Japanese Surgeon's Daily Life

Osorezan

     I left the JSDF quarters for Osorezan. When I climbed up north into the mountains with my bike, I was quite suddenly attacked by the strong smell of sulphur. At the next moment, I ran over the pass in the forest and saw a beautiful lake with some desolate terrain beyond the lake which jumped into view. Osorezan is well known as one of the three major holy sites in Japan. The mountain features a mystic landscape with a beautiful emerald green lake and desolate wastes. It is believed that the spirits of the dead gather here. Osorezan is also famous for its Itako or spiritual mediums. These people are said to be able to call up the spirits of the dead to communicate with them. I walked around. The steam was coming out of the ground all over the place. They would be selling eggs boiled in the steam if in Kyushu. I couldn't find them. I expected them, so I was disappointed.
     By the way, August 15th is the anniversary commemorating the end of the Greater East Asian War. I found the monument to the War victims. I offered a prayer. We will never make the same mistake again.

(Vocabulary)
desolate 〔土地などが〕荒れ果てた、荒涼とした
terrain   地形、地勢、地域、領域、範囲、分野
beyond the lake　湖の向こうに
three major holy sites 三大霊場
mystic　秘密の、神秘的な、秘教の、秘伝の、不可解な
waste　荒れ地
spiritual medium   霊媒
the Greater East Asian War  大東亜戦争

(KW: 恐山 宇曽利湖 うそりこ イタコ 大東亜戦争)

Japan Self-Defense Forces (JSDF)

     A friend of my junior and high school days lives here in Mutsu city. He has advanced to the rank of Colonel of the JSDF and lives in the official JSDF quarters away from his family. He has enough room to give us a night's stay. We spent a night at his residence. Though I know some of my high school alumni want to see his photos, I didn't have his permission to introduce his specialities and facial portrait here. I stored many pictures of us on another space so let me know your e-mail address and I'll send you an url and password.
     Getting back on the track, after taking a bath at Yatate Spa, we enjoyed his home cooking and talking far into the night. I really want to introduce his story here, but that has kinds of secrets. I have to keep it in my heart. Oh, I've almost forgotten to write about Yatate Spa. It was searing-hot water, but relaxing. I felt envious of the locals who can bathe here whenever they want. The recirculation and purification system isn't needed here. We simply bathe in the hot water, the gift of the earth, just after coming out of the earth. What a gorgeous way of bathing!
     He is kind enough to work out of his marine headquarters so that we can observe the inside of a trim destroyer in active service. My bike friend and I prepared some questions in advance.... This morning, when we were about to go out, we found ourselves clad in rags and with riding boots on. We don't have suits because we are just tourists with minimum packs. We had no choice about clothes, but we could rent sneakers from my friend.
     We got into the Marine Base with his car. We received a salute from a Sergeant-at-arms at the gate. I knew how high a rank he is judging from the kind of greeting. I got a few instructions from my friend as to how to get on the destroyer after getting out of the car. Though I thought I knew how to express the honor of going aboard a destroyer, my mind became a complete blank when getting on board. It's because the crew were waiting for us in a line with their white uniforms on. It was a real formal reception. In spite of our shabby clothes! I really tensed up! I almost fainted.
     Though it's 20 years since the destroyer was built, I felt it was well maintained. I couldn't find any accumulation of barnacles on the hull around the water line. Really good maintenance had been done. The destroyer was built by bringing together the outstanding technologies of the U.S. and Japan, and being kept punctiliously in the best condition all the time. The capabilities of the ship must be high.
     They allowed us to take many snapshots. The number of the crew is about 100. They don't have private rooms except for the captain. They have a small bed only for private use. It was like a chicken shelf in a poultry farm. There must be food, water, sewage system, showers, kitchen, laundry, medical room for 100 crew members and enough ammunition and fuel. I wondered where that is kept. I guessed their daily work is so hard in such conditions. I took off my hat to their guts. I felt they were dependable. I'd like to send hearty cheers to the JSDF.

