Author Archives: angusmccoll

It’s a stunning day. I get up and visit the park across the highway again. It’s Saturday morning and many are jogging around the lake. And in typical Japanese style, they are all going in the same direction. It makes you feel like running in the opposite direction, against the flow, against the order. IContinue reading “SATURDAY 18 OCTOBER – Fokuoka to Kyoto”

I visit Ibusuki for the day. It is an easy 1-hour train ride from Kagoshima. Ibusuki is a popular seaside town for locals, not so much for the beaches because they are flat and the sand is black volcanic residue, but for the food and hot springs. As well as the hot spas, you canContinue reading “THURSDAY 16 OCTOBER – Kagoshima”

I leave Kagoshima on the on the 9.42am bullet train. And when they say 9.42, they mean it. They leave dead on time. When they stop at a station you have about two minutes to get off and alighting passengers to get on. They announce when the stops are approaching and that is your cueContinue reading “FRIDAY 17 OCTOBER – Kagoshima to Fokuoka”

Visited Sakurajima today. Its part of Kagoshima but across the other side of Ginko Bay. You can drive right around or take a short ferry ride. There is an active volcano here that forms a spectacular backdrop to Kagoshima’s cityscape. The smoking crater has been active since the mid 1900s. A community is well establishedContinue reading “WEDNESDAY 15 OCTOBER – Kagoshima”

I would have live to spend another day in Nagasaki but the hotel prices were rediculous. I find out why. There is a major highschool sporting event happening. I board the bullet trains again and head for the southern-most point of Kyushu. Kagoshima is a sea port and has a population of over 600000 people.Continue reading “TUESDAY 14 OCTOBER – Nagasaki to Kagoshima”

Today I move further south onto Kyushu Island to visit Nagasaki. Catch the bullet train to Hakata Where I change over to a normal train running at mortal speeds for the rest of the way. I was excited about crossing over to another island via the train but it happened without me even knowing. TheContinue reading “SUNDAY 12 OCTOBER – Hiroshima to Nagasaki”

It’s just after 8 o’clock in the morning. You and your family are readying for another day. There’s a flash of intense light that catches everyone’s attention, followed by sound and wind. You are over a kilometer from detonation so you and your family survive the mysterious blast, but your house flies apart. You thinkContinue reading “SATURDAY 11 OCTOBER – Hiroshima”

I’m excited today because I get to ride on a bullet train for the first time. I’m leaving g Tokyo for Hiroshima. With my pre-paid rail pass I simply reserve a seat on one of the many express trains that will go this way each day. Tokyo station is an experience in itself. It’s enormous.Continue reading “FRIDAY 10 OCTOBER – Tokyo to Hiroshima”