Riding the best rails in the World

So you have boarded, found you seat and seen the ‘pilot’ make his final checks, the journey starts with a cool smooth easing away, before the acceleration hits you and you are flying. This is no jet plane, and we are not on the Airbus A380!! This is the Japanese Shinkansen. The Bullet train.

Actually there are many Shinkansen services, and basically they are the superfast super smooth intercity services that ping up and down the country. Running on dedicated lines they are really quick (over 275Km/h and NEVER late. You can set your watch by the departure times.



We took a few Shinkansen trains and basically travel the whole length of the country using these trains and they are a real joy to use.

Few words of note – always look to make a reservation, as the trains are popular. Always use you Japan rail, and never lose it (!) the journeys we took would have cost us around 70,000 yen – the pass was 29,000. Grab some food before your flight (sorry, train) you do get a trolley service but it is nice to eat a bento box on the train, makes it feel even more like a flight! Get to the station on time, people are all soooo punctual, that things kind move at a pace, and as the safety signs say, you should never rush for your train! (Try telling the brits that!



It is a great experience and really makes travelling and seeing Japan a joy. You don’t have to enjoy trains to enjoy the Shinkansen; just the slickness of the service and the sense of flying on the ground is enough!

New experiences in Japan - The Onsen and the Capsule Hotel

Onsen

Whilst being in Japan we have tried a few new things and really enjoyed them. One of them was the Onsen. Basically the Tradition Japanese public baths, many would say that this is the last thing of traditional Japan to remain and is a much loved part of the culture. Simply put an Onsen will have one or a few hot baths with a range of mineral properties. You enter the ‘complex’ wash yourself and then soak in these baths for as long as you want (or as long as you body can take!). You use the provided towel to scrub your skin and cleanse yourself of all the toxins and gunk that collects during normal life. There are loads of these around Japan, and many have something special about them, for example the location, the views etc. Whilst in Hokkaido (northernmost region of Japan – basically in Russia!!!) we went to a really amazing hot spring town called Noboribetsu. Built on a natural hot spring the Onsen we went to was huge – many pools, some outside, and some so hot you can only stay in for 2 minutes!! It was a really amazing experience, and bizarrely relaxing but tiring at the same time!

The water was clearly very therapeutic as both Urvi and I can out pretty chilled out and very clean!! Urvi couldn’t stop admiring the renewed quality of her skin, and the ‘glow’ that emanated from it!!

It’s all good fun, but we warned, Swimming cosies are a no no – how guys and gals are separate and towels are provided to cover and to use as a flannel.

Capsule Hotel

Everyone knows that real estate in Japan cost the earth (!) therefore staying the night anywhere short of the local train station waiting room, is expensive. We are back packing so of course ‘hotels’ are generally banned from our plans, but in Japan the funky solution they have come up with is to stack people neatly and comfortably in capsules rather than give them individual rooms.

When you think about the budget airlines do exactly the same! Strip away anything that is not essential to you – so in the case of the capsule that’s EVERYTHING apart from the bed space and the walls for privacy, and you get the idea! Even the door is a basic screen, rather than something you hang the do not disturb sign on!

We are staying in a capsule for our very last night in Japan, before we head out to the airport. Tomorrow. First impressions are that it is a great, simple and relaxing way to get a night’s sleep. That’s all it is!! So – you check in, get a locker where you keep your bags, go up to the capsule floor, and find your cubby hole. As I say, there is a comfortable mattress, light, A/C and a tiny TV showing the basic Japanese TV channels. Guys and Gals are separate; in fact most capsules will not allow Gals at all. There are the traditional Japanese baths, and that’s it!! I would not suggest spending days on end in the capsule, it does get a bit confined I would think. Also having to go backwards and forwards to your luggage is no fun, but for a night or 2 it’s great, and darn cheap! Oh they even give you pyjamas!!!

General throughts on Japan

Before we came to Japan our thoughts (I think this is common for most people) on the country was that it will be expensive, dripping with technology and people who are fashionable, rich and a bit arrogant. Food would be a problem, but getting around would be easy.

Our impression now (after a few weeks) is that this place is special. The people are amazing, and everything just works sooo well. I think it takes a lot for us to be amazed, or impressed with things, but I can definitely say we have been overwhelmed by Japan.

This place is special.

