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Diffstat (limited to 'src/inc/nikko.md')
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diff --git a/src/inc/nikko.md b/src/inc/nikko.md index f0cf98d..4b3b957 100644 --- a/src/inc/nikko.md +++ b/src/inc/nikko.md @@ -5,6 +5,8 @@ toc: true <!-- TODO: header picture? --> +## getting there + Before leaving home I had gotten myself an international Drivers License, that gives you a permit to drive in many countries (outside the EU) for up to 3 years. It only costs 15 EUR in Berlin and I had set the soft goal of driving in @@ -19,9 +21,10 @@ For my first destination I chose [Nikkō], another common day trip destination from Tokyo that I had not done and conveniently located along the Tōhoku Shinkansen line. My plan was to take the train to Utsunomiya, rent a car from there and continue towards Nikkō, with the eventual goal being a hotel at the -shores of Chuzenji-ko. +shores of [Chuzenji-ko]. [Nikkō]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikk%C5%8D +[Chuzenji-ko]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Ch%C5%ABzenji So I start the day nice and early on one of the first trains out of Ueno terminal. It's another grey morning in Tokyo with the weather forecast @@ -63,15 +66,20 @@ need anything more than a translation of the local drivers license into Japanese issued by the JAF[^jaf]. This costs ¥4000 and takes up to 2 weeks (according to their website). So there is no way I can work this out today. -[^jaf]: https://english.jaf.or.jp/driving-in-japan/drive-in-japan/about-dltas +[^jaf]: + [[https://english.jaf.or.jp/driving-in-japan/drive-in-japan/about-dltas]] <aside class="notice"> - I applied to receive a translation on the same day from that Starbucks and - received the notification the next week. It seems that 2 weeks is a very - conservative estimate. A curious details is that you don't receive a PDF, - but instead a button to issue 7ELEVEN "Net Print Service" codes (that are - one-time use only), which you then take to a convenience store and print - out on their printer. + <p> + I applied to receive a translation on the same day while sitting at that + Starbucks and received the notification the next week. It seems that 2 + weeks is quite a conservative estimate. + </p> + <p> + One curious detail is that you don't receive a PDF, but instead a button + to issue 7ELEVEN "Net Print Service" codes (that are one-time use only), + which you then take to a convenience store and print out on their printer. + <p> </aside> Now that I am dependend on public transport my schedule is a lot more @@ -127,15 +135,50 @@ full course Japanese breakfast, so rice and various side dishes At this point I still don't know how to get to my planned destination for today, the Senjogahara wet lands, 10km from the hotel. -<!-- TODO: ??? --> +<!-- TODO: is that distance correct? --> The other problem I am faced with is how to make it back to the station in time for the train back to Utsunomiya and eventually Tokyo. At the front desk I get told that the hotel provides a free bus back to Nikko at 11:00, but that is not helpful, since I have already seen the sights around there and want to explore -the area in the exact opposite direction. - - +the area in the exact opposite direction. After some research online I find +that the same bus I came with yesterday goes aroud in a loop. So I decide to +take off on foot for now and catch it on the trip back to the station later +that day. + +## trails + +So I begin walking at the lake shore alongside the road, follwing the sign for +the Lake Chuzenji Nature Trail. There are some larger information boards that +tell the histories of a small memorial garden and the lake house. It doesn't +take very long before I reach Shobugahama, where I start following the path +towards [Ryuzu Falls]. The waterfall is on the way to where I want to make it +today, so I put off my plan to find a bus stop that could take me to [Senjōgahara Marshland], +and check them out first. I just follow the marked trail which takes me up the +hill next to the falls and into a web of paths through a wooded area tracing +the Yu river. + +[Ryuzu Falls]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ry%C5%ABzu_Falls +[Senjōgahara Marshland]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Senj%C5%8Dgahara +<!-- alt link: https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3811.html --> + +At this point my plan has shifted to walking all the way up to the entrance of +the wetlands walking trail, exploring there and then finding a bus stop to take +me back to Nikkō. The weather is great and it surprises me how accessible the +trails around here are. Although after some kilometers I encounter a gate into +the Senjōgahara park area, which is apparently fenced off to keep deer *in*. +I wouldn't mind deer, but the entrance is also plastered with signs warning the +inclined hiker of bears! + +<!-- TODO: insert gate picture --> + +Once I arrive at the Senjōgahara Plateau Nature Trail, a raised wooden walkway +straddling the open grassland, I start my GoPro and put in my OKM II microphones. +[^rec] + +[^rec]: prior to leaving for Japan, I started experimenting with binaural + audio recording as a way to capture memories. I have a page with some notes + around the setup and some recordings here: {rec} <!-- - explored temple grounds in nikko @@ -144,12 +187,12 @@ x last bus to hotel x ordered dinner into the room - gyudon x bath looking onto drive way x simple japanese breakfast -- didn't take free bus to station -- senjogahara (lol monogatari) -- walked along lake shore -- twin-dragon falls(?) -- walk through national park(?) +x didn't take free bus to station +x walked along lake shore +x twin-dragon falls(?) +x walk through national park(?) - was a bit afraid because of the bear signs +- senjogahara (lol monogatari) - recorded my walk through the "wet lands" - 20km covered on foot that day - took the bus back from onsen town (need to find name) |