Rented a clunky bicycle (but it was cheap, less than US$4) from this underground bicycle garage across the road from my hotel in Niigata. Cycled a 20km course, mainly on off-road trails beside waterways and the Sea of Japan, around the core city while being buffeted by wind gusts that nearly brought me to a standstill. After returning the bike and a late lunch, had a deep nap back in my hotel room.
Category: Living
A rural train station in a 7-mile tunnel
Rain this morning, time to ride the rails and find a place Instagram influencers have yet to over-love: Tsutsuishi Station, on a rural line, approximately 60 riders a day (mainly school kids), in a 7-mile tunnel, 130 feet underground, no elevator. Click through for a photo journal.
A rural train station in a 7-mile tunnel
Rain this morniing, time to ride the rails and find a place Instagram influencers have yet to over-love: Tsutsuishi Station, on a rural line, approximately 60 riders a day (mainly school kids), in a 7-mile tunnel, 130 feet underground, no elevator. Click through for a photo journal.
Cycling the shores of Toyama Bay
Toyama is bicycle-friendly: city policies push for more bicycles and fewer cars. While bikeshare stations dot the city, I rented a cross-bike (USD$8) more suitable for exploring. I cycled a scenic trail (look at those mountains!) for a few hours that mostly follows the shoreline of Toyama Bay. Along the way, stopped for a picnic at a table clearly intended for that purpose in the grounds of a shrine.
Plan for remainder of trip
Today (Monday) after walking the Grand Ring at Expo 2025 in Osaka (1), I took an express train then a bullet train to Toyama (2) where I’ll stay for three nights. I’ll then spend three nights in each of Niigata (3) and Akita (4) before heading for Yokohama (5) then Tokyo’s Haneda airport to fly home.
Walking the Grand Ring at Expo 2025 in Osaka
Walked the paths atop the beautiful 2-kilometer structure encircling Osaka’s Expo 2025. Up close, the amazing workmanship features traditional joints reminiscent of temple construction. The laminated wooden beams are meticulously finished and appear suitable for interior work. Its theme, “unity in diversity,” is something most would surely support.
Kobe: art, architecture, and a look at history
Visited the Hyogo Prefectural Museum of Art in Kobe, designed by Tadao Ando. I always feel at peace in Ando’s buildings. Walked around galleries featuring Ando’s building models and timeline. Took a look at a large Paul Klee retrospective, his Bauhaus pieces particularly resonated with me. His work was condemned as degenerate in 1930’s Germany and was confiscated from museums. In the USA we’re on the thin end of that wedge.
Plan: Osaka the long way
This morning (Saturday) I make a quick getaway from Fukuoka (1) to Hagi (2), a less-visited castle town, for the night. The next day (Sunday) I’d planned to continue to a second castle town, Tsuwano (3), for the afternoon before heading to Osaka (4) for Sunday night. Rain is guaranteed in Tsuwano, so scrub that plan, I’ll go directly to Osaka. Ultimately, I’m aiming for northwest Honshu, but breaking up the journey.
Hiking the Karatsu OLLE course
It took 3 trains and a bus to reach the trailhead for a Kyushu OLLE hike, but that’s part of the fun. It’s getting harder to find a course I haven’t hiked. I followed special markers past rice paddies, through the ruins of an enormous castle, and through rural villages. Here, I imagined I would be one of the peasants in feudal times, carrying the local Daimyo (lord) in a palanquin.
Hakata (tonkotsu) ramen for introverts.
I’m staying next to Hakata Station, a district of Fukuoka, so, of course I had Hakata-style ramen for dinner. The creamy broth is made from pork bones, cooked at a rolling boil for an extended period, 12 to 60 hours, depending on the recipe. I ordered and paid at a touchscreen at the entrance. When the meal was ready, the flap at the back of the cubicle rose up, and hands appeared bearing the meal. Eye contact was impossible.