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    Tokyo to Ho Chi Minh By Bicycle An autobiographical and reflective account of traveling from Tokyo to Ho Chi Minh on a bicycle.

    Photos from Japan

    There are [29] photos from Japan

    Saying good bye and thanking the traffic police for their assistance. They guy wearing the waistcoat had initially suggested driving me there and really it's him I'm indebted to because I don't think the others would have come up with such an idea. Still arriving at the boat with a bicycle in a traffic police van caused much amusement and everyone was very helpful with big grins all round. Views[517] Blasting through the tunnel in the traffic police van. Views[394] So I was faced with a really long tunnel to get to the boat in Osaka. With only 30 minutes before I was supposed to be there and bicycles forbidden I was faced with a grim proposition. Run the gamut or face missing the boat. So as I descended into the bowls of the tunnel the police descended on me like vultures and after a face off decided to put the bike in the van and help me out. Here's one of the guys who helped. A serious case of Ichinichi ichizen. Views[433] So after waking up in Toba park and setting off I was very worried to find my back wheel making all sorts of strange sounds. I thought it best with only two days before the boat left to head off to Osaka so I took the limited express and pulled into Osaka around midday. This was my tiny hotel room. Views[435] Mr Sugihara Osamu, the park warden and generally great guy all round. I gave him a beer which he took but then told me he didn't drink which was confusing. Views[470]
     
    Another angle of my humble abode with the stars in the sky behind. Views[250] After taking the Irago - Toba ferry and arriving in Toba it was getting dark so I made my way to what was marked as a campsite but ended up being a refuge for snotty Tokyo pensioners. Although they had a camp site I wasn't allowed to use it because Out of nowhere I spotted a whole bunch of ostriches. Unfortunately it's on the video camera. Whilst hanging out with the big birds this chap rolled up with his family and we had a long chat about cycling. He found the bike to be very weird and took lots of photos of it bless him. Views[282] A rather massive bridge that I'm very grateful I didn't need to cross. Unfortunately in situations like this you end up going miles out of your way. Views[190] And there we are, another night under the stars hidden away from view. When I awoke in the morning there were some very interested pensioners doing their exercises. Views[249]
     
    If you look really carefully you can see the black outline of the tent behind the hedge. Views[218] About an hour before this photo was taken I'd been distracted by getting a secret view of the Suzuki motorcycle test track and watching bikes blast up and down the straits at speeds of over 150mph. They had padded the Amco barriers as the bike were traveling at a terrifying speed. I'd then wasted 45 minutes finding the campsite only to be told that it would be £20 to pitch my tent, an astronomical price considering it was under a wind farm. So I decided to plod on and get across the next bridge but then ended up in a construction site with the road along the coast blocked. Cycling around looking for somewhere away from the howling wind was difficult but I eventually found a small park and pitched up behind a hedge. Views[297] This incredible piece of engineering is the 416 road jutting right out into the Philippine sea. It marked the start of my first hard climb where I cursed myself for carrying so many unnecessary items and vowed to lighten the load once in Osaka. Views[289] I decided that taking a photo of the place I camped or stayed every night would be a great reminder of my traveling experience. The cats had left, or at least I thought so because I couldn't see anything. When looking at the photo several days later I noticed one of them sitting quietly behind the tent on the right side staring right at me. Clearly they don't need any lessons in stealth. Views[261] While taking this photo of where I'd pitched my tent some cats turned up and had a good poke around. No sooner had clicked the camera using a 60 second shutter speed the cats approached. It was pitch black and I could hardly see them but they remained in the photo like ghosts and you can see where they moved. This photo is twinned with the next. Views[260]
     
    The clouds passed eventually. I was hoping it wouldn't rain on my first night camping wild. Views[248] The man in the moon decided to make an appearance and create a beautiful light show above Shimizu. Views[261] I had cycled in the dark under the ferris wheel several hours before. There was a show on and the whole area was swarming with fans. I looked back into the past and reflected on how when I was over in the distance on the other side of the bay, I hadn't known where I'd be now. It's a shame my bike didn't float and have a propeller because the round about way I'd come had added an extra 15km. Views[267] I took this opportunity to learn better how my camera worked and using different shutter speeds and stand I was really pleased with the results for such a small pocket camera. Views[267] I had a beautiful view of the Shimizu dock yard with all its cranes and lights. Throughout the night you could hear the factories churning in the distance. Views[439]
     
    After starting in Mishima around 2pm then cycling 60km down the coast of Suruga Bay. I managed to find a good site to camp overlooking the docks and sat for a while with a beer watching the lights reflect upon the water and the fishermen relaxing by the bay. It was a very tranquil scene. Views[314] The Thorn and I with Mt Fuji behind in the distance. Views[2373] This brought back memories from three months ago when I tried to climb the mountain but got stuck in a gale. The weather was much better today. Views[265] I'd always wanted a photo of the bike with Mt Fuji as a backdrop. I knew whilst cycling down the Pacific cycling route that I may have the chance. The mountain is shy at the best of times so I took the opportunity to take this photo. Views[308] After taking the bullet train from Tokyo to Mishima and setting up the bike, I hadn't gone far before realising that I needed some food. I almost choked on my salad by this bizzare spectacle, a car with an exact replica of the same car on the dashboard, like a Russian doll but this had gone very very wrong. Views[356]
     
    I felt some kind of connection to the blasted motorbike whilst wheeling my heavily laden touring bike around. It seemed like the pedal equivalent of what was next to me. The owner was very proud, as you can see. I wonder what his house looks like, can you imagine? Views[524] Whilst Tim stood watching me rifle through my front panniers to find items that might be best elswhere to relieve the handlebar shake, this garish fairground attraction pulled up. The machine played merry go round music whilst ticking over much to our amusement. It seemed for me a perfect finale for Tokyo having something so perfectly wacky Japanese turn up. I reckoned I wouldn't be seeing many of these around in rural China so we got the camera out. Views[375] Leaving my friends the Williams's apartment in Ogikubo early on Sunday morning. I was pretty nervous and getting on the bike and discovering a lot of handlebar shake didn't make it any better. The bike seemed so unstable that I wasn't sure how I'd make it to the station, let alone Osaka. Views[335] This is Taku and I at Cycle Works in Kichijoji, Tokyo ( http://www.c-w-s.co.jp/ ) Taku did an excellent job of setting up the bike for me. After buying my first bike and having the Thorn built here I left Tokyo feeling confident that all would be fine with the equipment. Views[508]  

    About luke_collings

    A random shot of me in Majorca with my lightweight tourer before flying back to Tokyo.

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