Japan - General Impressions and Random Pictures

Finally some random pictures from my Japan trip that I don't know where to put. So I'll just lump them all here together.

If you haven't been able to tell, I loved this trip. Japan is a beautiful country, and often times I thought I was in Germany. It is so clean and orderly here, the trains are punctual and efficient, the air is clean and the mountains have beautiful trees. Heck, the world's best cars even come from these two countries.

The trains, the beautiful trains. These are the world's fastest bullet trains (the Magnetic train here in Shanghai doesn't count). So fast, so smooth, so nice.

and so long! You can get 2,000 people on these trains, and the are going through every 10 minutes on routes connecting the Kansai region (Kobe/Osaka/Kyoto) with the Tokyo area. Amazing how these people get around.

There are three types of toilets on board the trains. The "traditional style" which is a squatter, then the gentlemen's "pisser" for a stand-up option... however for whatever reason the door has a window that blocks out the persons face but not the body, and that is not a shade that moves up and down. What you see is what you get!

And finally the "Western Style" bathroom. I had to wait in line behind two Japanese ladies to use this. If I had spoke Japanese I would have told them that they needed to use the Japanese style toilet and let the Western guy use the Western toilet.

Even the regional trains are nice. How's this for engineering... the seat push over from side-to-side so that if you want two sets of seats facing each other you just push a latch and push it into place... ingenious.

Another German-Japanese similarity... the Japanese love German wood toys. I saw several shops throughout my trip. You can see Christmas Nutcrackers and Smokers (Raucher Mannchen) in the store window among other things.

Another German-Japanese similarity... it is not uncommon in Germany to see people bring their dogs into restaurants when they eat or to see them lined up outside of a store while they go shopping. Yup, the same thing goes here in Japan, too. They love their dogs!
One difference between the two countries, look at the map legend below...

Ya, I don't think you'll see that symbol used in Germany for a temple for for anything... Yikes! The first time I saw that symbol outside of a Nazi-Germany context was on my trip to Taiwan last year when I saw it on a Buddha and didn't know that it had a religious meaning. The word "Swastika" means good luck or fortune in Greek. The symbol has significance in Hindu and Buddhist religions. In Buddhism it symbolizes eternal life or eternity. But once Hitler adopted this symbol and tilted it 45 degrees did it take on the meaning that most of us in the West place on it when we see it. It still catches my eye and makes me jump when I see it.


It is not uncommon to see ladies walking around in their Kimonos. They are even coming back into fashion here from what I've been told...

and not just ladies wear Kimonos, but I saw several girls wearing them as well. I just think this girl is cute in her traditional Kimono playing with Winnie the Pooh!

Speaking of fashion... Kobe is a very rich city and most people are dressed to impress. Everybody is making a fashion statement here. As for this lady's fashion statement, let's just say not so traditional?

Back in China we constantly have to watch and tell men to keep their cigarettes away from the kids when they're close to our girls. Smokers just don't realize how dangerous their cigarettes are. That's why I liked these signs on the trash cans here...

This one says "I carry a 700 degree Celsius fire in my hand with people walking all around me."

This one is a bit more clear, it says "A lit cigarette is carried at the height of a child's face." I appreciate it... "Ordnung muss sein" (Order must be!)
Took a bus from Yokota Air Base to the airport and we drove through downtown Tokyo on the way. I was impressed how pretty the downtown is...

And finally I was at the airport awaiting my flight. Check out this engineering marvel: wondering where to put your child while you need to use the toilet? Just flip down the seat and you can sit in peace!

Remember that big thing at the Seattle airport last year or the year before where they took down their Christmas tree in the airport, then finally put it back up after the big public backlash? Well just so you know, Narita Airport in Tokyo says "Merry Christmas!"

I had an hour to burn while I was there, and amazingly the airport has an "old school" observation deck!
I don't know how many pictures I have from when I was younger of airplanes at the airport. Here's a pic of a JAL 747 landing.

And a Northwest 747 taxiing in. No wonder why I wanted to be a pilot, I still think airplanes are the coolest things ever...
And with that, my amazing trip to Japan was over. If I could have only shared it with Morgan... I'll make it up to her when we move here next summer!