JAPAN TRIP - May June 2012

[TOXANA]

I have just returned from 4 weeks of exploring Japan mostly by rail.
Each time I return to this magnificent country, I become more and more addicted to what it has to offer, not only as a rail fan but also the vast array of shopping places and eateries.

Tram fans would be in 7th heaven over there too as I have encountered 14 towns/cities with at least one tram line (many have 2 or more lines), with a huge diversity of tram types with everything from grinding groaning geared relics (some still with wooden planked floors) from a bygone era to the latest low floor modular series and everything in between.
Cities such as Takaoka and Toyohashi are in quite a run down condition track wise and are somewhat speed restricted even though Takaoka has a fleet of 6 brand new red tram cars to supplement their old fleet of groaning geared cars.

By far the most "working museum" like city tramway was in Kochi on the island of Shikoku with very well maintained old relics. It was like being transported back in time 60 years.
Nagasaki on the island of Kyushu was just amazing with a very neat tramway network of 4 routes mostly run by older cars with just a couple of new tram cars seen.

As for Tokyo, the very busy Yamanote line has begun to have platform gates installed with stations
at Ebisu and Megaro so far being modified. It will be a shame for rail fans as it is impossible to film or photograph the trains with platform gates fitted as the gates block out half the height of the train sides. I spent quite some time filming trains at the non modified platforms as by the time I return, I imagine they will all be modified, going by how fast and efficiently the Japanese construct things.

My trip wasn't all about riding the rails. I visited the city of Kagoshima on the island of Kyushu and did a tour of the very much active volcano called Sakurajima which was putting on a great show while I was there with ash smoke and steam being emitted from one of the vents near the top of the volcano. It was the 1st time I had witnessed such a thing and to be allowed to view it all from such close proximity ie, the base of the volcano.

Another place a visited was the tsunami affected coastline east of Sendai and stayed at a town called Matsushima. There is still evidence of the calamity here and all along the coastline although Matsushima was spared the worst of it because of the myriad of island in the area which helped to break up the waves but the area if Matsushima closest to the water still had 2 metres of water sweep through. It was quite eerie to be standing there knowing what had occurred 15 months earlier and also having been in Japan when the earthquake and tsunami occurred although I was hundreds of kms away near Nagano when it struck on Friday 11th March 2011 at 2.46 pm.

There were so many interesting things I did in the 4 weeks here.
I can't wait to return at some stage.

[boronia]

I agree, Japan is a very "addictive" place.

Did you get the hot sand treatment in Kagoshima ??

[TOXANA]

No I didn't get the hot sand treatment but I did get to soak my feet in the hot spring water near the base of Sakurajima which was fun.

I travelled on many branch lines across Japan which mostly use 1 car diesel rail cars and you can view the track ahead right up at the front window next to the driver. Besides the tramways, this was my next favourite thing to do as far as rail travel goes. I got to see some amazing countryside and even though it was well into June, there was still snow on the higher peaks of a lot of mountains and volcanos.

At Yonago on the west coast of Honshu, it is rail motor heaven there with some of the newer cars fitted with ZF transmissions that sound just like being in a bus complete with 3rd gear howl but at a much higher pitch. There are sill many of the 1970s older rail motors here.

As for the Shinkansens, I rode in the new E5 series released last year and I have to say that they looked a bit cheap on the interiors compared with earlier series but make up for it with the outstanding exterior looks. That shade of green is just magnificent. I find the older E3 series Akita shinkansen nicer to ride in, not to mention that it makes that lovely inverter traction sound whereas the E5 series make virtually no sound

[TOXANA]

I also travelled across to Hokkaido for the 1st time and stayed in the city of Hakodate for 2 nights, using the Super Hakucho service in one of the newish HEAT (an acronym) sets through the 53km rail tunnel that connects Honshu with Hokkaido. The yet to be completed Hokkaido shinkansen is evident in many places along the way and is due for completion in a couple of years or so.
I love the Japanese mentality of adding to their impressive array of infrastructure all over the country.
In Hakodate there is yet another neat tramway system and they have a circa 1910 4 wheel (jumping jack) tram No.39, beautifully restored and used in revenue service on select trips complete with a conductor. I never ever thought that I'd ever ride a 4 wheel tram on a revenue service run.
Of course the rest of the fleet doesn't appear to be much newer with many of the trams of the classic bogie variety emitting that delicious groaning gear sound.
There are some newer inverter traction equipped trams and I only saw 1 low floor tram.
I caught a taxi up to Mt Hakodate and took lots of photos of the views while the taxi driver waited for me in the carpark and then returned me to the city.
Even with my limited amount of Japanese language skills, it was nice to be understood by the locals and not get a confused look back.