The biggest thing is that the people are so amazingly polite and ordered. Japan is the world headquarters of customer service and politeness. I thought the endless ‘hi! How are you today!’ that you hear in stores in the US, was enough but here, people take the ‘customer is king’ concept to a totally new level. We went to MacDonald’s to get a green tea ice cream; they had run out, and the girl was so so sorry that she could not serve us this, she was almost tearful! Another funny example, was I went to the food court in a big store, they had just opened, so I was in the first group of people entering, EVERY member of staff ‘greeted’ us as we entered, as if we were walking into the Ritz. Things are so polite, that even the road construction workers, say hello to you as you walk past their site, and when ticket attendants leave the carriage, they turn and bow to the passengers. I could go on, and on. The basic thing is that people are so nice, bother to new people and to each other. To me it seems that society is kind of set up where people will think of the person in front of them first before themselves. It makes for such a nice travelling experience.

Having said all of this, people are a little reserved. They will not easily open a conversation with you (or anyone for that matter). Japan is not a noisy place full of people gossiping and yelling at each other (which is China in a nutshell!).

The other major point we noted were that things all JUST WORK PERFECTLY. Trains run exactly to time, and are spotless; ticketing systems are all logical and perfect; and navigation is a breeze. You know what to expect from people and from systems here, and that is nice.

What we have found is that things are all pretty new, but you don’t feel that you have arrived on to some moon base; things are not futuristic and unrecognisable. Japan is very clean, but not sterile; however people all take pride in their spaces, and in public spaces. Of course Japan is known for technology and it is everywhere, but Japan is not full of technology just for the sake of it - although you could say the fully automatic toilets, with heated seats, built in spray and ‘intense deodorisers’ is taking things a bit far! They use technology here to make this easier, or speed things up. People are not lazy due to the technology but it is there to make life easier. The only exception to that would be the taxis where the doors open and close by themselves! That’s probably a bit lazy, but pretty cool.

A simple example of functional advancements is the phones. They are miles and miles ahead of what we have in the UK and light years ahead of the states. People have money on the phones and use them to make small payments, also coupons and vouchers are all stored on the phones so when you go to the supermarket you have all you discount with you. When not paying for things on the phone, you can watch live TV, and a host of other things from the handset. It is amazing. Of course what this means is that most Japanese are glued to their phones, and metro trains are full of people gawping into the screens!!

Japan is notably homogeneous. There seems to be very very few foreign communities here, this is clearly very different to Europe and the US. This was no problem for all the reasons given above, but there is a strong sense that Japan would be a difficult place to come and settle in. The Japanese want to keep their culture fairly pure, however with a population that is reducing year o year, this approach might be put under pressure as a skills shortfall opens.

For me Japan is totally a country of cities – Greater Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka and Nagoya make up the majority of the population and in total 80% of the population live in a city. This is not a bad thing for a traveller here, there are many amazing places outside of the cities also, and when you get out there, it feels so relaxing, due to the sparse population.

I guess in summary, we have come to love Japan, we will only be here for 3 weeks in total, but the place has an amazing feeling to it. All the hassles of life are made easier here, so you are left with time and space to enjoy and experience other more valuable parts of life. The people are all really nice, and again this makes the travelling experience really positive. I walk around always smiling, because people smile back! Sure they are reserved and maybe a little to clinical in their approach, but when things are as well thought through and efficiently run as they are here, why is this a problem!

I would warn you though, if you take a Shinkansen, never get to the station late – hoping that the train might be a bit late. In the last 20 years the average delay on a bullet train has been less than 1 minute. These things run to an atomic clock!! And you can never jump a queue to get your train!

Tokyo - The City that never switches off the lights!

I have found that often when blogging there is so much one can say that you end up saying nothing! Tokyo is a case in point – we fell in love with Tokyo, but I can’t tell you exactly why! It wasn’t the technology paradise that I was expecting, but there is enough gadgetry to keep you busy, it wasn’t to mass throng of humanity - because once you spend any time in India other place simply feel underwhelming in terms of crowd and population, it definitely is not the history and ancient culture, because thanks to the second world war, most of Tokyo and indeed most of japans big cities were all flattened and had to start from square one – literally.



I think the thing about Tokyo, is the relentless confidence that you see everywhere, and in everyone. People in Tokyo, have a swagger – not an American ‘in your face’ type of confidence, but a much more impressive stance, embedded in quality and style. Everyone and everything in Tokyo is stylish and therefore most of it is expensive. You just have to walk around to see that!



