Day2 Chapter2 : Kushiro

Date : 12th May 2006
Location : Hokkaido, Kushiro
Weather : Cloudy, 16°C

When we touched down in Kushiro airport, it was very kumori (cloudy) and even drizzled a little. Kushiro airport is very very small, much smaller than Penang International airport. Apparently our plane was the last from Haneda, and after everyone cleared the customs, the whole airport became deserted. I mean like, so quiet you can hear a pin drop.

After emerging from the customs, we made our way to the #1 tourist survival stop: the Tourist Information center. I had searched online information regarding transportation from Kushiro airport to Akan-ko (Lake Akan), but had not found anything conclusive or helpful. Most of the useful information were scribbled in Japanese, of which I can't comprehend with my tiny vocabulary. So, naturally, I approached this information counter with high hopes of getting a friendly oneesan who can relay all the necessary info to me in English. Fat chance.

Me : Ano, sumimasen. Eigo wo hanasemasu ka?
Oneesan : (regretful look masked her pretty face) Sumimasen, eigo wo hanasemasen...
Me : (nervous laughter, thinking 'oh no, here comes broken Japanese..') Ano, koko kara Akan-ko made takushi de ikura desuka?
Oneesan : (eyes became big as saucers) Takushi desu ne... Takai desu yo. (discussed with her colleague, all the while punching the calculator) 13, 000 yen desu yo.
Me : *mutters to Mum: omigod... so freaking expensive*
Oneesan : (says something about the taxi being expensive, which I understood only like 75%)
Me : Ja, basu wa? Koko kara Akan-ko made ikura desu ka? Dono gurai kakarimasu ka?
Oneesan : (shows the calculator) 1810 yen. Ichi jikan gurai desu yo.
Me : (points calculator) Hitori?
Oneesan : Hai, hitori.
Me : Ano, tsugi no basu wa, itsu desu ka?
Oneesan : Tsugi no basu ne... 1815 desu.
Me : Doko de chiketto wo utte imasu ka?
Oneesan : Aa, asoko desu yo (points to a ticket vending machine 10 steps away)

So, we took bus to Akan-ko instead. 13 000 yen for taxi!! That is most mind-blowing. When I peered at the ticket vending machine, I discovered that I've bumped into yet another problem: ALL the directions were in Japanese. But that was still okay, as I've memorized the Kanji for Akan-ko. The problem was, how the heck do I buy the tix from this machine? I must've looked very lost staring at the machine that the oneesan at the info counter came over to my asisstance. I just held out the Yen notes and coins for her to help me purchase the tickets :P

Since the bus service to Akan-ko is pretty infrequent, we had almost 1.5 hour wait for the 1815 bus. The whole airport became silent by 1700. No flights arriving, shops pulled their shutters down, and the airport personnels basically were all off work. So, my family and a few lonesome souls waiting for the 1815 bus lounged around the deserted airport. Bored, we walked up and down, inside out the tiny airport. Because Kushiro is a popular spot for Tanchou-tsuru (Japanese crane) viewing, there's a huge display of the crane replica exhibited in the waiting area of the airport. So *because* we were sien, we took pictures with the Tanchou-tsuru :P


The famed Tanchou-tsuru (replica) on display in Kushiro kuuko.


Just in case we won't see the real thing... take a pic with the fake! :P

The weather outside the airport was cool, at ~16°C, but when the gust of wind blew... it was pretty cold. So we huddled in the airport interior while waiting for the late bus. In a glance, the scenery outside the airport was of winter. I was pretty surprised: I had expected flowers to bloom, heralding the coming of spring. Maybe Spring comes much later in East Hokkaido? Saa....

The bus was 5 mins later than scheduled. I had expected a tour bus, but it was more like a public bus. We boarded from the rear door, and took a white ticket on the way in. Taking public bus in Japan is quite different from M'sia or Sg, and this was my first time experiencing it.