(Vocabulary)
JSDF　自衛隊
colonel  １佐　大佐
quarters  《複数扱い》 (軍人・使用人などの) 部屋, 宿舎
searing-hot  焼けつくような　(痛みなどが)焼けるような
trim  船の出航可能状態〔バラスト・帆などの準備ができて〕
active service  現役、現役勤務、現役服務、常時勤務、戦地勤務
clad in rags  《be ～》ぼろを着ている
sergeant-at-arms  守衛官、警備局長
barnacles on the hull  船体に付いたフジツボ
hull  《海事》船こく、船殻、ハル、船体
punctiliously  きちょうめんに、細かいことにこだわって
poultry farm  養鶏場
dependable  信頼できる、頼りになる、頼もしい、信頼に足る、安心できる

Photo Album

See our shoes! We rented those.

On the deck of the destroyer.

(KW: むつ市 むつ矢立温泉 海上自衛隊 護衛艦 ゆうべつ)

Hotokegaura (Japanese Cappadocia?)

     First, take a look at the photos below. Though it's the first time for me to visit here, I felt it was the second time. I think it looks like the scenery of Cappadocia in Turkey which I saw in a picture somewhere. The name of this place is "Hotokegaura", which faces Tsugaru Strait and lies about halfway between Oomazaki and Mutsu City. Hotokegaura is one of the main sightseeing points of Shimokita Peninsula. If I had had enough time, I would have taken the sightseeing boat, but I couldn't. It took about half an hour to go down there from the National Highway on foot. I perspired a great deal when returning to my bike after 30 minutes' climbing.
     I started promptly for Mutsu City to cool my body. The wind against me on the bike was very comfortable. Finally, I got to Mutsu City. I have a longtime friend here. I'll write about him tomorrow.

(KW: 仏ヶ浦 下北半島)

The Northern End of the Mainland(Honshu)

     I made it all the way here! I'm at Cape Oomazaki, the northern end of Honshu now. This area is famous for delicious cuisine made of tuna. However I didn't have enough time to wait in the line. I left for Mutsu City with painful reluctance. I had to reach there by 7 in the evening because my old friend was waiting for us.

(KW: 大間崎 本州最北端)

Seaside Park

     I parked my bike in the seaside park. Some are taking a lunch, some are bathing in the sea water, some are drinking canned coffee,,,. I was relaxed. It's about 30 minutes left to Cape Oomazaki. Let's go up north.

 

Cape Shiriyazaki

     Cape Shiriyazaki is located at the north-east corner of Shimokita Peninsula and looking down Tsugaru Strait and the Pacific Ocean. There's no such scenery in my hometown. I'm busy taking some snapshots as shown in the 1st photo.
     A paved road extends to the tip of the Cape as the 2nd photo shows. Don't you think it is beautiful? If you are a bike freak like me, you are sure to want to ride around. Do you know the movie, "The Great Escape"? In this movie, Steve McQueen was driving a bike in a meadow. The scenery around here was just like the place in the movie as the 3rd photo shows. When I was about to drive my bike into the meadow, I found some bumps covered with grass on the ground. It was not long before I knew those were the result of horse feces that were put out to pasture around here. Of course I stopped. You can see the bump covered and not covered with grass in the 3rd photo.

     To tell the truth, all around the Cape was a horse ranch. We had to push the button to raise the bar at the border. The last photo was shot at the border of the ranch just before going out of the ranch.

(KW: 尻屋崎 寒立馬)

Taking A Rest

     After lunch, we decided to go east to the Pacific Coast and move towards the north along the east side of Shimokita Peninsula. There are no private residences around there and untouched nature remains. Though we, bike tourers, should be more careful than car drivers to avoid deer, foxes, and other wild animals, it's comfortable to ride on those clear highways. I wondered why Shimokita Peninsula is a windy place. As I saw a lot of wind power generators at Cape Tappizaki, I found them here too. It's only about 30 minutes to Cape Shiriyazaki, but I felt a little tired. We took a rest.
     After coming back home, my friend sent me this photo. I was shocked to see my head. It's getting bald!!!

Scallop

     My bike friend and the friend in Aomori city had a big party in an inn last night. We had a great time there. One is a PC specialist and the other is a journalist. Everything I heard from them was new to me, and I got a lot of information. We enjoyed talking and having a lot of local sake and cuisine, and the next thing I knew, it was about 1 o'clock after midnight. Time passed as quick as lightning. Next morning, we started for Mutsu city. We dropped in at a tiny, crummy eating house along the roadside on the way to Mutsu city. The photo shows Chinese-style noodles served in a hot soup, which I ordered there. We call this kind of noodles "ramen".
     To my surprise, there were 3! scallops in the ramen. I realized that Aomori Prefecture is the home of the scallop.

