When you’ve got a destination that’s fourteen and a half hours away and you have seventeen days to get there, what’s the best way to make an adventure out of it?! Make absolutely no plans and see where the wind takes you!

And holy canoli, did the wind take me on an insane ride!

While I wouldn’t necessarily consider myself broke, with having no income, the money that I have in my bank account is the only money that I’ve got. Okay, well plus the $13 that’s stuffed in my pants pocket somewhere, but that’s beside the point. My point is that if I want to travel for as long as humanly possible (which is my goal) (also, without needing to get a job), I have to be extremely conscious with how I spent my money. Trying to reach a destination almost 1000 miles away using only public transport would be an incredible investment, especially in Japan.

So, screw the system! I became determined to make this an incredible adventure and find a way to do the entire journey without spending a penny! So, I dove into the (sadly) lost art of hitchhiking!

Minakami, Gunma -> Suwa, Nagano

127 miles 3 rides

I woke up on my departure day to an incredibly menacing forecast. My timing for this adventure was not exactly in my favor, with a massive typhoon looming on the horizon. Well, this should be fun… Hey, always make every day an adventure, right?

My goal for the day was to make it to either Okaya or Suwa, which were both only about three hours away, so I wasn’t trying to get on the road exceptionally early or anything. Thank goodness that wasn’t the plan because the morning promised lots and lots and lots of rain…

I’ve hitchhiked on rainy days before and it is an incredibly miserable experience. So, I had a slow morning packing and hanging out with my friends before the dreaded goodbye. I knew it would not be a fun time if I did the entire journey through the rain, so I thought about taking a train at least for the first leg of my trip. I had found a way to stealthily use Japanese public transport for free, so my plan was to try to sneak on the local train to Takasaki. Unfortunately, there was a ticket guard being incredibly attentive, so my plan was flawed, and I really had no desire to pay over ¥1000 just to get to the next city over.

Thankfully though, right as I was walking away from the train station, the rain had stopped. Knowing I didn’t actually want to take public transport, I decided to go back to my original hitching plans. I grabbed my backpack, ukulele, and my handwritten cardboard sign reading “Takasaki,” walked over to the main road, put a big smile on my face, held my sign up and stuck my thumb out.

Not thirty seconds later, one of the Nepalese guys who I had hung out with a few times stopped to offer me a ride. I asked if he was going to Takasaki. He laughed and said he was only going two minutes down the road, so I wouldn’t be getting very far. Honestly, there are some times when I would accept an offer like that, but since I had basically just started, I decided to stay and try to find a longer ride. What a great way to start though, getting a friendly offer from a friendly face.

Most cars passing either gave me a big smile or a friendly nod, which was very encouraging. None offered me a ride though, which was a bummer, but was teaching me patience. I had naïvely written the sign in English and about twenty minutes into standing at the corner, I realized that I definitely should have written it in hiragana, considering most people in Japan don’t speak English. Also, I should be adapting to their culture, not the other way around.

I had stepped away from the road and was writing out my new sign, zoomed into a picture of the complicated Japanese letters on my phone, when a car stopped for me! He was an older man, maybe in his 50s, with a denim button-up shirt and khakis. He rolled down his window and I said, “Takasaki?” pointing to my sign. He responded in so many words and I did not understand a single one of them. Only being in Japan for two weeks now has not set me up for success in understanding this language, sadly. I had no earthly idea where he was going, but I pointed in the direction I was going and he nodded. I then pointed to the backseat and shrugged my shoulders, asking if I could get in. His front seat looked almost like my car back at home where you honestly couldn’t even find the seat underneath all the random stuff piled up on it. He motioned towards the seat and said “Hai, hai”, meaning “yes, yes”. I got in, grateful to have a ride and at least knowing he is going somewhat in the right direction. His car smelled of cigarette smoke and had a weird balance of being very messy but also very organized at the same time.

I got my first ride!

