We arrived back in Tokyo at the beginning of the 'shubunnohi' (spring equinox) long weekend; crowded platforms and lineups to get onto packed trains. Leh and I thought of using the last day of our Japan Rail Pass (unlimited travel on the JR network) to blast down to Kyoto for a bowl of noodles, but we couldn't get reserved seats and I really didn't feel like joining the scrum for an unreserved seat on Saturday morning.
The trains themselves are amazing, but perhaps even more remarkable is the sheer number of them - from this platform in Tokyo station alone trains are leaving about once every fifteen minutes.
Rumi catching up on her email aboard the Shinkansen. They have a section on the train with desks and electrical outlets, but no internet access yet - they've had phones for years, so I'm sure it's on the way...
Two babies in a buggy...
A really traditional 'ojisan' (literally 'uncle', but often used like we'd use 'geezer') bicycle. Note the highly desirable hand warmers...
A mamachari bike for carrying two kids.
I guess if you can't sell them cars, you might as well try something else... GM is now actually selling locally made cars here under the Chevrolet brand name; I can't imagine the brand having much appeal, but I suppose they should be admired for trying.
The Shuto Expressway network runs all over the Tokyo Bay metropolitan area. It's virtually all elevated, and two (narrow) lanes in each direction, with no shoulders. It's often gridlocked - I have sat stalled in traffic at 1am - and often slower than taking the streets below.
It's also expensive; 700 yen for an ordinary car, and no refunds if you get stuck crawling along at 20km an hour and then give up in disgust after a couple of kilometres. Below the sign indicating the prices is the current traffic situation; currently an 11km traffic jam on one particular section of the expressway.
