Friday 4^th July Mototaki Waterfall, near Nikaho

This spot may have been the better one we found, but it is far from perfect; the road on one side, and the railway on the other – with a nearby crossing, so the bells would go on there whenever a train came. And they were quite frequent, though they slackened off at night. Added to that, it was hot and humid. So neither of us had a great sleep.

But the morning was a bit cooler; we stayed where we were, finished off the website and uploaded it; and continued north along the coast road. The road went around lots of rocky headlands, and through lots of tunnels; often very scenic, but the air was not clear. The horizon not clearly visible, and everything seemed a bit muted.

The iPad had nothing much of interest in this section. (I've given up on “Lonely Planet” - both the normal book, and the “Best Day Walks” book, are close to useless); but we came to a headland at Kamo with a huge white building on it, and a carpark; in we drove and an attendant ushered us into a space.

Was this a pay carpark? What is it for?

We went in and found that it was the Kamo Aquarium. We paid the entrance fee ($A 15), not knowing what we had paid for – and found that it is the world's biggest jellyfish aquarium! It was fascinating; thousands of jellyfish of many types, along with a smattering of “ordinary” fish, and some seals and sealions.

You could walk past the nursery where they grow the jellyfish – some tiny (seen only through a microscope) and some very large.

We found a park on the outskirts of Tsuruoka, next to Shonai Airport, to stop and make our morning coffee. (It's hard to find a good coffee in Japan – what we make is usually better that that in a cafe.) And continued on.

It was getting on for late lunchtime when we arrived at Ju-roku Rakan Rocks, where 22 buddhas were carved into the rocks over 200 years ago; 16 of them remain now. We walked down and around them.

By now, we were looking for food. And not finding any; convenience stores all over when you don't need one, but not now! We eventually came to a Lawson's, and bought icecreams and ogire (rice balls) for lunch; and ate them in the carpark.

We were looking for a better spot for tonight. Rain is forecast, so an easy dinner is a priority. We passed a 7-Eleven, and bought one of ther pre-prepared dinners, and have come up to Motutaki Waterfall. A large quiet parking area, with toilets and surrounded by forest. We arrived about 3pm, went for the 700m return walk to the waterfall (which is spring-fed, cold, and misty and mossy all around it), then came back, relaxed, read our books, and had another coffee.

The rain began – lightly ~5pm and we've packed away the table and chairs and retreated inside. We were able to have a wash, jut outside the toilet block, at late dusk; no-one else here.

Saturday 5^th July Unosaki Beach, Oga Peninsula

That was a top spot for the night. Quiet and isolated. There was quite a lot of rain in the night and the morning, as expected; we slept in. No hurry today. Our first intended stop was the Crust Bakery, run by a Dutch baker, who makes real bread. The usual bread in Japan is soft fluffy stuff, and we were looking forward to something - real.

We drove off ~9am; and when we got into internet range Alison looked up the bakery's hours. Opens at 11am! And it's close by. So – there was the TDK Museum nearby as well, opening at 10am. So there we went. Made a coffee first, as we were early for them as well.

The TDK Museum was very, very, good. We were greeted at the door by a robot; there were two main areas, the past and the future. We spent most of the time in the past. The whole thing was based on the discovery of ferrite in the 1920's by two Japanese scientists; and this became the basis for almost all of the developments since in electro-magnetism and in cassette tapes (of course), but also in almost all of the microelectronics we have today. The development has been extraordinary.

We ended up spending 1½ hours there; then drove off to Crust Bakery. Here, Alison's usually excellent navigation failed; we went in the wrong direction for ~ 10km! Turned around, found Crust (eventually; it's tucked away, not on any sort of main street), and it was worth it!

We had lunch of a filled baguette and a filled ciabatta, both of them so good. And we talked to him and his (Japanese) wife for a while; they both spoke excellent English. But, eventually, time to go.

