Ok, call me a dork, but today I'm very excited. Today's journey from Hakone to Osaka is via the Shinkansen - Japan's infamous bullet-trains that are capable of reaching speeds in excess of 300 km/h. It was pretty amazing to watch other Shinkansen speed past our platform - I reached for my camera when I saw the first one coming from a distance, but it was alredy gone by the time I got my camera out of it's case.
Overall, travelling through Japan has been a very pleasurable experience... though I must say that I did feel a bit overwhelmed when I first looked at the maps for the Tokyo subway and "JR" rail lines. I've seen pictures of the Tokyo subway routes on the internet, but standing in front of the giant map, trying to figure out how to get to your destination (or for that matter, even trying to find your destination on the map) is a whole other game.
When a train or subway is scheduled to leave at 12:04, it leaves at 12:04. Not 12:03, not 12:05, but 12:04. Oh, and get this... the ticket collectors are pleasant, engaged, and even stay awake during their shift!! We all agree - riding the TTC in Toronto is going to be even more painful after having experienced public transit in Tokyo.
And here I thought that I couldn't possibly have any more disdain for the TTC...
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