As the bus pulled out of the airport, I reclined into the seat and turned to the window to enjoy the scenery. The sun was setting and throughout the whole journey, the view was breathtaking. In Kushiro, you can see nature untouched. It is all about shizen (nature). It started off with hillsides, where paddy/wheat/some-vegetation fields carpeted the entire place except for the tar road the bus was travelling. Winter hasn't quite yet left Kushiro, the trees are still bare, the hardened snow still lined the roads. There are barely houses along the way, only some farmhouses scattered a far distance away from one another. Only when the bus reached the small Akan town do we see 'civilization' such as schools, supermarket, shoplots etc. But the town is very small - you can walk around it in maybe 30 mins?

As night fell, we couldn't quite see the scenery outside well... but when we looked hard enough, we saw deers at the side of the road on our way uphill. And I thought I saw a kitsune (fox) too!... or was it a dog? The higher we went, the more the scenery resembled a pine forest on a snow-covered ground. It was lovely indeed, and brought back memories of winter in Nevada, USA many years ago.

The wind outside was chilly, but could barely be felt from the bus because there was a heater right under my seat! hehehe. When we finally did reach Akan-ko bus terminal, it was already 1940 and the sky was as dark as it would be at 2200. The weather was freaking cold... I think it must've been at least 5°C. And we have to walk to our hotel from the bus terminal. Brrr.

I was starting to worry if we could find the hotel in the darkness, when a very kind obasan offered to walk with us to find our hotel. By now, I'm expecting the locals do not speak English, so I engaged in a conversation with her in the best Nihongo I could muster.

Obasan : Akan-ko itta koto ga arimasu ka?
Me : Iie, hajimete desu. Obasan wa?
Obasan : Arimasu yo. Ja, ikimashou ka?
Me : Hai, arigatou gozaimasu.

Obasan then turned to Mum, who was walking beside her, and conversed. Mum, who doesn't understand Japanese, looked at her blankly and told me to walk in front and talk to the obasan instead -_-'''

Me : (racks mind for something within my vocab range) Sumimasen, okaasan wa nihongo wo wakarimasen kara...
Obasan : Sou desu ka. Doushite koko ni kite?
Me : Aa, ryouko desu. Obasan wa? Hitori de koko he kimasu ka?
Obasan : Sou you.
Me : (in awe) Sugoi!!

My grammar was thrown out of the window, but we managed to carry a decent conversation. And the obasan is really sugoi (great). She told me she usually come here on her own for a holiday. When we reached our hotel, New Akan Hotel, she actually brought us in and helped us to check whether we were in the right hotel or not. We were very thankful for her generous help, and Mum was asking me to walk her to her hotel, but I didn't know how to ask -_-'''

Me : (paused) Obasan to isshou ni hoteru he ikimashou ka?
Obasan : (thinks I thought my hotel is further away) Iie, iie. (points to reception and told me to stay)
Me : (racked brains and finally gave up) Ja, obasan wa kiotsukete kudasai ne. Hontou ni arigatou gozaimashita. (bows to her)
Obasan : Iie, doitashimashite. Ja, ne.
Me : Hai, arigatou gozaimasu.

It warmed my heart to have met such a generously helpful Japanese stranger on my first day in Kushiro. And I believe, there are many more such helpful locals in the days of our Hokkaido stay to come.

(onwards to Chapter3 of Day2...)

～みはる～

Day2 Chapter1 : Narita - Haneda - Kushiro

Date : 12th May 2006
Location : Japan (Honshu & Hokkaido)
Weather : Cloudy, 16-19°C

By early dawn (like 430-500 am), oneesan-tachi switched on all the cabin lights. Damn, I hate being woken up by glaring lights. It hadn't been a peaceful sleep, but at least I had some rest. Breakfast was served: I had pasta with chicken sausage, served with bread&butter and orange pudding with a choice of Japanese ocha. Not wanting to miss the inflight entertainment, I watched NANA while eating. nyahahaha. I simply love Nakashima Mika's rendition of "Glamorous Sky". Saikou. I was anticipating Reira Trapnest's performance of "Endless Story" when the captain halted all inflight operations in preparation for landing -_-'''

