I wasn’t expecting to come back that soon. I wanted to, but I didn’t expect it. But as unexpectedly soon as it happened, similarly unexpectedly, it passed. But this trip was one of the few truly remarkable ones.
I’ve had a chance to visit a conference in Tokyo – in Tachikawa, to be precise. I didn’t really count on this small place, but it was lovely, a bit aside from the hustle and bustle of the central area and with its own quirks.
But today, I want to focus on a day trip to Kamakura.
It all started with the almost empty battery of my 4-year-old iPhone mini. 20% of an old mini battery is not something you want to end up for a day in Japan. But it was the only chance for me to visit Kamakura. So, I started writing down all the connections and station names for my trip. Learning Kana wasn’t for nothing this time. Then it was time to go and in almost 2 hours I was there.
This train called Enoden appeared for quite some period of time before the journey in my feed. I was thinking this was pretty much an overhype. But turns out it is now really the most lovely and soulful train. It brought me to the Hase station.
Spring in Japan is full of bright colors. From Camellia Japonica to Sakura – everything is breathing and adds points one by one to this one of my happiest days.
Walk
The idea of this trip was to walk along the coast of the Pacific Ocean from one town to another. I didn’t really do any research beforehand and the situation with the phone didn’t help with that. Still, it was quite easy to realize that I could just walk along the Enoden line one town after another as long as time allowed.
The town itself was very nice but seemingly focused on the main and some neighboring streets. Because of tourists. Again. And again, being a part of this crown felt a bit strange. I came here to get out of crowds but ended up in one of the denser ones. Fortunately, the way was known. To the ocean, out of the city.
Closer to the ocean side signs reminded me about the specifics of living in this region. Tsunamis aren’t unknown here and can be pretty devastating.
Along the way, there were some interesting spots and appearances including my first in-life seen Mazda RX-7. A true legend. But in a game, it felt more modern designed. But the game I played was made around 20 years ago so…
Back
Those several hours of being somewhere far and not available to the whole usually connected world were some of the most remarkable ones. I just felt myself there. Not identified with something. Just being someone who walks from one place to another without a big business or touristic reason for that. Because the touristy part was exactly on the sides of this journey. And then I didn’t enjoy that much.
Only Enoden made those parts feel still special.
The ride back was the same: a piece of paper, a couple of transfers perfectly on time. And Tokyo is again here with its unimaginable endlessness.
This was a day I’ll remember for my whole life. And the trip. I couldn’t believe that until I got my tickets for it. I am grateful immensely to everyone who made this happen.
Going back from Tokyo for the second time was actually less easy than the first time. This is so rich and emotional city. The biggest on the planet. Thank you, Tokyo. But another place was awaiting.
Echo 