Cycling the Length of Japan: Day 5/6 + Some Random Thoughts and Observations
On Day 5, I rode from Furano to Sapporo through a mostly remote region with perfect cycling roads. The weather was good (read: no rain) and it was a very pleasant day on the bike with 70 miles and about 2500′ of climbing, so not an overly taxing day.
Raman Alley
Day 6 was a “rest day” in Sapporo where I spent time exploring the downtown area. Very nice city core, with countless interesting restaurants, but I can’t fathom what it’s like in the winter. Here’s a dense city with 2 million people that gets 20 FEET of snow a year. They say it’s totally surreal in the city during the depths of winter. I can’t image where they put it all.
That’s over $22 for a melon
Hokkaido is an incredible fertile place, filled with farms, and lush river valley’s that look like they could grow about anything. But the local fruit is unbelievably expensive. I stopped at a cherry stand and a small basket was $15. Grapes for a similar price. This better be one damn good melon.
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SOME RANDOM THOUGHTS/OBSERVATIONS:
TOILETS: No trip to Japan would be complete without a discussion of their toilets. They give new meaning to the word “throne”. Sure, there’s the occasional hole in the ground like the old French-style. But the vast majority have an unsettling mixture of plumbing and electronics. The side handle has a bunch of buttons and lights, and the contraception will usually do something when you sit, either the seat will heat up (not all that satisfying in 85 degree, 85% humidity weather), or some water will spray (hopefully down), or there’s this little beep, or the sound of rushing water. Sometimes this electronic add-on is stuck on a standard Home Depot model, or more than likely, it’s this fully integrated unit that appears a bit over-engineered for the purpose.
The one in my current hotel has the electronic keypad on a remote device, which means the toilet either has Bluetooth or some other short range wireless technology. I haven’t yet heard music playing, seen a place to charge my phone, or noticed a USB adaptor, but I’m sure it’s only a matter of time.
JAYWALKING: I know Japan is a classic Social Culture (vs the Individualistic US Culture), and I know there is a culture of following the rules (one of the reasons it’s so safe to travel here), so I’m guessing that’s why no one, and I mean NO ONE ever jaywalks, at least in Hokkaido. Never. I’ve seen people standing at a light looking at “The Red Hand” when there isn’t a car in sight, but no ones goes. So there I am standing right along with everyone else thinking, “wait, there are no cars, and this road is only about 25 feet wide!”, so I go, partly to see if anyone joins me. Well, I’m here to report, when I do that, I’m solo crossing the street. Defiant Gaijin!
BIG GLASSES COME TO JAPAN: That faux-intellectual, nerdy, big dark-rimmed glasses look that’s all the rage in the 20/30-something hipper than hip crowd in the US, apparently has come to Japan. And seeing it on someone with Rachel Maddows stature is one thing, but seeing it on a petite teenage girl about 5’2″ and weighing just over 100 lbs is quite another. Not sure it works.
robert j. mang cycling/travel 