![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Here in Tsuruga.
There is nothing in Tsuruga. At least, not after 10pm. There also isn't anything in Maibara. I have to wonder whether it's just that nothing is open past 7-8pm, though.
Tomorrow I'll go to Obama City and arrive a little before noon. Stupidly, I can either take the 815am train and get there at 915, or the next train is at 1044am and gets there at 1144. I doubt I will make the 815 or be happy about it if I do, so, morning in Tsuruga, then off to Obama. Unless I find really good food there, I'm gonna come back to Tsuruga for dinner at an intriguing "Europa" katsu place that I saw a flier for in the hotel here, and then head to Hikone in the evening.
As for today:
Akabane 7:59->8:15 Musashi-Urawa
Musashi-Urawa 8:21->8:48 Nishi-Kokubunji
Nishi-Kokubunji 8:57->9:21 Takao
Takao 9:25->10:02 Otsugi
Otsugi 10:12->11:02 Kofu
Lunch in Kofu (at McDonalds, but I walked around the station area a bit and also found some castle ruins, so it's not like I didn't do anything there, so now I count myself as having been to Yamanashi for real)
Kofu 11:49->13:34 Matsumoto
Went to Matsumoto Castle, actually entered and went to the top floor, the stairs were KILLER, and walked around downtown a bit, so now I have also been to Nagano...
Matsumoto 15:35->17:56 Nakatsukawa
Nakatsukawa 18:01->19:17 Nagoya
Nagoya 19:20->20:39 Maibara
Maibara 20:55->21:04 Nagahama
Nagahama 21:11->21:50 Tsuruga
The 2.5 hours from Matsumoto was brutal. I tried to stay awake for the sunset because it was BEAUTIFUL there -- lots of mountains and lots of snow -- but EVERYONE on that train seemed to be asleep, including the guy sitting across from me, and so I zonked out too.
I actually exited the station in Maibara but couldn't even see a convenience store within walking distance. Was starving by that point. When I got to Tsuruga I checked into the hotel and asked where the hell I could get food at this hour, and they're like "umm... there are some bars, there is a ramen place down the street, there is a Gusto family restaurant and a convenience store a block or two away, and that is it, really."
They weren't joking. And it was cold and I was tired so I went to the conbini and got some inari and potato chips and called that dinner. Whatever.
Oh yeah, when I checked in I got the usual "Oh shit a white person" look from the clerk, he called over his boss, who I presume is supposed to speak English or deal with foreigners or whatever, and I just started talking to her in Japanese and wrote my info and so on. (She was like "Wow, you're really good, you must have lived in Japan a long time" and I'm like "Is 2 years a long time?") In Matsumoto a similar thing happened when I went to the tourist office to go ask for a map of the city so I could find my way to the castle. So I said, in Japanese, that I wanted to go see the castle, and... and the lady's like "Oh, let me get you an English booklet about it?" and I'm like "No, dude, I don't need that, I want a MAP." I saw other white people going to the castle though, and even asked a family to take a photo of me in front of the castle. But nobody was speaking English, they were all speaking French or German or other stuff...
I wouldn't still be up, except that this mini-HP is really bloody slow, and I was playing with the train times and other stuff for a while, also copying over my photos but I don't think I really have time to put any of them up right now.
Not sure what I'll do here in the morning per se. I looked up where Tsuruga Kehi HS is -- I saw their baseball team at Koshien playing against Teikyo, and I fell in love with their lefty pitcher Yamada-kun whose hat kept flying off and who got drafted by Orix -- so it'd be amusing to go see the high school if it was actually anywhere near here -- but it's far enough that there is no fucking way I'm walking there in this weather, it's way too cold. Well, whatever. In a way this is just supposed to be a gratuitous train trip vacation, so it's not like I really HAVE to do anything in particular.
Tomorrow I'll go to Obama City and arrive a little before noon. Stupidly, I can either take the 815am train and get there at 915, or the next train is at 1044am and gets there at 1144. I doubt I will make the 815 or be happy about it if I do, so, morning in Tsuruga, then off to Obama. Unless I find really good food there, I'm gonna come back to Tsuruga for dinner at an intriguing "Europa" katsu place that I saw a flier for in the hotel here, and then head to Hikone in the evening.
As for today:
Akabane 7:59->8:15 Musashi-Urawa
Musashi-Urawa 8:21->8:48 Nishi-Kokubunji
Nishi-Kokubunji 8:57->9:21 Takao
Takao 9:25->10:02 Otsugi
Otsugi 10:12->11:02 Kofu
Lunch in Kofu (at McDonalds, but I walked around the station area a bit and also found some castle ruins, so it's not like I didn't do anything there, so now I count myself as having been to Yamanashi for real)
Kofu 11:49->13:34 Matsumoto
Went to Matsumoto Castle, actually entered and went to the top floor, the stairs were KILLER, and walked around downtown a bit, so now I have also been to Nagano...
Matsumoto 15:35->17:56 Nakatsukawa
Nakatsukawa 18:01->19:17 Nagoya
Nagoya 19:20->20:39 Maibara
Maibara 20:55->21:04 Nagahama
Nagahama 21:11->21:50 Tsuruga
The 2.5 hours from Matsumoto was brutal. I tried to stay awake for the sunset because it was BEAUTIFUL there -- lots of mountains and lots of snow -- but EVERYONE on that train seemed to be asleep, including the guy sitting across from me, and so I zonked out too.
I actually exited the station in Maibara but couldn't even see a convenience store within walking distance. Was starving by that point. When I got to Tsuruga I checked into the hotel and asked where the hell I could get food at this hour, and they're like "umm... there are some bars, there is a ramen place down the street, there is a Gusto family restaurant and a convenience store a block or two away, and that is it, really."
They weren't joking. And it was cold and I was tired so I went to the conbini and got some inari and potato chips and called that dinner. Whatever.
Oh yeah, when I checked in I got the usual "Oh shit a white person" look from the clerk, he called over his boss, who I presume is supposed to speak English or deal with foreigners or whatever, and I just started talking to her in Japanese and wrote my info and so on. (She was like "Wow, you're really good, you must have lived in Japan a long time" and I'm like "Is 2 years a long time?") In Matsumoto a similar thing happened when I went to the tourist office to go ask for a map of the city so I could find my way to the castle. So I said, in Japanese, that I wanted to go see the castle, and... and the lady's like "Oh, let me get you an English booklet about it?" and I'm like "No, dude, I don't need that, I want a MAP." I saw other white people going to the castle though, and even asked a family to take a photo of me in front of the castle. But nobody was speaking English, they were all speaking French or German or other stuff...
I wouldn't still be up, except that this mini-HP is really bloody slow, and I was playing with the train times and other stuff for a while, also copying over my photos but I don't think I really have time to put any of them up right now.
Not sure what I'll do here in the morning per se. I looked up where Tsuruga Kehi HS is -- I saw their baseball team at Koshien playing against Teikyo, and I fell in love with their lefty pitcher Yamada-kun whose hat kept flying off and who got drafted by Orix -- so it'd be amusing to go see the high school if it was actually anywhere near here -- but it's far enough that there is no fucking way I'm walking there in this weather, it's way too cold. Well, whatever. In a way this is just supposed to be a gratuitous train trip vacation, so it's not like I really HAVE to do anything in particular.