We spent 7 days in Tokyo, for many people that was the total length of their Japan trip! So we did have some time to let the city wash over us. The way we approached the place was by area. There were not a great number of places that one must tick off in Tokyo, so we decided to spend a day or evening in the main areas of the city, these were:

• Shinjuku – Business and entertainment
• Shibuya – young trendy and the location of the famous multiple crossing that you see in the pictures
• Harajuku – young and trendier! Shopping mecca now
• Ginza – where the mega rich still shop - $270 for a Mango anyone?
• Akihabara – Electronics Town
• Roppongi – Party capital, sleeps by day, never sleeps by night
• Odaiba – reclaimed land, malls, and amazing views of the city
• Asakusa – where we lived, sight of an amazing temple also

Each of the areas was different, but they all had a buzz to them. You get a pretty big dose of Neon while in Tokyo, there are lights everywhere! And they are on all the time. Also people seem to love shopping here. It is amazing how much they do, and how quickly you can get sucked into the materialistic fervour. I went mad in Akihabara! it is crammed full technology, TVs, Camera, laptops etc. The big things in Japan are the phones which seem many years ahead of Europe. We loved pottering around these shops.



I think that Tokyo is definitely a city where if you lived here, it would feel mighty different. There is a real vibe and buzz to the place, driven many by the young, this buzz would just grow and grow if you lived here. You would also get a feel for just how expensive it is to live here. Tokyo is officially the most expensive city in the world. Staying in a hostel for 30GBP per night, you don’t get the right impression. I am sure it is not easy to live here, and you can see why people are so driven and strive for success – it’s the only way to maintain this lifestyle in this Mecca for all Cities.



Visiting for days doesn’t do the place justice. We saw the above areas in isolation, and didn’t see how it was to live and breathe the city. Also despite being underwhelmed by the volume of people, one has to see the scale of the place in the context of the whole country. Taking the Tokyo metropolitan region there are 32m people living there, this means 1 in 5 Japanese live there. It also makes Tokyo the largest city in the world.



Basically if you are looking for old style culture, delicate leafy suburbia, cool conditions and somewhere that lets you recharge – avoid Tokyo. It will not do any of this. What it will do is give you a hard but friendly shake and blast you with bright lights, and amazing people.

50 Day marker reached!!!!!!!!!! Still Loving it

We have been on the road for 50 DAYS!!!! The pessimists would say that’s already 10% of the trip gone, I guess we are thinking that we still have 450 days left to enjoy!!!!!!

Hope you are enjoying the blog and the pics, I have been having a few problems with the camera, so the pics are not as good as i would like them, but I hope they give you a taste of the sights around the world.

Mount Koya Temple experience

On arrival into Japan the first area we spent some time in was Kansai. This is south of Tokyo and includes some of the most notable locations to visit.



Urvi had found out about this place called Mount Koya which is famous for the collection of temples where you can stay and get the full experience of Japanese Buddhism, temple life, food and ceremony. Basically you book a room, which is in the traditional Japanese style (tatami mats and all) and you get dinner, bed and breakfast, most temples also have the traditional baths and expect you to take part in the early morning prayer ceremony.



Don’t be fooled into thinking that this experience was either ‘simple’ or even cheap, it was neither! To my mind the temples are actually more religious retreats than functioning temples, and the experience was spiritual but with comfort and luxury. The rooms are simple (as is the Japanese style) but classy, and the service was impeccable (we soon found that this was very much the norm in Japan – even in MacDonald’s!!!!)

We had an amazing tea and then full traditional dinner – which was fully vegetarian. I felt that eating Japanese food in this style is a bit like eating on a plane (albeit in first class!) as there are so many little compartments of food, and everything is really nicely presented. You never think that you will be full but are always stuffed by the end of it. Top of the bill was the tofu, which they do a few different ways, this is the cuisine that Koya is famous for. The Miso Soup was amazing and the pickles soooo aromatic.






It’s safe to say that we enjoyed the food totally. The only problem for me was that again in tradition style the dinner was served on the floor. So that meant sitting on the floor, not a strength of mine!!!

In the morning we got up for the traditional prayer ceremony. This was really amazing, very relaxing – so much so I nearly fell asleep again! In total the prayers lasted about an hour, and they are actually more a meditation, rather than prayers. After the meditations, the main guru, invited people (mainly tourists) for coffee and to discuss the ceremony and what things meant. This was nice and again helped us to understand what we have experienced.

After this we went back to the room, where breakfast was waiting. This was no stale croissant and dodgy coffee affair, it was a full on Japanese breakfast. I must say that there were some major similarities in the design of the meal between dinner and breakfast but the dishes were all different. It was a really great and refreshing start to the day. It was also a huge brekkie and therefore set us up perfectly for the days touring.

We then checked out and took a walk around the rest of Koya. It’s a really beautiful place. The town is placed on the mountain, and it has a quiet reflective feel to it. One of the main things there is the Buddhist cemetery. This is pretty much the largest in Japan, and definitely the most important. Any ‘important’ Buddhist in Japan would want to be laid to rest there. It is completely set within a wood and is just magical.

