Where to Watch World Cup Soccer in Tokyo

At least for the Nigeria games, why not watch with 30 or so Nigerians?



On the streets of Kabukicho.



At 2 seconds into the the halftime, their boss yelled, "Back to work!" You don't want to be the one white guy around when that happens. Unless you are looking to have sex for money. In that case, enjoy. The Nigerians know some good clubs.



Is that culturally insensitive? The truth is, if you walk around Kabukocho at night, you will be approached by a ton of Nigerians trying to get you into the clubs. Or that one old Eastern European guy. Do you know who I'm talking about? I guess he's been here for like 30 years. If you have more info about him, email me, I'm curious.

Kyushu Touring Logistics

Then, after 10 days, I waited for a ferry to Hiroshima,



took a 3 hour nap, face down in my own drool,



and drove back to Tokyo. That's the sun setting on Mt. Fuji. Ever want to see 500 people taking photos out their car window with their cell phone cameras at the same time...

Logistics

Some people like to hear numbers when it comes to travel in Japan, so here is what my 10 day motorcycle trip in Kyushu consisted of:

Gas - 37,510 yen. About 3000km just to get there and back. Someone recently told me that truck drivers in Japan can be convinced to stow your bike in the back and give you a lift. I'm now reading a book called The Japanese Negotiator.

Food - 9600 yen. I only spent about a hundred bucks. I also got treated to ramen 2 nights, breakfast when I was hiking, and a home cooked dinner with my friends in Beppu.

Camp and Ferry Fares - 16,720 yen. Campsites are usually free or 500 yen. This goes for all of Japan. I paid a bit more for the hydrofoil to Yakushima, so I could have cut off another 4000 yen.

Bike Expenses - 37,000 yen. I needed some new parts along the way, so this is a bit high. But you should tune your bike for a trip like this. Most maintenance parts are cheap and DIY, but tires are expensive!

Attractions - 2500 yen. The sheer beauty of God's earth was my attraction most of the time. Though I'm surprised the governments of some of these cities doesn't enact a "Beauty Japan" campaign that taxes people to travel in these parts of the country. It should be 2000 yen less, but I went to that lame Beppu onsen hell thing.

Tolls - 5000 yen. Luckily, highway tolls are just 1000 yen, flat rate, on weekends and holidays. Otherwise, Tokyo to Kagoshima is something like 23,000 yen.

So if I didn't have to buy new bike parts, a 10 day trip would only be about $600.

Epic Motorcycle Riding in Kyushu

The Yamanami Highway runs from Yufuin, just outside Beppu, down to volcanic Mt. Aso. You should buy a motorcycle and go here.



Sweeping curves, light traffic, and tons of nature. What's not to love?



My CouchSurfing host joined me on the back. A seasoned rider back in Vietnam, at least that's what she told me, she later said it was the first time she had ever gone faster than 100kmph.

Our first rest stop was the onsen / rich people resort of Yufuin. Yufuin was... the fuck is this?!?



A minute after white turd ice cream, came across this.



Holy shit Himari-chan, thanks for the nightmares!

Anyways, Yufuin is kind of saturated with tourist attractions, and I didn't want to stick around.



Speaking of tourist attractions, The Kokonoe "Yume" Otsurihashi Bridge 九重“夢”大つ橋 is the biggest something or other in Japan. It's only 5 bucks, so check it out if you have time. I had time.



Further south, Mt. Aso is known by Japanese people as being a spot that is famous for milk and other dairy goods. I later found out that it's famous for both riding, and eating, horses.



Sexy bike!



Imagine speeding over mountain passes, volcanic steam vents spitting into the air around you.



Eventually, you'll arrive at Mt. Aso. It's active!



The gasses are all kind of poisonous, and you might have problems if you are asthmatic.



Nice landscape. A lot of people asked me if I saw the green Aso. I guess the slopes have some vegetation for a shot time during the year. I dunno. No green today.



If the slashing light turns red... run!





My map recommended an utaseyu (うたせ湯) onsen. The tallest one in Japan. I finally figured out what it was when I went in. The falling stream of hot water gives you a massage. Nice!



If you're hungry, don't worry, maps to the rescue. Touring Mapple X Dream Burger (?).



I totally found this map to local shops that have hamburgers. Remember, this is fairly remote mountain country. There is no logical explanation.



Tasty though.



Not as tasty as ramen.