(Vocabulary)
scallop  帆立貝
crummy (インフォーマル) 安っぽい, くだらない, 不快な
home of  発祥地　生息地　本場

Neputa

     What do you think this photo shows? It's called a "Neputa". This is used at local summer festivals. The frame is made of wires and bamboo. Papers cover the frame, and then the design is painted on the surface. Some neputa are 22 meters high, 6 meters wide, and weigh 17 tons. All neputa have lights on them and look so vigorous. If you look at the picture carefully, you'll find a looped slope along the wall around the neputa. I visited the neputa museum which was built in Goshogawara City recently. A couple of neputa were exhibited in the musium. I saw a neputa live for the first time. It was the structure of the museum that I was surprised to see. It was like a secret base of "Mobile Suit Gundam". When I saw the neputa for the first time in the museum, I wondered how they put them into the museum. You can see the building at http://www.tachineputa.jp/top.html (sorry, it's in Japanese).

     Lo and behold, one wall of the building moves and slides aside like a door. It's just like a secret base which you can see in an SF movie. The Neputa Festival in Aomori is very famous. There seems to be no power line on the road that the neputa would go on. I felt Aomorism.

(Vocabulary)
vigorous  〈活動などが〉活発な, 盛んな 〈人が〉元気な, たくましい, 〈植物が〉よく育つ
saw a neputa live 生で見る
Lo and behold　驚いたことに、驚くなかれ、これは驚いた、何ということか、そしてなんと、あれよという間に◆会話で相手の注意を引くために使われる
power line  電線   送電線
Aomorism  青森県民気質

(KW: 五所川原市　祭り　ねぷた)

Sudden Rainfall

     It's begun to rain. I parked my bike at a rest stop which we call "Michi no Eki". These rest stops are scattered across Japan and are very convenient. Anyone can use these facilities anytime. I put on my rainsuit.

 

Stepped National Route

     When I express something unusual in English I often feel frustrated. Can you imagine "Stepped National Route" exactly? I wonder what you would imagine from this expression. National Route means the secure road that is strictly managed by the Japanese Government. I think that National Routes must have enough width for at least a small car to go through. However, there is a National Route like a narrow path here. The photo shows Route 339. The blue road sign means that this road is a Japanese National Route. As you can see, this road is not a road but a path. Route 339 starts from Aomori city and goes to Cape Tappizaki (the tip of Tsugaru Peninsula) on its east side along the sea. But it doesn't go round to the westside of the Peninsula. Route 339 starts again from the hill over the tip of the Peninsula. A Stepped route connects both Route 339s by stairs.
     I've no idea why such a curious national road was born, but anyway now I'm sure this stepped path is one of many sightseeing points in Aomori Prefecture. You won't find any such road elsewhere in Japan.

(Vocabulary)
tip 先端

(KW: 階段国道)

Cape Tappizaki

     As we went up north on the Tsugaru Peninsula, it got sunny. When we got to Cape Tappizaki on a finger of the Tsugaru Peninsula, it was completely clear.
     The photos are of me and the radar facility of the Japan Self-Defence Force with the Tsugaru Straits behind. We saw Hokkaido in the hazy distance. There is an undersea railway tunnel under the Strait, which is called the Seikan tunnel, the longest railway tunnel in the world. The technique that was used in the construction of this tunnel was used in the construction of the undersea tunnel under the Straits of Dover, I heard.

(Vocabulary)
on a finger of the peninsula  半島の突端に位置する
finger  「細長いもの」全般を指して用いる
chocolate fingers  チョコレートフィンガー
a narrow finger of land  細長い土地
hazy  かすみのかかった, かすんだ 〈思考・記憶などが〉 ぼんやりとした

(KW: 竜飛崎) 

Meeting After Many Years

     I arrived at Aomori city at 6:25 am. I have a friend of long standing in Aomori. I met him on my online service over ten years ago. I'd met him only once about 5 years ago. People who don't use internet might not believe in the warm friendship between computer pals. However, it exists. I met up again with my old pal at the Aomori Ferry Terminal. He welcomed us in spite of this early time. He showed us to the eating house. The photo shows us there. He is a journalist for a local paper and knows everything about the Aomori Prefecture. I mean, I got the best tour guide of Aomori.
     Despite his hard schedule, he had time for us. We started for the round trip of Tsugaru Peninsula under his guidance. Tsugaru Peninsula is the westward one of two peninsulas, which extend north like the hands of crabs at the top of Honshu.