Taking the Maglev to Airport

After having seen the awesome scale of the Transiberian, and the engineer feat and beauty of the Quinghai railroad to Tibet, we now boarded the fastest train in the world, the Shanghai Airport Maglev shuttle. Don’t get me wrong, this trip is not some kind of train spotter’s paradise, but these are some of the great manmade achievements in the world. The Maglev – Magnetic Levitation Train, has no wheels, it does not really have rails, rather there are magnets that when set to the same polarity make the train levitate. This frictionless environment allows super duper speeds of up to 400km/h. That is quick; trust me it is the closest thing to flying on land that you can get. The technology is so expensive that this is the only track in the world that is fully running, but typically the Chinese want to build a track that runs from Shanghai to Beijing, the train would take about 1-2hours to make the journey, that is overnight right now.





8mins to lug our bags from the hostel to the metro stop, 8 minutes to travel at 370km/h and get to the airport to board our flight. Time is so relative isn’t it!!

Kailash Kora is complete, with tears and an amazing sense of achievement!

54Kms, 5700m, 3 major passes and 21hours of trekking – we have completed the most amazing and most challenging experience of our lives.





The first day started with a trek from Darchen, past the site of the Saga Dawa Festival and on into the valley between the mountains. This was actually quite a tough day, despite not having to climb very much, but I think the exertion got to us. We stayed overnight at a guesthouse in front of the north face of Mount Kailash. This was really amazing, as it was bit like staying at a temple site. The mountain was right in front of us all the time and you couldn’t help but get enthralled by it.





The second day was really the toughest. We started at 0530 when it was -3 degrees and pitch black! This was where it felt the most difficult. Breathing was difficult and you felt really cold. We would take 1 hour to go a few 100 metres, and would be stopping every few steps. There were moments during this stage that we really didn’t think that we could make it and really thought of turning back. Not sure what it was but I was absolutely determined that we both were to make it to the pass. The next hours passed by very tough - snow, ice, bitter cold, windy. I don’t understand how we made it but we did. It was so amazing to get to the top of the pass. I can’t see how the older people can do this; they struggle with the horses, so goodness only knows how they could walk it. I feel very proud and also really privileged to have been able to walk this mountain and to have actually achieved it.

Mount Kailash – we did it without addition oxygen – the way of the Chinese, without altitude sickness tablets – the way of the western tourists and without horses or yaks – the way of the Indian pilgrim! I am glad we did this totally unaided!





The Drom-la pass which is the key and most difficult part of the trek. This was the biggest achievement. We put a prayer flag up which had the names of all our family members on it. This was to give good luck and blessings to them. We hope that our pilgrimage will bring good fortune to them all and all our friends and acquaintances.

Mount Kailash – a trip that opens your eyes

We are not even at Mount Kailash Kora yet, and still this has been the highlight of our trip and is likely to be when we are through the 16 months.

Tibet is one of the most beautiful places we have ever been, and I tell you when you catch a glimpse of the towering Himalayas it is a real life changing moment. I felt totally humbled by just the sight of the mountains. I will be honest, Tibet is not the picture postcard all the time, there is some really changing scenery and some is barren and raw. But the moment you see the mountains it is just amazing. There is something very pure about the snow caps and so untouchable about the mountains. Very inspiring.





Once again the people are just as beautiful as the countryside they live in. We have been really overwhelmed by the hospitality of the people and their gentleness. Goodness only knows why China insists on controlling and commanding over them. The thing that really hurts me is that the people of Tibet are not allowed to even hold a passport and therefore are treated as second class citizens within the Chinese ‘empire’. I find this so horrible and when you meet the amazing people here, and in particular the kids, they are just so kind, welcoming, and willing to talk and play with you. I think it is a tragedy, that they are constrained and controlled. They don’t have the opportunity to tell people about their country and spend time sharing the amazing traditions and culture that they have.





The trip we are taking is over 16 days, and takes in the major Tibetan Buddhist monasteries, the highlights of the Tibetan scenery and will conclude with the total highlight of the trip – the Saga Dawa festival and the pilgrimage to Mount Kailash and Lake Mansarovar. This is a really highlight on a number of fronts, but we have now really taken the Mount Kailash Kora as a pilgrimage and a spiritual event. Mount Kailash is a holy centre point for the Buddhist, Hindu, Jain and Bon (ancient Tibetan) religions. Tomorrow (7th June 2009) is the most holy date in the Tibetan calendar, and is a special date for people to undertake pilgrimage. For Buddhists, Mt Kailash is one of the holiest places in the world, and therefore to undertake a pilgrimage here at this time is special. For us Jains if you do the ‘Kora’ (circumbulation) of Mt Kailash at this time, it is even more special, and worth 13 normal Kora’s. So it is going to be hellishly difficult (3 days – 54kms, at 5700m altitude) but it is going to be one of the most important religious events we can do.