He didn’t speak a word of English and my Japanese is basically nonexistent, so while conversation was attempted, it didn’t last long. I was at least able to figure out that his name was Akishto, which was a start. I had legitimately no idea where he was going, but at least it was in the right direction. I’ve gotten rides in small towns before, and it is pretty typical for someone to only drive you maybe a few kilometers or maybe even to the next village, but typically not very far.

However, on this ride, the miles ticked away and he kept driving. We drove through incredibly lush forests through windy mountain road, the trees whizzing by through the window. I kept checking my map to make sure we were still going in the right direction. Town after town passed us and I thought to myself, “Is he driving me all the way to Takasaki?” Again, I had no idea what his destination was, so maybe Takasaki was on his way somewhere, or he was going out of his way for me…? I had no clue, so I just accepted it, appreciating whatever forward progress I could get.

It was a bit of an awkward car ride because he I guess doesn’t like to listen to anything on the radio, so we just sat there in silence. Through the silence though, he would jump every time his massive flip phone from the 90s would blare out his ringtone. This made me laugh every time.

A little over an hour later, he turns off the main road onto some side streets. Hmmm, this is definitely not the direction I’m trying to go, but I was open minded about where I would end up. Hitchhiking is all about adventure anyway.

A few turns later, I think we pulled into his house?? He motioned for me to come outside and he started unloading the trunk of his car while I stood there, a bit confused of what was happening. Soon after though, two teenage girls came outside and started talking to me. I assumed they were either his daughters or some other relatives. We used Google Translate and they asked me about my plans and where I’m trying to go in Takasaki. I told them that Takasaki wasn’t actually my final destination, just a mid-point to eventually get to Okaya or Suwa. Then they asked where I would like to be dropped off in Takasaki. I told them any gas station or convenience store near the highway would be good. I found one on the map a few minutes away and they said they could bring me there. Akishto and Misaki, one of the girls, got in the car to bring me there. The other girl stayed behind and I’m sad that I wasn’t able to catch her name.

They drove me to the 7eleven down the road, but said they could drive me even farther to a better spot. Wow, so kind. I would take anything that I could get, but they were definitely going beyond that and being so generous to me. We went another maybe ten kilometers to another convenience store, where I grabbed my bags and was ready to start looking for rides again. Misaki saw my sign for Nagoya and said that this would not be a good place to find people going to Nagoya. She asked Akishto something in Japanese and then told me that they were actually going to now drive me to Annaka, which would most likely be a better spot for me. Annaka was another twenty minutes away. They literally went so far out of their way for me and I was so appreciative!

They dropped me off at another 7eleven (these things are everywhere in this country!), pointed me in the right direction of Nagoya, snapped a selfie with me, and went on their way. Wow, what an incredible first ride! Great way to start my journey.

I had already written my sign for Nagoya, but I decided to add hiragana to it as well. I stood near enough to the entrance to 7eleven so people would have enough time to pull in if they wanted to give me a ride. I watched lots of cars go by, many giving me encouraging gestures, but again, none stopping. I watched as a tricked-out, lifted Toyota Tacoma pulled into the lot thinking that he was definitely ready for an adventure. He and I hadn’t made eye contact or anything while he was pulling in, so I assumed he was just turning in to go to the convenience store. A minute later though, the driver of the Tacoma, Tomohiro, walked up and asked where I was going. He was relatively young, maybe a bit older than me, had on a casual t-shirt, a pair of jeans, and small glasses. He gave off a bit of a nerdy vibe and honestly, he didn’t exactly fit the part of who I was expecting to be driving around such an adventure mobile. But, that’s just me judging a book by its cover I guess.

He told me that he was only going about half an hour away to Karuizawa, but could bring me to the station there. Yes! Another ride! I accepted and climbed into the passenger side on the right side of the car, which was a weird change from all of the Japanese cars I had been in over the last two weeks.