Although lack of sleep had me feeling a bit crappy, I was feeling very excited as well. Thanks to the pilot's skillful landing, we safely touched down in Narita Airport, Tokyo at 735 am, Japan time. I was already very eager to clear the customs and see Tokyo, but the quarantine and immigration clearance took almost an hour. So THIS is Tokyo. Loads and loads of people. After clearing the customs, we went to the washroom to freshen up before our next leg of journey to Kushiro, Hokkaido. Upon recommendation by Mum's Japanese friend, we rented a keitai (handphone) from a local service provider ABC (that is really the company's name, no kidding). Just in case we get lost in the mountains of Kushiro, we can still call for help......


Sony Ericsson keitai. Very very light! Background is JR East rail map.

Having that done, we also checked out the maps available and the JR train services around Tokyo. I wanted to get hold of their latest route maps and timetable so that we can plan our Tokyo itinerary according to the train schedules.

Since our next flight is a domestic flight, we had to travel to Haneda Airport from Narita. I had found out that there are airport limousines (a.k.a. shuttle buses) that ferry passengers from Narita to Haneda. So approaching the counter, I took a deep breath and put my Japanese into good use. Fortunately for me, I was assisted by a very nice ojisan (uncle), and could get the tickets easily with minimal Japanese conversation -_<. For the rather short distance, it costs 3,000 yen per person. One way. The service was nonetheless pleasant, 2-3 porters immediately received us when we came to the bus queue and took care of our bags so that we can comfortably board the bus. They tagged our bags and gave us the corresponding redemption tag. Initially I was like a bit sua pa (naive in Hokkien). After they tagged my luggage, I took it with me to the 'human' queue. The guy porter was like running after me and waving frantically to leave my luggage with them at the 'luggage queue'. Hazukashii. The bus arrived right on time and the porters efficiently put all our bags in the boot while we boarded the bus. I like the system because it is very efficient and smooth, and the bus is soooo clean and comfy (hint: good for napping :P) When the bus pulled out, all the porters would bow low to the passengers in the moving bus. What refined culture.

During the journey to Haneda Airport, there was not much fascinating view because the bus took the expressway. In the end, I slept thru out most of the 55 mins journey.

We arrived at Terminal 2 of Haneda Airport, but was too early to check. So, we hunted for food. Inside Haneda, there's an atrium of 5 levels occupied solely by restaurants. Japanese restaurants, Western-style taverns, American-style burger outlets, Izakaya, confectionary... you name it. All of which looked terribly delicious - but also terribly expensive. A bowl of soba noodles can cost more than 1,300 yen. Takai sugiru. So, we end up having lunch Japanese-traveler-style: obento from a handy deli. They had all kinds of bento: from the traditional packed bento, to onigiri, to sandwiches and unique local snacks. All the bentos were fresh & cheap. I had a 950 yen bento, consisting of red bean glutinuos-like rice, a few slices of barbequed chicken meat and delicious pickles. Based on what I saw in animes, customers can actually ask the tenin (shop assistant) to heat up the bento box so that the food is warm upon consumption. I wanted to eat warm bento but had a problem -- how do I ask the tenin to warm it up? Obviously the obasan (auntie) doesn't speak a word of English, but I see the microwave behind her.