[On Air]

Thank you very much for your fantastic Japan report. It is one place I would love to go for all the reasons you've mentioned and a lot more I can think of. Did you get a chance to stay in one of the traditional "Ryokan" boarding houses? I'm told that these are mostly found on the northern most Island of Japan where, incidentally, the local dialect is said to represent Japanese as it was spoken for over 10 centuries!

As for the old trams, it knocked me over to read that Japan still operates such old rolling stock, but I'm sure as with all things Japan they'd be well presented and expertly maintained. As an aside, when Toxana mentioned the ancient grinding of gear wheels who would forget Sydney's wooden Bradfield motors and the great little four seat saloon section which sat directly over the motor bogie. If you were lucky you could get the forward facing seat that sat against the car bulkhead, window open, arm resting on the sill, drunk with pleasure as the big 360 HP motor roared away to your heart's delight!

[boronia]

Ryokans can be found all over Japan, even in big cities like Tokyo.

But some can be quite expensive, even when meals are included, so not really for the budget traveller.

Exception, I regulalrly stayed in a "backpacker" ryokan in Ikebukuro, Tokyo. 25 years ago I was paying JPY4500 per night for a single room, which was quite good by TYO standards. Looking at its website now it is only JPY4200. Other budget acommodation has also dropped sharply in price. No inflation in Japan, wow.

With trams, many cities now have modern looking trams, but quite a few are just rebodies of 1920-30 frames, still with original electrical gear.

[On Air]

Yes, Ryokans are found all over Japan but I'm told the most traditional are found on Hokkaido?

[boronia]

Many things in Hokkaido seem to be different to the rest of Japan. Haven't stayed in ryokan there, so I can't comment on the differences. A thin futon on a hard wooden floor feels the same anywhere.

[On Air]

I've slept on a futon for years with a hard wooden base beneath- no back problems. One of the best sleeps I ever had was in a sleeping bag on a polished wooden floor in Werriby town hall 1985! Slept that way for 3 nights whilst attending a Fowler Ploughing engine display. Heaven.

[On Air]

Ryokans can be found all over Japan, even in big cities like Tokyo.

But some can be quite expensive, even when meals are included, so not really for the budget traveller.

Exception, I regulalrly stayed in a "backpacker" ryokan in Ikebukuro, Tokyo. 25 years ago I was paying JPY4500 per night for a single room, which was quite good by TYO standards. Looking at its website now it is only JPY4200. Other budget acommodation has also dropped sharply in price. No inflation in Japan, wow.

With trams, many cities now have modern looking trams, but quite a few are just rebodies of 1920-30 frames, still with original electrical gear.

When I did the currency conversion that was AU$52! is that correct?? Must be a flea house at that price.

[boronia]

That would be correct.

It's no 5 star hotel, but not a flea house either. Just basic 5 or 6 tatami rooms, a/c, shared bathrooms, communal lounge/kitchen, clean. About 5-10 minutes walk from the stations (JR, subways, Seibu). Plenty of cheap eats in the area.


http://www.kimiryokan.jp/

The price of basic business hotels in the area has dropped to around JPY7000 in the last few years (10 years ago there was nothing available under 10K), so it has lost its competetive edge a bit. An extra $20 per night will now get a much better deal.

[TOXANA]

One of the most interesting days I had in Japan was riding the Enoshima Electric railway (also referred to as Enoden railway) which is about 45 min out of Tokyo by Limited Stops Tokaido line train. It starts off as a normal train on its own right of way but after a few stations it diverts into a suburban street and suddenly the train is dealing with traffic and vice versa with cars following the train up the street until after about 300m when the train reverts back to its own right of way.
Do a search for it on the internet.
Its a scream of a thing to experience.
I was pretty obsessed with it all and spent most of that arvo filming and riding the old trains and new trains dressed up like old ones (the inverter traction motors were a give away) but the legit old ones sounded like a noisy Sydney W set which are the only example of such train gearing I have encountered in all of my trips to Japan.
Also within a short walk of one the stations called Enoshima is a monorail of the hanging variety called the Shonan Monorail which is a cool way to get around.
There is a much more extensive version of this form of transport in the city of Chiba called the Chiba Urban Monorail.

