My JR Pass (unlimited use of the bullet trains for a week) was epic. Perhaps even too epic. I hit up 9 cities in 7 days and it wiped me out. Here are a couple of highlights-
After Osaka, starting on the 24th...
Nagasaki- went to an Episcopalin service in Japanese with Gabe, and the sweet old ladies of the congregation invited us to have lunch with them afterwards. The Peace Park in Commemoration of the Atomic Bomb was deeply moving—even more so because the original Japanese text carried a lot more feeling than the English translations.
Kumamoto- we had been thinking this city would make for a fun night out, but perhaps the guide book exaggerated the night life. Basically not a lot else but shopping arcades here. We tried to visit an exhibit on the house of Lafcadio Kearn, which was closed on just that day.
We did find a hipster wearing wafuku. It's kinda hilarious.
Kagoshima- we went swimming on a white sand beach (swimmable coastline is extraordinarily rare in Japan) with a view of the active volcano Sakurajima. Timing was a little bad because it was the only clouded day we had all week. I had the most amazing dinner of “black pork” made with a sauce from black sugar and garlic—a lot like the sauce on Peking duck. And then we got kidnapped a little bit? Oops.
Beppu- hit as many Onsen in as short a time as we could, although the string of unlucky timing continued as our special target of Beppu's famed “sand bath” was closed only on the 4th Wednesday of the month... exactly the day we went. Also visited “the Hells”, a series of geysers and hot springs full of strange colors and properties from different minerals.
Takamatsu- Not gonna lie, we mainly went to Takamatsu so we could check off the island Shikoku from the to-do-list. With that, I've been to all four major islands of Japan, something a surprising number of Japanese people haven't done. But we did have a nice time at Youritukouen, a garden for the feudal lords of Shikoku back when it was still called Sanuki. Also found amazing chocolate pancakes on the way.
Kotohira- The first destination after my companions and I went our separate ways, in Kotohira I spent an afternoon to climb Konpira-San, a shrine known for its arduous climb to the top—something like 1400 steps. The ascent is lined with places that rent walking sticks, hold on to your bags, and offer to ship home any of the baubles you buy. The city itself felt creepily deserted, but I think Konpira is probably my favorite shrine in Japan.
~Interestingly, this is also the only city in which I've ever encountered an unhelpful employee. My ticket buying excursion went like this:
Elliot:“I want to go as far as Hiroshima.”
Douche:”But due to rain the train may be delayed and you can't book that train.”
Elliot: “Then how do I get to Hiroshima?”
Douche: “If you go to Okayama first, you can possibly transfer there.”
Elliot: “Okay, well then I'll book a ticket for Okayama.”
Douche: “But that train's delayed too so you can't go there.”
Repeat ad nauseum. It somehow worked out, and despite his naysaying I took the ticket and got on a train direct to Hiroshima exactly as scheduled.
Hiroshima- The tragic thing that struck me about the city—aside from the heart-wrenching exhibits in the Atom Bomb Peace Memorial—is that even though the city has rebuilt itself into a prosperous and bustling commercial and living center, it will never be known for any history, culture, or image apart from the site of the world's first use of the Atomic Bomb as a weapon.
Himeji- I knew “the most magnificent castle in Japan” was under 5 year construction, so I had been avoiding the day-trip from Osaka. But the trip was in between two major stops and free with my JR Pass, so I decided to go for it this time around. Underwhelmed. It may be Japan's most majestic castle, but at the time it also suffered from Japan's most spitefully placed scaffolds.
My final evening with a valid JR Pass (7/30), I made it as far as my hostel in Kyoto, stumbled in the door, and passed out. At that point I was very happy to abandon the two-sometimes-three-cities-a-day model of travel and actually stay in the same place for more than a day at a time.
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