(Vocabulary)
friend of long standing　古い［長い付き合いの］友人
meet up　会う
Let's meet up some time. いつか会いましょう
meet up again with one's old pal　古い友人と再会する

 

Be Packed

     The photo shows the inside of the ferryboat between Muroran city and Aomori city (the top of Honshu). It takes 7 hours between those cities. I managed to secure my space for a good sleep. It was so packed. The person in the front of the photo is my friend. We made a toast to the happiness of being here. He is a top-class, registered programmar and runs an IT company. Both of us are so busy, and it's so hard to adjust to both schedules. This summer, we had to change the plan again and again. It was lucky we could finally get together here.

Cape Chikiu-Misaki

     This Cape is located at the southern part of Hokkaido, Muroran city and is famous for the beautiful sunset. To my regret, it's overcast weather. I couldn't see the sunset here, but could see the far horizon. I realized the earth is round.

 

Showashinzan: Newly Created Hill in Showa Era

     Just after I received my bike from the transport company at Shin-Chitose Airport near Sapporo city in Hokkaido, I headed westward to Lake Shikotsuko.

http://kumo.typepad.jp/weblog/2006/08/summer-vacation.html    

     I ran along Lake Shikotsuko and reached Lake Toyako that is located by a famous volcano, Mt Usu, which erupted in 2000. This eruption caused massive disasters around the volcano. I visited the devastated area a few days later, so I'll report at that time. The photo shows the Showa-shinzan, which was newly created in Showa-Era. The bike on the far-right is mine. The altitude of Showa-Shinzan is about 400 meters. You might not believe it but this hill was made in about two years (1943-1945) and is emitting a great deal of steam now.

     http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Showashinzan

My Boots

     I got this pair of riding boots about 10 years ago when I changed my on-road type bike into an off-road type one. I use this when I go out for over 2 days' touring, i.e. once or twice a year. I couldn't take a long ride last year, so I took my boots out of the stock room for the first time in 2 years. To my sorrow, I found that the inner water proofing sheet of my boots was torn. Ten years might be a boot's life, but I can't throw it away. I have many memories shared with these boots.  Anyway, I don't have another pair. Let's go riding with these boots.

To readers:
     I'm planning to go riding to South Korea and Sakhalin in the near future, within at least 5 years. I want to get to know some Korean and Russian friends who are in their 40's and love motorcycles. If you are such a man or woman, let me know. I'll show you beautiful places in Japan whenever you want. In return, I'd like to ask you to help me ride in your country. From now, I'll write up my diary in English. Enjoy it!

I Hate China #2

     Qingzang railway, which connects Beijing and Lhasa (Tibetan Capital), was completed. A routine run will start next year. Japanese mass media focus on the tourism only, but their way of thinking is very superficial. I'm sorry that they are following the well-planned propaganda by the Chinese Communist government. What is the purpose on earth that Beijing pressed ahead with this difficult construction of the railroad. This railroad runs at an altitude of 5000 meters. Can you believe it? I'm going to mention my opinion.
     First of all, their purpose is a forced assimilation of Tibet. It's more than half a century since China invaded Tibet and killed hundreds of thousand of Tibetans on a massive scale. The honest and sincere religious leaders became rare by the destruction of Buddhist temples and the repression of priests. Potala Palace is crowded with Chinese tourists and there are many Chinese security officers in the Palace. You can see swanky souvenir shops, shopping malls, restaurants, and many taxis in the street of Lhasa. You might think Tibet is getting rich, but the owners of those companies are Chinese, not Tibetan. Speaking of Tibetan people, they draw a ricksha, play folk instruments in sightseeing points, or beg for something in front of Potala Palace. In fact, Tibet got colonized by China. Young generations of Tibet became unable to realize the significance of the existence of their spiritual leader, The Dalai Lama. Using Tibetan is strictly prohibited in all public tests; every test after 3rd grade in primary schools, the test for the driving licence, the exam for the National Public Service, the entrance exam of universities,,. In those tests Pekingese is used. Consequently young Tibetans became unable to speak the Tibetan language. The Tibetan language and culture might dissappear from this world except for written characters on the Buddhist canon, just the same as Xinjiang Uighur, that consists of Turkish. Does China have the right to accuse the former Empire of Japan of having forced Koreans to use Japanese? They didn't prohibit Korean people from using their own language.
     The second intention of this railway is to raise the capacity of transport of soldiers and weapons. This railway might escalate the level of military readiness between India and China. The Chinese Army can dispatch 120,000 soldiers to Tibet within a month. India repeats missile-launching tests. The range of those missiles covers Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou. Most Indians view China as a threat. As for the atomic power plant that gets U.S. assistance, the Indian government has deep ideas to improve their own atomic bombs in future.
     I investigated this railway further. The security seems to be uncertain in case of melting of frozen ground due to global warming. Is the daily maintenace of track possible at an altitude of 5000 meters? This railway has 960 km of section over 4000 meters high. The railway cars have a pressurization system using technology introduced from the aircraft maker Bombardier Inc. and have an oxygen inhalation system and a UV protection system too. I love railway traveling, but I hesitate to use this railway.