Further on north, up to the big town of Akita. There was an overnighting place marked here, next to the old castle ruins; we went there. For a big town, it looked like an excellent spot for the night; but it was only 3.30pm, and both of us thought it would be better to be out of town. So after a look at the (unimpressive) ruins, and the (impressive) temple next door, we drove out. Filling up with petrol and water on the way.

At the base of the Oga peninsula was a Michi no Eko which said it had hot coin-in-the-slot showers. And it did! So we both showered and washed our hair, before going further around, out of the built-up area, to Unosaki Beach. A reasonable overnight spot on the seafront, close to a road but not a busy one (I think).

The beach is very shallow, with fossils; so Alison's been looking. It has been a very pleasant place to be in the late afternoon.

Sunday 6^th July Juniko

It was a good spot. We found ourselves alone here in the morning, so both went and had a quick (outdoor) cold shower. After eating the last of yesterday's good bread for breakfast, we continued around the Oga peninsula.

The weather was atmospheric, rather than clear – misty, and we never saw the mountain in the middle of the peninsula. There were a few little towns (they are all very monochrome) before the “new” road (built by the Japanese self-defence forces in the 1970's) began; it was quite an engineering feat. With the masses of greenery spilling over everything, it was a very scenic drive. We stopped at various places of interest on the way, but almost without exception the signs said they were much better viewed from a boat.

With the less than perfect visibility, we skipped going up to the lighthouse on the northern tip, and continued along the coast, which became more settled and less interesting. But it had masses of wind turbines, much more closely packed than I've seen in Australia.

We were heading for a biggish town, Noshiro. We were looking for a park for morning coffee; the only one on the iPad was the Noshiro Energium Park. We found it was a sort of educational place for children, with a huge dome containing forest; funded by the power company, I imagine. So after making our coffee in the carpark, in we went. It was all in Japanese; but the plants in the dome were luxuriant and interesting, and I learnt that Australia supplies over 50% of Japan's thermal coal.

We continued into Noshiro, and found a real park. Parked the van and went for a little walk. It was a biggish town; but we came across an Aeon shopping centre, and went to the supermarket there. Finding food for lunch and dinner, which takes longer in Japanese than it does in English.

We stopped at Kanoura Observatory (a lookout, really) and ate our lunch talking to a Japanese motorcyclist there, who spoke reasonable English – a result of him being a surfer! He said he spoke surfer's English.

We were heading for Juniko Lakes, a “World Heritage” area. After more coastal driving, we got there; our app said it was worthwhile to see, and that the Visitor Centre there had trekking maps in English. But not so.

We found the Visitor Centre – unmanned, and no English maps. There are 33 lakes, and roads and walking tracks between them; but which were roads, and which were tracks, was obscure. We took a Japanese map with us, but it was of limited use; we spent quite a while trying to match up characters on signposts with those on the map. Not terribly successfully.

So after a walk through the muddy world heritage forest, and seeing some of the lakes – though we're not sure which ones – we were feeling underwhelmed with it all. We walked back down a road, back to the van, and made ourselves a coffee. And then left.

Back at the coast, at Juniko (a train station, shop, and nothing else) we found a big parking area by the sea – not a beach here, but a big concrete harbour. It seems a fine place for the night.

Monday 7^th July Sukaya

After an outside wash this morning – there was no-one about – we drove off quite early. It was a big driving day. Too much, really – but we had to do it.

When we left, it was reassuring to see that we'd stayed last night in the best spot for many kilometres. There were lots of smallish towns, then we took a shortcut – a numbered Japanese road, which was single lane only through dense forest on steep hillsides with lots of tight corners; very scenic, but I did wonder what to do if we came across an oncoming car! Luckily, we didn't.

Then, there was more coastal driving. We were vaguely looking for a 7-Eleven, mainly to dispose of our rubbish; it was a long time before anything like that appeared. But in the end it did, so we had a morning icecream there as well.

