I landed in Haneda airport at midnight, had my bike together by 1:30, slept in the airport until about 6, and then headed into Tokyo. It occurred to me that my layover in Denpasar was the farthest south I've ever been, and the only time I've been in the southern hemisphere.
I spent the first night in Tokyo in a capsule hotel, which turned out to be just as nice if not nicer than most of the dorms I've been in. I guess it was an atypical one though as it was basically identical to dorm bunk beds except with 3 walls on each side of the dorm, and the capsules weren't stacked side by side.
All the famous cherry trees aren't blooming yet. Instead they look like this:
It didn't take long to find some torii gates (considering they're everywhere)
As well as plenty of pagodas, gates, and temples
Tokyo also has the imperial palace, which is closed except for a few days a year
Japan is quite a bit different from anywhere else I've been in Asia. The traffic lights aren't signaled, and they're designed for high traffic all the time, so people get to wait at red lights forever. Despite that, people wont jaywalk, and they don't honk at each other. You would think Tokyo would have terrible traffic, but so many people ride bikes and the subway that the roads are hardly busy at all. Tokyo is the quietest large city I've been in. You're allowed to bike on the sidewalk and on the street. Policemen bow at cars in apology when they have to stop traffic. In the tourist areas there are tons of police, but many of them are 60+ years old, and still out patrolling the streets.
In Hong Kong they employ special conductors during rush hour to stand in front of the doors of subway trains and force people to move to the side to let passengers off before more force their way on. In Tokyo, everyone just does this on their own.
Since I had a while In Japan, and Tokyo was becoming too familiar, I took the train to Kyoto, which was way too expensive, and they wouldn't let me take my bike. So when I arrived in Kyoto, I rented a bike and wandered around. I ended up with much more of a road bike, and I was struck by just how much I felt every single bump I went over which made me love my own bike even more.
These roofs are made of layers of cypress bark, which is how they can make them in such an odd shape:
I had planned on staying in Kyoto for a bit longer but it was pouring rain, so I went to Osaka to see the castle:
Apparently this is high tourist season both domestic and foreign (because of the cherry trees about to bloom), so when I was looking at hotels in near Himeji, everything under $100 a night was booked, and without my tent, sleeping bag, and bike, I felt a bit helpless so I headed back to Tokyo, where the hotels were also fully booked. I went back to the hostel where all my gear was, planning on spending the night in a park/campground, but it turns out they did have rooms available. I have spent the rest of my time in Tokyo enjoying the noodles, and sushi on a conveyor belt (which is an amazing idea).
I will soon be boarding a plane that lands before it takes off, and I will finally be back in the USA.
I spent the first night in Tokyo in a capsule hotel, which turned out to be just as nice if not nicer than most of the dorms I've been in. I guess it was an atypical one though as it was basically identical to dorm bunk beds except with 3 walls on each side of the dorm, and the capsules weren't stacked side by side.
All the famous cherry trees aren't blooming yet. Instead they look like this:
It didn't take long to find some torii gates (considering they're everywhere)
As well as plenty of pagodas, gates, and temples
Tokyo also has the imperial palace, which is closed except for a few days a year
Japan is quite a bit different from anywhere else I've been in Asia. The traffic lights aren't signaled, and they're designed for high traffic all the time, so people get to wait at red lights forever. Despite that, people wont jaywalk, and they don't honk at each other. You would think Tokyo would have terrible traffic, but so many people ride bikes and the subway that the roads are hardly busy at all. Tokyo is the quietest large city I've been in. You're allowed to bike on the sidewalk and on the street. Policemen bow at cars in apology when they have to stop traffic. In the tourist areas there are tons of police, but many of them are 60+ years old, and still out patrolling the streets.
In Hong Kong they employ special conductors during rush hour to stand in front of the doors of subway trains and force people to move to the side to let passengers off before more force their way on. In Tokyo, everyone just does this on their own.
Since I had a while In Japan, and Tokyo was becoming too familiar, I took the train to Kyoto, which was way too expensive, and they wouldn't let me take my bike. So when I arrived in Kyoto, I rented a bike and wandered around. I ended up with much more of a road bike, and I was struck by just how much I felt every single bump I went over which made me love my own bike even more.
These roofs are made of layers of cypress bark, which is how they can make them in such an odd shape:
I had planned on staying in Kyoto for a bit longer but it was pouring rain, so I went to Osaka to see the castle:
Apparently this is high tourist season both domestic and foreign (because of the cherry trees about to bloom), so when I was looking at hotels in near Himeji, everything under $100 a night was booked, and without my tent, sleeping bag, and bike, I felt a bit helpless so I headed back to Tokyo, where the hotels were also fully booked. I went back to the hostel where all my gear was, planning on spending the night in a park/campground, but it turns out they did have rooms available. I have spent the rest of my time in Tokyo enjoying the noodles, and sushi on a conveyor belt (which is an amazing idea).
I will soon be boarding a plane that lands before it takes off, and I will finally be back in the USA.
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