(Vocabulary)
Qingzang railway  青蔵鉄道
press ahead with　～を押し進める、～を敢行する
repression (武力・政治力による）弾圧、抑圧
swanky (場所･衣服などが)　おしゃれな、けばけばしい、ゴージャスな
Lhasa　ラサ　（中共チベット自治区の首都）
Xinjiang Uighur　新疆（しんきょう）ウイグル自治区
pressurization　予圧　加圧

私は中共が嫌いです　その２

　北京からチベットの首都ラサに繋がる青蔵鉄道が開通した。来年から運行が始まるらしい。日本の愚かなメディアは観光の面ばかりに焦点を当てるが余りにも浅はかな考えだ。中共政府の練られたプロパガンダに乗せられていることが残念だ。この困難な鉄道工事を中共が推し進めてきたのには訳があるのだ。この鉄道は標高5000メートルの高度を走っている。信じられますか？如何に意見を述べたいと思う。 　まずは、この鉄道の目的はチベットの強制的な同化政策だと言うこと。中共がチベットを侵略し、数十万人ものチベット人を虐殺して半世紀以上が経過した。この間に敬虔な宗教指導者は寺院の破壊や僧侶の弾圧のためほとんどいなくなってしまった。ポタラ宮殿は中国人観光客であふれ、悪名高い中共の公安が見張っている。おしゃれな店やショッピングモール、通りを走る沢山のタクシーを見て、チベットが繁栄していると映るかもしれないが、これらのオーナー達は全てシナ人である。チベット人はといえば、人力車を引いたり、民族楽器を演奏したり、ポタラ宮殿の前で物乞いをしたり。事実上、チベットは中共の植民地と化している。チベットの若者は彼らの精神的な指導者、ダライ・ラマの存在意義さえもわからなくなってきているのだ。また、全ての公的な試験においてチベット語を用いることは厳しく制限されている。小学校３年生以降の全ての試験で。運転免許試験、公務員採用試験、大学入学試験等々。これらの試験では北京語が使用される。従ってチベットの若者たちはチベット語を話せなくなってしまうのだ。チベット語やチベット文化は仏教の経典に書かれた文字以外、この世から消えてしまうかもしれない。ちょうどトルコ人の新疆ウイグル自治区のように。大日本帝国は朝鮮人に日本語を強要したが、彼らが母国語を使うことを禁止してはいなかった。中共に日本を非難する権利があるのだろうか？ 　この鉄道のもう一つの目的、それは武器や兵士の運搬である。インドとの戦争に備えるためのものである。人民解放軍１２万人を１ヶ月以内にチベットへ送ることができるのである。インドはミサイル発射実験を繰り返し、その射程距離は北京、上海、広州に及ぶ。多くのインド人は中共を脅威と見なしている。アメリカの協力を得ている原子力発電に関してはどうかというと、インド政府は将来の原爆開発の意図があるのだろう。 　この鉄道について更に調べてみた。安全性にかなり問題があるようだ。温暖化による凍土の融解に対して対策が講じられていない。標高５０００メートルにおいて毎日の点検が可能なのだろうか。この鉄道は４０００メートル以上の区間が９６０キロメートルもある。車両はボンバルディア社で設計され予圧されている。また、酸素吸入設備や紫外線対策も施されている。鉄道旅行は大好きだが、この鉄道だけは遠慮させてもらう。

