was staying. No lie in for me then if I wanted to make the most of the day.

Sadly that night I’d had to change rooms and my new sleeping spot had an open balcony overlooking the main road, with no windows! Needless to say I didn't sleep very much. In desperation I headed to the T.V room to try and chill on the coach. Alas I didn’t have much success but I did manage to watch a lot of classic Looney toons.

 

So with a little less than two hours of sleep under my belt I packed up my stuff, stuffed it in a locker and headed off to the ferry terminal. Alas my fatigued brain was not up to the task of buying ferry tickets and I managed to board the wrong one. I realised just in time but thanks to a rather unfriendly ticket lady I departed for Manly five dollars less rich.

The ferry ride over was very pleasant and reminded me of trips on the Mersey ferry when I was a wee little one, minus the obnoxious music of course. The addition of a spectacular view of the Sydney Opera house and Harbour Bridge were also very welcome.

30 minutes later and I was in Manly. A short stroll from the ferry terminal I found the bike rental place and looking around at all the awards they had won I knew I was in for a treat. The staff were friendly, the selection of bikes was large and all the safety equipment was provided. With my gear locked up and helmet strapped on I was ready for the off.

Getting out of the main town area was a little bit hairy but once you are away the roads clear up beautifully. It seems like the local council have really invested a lot in cycling as there were signed cycle routes everywhere. After a little bit of peddling I soon realised why the area is called Manly. It’s a hilly place and some of them are massive, if you aren’t feeling very manly when you set off you deffo will by the end of the day. A bit of reading has revealed that the reason behind the naming of the place is because of how ‘Manly’ the natives appeared to Capt. Arthur Phillip so there you go. Manland.

Sadly I was a bit short on time but I tried to cram in as much as I possibly could and did a rapid 30km route of the southern coast. First I headed out to Sydney harbour national park for a little bit of (unintentional) off-roading and some amazing coastline and Cliffside views. Having the vast expanse of the southern pacific stretching out before you on a clear day is totally breathtaking. If you get the chance to just take in a view like that sometime definitely go for it.

After a very short tour of the North fort artillery museum I turned back around and headed down towards Manly’s main beach, aptly named Manly beach, for a nice little promenade pedal and a break from all the hills. It being a Saturday the beach was packed and there was a lot of weaving to be done. If I’d had the time it would have been nice to maybe try and surf a bit and chill out but as usual time was short.

 

I finished out by heading west through the main residential area, more monster hills. There seemed to be a lot of construction and real estate auctions going on. I’m not too surprised to be honest as the area is gorgeous and just far enough from Sydney proper to not have the whole busy atmosphere of a big city.

So all pedalled out I bought a whole mango and some other snacks from ALDI, yes and ALDI and the brands were almost the same to, before boarding the ferry back to Sydney. After that it was a short hop by plane to the Gold coast, which in the eyes of local time zones took 0 time, and my cousin’s place in Corrumbin. I have to admit one of my favourite things about the trip, apart from the weather of course, has been the access to fresh fruit, vegetables and bread. That and shelves full of cereal. Ah how I miss the food of home.

Laters.