c199b88e_Hitchhiking_in_Japan_Log__Highlights_of_trip
[Date] 12/28/06 [Destination] Tokyo and surounding areas [Distance] 550KM [# Vehicles] 17 [Highlights of trip] 
Mrs. Okazaki, a nurse who took me about 50 kilometers Today was the 300th hitchhike adventure since keeping stats from Aug. 2, 2003. It was raining hard around 9AM but seemed to clear up at around 10, and so I hopped on my bicycle and road a couple kilometers to the main highway. An elderly man with his young grandson picked me up almost immediately and took me about 10 kilometers down the road. It started to rain again so I bought an umbrella. It nearly broke because of the high gusts of wind! The next driver was a bank president, perhaps the very first one who ever picked me up! I asked him how his business was doing and he replied, "Badly!" I said, "But the government says that the economy is on the upswing again! "Only in the metropolitan areas like Tokyo and Osaka!" Shi and Takuya, a young couple who returned my camera. The bank president took me as far as Kamo City where I got stuck in the rain for about an hour. There was a MacDonald's on the corner so I spent some time there hoping the rain would stop. I was still only about 15 kilometers into my journey of 300 kilometers, and though I was tempted to return home, I didn't want to because that would mean defeat. The rain stopped around 11:30AM and I resumed my journey. A lady who said she is a police detective took me to the expressway interchange. The driver who took me most of the way to Tokyo on the expressway told me that he experienced 5 major earthquakes to date: Sendai in 1978 (I lived in Sendai up to just 2 months before the earthquake), Akita in 1983, Hachinohe in 1994, Kobe in 1995, and Niigata in 2004 - the only one I experienced. I would say it is quite unusual for anybody to have been in 5 earthquakes because these areas are quite far from each other except for Aomori and Akita which are bordering prefectures. Mrs. Okazaki san, a nurse, took me down the Kan'etsu expressway as far as Kamisato. I told her in detail the Good News of Jesus Christ and the meaning of His death on the Cross, and she said that she believes! I found that nurses in Japan are some of the most receptive people to the Gospel. It could be because they have a lot of love and compassion for strangers in need, and all true love ultimately comes from God. A family who took me to Rt. 16 in Kashiwa city, Chiba Prefecture The main hazard of hitchhiking for me is leaving personal possessions in the car. During this trip I nearly lost two items, a camera and my wallet! I left the camera in the back seat of the car of a young couple who I had wanted to photograph, and didn't realize the camera wasn't with me when I got off! I only knew that I had promised to take their photo, but forgot. It turned out that they returned to the spot where I was hitchhiking after turning around, and so I yelled out that I forgot to take their photo! It was a major highway and so the driver pulled to the side and I frantically searched my bag for the camera, but couldn't find it. I ran to the car and the driver turned around and saw my camera still on the back seat, and so he handed it to me and I immediately snapped the photo. I left my wallet in a truck and realized it a few seconds after the truck driver pulled out! Thankfully the driver, Mr. Matsuura, was a very friendly man and we exchanged cell phone numbers before I disembarked. And so I was able to immediately phone him before he got too far away. He made a U-turn and brought my wallet back. I didn't have much money in it, but important IDs including my Alien Registration Card, and I was thankful I didn't have to go through the trouble to apply for that card again. As a foreigner, I am required by law to carry it with me at all times.
Hitchhiking in Japan Log
Highlights of trip