"Ano, bento ga atatakakute mo ii desuka?" I asked in my half-baked Japanese. My grammar is like sooo wrong and I sounded sooo gaikokujin (foreigner). The obasan shook her head adamantly, crossed her arms and curtly waved off this gaikokujin. I was like thinking, "So mean, you obasan!! Make me eat cold bento. T_T" Not wanting to give up on warm bento, I resorted to sign language and pointed at the microwave behind her. Yet again, no. Mattaku. I ended up eating cold bento, although delicious but was c.o.l.d. >.<

After each of us had selected & purchased our bento, we sat at a 'secluded' bench overlooking the escalators and itadakimasu! Ok, I said 'secluded' because it seems that in Japan, or at least the Airport, people don't eat packed food in the open. Or so I thought. We were told that Japanese don't walk and eat at the same time, and should refrain from doing so at the streets. They might find it offensive if we eat at the waiting area or something. Very unlike my hometown, where you can eat anywhere you want, nobody cares :P

After filling in on the bento, we went up to the 5th floor observatory point where there is a fantastic view of the Haneda Airport runway and the Tokyo Bay. The vista is simply beautiful. From there, we can see the ANA, JAL planes taking off every 5 mins and using the binoculars provided, we can actually get a closed up view of the Tokyo Bay (and also the pilot!! :P). Totemo kirei deshita. What was most amusing to me was the Pokemon ANA plane. A Pokemon plane!! With red balls as decorations on the engines. I don't know if it was funny or absurd. But that aside, the wind was cool, the sun was out and the view was simply lovely. We hung around at the observatory for a while, enjoying the view before checking in for our flight to Kushiro.


Pokemon plane - so brightly painted. I wonder what the interior is like....

The check-in lobby gave a superb view of the myriad Japanese society. There were students in large throngs queueing (presumably off to some place for school trip), middle school cheerleaders (a game at another prefecture maybe?), old local couples taking their leisurely time to travel around the country (Haneda IS a domestic airport anyway), business travelers, etc and not forgetting gaikokujins like us. And gawd, the things that are checked in... dogs, baby carriages, cats, you name it. The airport service does seem customer-oriented!

Inside the departure hall, we strolled towards our gate, stopping at the shops along the way. Japanese green tea is a staple drink in Japan, and boy, do they sell green tea like mineral water! There are so many brands ranging from Suntory to Kirin to Itoen and the packagings are compact and user-friendly. I like the 350ml bottle ones: they are so cute and easy to carry.

We then wandered to a small mise (shop) selling magazines, snacks and *ahem* Tokyo peach cheese cake. The saleswoman, an obasan, was very friendly and kept convincing us to buy the cheese cake. She kept emphasizing TOKYO PEACH CHEESE cake. She spoke smattering English, so I attempted a Japanese kaiwa (conversation) with her.

Obasan : Sumimasen, eigo dekimasen.
Me : Watashi wa nihongo sukoshi dake wakarimasu kedo...

In the end, we had quite an enjoyable conversation... and we bought the TOKYO PEACH CHEESE cake :P In my defense, it was delicious!!!
Then, Mum realized there's no knife to cut the cake, so told me to ask the obasan for a disposable knife. I confidently opened my mouth to ask... then froze. How should I ask??

Me : Naifu ga arimasuka?
Obasan : Aa, *animatedly saying a whole lot of stuff I don't understand*
Me : .....
Obasan : Katto? (does an exaggerated action of cutting the cake, which I assume means "want to cut the cake into pieces?")
Me : Iie, iie. Ano, nan darou... 'Disposable' naifu ga arimasuka? Hoteru de kirimasu kara.. Hoteru no heya ni naifu ga arimasen kara.... (starts to fluster and say redundant stuff)
Obasan : *blank stare, then enlightenment* Aa! Hoteru ni naifu ga arimasu yo. Uketsuke ni naifu wo karite mo ii yo. *starts to elaborate on it which I only understood like 50%*

A female tenin inside the mise saved the day when she waved a disposable knife towards our direction. She must've probably been thinking "taihen datta ne.. ano gaikokujin wa," Haha. But it was quite fun conversing with the obasan. Thanks to LJ81 Japanese Lvl2, I'm getting somewhere in communicating with the Japanese community! Yoshi.. trial kaiwa passed satisfactorily. Hokkaido, here I come!

(onwards to Chapter2 of Day2...)