We were looking for a park for our morning coffee, but none appeared. We came to the big town of Goshogawara, where there was an overnighting park marked on the iPad; and it was indeed a good park, with lawns and flowers.

We'd passed an Aeon shopping centre on the way, so we went back and bought more food for lunch and dinner. (Bread for lunch, the best we could find find – but a disappointment. White fluff.)

And we drove on, Alison looking for the next park. The first she found, down some back streets, had a swing, a garden bench, a patch of grass – and nothing else. Nowhere to park. She tried again in the next town and found a better option, where we made lunch in a gazebo.

While there, I got a text from Alice telling me she was working from home today. So I rang, and the news was that she is 4 weeks pregnant.

Then, more driving. Across and up into mountains, across the Jogakura Bridge (a huge span across a deep chasm), where we stopped and did brain drain. This did not improve Alison's mood. And on, only a little further, to Sukaya – site of a big hotel with onsen, and the trailhead for many walks in the Hokkoda mountains. We arrived after 4pm, after leaving this morning about 7am. Too much driving!

We parked ourselves in the big carpark and went into the Visitor Centre – unmanned again, but this one very informative, with lots of information in English. Tomorrow we plan a 5-hour walk, and with any luck, here we'll know where we're going!

There are some short walks around here; we went on one down to the pay campground, and chatted for a while to a Japanese lady who'd lived in New Zealand for 11 years. There is no advantage being there, to our free carpark, and the bugs were worse down there. And there are no showers there – you have to go to the onsen!

We walked home and made dinner outside.

Tuesday 8^th July Michi No Eki, Kazuno

We woke early. Very early – so that, after having breakfast, we set off walking at 6am. It was a beautiful morning, with a cloudless blue sky. We were going on a circular walk taking five hours – Sennintai Marshes, Mt. Odaki (the highest peak in the northern Hokkoda mountains), Kenashitai Marshes, and back home.

It was a good walk. Basically uphill all the way to the Mt. Odaki summit, except for a brief interlude across the Sennatai Marshes and a short diversion to the (very big) Sennetai Hut. En route we passed a couple of sections where there was no vegetation, due the the toxic gases emitted by Mt. Odaki – still a “live” volcano. Even with my terrible sense of smell the hydrogen sulphide smell was very obvious.

The last section up to the summit was very steep, after we crossed a patch of snow. There was a track work done, but a lot of it had deteriorated and made it more difficult. We got to the summit – a large bare gravelled area, not very appealing at all; but the views all around were excellent.

We continued down the other side. Mt. Odake emergency hut, through the Kenashitai Marshes (which were on multiple levels, with sections between of close to 300 steps), back into forest, and back home.

After our nearly five hour walk, it was 11am – time for coffee! We had one, and had some food which sufficed for lunch. After a little walk to Lake Jigoku (which is filled with water which emerges at 90º), and then down thorough an area with fumaroles and a hut built for people to warm their bottoms on, we packed up and drove out.

The next point of interest was Oirase Gorge, a 14 km stretch of river through forest, with 13 waterfalls. We stopped near the beginning, and had an uninspiring iced coffee. It was very busy. Lots of cars, lots of people, on a Tuesday afternoon. Neither of us liked the feel of it; too busy, too touristy. So we didn't walk. We drove along it; the walking path was often right beside the road, and didn't appeal at all – though there were a number of people walking it. We saw some of the waterfalls, which we found a bit ho-hum.

So – on to Lake Towada – a large and deep lake. This was very touristy as well and we weren't inclined to stop. So, on we went.

We really needed a shower. Alison found the Arase Public Bathhouse on the iPad, in the village of Kazuno. We found it, beside the river; it is really a very basic onsen. Cost was 200 JPY, paid on a honour system. All signs in Japanese. I had the boys' to myself, Alison had a couple of ladies in with her. So after soaking in the very hot bath for a while, we both emerged clean, with clean hair.