I would not class myself as very religious, but when you come to Mt Kailash you can’t help but feel the spirituality of the place, and can’t help feeling spiritual in a place like this.

Our tour took us through the towns of Shigatse, Lhatse and to Prayang. From there we continued across country towards Lake Manasarovar. We stayed in small, wonderful guesthouses, where you only get a bed and some food, and no showers. By the time we started the walk we basically had not showered for 5 days!!! Upto the trek we spent our time driving for the 4 days and covered about 2000kms in total.

Tibet – a different country indeed

Let me park the politics for a second. Tibet is a beautiful country that really is steeped in history and culture. The major focus of any visit here is the Buddhist religion and the scenery. The mountains are everywhere and are such a strong force in Tibetan culture. In Lhasa (the notional capital and largest city) they are all around you. However the other thing that is as ever present in Lhasa as the mountains are the Chinese army. It is a really bizarre sight to see this many armed guards. They are on every corner of the main areas of Lhasa. (Back to the politics!) After the uprisings of the last year, the Chinese forces are everywhere, which in this time of current peace feels really weird. Also I have to say that from our experiences of the last few days, you would never meet such placid, kind and relaxed individuals as the Tibetans, so this display of power and domination seems totally over the top. China has a really funny relationship with Tibet, on one hand they actively suppress the Tibetan people, they can’t hold passports and therefore can’t travel; ‘Chinese’ people are drafted into set up businesses and other commerce at the cost of the Tibetans; and in general Tibetan people are seen as very much second class. However Tibet is stunningly beautiful and full of natural wealth, therefore an increasing number of Chinese tourists are flocking here, and openly China talks about its pride in Tibet. I find it very weird. Of course if you were on the Chinese side, one would be saying that Tibet is part of China, and that is without question. Therefore they don’t see what the argument is. The troops are there to protect the people and ensure order is maintained and this would happen wherever in china there was unrest. I don’t buy it. I think that Tibet is a status symbol for china, oh and full of the rich minerals and other natural treasures. I got a real sense of unease, with people going about their own lives but always under the watchful gaze of the military. What is funny is that the troops (often young) looked really bored, and why wouldn’t they, there is such little to do. I think the Chinese have totally over done it.





Back to the interesting stuff! I fell really honoured to be in Tibet. It is a place no one I know has been and although once you get here, it feels very much like other parts of china, it is still a bit of a voyage into the unknown. There is a mystic feel about the place, and about the people. The altitude also plays its part in making the experience very different. Lhasa is at about 4500m above sea level, so the air is thin, and takes some getting used to. I struggled a little bit for the 1st day or so, but after that it got better. When you get to Lhasa you see 2 distinct sides to the place, the first is the Chinese developed, status symbol that the city has become. Much of the city is brand new, and there are new buildings coming up everywhere. The station is a prime example. Built only 3 years ago, linked to the completion of the amazing Quinghai Tibet rail road, it would do any city in the world proud. It is spacious, even imposing and really quite stunning. The other side of this city are the Tibetan people. In contrast to the shiny new buildings the people are understated and really soft and welcoming. They are always willing to offer a smile and seem to be really hard working and contentious. We are visiting at one of the most holy times for Tibetan Buddhists, and so everywhere you go there are pilgrims visiting the many important monasteries. The biggest thing for me was the devotion that each pilgrim was demonstrating. These were not rich people sweeping in for blessings, these were poor people from throughout Tibet, young and old, they would arrive with the strongest belief and devotion I have ever seen. It was amazing and humbling to see and be part of. So you have this interesting juxtaposition of the new china and the old Tibet. I wonder who will win. The funniest example of this was one evening. We went to see and photograph the Potala palace by night. This place is one of the most impressive and to some extent beautiful buildings I have seen, we loved it. But opposite the palace the Chinese, in their pomp, have built up a park with a monument to the military (poor taste I think!!) In the evening, this park has very subtle neon lights and a booming musical and water fountain performance! It was garish and really out of place when you look at the building over the road. The funny thing was that that all the foreign tourists were looking at the Potala, and all the Chinese were engrossed by the dancing water!! This is the funny thing about china for me, it has soooo much history and yet people are more interested in musical fountains... we move out of Lhasa tomorrow and head west towards Mount Kailash. This is will be Chinese tourist free I think!