AM20: The Japan Journals

Chapter 9: Chugoku

May 27th

Before heading over to Jinshu's shop, I took a stroll through a nearby neighborhood. The dimly lit streets uniquely illuminate the city with mellow shades, which perfectly exemplifies this city's personality. Osaka is known to be the hip, cool brother to Tokyo. In so many ways, the reputation of the city cloaks its potential. Everything from the style to variety of food is raw, but nuanced here. This place harkens back to an era where this was the epicenter of the country, as it tends to counter the neon clad ethos of Tokyo.

The historical weight of this region is not lost on the locals, as much of their culture is a throwback to the past. In a country full of historical landmarks, no such area highlights Japan's maturation process as this one does. During this mid-morning stroll, I found a quiet area near the canal and eagerly opened your next envelope.

Ayden,

The last few weeks should have been pretty eventful for you. Even with some of these plans, I'm sure you have several more experiences that spawned from my original itinerary. The Kansai region is historically and culturally important to Japan, which is why it's a popular tourist area. However, this week will be spent in far more desolate surroundings.

This week, you'll traverse the Chugoku region of the country. Here, you'll find everything from elevated castles in the mountains to an abundance of bumpy sand dunes. No journey is complete without its ebbs and flows, as this region is sure to promise a range of emotions. The hachimaki for this leg is dark green. I know that Green is one of your least favorite colors, which is why I saved it for this leg of the journey.

This week, you'll have to embrace what you may not like. However that might make you feel, always remember that part of the human experience is to learn and evolve. Embrace what you're not fond of, because you never know what can stem from it ;)

See you soon!

-Setsuko

Itinerary

Takeda Castle Ruins

Tottori Sand Dunes

Mount Daisen

Yamahguchi

Shimonoseki

Miyajima

Hiroshima memorial

Just by looking at the itinerary, I can see why you'd declare this to be an "emotional" week. Assuming the world can stay rational (and sane), Japan is the only country to lay victim to nuclear weapons. The devastation left behind by the pair of bombs in WW2 was immense, with countless people perishing. Cities were left in radioactive ruin, forever changing the landscape of this region.

As an American, I can't help but have somber thoughts about visiting the memorial. I've decided to save that visit to end the week, as I feel like the weight of that place deserves my utmost attention.

In the meantime, I made one last pitstop at Jinshu's shop. He had wanted me to stop by this morning, although his reasons were unclear. Upon entering the shop, his mechanics told me to remove all of my luggage. It didn't take me long to realize what they had up their sleeves.

To my surprise, Jinshu had made a call to Sensu corporate and had them approve the addition of Supermoto modifications to the DZed. Everything from the wheels to suspension will be swapped out, on my bike. I was tickled by the gesture, as I wasted no time asking Jinshu why he would go out of his way to do this.

We're a proud company with a history of winning. In recent years, we've fallen behind our rivals. In order to "raise the tide" of our program, we feel like we need to think outside of the box with our R&D. Someone like you has ridden a DZed across various kinds of terrain.

As a company, we couldn't think of a better person to assist in our experimentation. With this Supermoto set up, you'll be able to finish your trip across the country (albeit, with new settings). Every piece of input from you can go a long way in us reclaiming our winning ways.

He continued by telling me to take note of how the bike handles on the different terrain. I didn't have the heart to tell him, but I think their problem lies internally with their engine design. Their engines are based off of using a single, carbuerated system. Their counterparts, on the other hand, are using fuel injected engines. Without getting too technical, fuel injected engines are just better.

Their power delivery, durability, and reliability in varying conditions make them superior engines. Quite frankly, I don't know why they're not investing that kind of technology. Innovation can always be a strong ally, especially in motorsports. Why limit yourself to dated, inferior tech?

Without stepping on any toes, I avoided verbalizing those questions and thanked them for the kind gesture. I did ask about the rental contract, as the DZed is property of a rental company in Hokkaido. To deepen my level of surprise, Jinshu took all of the info I had from the rental company and called them, in an effort to buy the bike. They were able to come to an agreement, which means the DZed is now property of Sensu's Osaka shop. Again, their R&D methods are bizarre, but uniquely beneficial to me.

Before leaving Osaka, Jinshu offered me a piece of advice.

Do not think of this bike as one with a new set up, as it will alter your riding style. Changes will be felt but remember, you have to ride by instinct. Take what you know and put it into this bike, with a rallying intent.

The simple, yet sage advice from Jinshu wedges its way into my subconscious. I don't want to go as far to say that it was some sort of "zen moment", but the message easily soared past their surface intent. With time dripping away, I let my instincts take over and plot my way out of the city.

I decided to start the week in Chugoku by visiting the Takeda Castle Ruins. To many people, it's considered the "Machu Picchu" of Japan. All I know about it is that a castle lays on an elevated area, with some occasional clouds blanketing it. I didn't get the chance to see the "Sea of Clouds" in Hokkaido, so I'm hoping that this will finally be my opportunity to see the meteorological phenomena.

The route to the nearest city (Asago) was roughly 2 hours, but in mind, it mine as well have been two minutes. I couldn't wait to get a glance at this sight, as it's truly something my land locked body has never witnessed before. Upon arriving in Asago, I found a quaint Ryokan to bed down in. The hosts were helpful with my plans, as they told me the best time to visit the castle.

According to their advice, it's best to visit the Castle around the break of dawn, as that's when the clouds gather form. I made it to Asago around 2pm, so it looks like I'll be grounded for the night.

To kill time, I spent the afternoon at a nearby Onsen. While I was soaking away my mid-day effort to get here, I couldn't help but repeat Jinshu's advice in my head. As a naturally cautious person, I tend to get "paralysis by analysis". The wave of thoughts bouncing off of my skull tend to intensify, often wrecking my need to act. The milliseconds of inaction could greatly reduce my riding ability, as the most arduous obstacles require instinctual manuevering.

Perhaps my greatest mental hurdle is not fear, but rather, my inability to compartmentalize context. Instead of overthinking every turn, I should be allowing my instincts to take over. The best athletes simply do, they do not overthink. Same could be said for any person succeeding, at a high level. The question is, do my instincts need to be sharpened and if so, what could that result in?

With these philosophical thoughts running through my errant mind, the clock soon follows and ends the day. The plan for tomorrow is to get up early, as I don't want to miss a wink of the clouds surrounding the castle. Until then, I'll let my body's instincts take over and allow it to count sheep.

Thanks again and I'll see you soon!

-Ayden