Where to stay? We came to the close by road station – not on a main road, and with park around it. So much better than most of them. So we went and found a ramen restaurant in town for dinner, and we're staying here tonight.

Wednesday 9^th July Kappa no Fuchi, Lake Tazawa

There were lights on all night, so we had to have our curtains closed; we slept well, but I woke early – 5.30am or so. So, up; and before breakfast, got serious with an itinerary of sorts for the rest of our trip. Only six days left. I looked up the weather forecast and , while it may be wrong, there's no rain predicted till Tuesday – when it doesn't matter so much.

Today, we were headed for Mt. Hachimantai; which you can drive up, and according to the aoo there's a walk around the marshlands on the top, and a nice mixed outdoor onsen with views.

After stopping at a 7-Eleven to buy something for lunch, and filling up with petrol (which we were undecided about, but turned out to be a good idea – all day, for ~150km, we didn't see another petrol station) we took the turnoff to Mt. Hachimantai.

A little way up, we came to the Visitor Centre; opens at 9am, and we were early. So we made a coffee, and when we finished it was open. Worth waiting for – a very good centre, with a map brochure (covering Sukaya as well) in English. After having our fill, we continued up to the pay parking at the top of the mountain.

It was quite busy there; lots of tourists, all Japanese. As usual, we were the only Westerners. We went off on the 1½ hour walk around the marshlands, but it was quite busy and, really, not a good as what we saw in Sukaya yesterday. And I got so sick of the sound of bear bells, which almost everyone else was wearing; thank goodness we don't have bears in Australia!

We got back, and had lunch; then drove the 2 km (past fumaroles and snow) down to the onsen. This was very old, wooden, traditional; separate indoor change rooms and pools for boys and girls, and combined sexes outdoor pools. It was quite nice, but I don't think I'm an onsen person – good for a change, but a shower would be nice too.

Then, time to leave. Alison drove, and got a very long windy road; we swapped driving, and got down to near Lake Tazawa; but needed more food, so went an extra 4km to a big supermarket; then back to the lake, and to this parking area. Ate our dinner down by the lake, read; very pleasant.

At dusk, four campervans in convoy pulled in. All Japanese; they parked all around us and objected to the way I'd parked, across parking spaces. So, we moved – it's a big parking area, and we've moved well away from them.

They're the first objectionable, officious, Japanese we've come across; everyone else has been nice and helpful. Oh well.

Thursday 10^th July Naruko Park and Garden

We had a good quiet night over on the other side of the parking area; and woke to find not only the four vans, but also two 4WD's in convoy, and two other vehicles! It's a popular spot. (Interestingly – when we arrived, I used Google Translate on the notices - “Campers - no tents, chairs, tables in the carpark.” This morning? One tent, multiple chairs and tables!

We left. Continued around the lake, and down into the big town of Daisen. Big, but very spread out, with rice paddies interspersed all over. We stopped at a 7-Eleven to get something for lunch. Pre-packed sandwiches – that was the best alternative we came up with; we're a bit over Japanese food options.

Alison drove. Through town driving, for ages. We headed for the tourist attraction of the Masuda warehouse street – a street with lots of old warehouses, many restored. It was hot. We stopped at the Visitor Centre, where they gave us a map (in English); we walked up and down the street, but most buildings were closed and there were few people around. (It was before 11am, in Japan – so you can't expect too much.) We were looking for a coffee, but didn't find a reasonable source.

It was not doing anything for us. We drove down to a park, not too far away, and made ourselves coffee there, and ate our sandwiches. It is sad that it is so difficult to find a decent cafe in Japan.

Then, time to head down to our real destination for today, the volcanic area around Oyasukyo. We stopped at the shops near the bridge, and walked down the 380 steps to the river beneath it. It was amazing! Fumaroles all over the place, clouds of smoke; and a couple of clefts where gases were ejected with amazing force.

Back up at the shops, another coffee made, and a visit to a farmers' market-type shop run by two lovely ladies, with whom we had a brief Google Translate conversation.