HIROSHIMA

     Today is Aug. 6th, the day that the U.S. dropped an atomic bomb over Hiroshima city 61 years ago. We Japanese never forget this day. It was an extremely hot day. The U.S. hasn't apologized yet about this matter and moreover defends their atomic bombing of Japan. The U.S. claims that they just wanted to end the war. However, I don't believe it. If the war had continued a little longer, Russia, the most powerful communist country, would have intervened in the occupation of Japan. I think the U.S. wanted to fend off undue pressure from Russia. Enola Gay, the B-29 bomber that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima city, passed over two militarily important cities before bombing. One is Kure city where the biggest naval arsenal was located. The battleship Yamato was built there. The other is Matsuyama city, my home town, where the most powerful fighter squadron was located. At the terminal stage of the war, excellent fighter pilots were gathered and the strongest fighter group was in Matsuyama city. Actually, in the dogfight off Matsuyama city, the U.S. air force suffered serious damage at the end of the war. There were many secret, camouflaged airplane sheds in Matsuyama. If the U.S. wanted to end the war as early as possible for real, they should have attacked Kure or Matsuyama. Never Hiroshima.
     It's no doubt that the atomic bombing on Hiroshima was an experiment on human bodies. A week before bombing, a B-24 bomber crashed near Hiroshima city. Several crews were rescued and were held in custody by military police in Hiroshima city. They were killed by acute radiation damage due to the atomic bomb a few weeks later. I think they never thought they would be killed by their own bombs.
     If the U.S. was a sincere country and wanted the end of the war and wanted to use the atomic bomb, they should have dropped the atomic bomb in the center of Tokyo Bay so that the Emperor and officers could see the mushroom cloud directly.

(Vocabulary)
fend sb/sth off   ＜襲撃者・攻撃など＞から自分の身を守る
undue  過度な, 必要以上の
squadron  飛行中隊, 小艦隊
shed  物置, （物置）小屋  (電車の) 車庫, 倉庫, 作業場
for real  (見せかけではなく) 本気で, 本当に

　今日は８月６日、６１年前アメリカが広島市に原子爆弾を投下した日だ。我々日本人はこの日を決して忘れてはならない。それは暑さの厳しい日だった。アメリカはこの件で未だに謝罪していないどころか原爆投下は戦争を早く終わらせるために仕方なかったのだと自己弁護している。が、私は信じない。もし仮に戦争が少し長引いたらロシアが介入してきただろう。アメリカは日本占領についてロシアの圧力を排除したかったに過ぎないと思うのだ。広島に原爆を落とした爆撃機、エノラ・ゲイは爆撃前に二つの軍事的に重要な都市を通り過ぎている。一つは呉市。海軍最大の武器庫のある街である。戦艦大和はここで建造された。もう一ヶ所は松山市、私の故郷である。ここには投じ最強の戦闘機部隊が配置されていた。敗戦間際に日本中から優秀な戦闘機乗りがここに集められていた。実際に松山市沖での空中戦で米空軍は甚大な被害を被っていた。戦闘機は厳重にカモフラージュされ隠されていたが、彼らが本当に戦争を早く終わらせたかったのなら松山に原爆を落とせば戦闘機などすべて破壊できたであろう。従って原爆を落とすべきは広島ではなく、呉、松山だったはずだ。
　原爆投下が人体実験であったことは明白である。原爆投下の一週間前、B24爆撃機が広島市の近くに墜落し、数名の乗組員が救助され、広島市で拘束されていた。彼らは原爆による急性放射線障害で数週間後に亡くなっている。自分の国の原爆で殺されるとは夢にも思わなかったろう。
　もし仮に、アメリカが誠実な国であったなら、そして戦争の終結を祈り、原爆を使いたかったなら、彼らは原爆を東京湾の真ん中に落とすべきであった。そうすれば天皇陛下、政治家達はキノコ雲を直接見ることができたであろう。

Summer Vacation

     I have a plan to ride my bike in the sourthern part of Hokkaido and Aomori Prefecture for 1 week's summer vacation. Those areas are located in the northern part of Japan. If I went there by bike, it would take 2 days each way. I decided to send my bike in order to save time. I'll fly and receive my bike in Hokkaido on 12th and enjoy riding around. I'm going to post my diary or touring memo here every day to inform my friends where I am. After coming back, I'll write up those memos and re-post those here with some pictures.