You can call me a bit of a local train geek. I\u2019ve been on bullet trains, but there is just something special about the atmosphere of a small train. On local trains, people seem to go at a slower pace and I can see into the lives of the people riding along. I guess I\u2019m kind of a people-watcher as well. <\/p>\n
A few years ago I was introduced to the Seishun 18 ticket and it blew my mind<\/u> that you could travel anywhere on local trains for just over 2000 yen. I started checking into the places I could go to in just one day from Tokyo. I finally decided on a trip to Hiroshima. It would take a little more than 15 hours. I plotted out<\/u> my 10 train transfers, most stops only had 2 or 3 minutes between trains, and I made note of longer stops to be able to take a rest and stretch my legs.<\/p>\n
I started off early in the morning from Tokyo Station and loaded up with onigiri and snacks. I got on the first train with so much enthusiasm<\/u>, not really matching the sleepy passengers next to me. I was nervous about my first transfer, only 1 or 2 minutes, but when the time came it was just a jog across the platform and I made it. <\/p>\n
The next transfers seemed like a video game, where I passed each level without losing a single life. As I approached each station to transfer at I\u2019d keep my eyes peeled<\/u> for the view of my next train. Then I\u2019d get ready for the speed walk\/run to my next trek. I also realized I wasn\u2019t the only one rushing from one train to the next and started following the flow of the people around me. I wondered if they were on a Seishun 18 trip too? <\/p>\n
It took a few hours to get past the cities near Tokyo and then the view changed from houses and shops to fields and beautiful foggy mountains. The people changed as well, from business suits and stylish dresses to farmers and people going out to the beach for the day. <\/p>\n
I started to get smiles from my fellow passengers and struck up a conversation<\/u> with a kind elderly lady on her way to Osaka. She shared some of her homemade pickles and freshly picked fruit with me. I gave her some of my Thai flavored spiced nut mix. I began noticing people speaking in the local Kansai dialect and listened to the rhythm of their voices. <\/p>\n
After Osaka I caught just a glimpse of Himeji as we flew by. If I had blinked I would have missed it. After a few more trains I finally made it to Hiroshima. I felt a little somber<\/u>stepping of the train for the last time that day, like I was saying goodbye to an old friend. <\/p>\n
I think most people would feel exhausted after such a journey but more than anything else I felt relaxed and refueled. I learned that for me it isn\u2019t always about the destination of where I\u2019m going but about enjoying the journey itself.<\/p>\n
Laura<\/p>\n
<\/br>
\nVocabulary<\/b><\/p>\n
blow one\u2019s mind (idiom) \u2013 to impress or affect someone strongly
\nplot out (phr. v) \u2013 to create a detailed course or plan
\nenthusiasm (n) \u2013 a feeling of energetic interest in a particular subject or activity and an eagerness to be involved in it
\nkeep one\u2019s eyes peeled (idiom) \u2013 to remain carefully watching for someone or something
\nstrike up a conversation (idiom) \u2013 to start a conversation
\nsomber (adj.) \u2013 serious or sad in feeling<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
You can call me a bit of a local train geek. I\u2019ve been on bullet trains, but there is just something special about the a\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":39298,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-39270","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-essays"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/oneup.jp\/media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39270"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/oneup.jp\/media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/oneup.jp\/media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/oneup.jp\/media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/oneup.jp\/media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=39270"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/oneup.jp\/media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39270\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/oneup.jp\/media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/39298"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/oneup.jp\/media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=39270"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/oneup.jp\/media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=39270"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/oneup.jp\/media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=39270"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}