Where to next? We decided on the narrow winding route 310, which brought us to Kawarage Jigoku (Hell, in Japanese) – a large white area with sulphur and gases leaking out. Another amazing sight. We went for a walk down to the bottom (you have to stay on the marked route, for safety) but not as far as the hot water waterfall. The pH of the water there is 1.4, so getting into it was not appealing.

We continued on the narrow winding mountain road, til it joined Route 108. This road was built only in the 1990's, and it was not an easy build; the longest tunnel was 3.4km long, and there were a number of places where the road went tunnel – bridge – tunnel. Along this road we were looking for a boardwalk beside a hot stream; it was tucked away, but Alison found it – only to find it closed for repair until November!

So we continued to our spot for the night, atop a hill over a gorge, outside a doll museum. It's lovely, surrounded by garden, quiet and secluded. There was a bit of rain (now stopped); we each had a full bucket of warm water for a wash.

Friday 11^th July Kamafusa Lake

Naruko Park and Garden was our best ever overnighting spot. Quiet, surrounded by garden, on our own. When we woke, we stayed and got our photos and other things in order before breakfast; and it was 8am when we drove out.

From there, it was into Sendai, the largest town in northern Honshu, on the Pacific coast.

Today was a cool day! Maximum temperature of only ~ 22º; I even felt a bit cold, at times. Not enough for a jumper of long pants, though.

The distance to Sendai was only ~80km, but it took the best part of two hours to get down to the coast, and to the Arahama Elementary School. The main part of town is well inland, but this coastal part is mostly open fields – because the town of Arahama was totally destroyed by a tsunami in February 2011. 192 people killed by the tsunami, but 300+ survived by sheltering on the top floor and roof of the 4-story school building.

We spent two hours there. It was fascinating – because there was a gap of over an hour between earthquake and tsunami, there was some preparation; and there were photos from the air of the tsunami engulfing the town. It was 6 metres high.

We watched a couple of videos of the recollections of people who were there – teachers, schoolchildren, and some of the surrounding townspeople who evacuated to there. The evacuation of people from the roof of the school took a total of 25 hours! And it was in the middle of winter, with snow complicating it all.

Alison had done some homework and found a nearby place to have a shower! The Natori Trail Centre is one of 6 centres along a 1,000km walking trail along the Pacific Coast, built in some of the coastal land after the tsunami. For walkers, it is so luxurious! Showers, toilets, library, computer access, lounge room, etc. We both had a lovely long shower – and it was all gratis.

Now, about 2pm, time to leave the big city, and we were both significantly hungry with no lunch to eat in the van. We drove and stopped at a supermarket, bought some food, and heated it in their microwave before eating it at the little area of tables and chairs that supermarkets in Japan have.

Next door was a “100 Yen” shop. We walked around; it had lots of interesting things, all unmarked as to price. I (Google Translate) asked how we were to know what the price was; the answer, that every item was 110 yen. (Inflation.)

We spent 1,540 yen.

After filling up with petrol we drove out of Sendai. Our iPad had no suggestions for a spot for the night; Alison found some options. No. 1 was along a muddy track which I became a bit apprehensive about, and had to back out for quite a distance before I could turn around; No. 2, where we are, is next to a lake by a quietish road; no facilities, but it is fine.

Saturday 12^th July Yamagata

We slept in, nearly to 7am; perhaps because we'd closed the blinds, to hide ourselves. We woke to overcast skies, and drizzle; not a good outlook for our plan to go up into the mountains, to Lake Okama, today. But you have to take what weather you get.

We drove off before breakfast, stopped at a Family Mart, and then stopped for breakfast in a spot we could stop beside the road. Then Alison drove, and we turned off onto a narrow, windy, overgrown road. Driving along here, through rain and cloud, made me wonder if we were being silly. The silliness invaded both our temperaments, and we weren't communicating well either.