～みはる～

Day1: Penang - Singapore - Narita

Date : 11th May 2006
Location : Penang, Malaysia
Weather : Fair, 30°C

Penang, Malaysia - Changi, Singapore
Did last minute packing. Since I decided to travel light, I took only about 3 change of clothes, a thick jacket, and essential toiletries. Of course, I never leave on a long journey without my mp3 player >_<

We then called a taxi to picked us up to the airport for our 1805 SIA flight to Singapore for transit to Narita. The carrier was a large one ( I lurrrve large carriers XD) but in no time, we're already landing in Changi International Airport T_T.

Changi, Singapore - Narita, Tokyo
Since it was a rather long wait for the next connecting flight, we ate our dinner at a Chinese noodle stall at the transit lounge. The food looked delicious on the menu, but it was far from desirable when my bowl of Mince Mushroom noodle was served.

I love transiting at Changi Airport. The transit lounge is so incredibly comfortable and the facilities are superb. We proceeded to use the free Internet service to kill some time before taking a sky train to Terminal 1. Our connecting flight, All Nippon Airways (ANA) NH902 to Narita Airport, Tokyo depart only at 2335; thus the rest of the time was like spent preparing to go to bed :P Yes, preparing for bed means brushing my teeth, cleansing my face, dabbing on the facial essence and emptying my bladder. I was very sleepy by boarding time because I stayed up till 6am in the morning planning the Hokkaido itinerary (the transportation in Kushiro can be quite infrequent so we have to catch the right train if we do not wish to be stranded).

In the boarding hall, most of the passengers were (naturally) Japanese. Initially, I was pretty hardworking: practising my Japanese listening skills and trying to mentally hone my Japanese conversation skills. After like 15 mins, I'm all drowsy and grouchy with sleep. There had been some delay in boarding due to dunno-what aircraft problems. I was pretty relieved when we finally got to board and was looking forward to sleep in the plane. As Mum had warned, we would be doing some serious travelling for the next 24 hours so we'd better get some good sleep on the plane if not we'd be grumpy zombies upon landing in Narita.

When I got to my seat in the plane, I was in a little state of disbelief and elation. The seat is huge with incredible leg room (for an economy flight okay). I was like "Is this really my seat? Not business class seat?" It's a Boeing 777-300. Kyaaa, who cares? I've got a roomy economy seat! Yea, bed time!.... or not. The interior of the aircraft was so clean and bright, it is tad too glaring to get a good shut-eye. What was worse, the inflight entertainment had some really good movies. I wanted to watch NANA:the movie because they have English subtitles (I watched a chinese-subtitled version before, thus did not really follow the entire conversation).

However, I was determined to get some sleep and tried hard to. Some 15 mins later, the ANA oneesan-tachi (my reference to the air stewardesses :P) started giving out the hot towels as a prelude to serving midnight snack. I preferred sleep over snack, but couldn't really catch a wink with all the oneesan walking up and down under the glaring lights and the seat cannot be lowered as the passenger behind me was snacking; thus, I too snacked on the egg bun and hot ocha (or was it orange juice?).

It was a great relief when oneesan-tachi finally finished serving and switched off the cabin lights. Finally, I can stretch out and catch a good nap. Though cranky with lack of sleep, I can't wait to touch down in the Land of Rising Sun!!!

Prologue

This blog is a journal of my trip to Japan during my current summer vacation. My family of three and I embarked on this 10D/8N free & easy Japan travel from 11th May to 21st May 2006. We covered some of the interesting places in the east and west of Hokkaido island and explored the metropolitan Tokyo city in the east of Honshu island. During the entire trip, we have been blessed with fair weather, generous assistance from the local Japanese, and smooth transportation transits. It has been tremendous fun immersing ourselves in the Japanese culture and lifestyles - 10 days was definitely not enough to fully enjoy Japan. No matter how I hard I try to illustrate the beautiful landscapes and fascinating things I've seen in Japan, it would still do no justice to the actual magnificence. I will try to give an account as real as possible, and I hope it will be worth your reading :P

Japan is a beautiful land.... so, if you have the chance, experience it!!