We shared a google translate conversation and he played me some of his favorite Japanese music. Maybe fifteen minutes into the drive he asked again where I was going and when I planned to get there. I told him Suwa and I want to make it there today. He sat there for a second and then said, “Okay, let’s go!” I’m sorry, what?? Let’s go…as in you will drive me there? It’s two hours passed where you’re going! I told him he absolutely did not need to do that but he said he had no other plans and didn’t mind to. I could not believe it, he was driving me four hours out of his way! Japanese people are so incredibly generous!!

My soul was soaring. I freaking love hitchhiking! The drive was absolutely incredible. The Japanese mountains are so lush, so green, so vibrant, and just so so so beautiful. The rain even held off, which was a nice relief to still be able to see the surrounding areas.

We drove through winding road after winding road until we finally arrived at Suwa Taisha Kamisha Honmiya, a gorgeous temple in the southern part of town. I asked if he wanted to walk around with me, assuming he would at least want to see a bit of the city since he drove this far to get here. But he said no, he needed to get back home. I could not believe he drove me there to literally turn around and go all the way back!

The temple was absolutely beautiful! After walking around for a bit though, I definitely wished that I had asked him to drop me off a bit closer to the lake because that’s actually where I wanted to end up. Not gonna lie, I didn’t have a place to stay that night, and a hotel was out of my budget, so I was going to look for spots along the lake where I could stealth camp for the night.

It was about a three mile walk to get there and I wasn’t particularly stoked about trekking that whole way, especially with my backpack. So, as I was making my way towards the lake, I threw my thumb out in hopes of getting at least part of the way there. Wow, I was in luck! Just a few minutes later, two guys around my age pulled over to offer me a ride. I told them I just wanted to go to the lake and they said they could take me there. We stopped at a convenience store where they bought me snacks and a drink. So so so kind! They told me about the famous fireworks show that happens on the lake every year that was happening that night. Dang, what incredible timing! I asked if I could join them to watch it and they graciously agreed.

We still had about an hour and half until the show started and they asked if I wanted to go to karaoke in the meantime. Oh, absolutely! Sadly though, it was only 5:30pm and no karaoke bars were open and if they were, I’m not sure I could even get into a karaoke vibe at that time of day. Seems more like a late-night, party endeavor. So, we drove around the city and they showed me this famous park overlooking the lake.

As the time crept near though, we parked, and walked over to the lake to find a good spot to watch the show. Wow, this must be such a huge event. There were so many people there.

The show started at 7:00 and it was incredible! It was amazing to see so many different types of fireworks that I’ve never seen before. Japan is for sure on top of their fireworks game! The show was a bit strange though because it would be a huge production for maybe around 7 or 8 minutes, and then there would be a break for maybe 5 or 6 minutes, then another show and then another break. It was one of the weirder fireworks productions I’ve seen.

About forty minutes into the show, I asked Yugi and Yojey what time it finished. They said it was two hours long! Woa! Not sure if my attention span could last that long, especially since it was incredibly windy, getting really chilly, I was also super tired from the day and feeling particularly hungry since I hadn’t eaten much since breakfast. Thankfully, the guys had a big day the next day so they were ready to leave as well.

I told them I was budget traveling and a hotel was quite out of my budget and asked if one of them could host me for the night or if they knew someone who would be willing. Sadly, they said they wouldn’t be able to. Before I could even decline their offer, they drove me to a guesthouse and paid for me to have a room there for the night. Again, I was blown away by the kindness of the people here.

It was such a beautiful, traditional Japanese style guesthouse with bamboo mats for the floor, paper window panes, and smelled faintly of rice. I loved it.

There was still about half an hour left of the fireworks show, so I grabbed some snacks, my fleece and headed back out to watch the finale. It was amazing! The place I was staying was only two blocks from where they were being launched at, so I had a great view!

After the show, I went back to my place to enjoy the onsen (natural hot spring) and have a nice self-care evening while reflecting on the amazing beginning to this insane adventure I was embarking on.

What a wild first day! Can’t wait to see where the rest of this journey will take me!

Roads were made for journeys, not destinations

Confucius

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