At one spot I had a glimpse of the steep mountainside we were driving along. There were a couple of other vehicles being as silly as us, but only a couple.

We got to the parking area at the chairlift. There were masses of cars there! Unbelievable. But the rain had stopped, and the cloud cleared a bit too! Our moods improved too – though starting with making a coffee inside, and the machine falling off the stove just as it finished, spilling hot coffee all over the floor, didn't help. (We made another one.)

We got on the chairlift – the most basic one I've ever seen; single chairs, no safety bar or strap – you just sat on the plywood seat; it never got more than a metre above the ground. But it was a nice trip. We got to the top, and saw the volcanic lake of Otara – presently green, but its colour changes depending on weather conditions.

There were heaps of tourists spread out along the caldera rim; almost all, as usual, Japanese – with a mix of those fully rigged out with large backpack, water bottle, and walking poles, to ladies in skirts carrying a handbag. And it deserved the tourists, as it is a most impressive sight.

We walked along, down closer, back up to a shrine at one high point; and then along the other way, before walking back down again to the van.

The weather continued to improve!

We had a sort of lunch – we didn't really have any lunch food with us – before continuing along the windy road to the town of Yamagata. We were intending to go somewhere south of this, but.... made a diversion to the Kaminyata castle ruins. After a convoluted drive through narrow streets we found a small parking area, and walked up to the ruins. To find that they weren't ruins – the castle was reconstructed ~ 40 years ago.

We walked around it. It's a nice spot, next to a park overlooking the town; and we found a much better carpark, as well. So we walked a little, and in the end decided to move to the other carpark for the night. And we did, though finding the road to enter it from was quite a challenge.

Now its a sunny afternoon. Such a change from this morning! It is warm again, after two days of cold weather. I went over and shaved using warm water from the footbath here.

We walked over to a nearby supermarket to buy food for dinner, heated it in their microwave, and walked home. We went over to the park next to the castle to eat it. Very pleasant.

We returned to the supermarket, because they had reasonable bread. Up to the standard of Australian supermarket bread – not great, but so much better than the soft fluffy stuff they mostly have here. They'd sold out. I bought a bottle of Suntory whisky instead – spirits are much cheaper here than at home.

We sat and read in the evening, before each bringing a bucket of warm water from the footbath and having a very good wash next to the van, before going to bed.

Sunday 13^th July Fujinumako Nature Park

We woke a tad early, for some reason. It was a good sleep in a quiet location. After an early walk around the area, seeing baseball practice in full swing, and then having a foot bath – which was very pleasant - we were on our way by 8am. So we drove – south from Yamagata, and straight to Kitikata, just north of Aizu, stopping only for morning coffee (at an archaeological site Alison found) and to change drivers. We stopped at a supermarket in Kitikata and bought the bread they'd sold out of, yesterday, in Yamagata; along with some salad, etc. So we'll have a good lunch.

We also called in at a “Yellow Hat” auto store, to buy some flyscreens for the motorhome windows, at home; but they only had a small size.

We ate our lunch in Gotenba Park, in Kitikata; it was very hot, but pleasant under the trees. And on into central Aizu, where Alison had read of a street with shops full of artisanal Japanese ware. We had to park. Being a Sunday, there were many empty spaces, but none of them were public ones; in the end we found a 7-Eleven, parked, bought an icecream, and walked down to the street. It was a bit disappointing, and we didn't stay long.

Big cities are not really our thing. We headed over a little windy road to Lake Inawashiro, and parked at the boat dock. It was a sunny Sunday afternoon, and it was packed! Paddle boats, jetskis, people ++. We made a coffee, looked at the Swan and Tortoise cruise boats, and drove off to find somewhere for the night.

Today, this was not so easy. We started with the Aizu Recreation Park, but it closes at 5pm. A couple of parking spots around the lake were not attractive either. We could have returned to Funatsu Beach, but didn't really want to; it would have been busy as well.