Anyways... here's my "wish you were here" shot.



By the way, this area is one of Japan's motorcycle mecca places. I had just missed a huge Harley event, which was too bad. Ask your local bike shop, if it's a major holiday, there might be something going on-

Beppu, Japan

別府市



First thing I did when I arrived in Beppu was to seek out this hidden, free, mixed-sex onsen on the side of Nabeyama. A few km up a dirt road, I was the only one there.

If you live in Japan, have transportation, and like remote onsen, then you should check out this site, Secret Japan.



So that onsen was rad, the next... not so much. Beppu is one of the most "famous" onsen cities in Japan. People come from around Japan, and apparently Korea, to check out the hot water. The most famous spot is the 8 Levels of Hell Onsen. Holy shit, sounds bad ass!



There are 8 different onsen areas to check out. Each one is special, some more special than special. I mean some are fucking retarded. Anyways, a 2000 yen combo ticket gets you into them all.

The first one I went to was the Ocean Hell. It was blue. Next!



If this is your first time to Japan, which might have been the case for all the Korean tourists, then there is some shrine looking stuff to see.



Ok, the next one was kind of rad. At Bald Dude Hell, the muddy bubbles are supposed to look like bald monk's heads. What do you think?



Next up is Mountain Hell, which is hell for me, cause I wasted my money, and hell for the animals stuck in cages.



Seriously, this poor hippo was the same size as the pool he was in. And the elephant can't be enjoying this life.



Next is... Cooking Pot Hell. For reals, the pamphlet you can pick up in town makes it all seem amazing. Here, you can enjoy...



... huffing some onsen air! This one is downhill from the zoo, so you're probably breathing in hippo pee steam. Just sayin. You can also eat an egg.



Monster Mountain Hell is just an alligator farm.



Random sex museum!



Ok, the Blood Pool Hell is a nice color. I read they make old person medicine out of the water there. Whatever.



Last up is Spout Hell. It's a geyser. I waited like 30 minutes for this crap. But there was a bonus! The fat kid in this shot totally had a tantrum!



Who am I kidding, you'll probably go here if you ever go to Beppu. If I was with anyone, it would have been cool to see who could put their hand in the 100 degree Celsius water for the longest, or some other drunk antics.

Next: The are just outside Beppu is epic.

Japan Bash!

It's Octoberfest in Hibiya Park!



Anyways, this space is now JapanBash, formerly GaijinBash. If you had the old site bookmarked, it should still take you here. If not, then you won't read this and it doesn't matter.

About 4 years ago I registered www.gaijinbash.com with some free host. 4 years later, and they tried to start charging me for it. I ain't down with the bait and switch, Microsoft. Also I didn't really like the name. So welcome to JapanBash.

Bash - Informal. a thoroughly enjoyable, lively party.

not

Bash - to hurl harsh verbal abuse at

I love this country very much, and would never bash Japan. Though I'll talk shit about things that warrant the shit to be talked. Like overpriced tourism spots and fucked up red tape that I have to cut through to do stuff.

So welcome to JapanBash.com. Thanks for reading!

Fukuoka, Japan

福岡市



Whoa, surprise festival. Rad!



I arrived in Fukuoka, specifically the Tenjin district, and promptly checked into a capsule hotel. 3000 yen a night, and right in the middle of the seedy part of town.



Seedier!



That's more like it. Downtown Fukuoka is one of Japan's most famous hotbeds of the sex industry. Tons of hostess bars, love hotels, and men's "saunas".



But the thing that makes this area stand out from other red light districts is that you can walk a couple blocks away and totally be out of it, chilling with some cheap food and beer. They even have actual benches along the rivers, so you can just hang out and watch the people.



This nice stranger took me out with his colleagues for some ramen. Kick ass! Homeboy didn't realize it, but he was like a goodwill ambassador for this town, and now it's my 2nd favorite city in Japan.



The whole "everything is super close" thing was solidified when I rode my motorcycle about 30 minutes out to Shikanoshima, where you can chill on the sand (it's clean!), watch surfers, and eat some good food.



This is the Shikanoshima bowl, with local seafood. Warning, the shrimp was still alive.

Back in town that evening, more ramen, and early to bed for the next day's ride out of town. A theme on this trip is that I didn't really drink much. Early to rise and all that shit, I guess.

Next: Beppu. Finally, I can talk shit about another place in Japan