Returning to the Scene of the....Joy

Another magical place where I have broken my 'never return rule' is Japan. I spent a semester there as a college student and lived there for 5 years post graduation. I have returned a couple of times since, although the last time was about 20 years ago with my then girlfriend, now boss...er I mean wife, Francesca.  A few weeks ago we took our middle child, Austen, to Tokyo and Kyoto for her 10th birthday trip -  Francesca and I believe that travel is one of the best gifts you can give your children and so we allow each of them to pick wherever they want to go in the world when they turn 10.  The biggest gift is that they go with just mom and dad (the other 2 siblings stay at home with grandma). :)

Austen chose Japan and I was very excited to show her the Japan that Daddy knew.  But it turned out to be a very different trip than I had planned.  I was excited to introduce her to my favorite temples and shrines in Kyoto and some of my favorite cultural spots in Tokyo. But after one such temple Austen had enough of those and just wanted to do some shopping.  So I had to scratch all those spots off my list and pivot.  Fortunately Japan does shopping like it's nobody's business and we were able to curate some fun shopping and craft experiences for Austen.  That is the beauty of travel - It's something different for each person.  Ten people could go to the same city and have ten different experiences. 

Despite not visiting some of my favorite sites this time around, it was very interesting to see how Japan had changed in the past 20 years. The first thing I noticed were the gates on all of the central Tokyo subway and train lines. Apparently these we put in only a few years ago in the lead up to the Tokyo Summer Olympics in 2020.  I can only imagine the cost, but kept thinking 'what an great idea for passenger safety!'  As a former New Yorker, I would think this would be a boon to strap hangers in NYC given the number of subway/train deaths and injuries each year. NOTE: in 2022 there were 1,365 subway-track incidents in NYC of which 88 were fatalities.  These gates won't stop the suicidally determined, but they would stop the vast majority that were accidental or homicidal in nature. 

Another observation I made is that there are considerably more gaijin (aka foreigners) in Japan than 30 years ago.  I was a relative rarity back then and this time, in many circumstances, it seemed we out numbered the local population - and I am not talking about the always foreigner saturated area of Roppongi - this was even in the remote /rural areas.  

Note: I researched the statistics just to back up my observation and lo and behold, the number of foreigners residing in Japan in 1995 (the year I left) was a mere 1,140.  In 2023 that number had grown to 3.2 million - a record high!  (Data from the Japan Statistics Bureau).  And that stat does not include people visiting Japan which I assume is more than 30 years ago as well. 

One aspect of Japan that had not changed in 30 years was the delightful public bath houses. These onsen come in all shapes and sizes, but most have at least a few pools differentiated by water temperature or composition (i.e. varying degrees of sulfur).  I have fond memories from my time living in Japan of walking back to my apartment from my neighborhood public onsen on a cold winter's night, warmed by the long soak.  So I was delighted when our Ryokan proprietor on our last day in Kyoto alerted us to an onsen a short 15 minute walk away. 

After dinner Francesca and Austen went back to the ryokan and I ventured out on foot to find the Funaoka Onsen.  Note: many westerner's don't like these public bath houses because you have to go au naturale - which is why Francesca and Austen demurred - and many Japanese don't like westerners to go because they can't read the signs that say you must shower BEFORE going into the baths. 

Funaoka onsen was one of the better ones I have been to.  The check in process was the same.  Pay a small fee at the entrance, then proceed to the gender segregated changing rooms.  You put your clothes and valuables in a locker and retain the key (usually with a strap or wristband on it).  Then you enter the bath area where you shower or at least rinse before entering the tubs.  Many bath houses have regular, modern showers, but they all typically also have the traditional Japanese style where you sit (or rather squat) on a small stool (and by small I mean like mere inches off the floor) and then dump buckets of hot water over your head and body, wash with soap and rinse with the aforementioned buckets of hot water. While many younger Japanese go for the modern shower, I prefer the traditional way. 

Now this onsen had an amazing array of baths and pools, some indoor and some outdoors, some hot, some freezing, some sulfur, some not. There was one large room with many baths, but also assorted smaller rooms and nooks and crannies with an assortment of other pools.  I was in onsen heaven. :) 

One pool in particular caught my eye.  The sign in Japanese said "Denki Onsen" which directly translated means electric bath. As I waded in I was thinking that my Japanese kanji reading must be getting rusty because there is no way they could have an electric bath....right?  Turns out my Japanese kanji reading ability was still pretty sharp because that's exactly what it was.  When I got in about waist level I started to feel a tingling in my nether region which quickly progressed to a light, but unmistakable shock.  That's right, this bath sent electric shock pulses through the water!!  If you've ever had muscle therapy where they use one of those TENS machines to stimulate nerves in order to reduce pain, that's what this felt like.  With the setting at about 5.  It was such a bizarre feeling and I could only stand it for a few seconds at a time.  I was not alone in this apparently because this was the one pool that was largely empty throughout my visit. 

The 15 minute walk back to our ryokan was sheer bliss.  I stopped in at a 7-11 and purchased a can of hot tea and walked in silence through back streets and thought back fondly on my time spent in this wonderful country of contradictions.  

So how did this post about a Japan trip -  before we have even left on our World Schooling adventure - make it into our blog?  

Well, I am glad you asked.  :)

It's because we were using this trip to test out our gear before we depart in June.  We have decided to travel ultra light and we need to fit everything we need (that we don't want to purchase on the trip) in two large suitcases.  We considered letting each of our kids carry their own roller suitcase - which was their preference - but Francesca, our Travel Ninja, crunched the numbers and figured it would be much more costly on most of the airlines we'd be flying for each of us to have our own bag.  So two large capacity bags it is.

But alas, which bag to choose for such a task?  First we came up with a list of requirements. It's not a long list of items, but they are non negotiable:

• Large capacity (at least 100L)

• Wheels (we need to be able to roll these suckers around airports)

• Backpack (we need to be able to backpack these suckers around towns)

• Durable/Waterproof (we need these suckers to be...well, durable and waterproof.  They will be getting a LOT of use over the next 12 months)

We tried a couple of different brands and models, but ultimately decided on the Eagle Creek Migrate Wheeled Travel Duffel.  This bag is a beast!  At 130 L it is quite large. You can drag it behind you like a traditional suitcase or throw it over your shoulders as a backpack. 

Two complaints we read about in the customer reviews were potentially significant so we wanted to test them out.

The first complaint is that, because it lacks a frame, it can spin off its wheels while you are pulling it behind you.  We did experience this and it was frustrating at first, but very quickly you learn how to handle it so it rarely does that.  I am not saying it never happens, but the benefits far outweighed those occasional inconveniences. 

The second limitation we had read about was that the handle was too short so it hit you in the back of the foot when you pulled it behind you.  We did find this to be the case, but we were able to find an adapter on Amazon purpose built for this task. This gave us an additional 5 inches which was just enough to avoid that irritating collision with my heal.

So what is the final analysis?  While we did experience the twisting issue we definitely feel that the large capacity and the ability to both roll and pack are benefits enough to tip the scales in it's favor.  We have two of these bags - one for me and one for Mommy - and they will be heading out with us on June 10th. 

Please leave us a comment if you have a favorite travel bag you swear by!