So we drove south, towards Sukagawa, hoping that somewhere around Fujinuma reservoir would do; and found a lovely quiet spot overlooking the water, with (at present) no-one else here. It was ~4.30pm when we got here; late enough to stop.

At 6pm we drove down to the 7-Eleven and bought microwaved food for dinner; came home. Someone else was parked in our spot! We ate at the pergola outside, and at 7pm they left, and we reclaimed our spot. Alone again.

Monday 14^th July Nikko

It started to rain overnight, and continued to rain on and off (mostly on) all day. We were in no hurry this morning; playtime, brain drain before breakfast, and Alison washed down to van, as it was all wet and raining.

Unfortunately some rain had got in the tailgate overnight, and wet our mattress; so that got rearranged during the day to dry it off.

Eventually we left this lovely overnight spot. We were on our way back to Nikko tonight; only two choices of which route to take. We took the one we didn't take on leaving Nikko, which is to the east and is much more built up. And.. it was not the sort of scenic drive we've been used to. A lot of driving through towns, a lot of traffic lights; and a lot of rain.

We stopped at an Aeon store, and found another 100 Yen store there; and a McDonalds. We had a McDonalds coffee; so-so. Not as good as we make in the van. We stopped at a 7-Eleven, bought more money, and had lunch in their carpark; no good alternatives in this part of Japan.

Alison drove on. For nearly two hours, till we got back to “our” park in Nikko. We were in time, for a change, to see inside the old wealthy villager's house which has been moved here; then drove off to shopping. Uniqlo, Seria; we got back to our park near 5pm.

Weather-wise, it's been a lousy day, but as we spent most of it doing necessary driving, it wasn't as frustrating as it might have been. So we are lucky!

But.... this evening, our luck was not so good. It didn't rain – and we walked out to have dinner at Parrot Restaurant, our last dinner in Japan. It turned out to be a long walk; first I forgot my phone and had to return and get it - a 15 minute extra walk (phone is essential, because we need Google Translate in restaurants.) Then we went the wrong way – too far – and had to walk back. Then, a sign said (via Google Translate) that they were closed today and tomorrow.

We tried another restaurant marked on the map, but never found it. It's difficult in Japan, because what the characters for “restaurant” are, we've no idea.

So... we ended up at a supermarket, bought some pre-prepared dinners, heated them in the microwave there, and ate there, at the tables and chairs in one corner of the supermarket. And walked home.

It was not quite the last dinner in Japan that we had envisaged. But at least it didn't rain.. yet!

Tuesday 15^th July Narita Airpo

It rained at night. It rained today – sometimes very intensely, sometimes stopping. At one stage we passed a footpath which looked like a gushing stream. We had five hours driving today, so it didn't worry us as much as it may have.

(It would have worried the couple from Colombia who shared our overnighting spot last night, on Day 1 of their trip; the rain is expected to continue for two more days after we leave. We gave them our spare gas cylinders.)

With the experience we have now, we worked out a better route down to the Japan Campers Office; trying to avoid getting too close to Tokyo. It was a better route, going through more country areas, but it still took a long time. We stopped to change drivers, have a coffee, buy some 7-Eleven food for lunch. And to buy petrol, all in Japanese using Google Translate again.

We planned to get to Japan Campers at 2pm; we were 20 minutes late. No problem. Unload the van into the guesthouse, look at the huge mountain of stuff, manage (just) to pack it back into our bags; and go and have a shower. A shower!

Minato, the staff member dealing with us, was very good. After opting to charge us not very much cleaning fee (as Alison had left it so clean), he said he'd cancel it if we left a Google review. So Alison spent the saved money on a Japan Campers T-shirt, a good thing to do. And after giving us back the security deposit, he drove us to Narita Airport and said goodbye.

They are a good organisation.

Then – normal airport stuff, with three hours before our flight leaves.

Alison is pissed off with all the packaging here in Japan!