[Bedford-29]

Been looking at the Enoden railway on you-tube a interesting rail line to look at.The Tosa Electric railway is the name of the tramway on the island of Shikoku this tramway has some trams from the closed Gifu tramway which ended service in 2005 hoped you enjoyed your trip to Japan.The next time you go for a trip sample some of the local bus routes looking at films on you-tube on the local bus routes in Japan and where they go would make a interesting bus ride.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CaoBYz6G_A
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFN6bqqG_HY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RD1Ps0sQAKY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zp0rsUJPKQ8

[TOXANA]

The train featured in the 1st youtube clip must have been the same noisy geared one I travelled in at one point and I also filmed its departure from the station at 3.20 in the 1st clip. You can get so close to the trains at street level.
The station at 5.10 in the clip is called Hase and if you walk to the right up the street, you get to see an enormous Buddha statue.
I also filmed the trains between the stations along the water front and then into the on street running which was just so fascinating and so unlike anything we have here.
The station at 22.40 is Enoshima and if you walk 5 min up the street to the right, you come to the entrance to the Shonan monorail.
Thanks for posting the links to that clip.
I was only on that railway a week ago and was fun to watch it again as its still all fresh in my mind.
It just makes me want to jump on a plane tomorrow and go back to all the amazing things on offer there.
I miss it.
It feels like home there to me.

[boronia]

Have either of you traversed the "Alpine Route" across Kurobe?

[TOXANA]

Yes I did that in Sept last year and it was amazing.
I'm sure I used up a whole memory card on my camera just with the mountain scenery.
The only 2 trolley bus routes in Japan also lie in tunnels here and the longest unsupported ropeway ie no supports along the route between each end.
The Kurobe dam is also impressive.
There are just so many interesting things to do and see in Japan both in various modes of transport and also the scenery.
The seasons change quickly there and is one of the few places on Earth that can suffer from heavy snowfalls and typhoons in the same place throughout each winter/summer cycle.

Another great trip is the Kurobe Gorge railway from Unazuki to Keyakidaira.
They use a combination of enclosed cars and cars with no sides with 2 orange mini electric locos to haul a usually 12 car set along the 1 hr 20 min route up the river valley.
I've done this trip twice now and never get bored with it.
It goes through 40+ tunnels and over bridges and is truly amazing.

[On Air]

Watching those video clips it reminded me that the Japanese make the effort to include Englsh language in their PA announcements and even on shop signs as borne out by the view just at the terminus on clip 1. Watching the operational procedures for the trains was fascinating. It was interesting that the points were never set for an approaching set to trail through, rather the train set the points itself. Can anyone shed light on that or do the points get reset so the right trains always use the right track/platforms?

Of course it was a pure joy to whatch a train passing through such dense suburbia that is so neat, tidy and graffiti-free. On street corners there are coke and other vending machines sticking out like a sore thumb yet all in good condition. I can imagine how long they'd last here before the hoons plundered them. There's a few clips of the Kurobe Gorge railway on YouTube.

Japan has a lot going for it, I hope to get there soon.

[boronia]

Yes I did that in Sept last year and it was amazing.
I'm sure I used up a whole memory card on my camera just with the mountain scenery.
The only 2 trolley bus routes in Japan also lie in tunnels here and the longest unsupported ropeway ie no supports along the route between each end.
The Kurobe dam is also impressive.
There are just so many interesting things to do and see in Japan both in various modes of transport and also the scenery.
The seasons change quickly there and is one of the few places on Earth that can suffer from heavy snowfalls and typhoons in the same place throughout each winter/summer cycle.

Another great trip is the Kurobe Gorge railway from Unazuki to Keyakidaira.
They use a combination of enclosed cars and cars with no sides with 2 orange mini electric locos to haul a usually 12 car set along the 1 hr 20 min route up the river valley.
I've done this trip twice now and never get bored with it.
It goes through 40+ tunnels and over bridges and is truly amazing.

