Sayonara, Japan.                                                                                                    (by Alison)

It is nearly time to go. The rain is forecast to continue solidly for the next few days, maybe developing into a typhoon (one Japanese experience I don't need while cooped up in a tiny van). We have done our shopping. The last few days have involved driving south back to where we started, trying to choose different routes; and it has been raining. So to break up the driving, we have visited Seria, Can Do and assorted 100 Yen (1 Dollar) shops. Seria really is a 100 yen shop, and it is amazing how many small ingenious things are available for one dollar. As we are closer to the coastal plains there is more built up area and traffic, but still plenty of rice paddies and greenhouses and vegetable plots.

It makes me very aware that we have seen some amazing places.The wild country in Japan really is wild. The slopes make sure of that. The forest here is beautiful, often mixed types of trees, but all tall and luxuriantly green. The warning signs for bears are everywhere and the tinkle of bear bells will always remind me of Japan - I wonder how many bears there actually are. We have seen bear scat and some clawed footprints ( racoon? badger?) but otherwise , animal sightings are restricted to deer, monkeys and weasels. I looked up bear attacks and was very surprised to find there were 219 attacks last year in Japan and 6 were fatal so next time I will wear a bell.

I will miss the greens, the trees, the stands of asiatic lilies, the pine smell of the forest. I will miss the sound of water everywhere, rushing downhill in torrents, waterfalls, and those steep gutters. I won't miss driving beside those gutters - if a wheel ends up in one then it is a tow job and a very expensive end to the holiday. I will look forward to driving on roads more than 1 1/2 cars wide. I wonder if I will miss the anxiety / excitement of wondering if we will meet another vehicle on this stretch of road.

Japan does many things very well.

Snub nosed cars and trucks fit into miniscule garages, directly off the road. Conventional Australian, long nosed aerodynamic cars certainly exist here but they stick out of their garages! No parking anywhere on roads is something I could get used to although I would probably take longer to get used to paying for parking everywhere. There is no eating at all on the street. There is very little rubbish seen dropped in public. The accessibility of clean "restrooms", absolutely everywhere, makes travelling so easy. I will not miss late opening hours - a coffee shop which opens at 11am and closes at 3pm might not last long in Melbourne. The lack of daylight saving has frustrated us a bit as we wake when it is light at 4.15 or sleep in when it is raining til almost 6 am - but nothing much is open until after 11 am. We have got the hang of finding the food halls of shopping malls, waiting until the pre-prepared meals are discounted, and heating them in the microwaves provided by the store. We haven't done so well finding restaurants- when you can't read the signs, and sometimes they are located on a second floor rather than at street level; we have tried to eat out but failed more times than we have succeeded. We have continued to try lots of interesting food but I am looking forward to my usual diet with a much greater share of fruit and vegetables on my plate. I haven't missed alcohol.  Here the zero blood alcohol when driving rule means even when you visit a sake distillery, there is complete acceptance that you won't taste it - if driving, no drinking. That said, alcohol is very cheap here - $6 for a bottle of french champagne, or 4 or 5 litres of whisky for under 20 dollars.

It is time to go home.

Sayonara wamth, sun, greenness, water, fantastic rich soil, mountains. Sayonara typhoon warnings, earthquake safety areas, geothermal hot pools and spouting mud. Sayonara red bean paste, soba noodles, and those pink and white flower bits on the top of meals. Sayonara heated toilet seats and washlet toilets. I will miss their ubiquitous presence, the little touches like fresh flowers and origami by the wash basins but I am not a convert to the heated seat.

                                                                                                            Simon's Journal

And here are more photos.....