The Alpine is even more amazing during April/May when the road is still surrounded by snow, up to 10 m deep in places, could well be like that most of the year!!

Other places worth visiting for transport are:
Hakone Tozan Railway from Odawarra to Gora
Hiroshima
Gifu was good, but trams have gone now.
KitaKyushu
Kyoto

[Bedford-29]

And there is the Ichibata railway in Shimane Prefecture which has two rail lines the 33.9km Kita Matsue line which runs from Dentetsu Izumo-shi station in Izumo to Matsue Shinji-ko onsen station in Matsue.And there is the 8.3km Taisha line which runs from Kawato station on the Kita Matsue line to Izumo Taisha-mae station near Izumo Taisha.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7KQ6V6O4EgE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nZk8s6ACCLY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JJCXt9AiGkc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gy064TpVWaI

[boronia]

There are three 762mm gauge passenger lines in the Kintetsu network :


Kintetsu: Utsube Line
Kintetsu: Hachiōji Line
Sangi Railway: Hokusei Line (also in northern Mie Prefecture, formerly operated by Kintetsu)

All are worth a visit.

[Bedford-29]

And list goes on with what they use in Japan for transport you would need ten years to sample it all and in that time you would sample all.There are light rail lines to there is the Keifuku Railway in Kyoto Prefecture with two line and the Tokyu Setagaya line in Tokyo.

[TOXANA]

Most announcements on Japanese trains have English as well and some even have Korean and Chinese as they seem to holiday in each others countries due to their close proximity much like NZ and Aust.
I always find the announcements on the Yamanote line in Tokyo entertaining with an American woman with a heavy accent being used for the English part. Her pronunciation of the word Yamanote is so incorrect though and makes me snigger.
One thing I have noticed from this trip compared to the last is that they have abbreviated the announcement at most stations so that she doesn't say "This is a Yamanote line train bound for XXX and YYY...." She only announces this now after a major station so mostly you only hear "The next station is XXX, the doors on the left/right side will open"
Depending on what time of day it is, she may also announce to "change here for XXX line or subway line.

I have found on some tram lines with single track that use island platforms as passing loops that the outbound tram uses the right hand platform.

Vending machines are everywhere and are another part of Japans quirkiness that I love.
I have seen some machines have oral care packages, alcohol (only in hotels), handbags, hair accessories as well as an amazing array of food and hot and cold drinks.
There is one on the top of the hill opposite Fujiyama that you can get hot chips from. It takes a free minutes to happen as they are being heated up but you get hot chips presented to you in a cardboard package.

Hiroshima was a place I visited on my 1st trip to Japan and sampled some of its many tram lines as well as a meal I was introduced to called Okonomiyaki which is the most delicious thing you could ever eat. The atomic bomb ruins there called Peace Dome are just an awesome and nothing prepares you for seeing what was mankind's darkest hour thus far. To stand somewhere where an atomic bomb has exploded is a very eerie feeling. Having been to Nagasaki on my latest trip means I have completed the atomic bomb city set now.

I also did the Ichibata railway which according to the oval signs adorned on the front of their trains, was celebrating their 100th anniversary this year.
The interchange station of Kawato was interesting seeing dozens of people making their way between the three 2 car Emus that pull up there at the same time.

[boronia]

One thing that amused me on their trains was that the japanese announcements can go on for a couple of minutes, but the English "translation" would be something simple like "the train is now approaching Osaka".

Another great feature of J train travel is the "ekiben", or railway station lunch box. As well as standard take away meal offerings, many of these are unique to a locality or individual station. Many years ago I picked up an illustrated guide to ekiben, explaining many of these specials, in Sydney bookshops. It was fun going to stations with this guide and trying them out.

And finally, for anyone with a sense of adventure, I found this itinerary for a 24 hr north to south trip.
http://ajw.asahi.com/article/cool_japan ... 1202180007
Actually you can travel further south than Kagoshima by train, although not JR by the look of it.

[Bedford-29]

If I had money I would like to go Japan just once and sample the there transportation as there so much of it.

[boronia]

You'll never be able to do it "just once" and do it justice.

If you want to doe a bit of live train spotting, try these webcams:
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/hakatastation-now
http://www.nttfukushima.com/live/jr_aizu/Default.html