5 Japan DAY 3 - FLIGHT ON RAILS TO HIROSHIMA, JAPAN (26 April, 2014)

The Day 3 of our Japan tour was a special day for me for two reasons. First, yes, we were going to visit Hiroshima..! Hiroshima is one among the two cities which had experienced the destruction and grief of atomic bomb, dropped by American forces in 1945. It stands as a testament to the danger of nuclear weaponry, and as pioneer for peace. 

            Map showing Hiroshima

     

     Second reason for my excitement was that I was going to travel in bullet train. One of the first things that comes to all of our minds when Japan is mentioned is the Shinkansen otherwise known to the world as bullet train. And as was expected one of my desires when we arrived at Japan was to ride a bullet train. Though it was introduced in Taiwan from Taipei to Kaohsiung when we were there, we had no chance to ride. So, I have been waiting curiously for that experience. 

     The morning of the visit, my routine was the same as the previous days. We left the room around 6.15 am and had a nice breakfast downstairs of our hotel (ANA Crowne Plaza, Osaka). After reaching the Yodoyabashi station (it was just a 5 min walk away from the hotel), we took the subway to Shin-Osaka to catch the Shinkansen Hikari 491 (Model N700 series, 16 car) bullet train. The scheduled time of departure was 7.35 am. It would be a ninety minutes journey from Osaka to Hiroshima.

Having breakfast at Hotel ANA Crowne Plaza, Osaka, Japan. Apr. 26, 2014

     Luckily Shin-Osaka was easy to navigate and we found the platform for our train with ease at least I did my parents decided it was best to ignore the large sign that signified our platform. Started waiting for our train while watching the long-nosed bullet trains passing the platform; my eyes wide open and jaw on the floor!

At Shin-Osaka Railway Station.  Japan. Apr. 26, 2014

     

     I have always thought that they were ‘cool’ with their long ‘noses’, but I very much doubt my opinion is not shared by at least some if not most.

At Shin-Osaka Railway Platform.  Japan. Apr. 26, 2014

     

     It was an experience, I had never come across a railway station as complex as the ones in Japan.  Immaculate, everything had a label from where we had to stand to the train arrivals, departures the platform locations, while I appreciate the effort of making it easy to find our way the numerous boards pointing in different directions only served to intimidate.

Hikari 491. The bullet train (Model N700 series) we travelled from Shin-Osaka to Hiroshima. Apr. 26, 2014

     That aside the next to address other than my experience riding a bullet train was the punctuality, for all those time lovers out there you will surely fall in love with Japan if you experience the meticulously planned schedule with their down to the minute arrivals, which unfortunately I do not experience often being a regular commuter of the Indian railway. The teachers complain often about punctuality when the ones they should be teaching about time keeping are the ones who delay the set time for arrival.

Ticket for Hikari 491, from Shin-Osaka to Hiroshima. Apr. 26, 2014

     Now back to the main point of writing this, I’ll be honest in this while I found the Shinkansen a delight to the eye I was not impressed by the ride. This, of course might have been be due to my ignorance of the speed or the grogginess of my sleep hazed mind. However during the short course before I fell asleep, I and my parents had a short discussion regarding the speed. What I gleamed of the conversation was that the speed of the bullet train was a whooping 300 km per hour, that was admittedly lost to me but I later realized the truth in that statement when I saw that the distance between Tokyo and Osaka was nearly as much as the distance between Nagercoil and Chennai, and the journey only took us less than three short hours.

   

Hikari 491 at Shin-Osaka, Japan. Apr. 26, 2014

     The ride was smooth as well I had this vague feeling of being on land rather than on the well esteemed train, it was also reminiscent of riding a plane, if you don’t feel the turbulence too often and you have a Quiet Comfort earphone attached to your ears.

Hikari 491, journey from Shin-Osaka to Hiroshima. Apr. 26, 2014

     The other notable uniqueness of the train was its chairs. We never tried but witnessed, the chair can be turned in the opposite direction with some type of a mechanism, while it was different I did not gush in excitement about the discovery as my parents did.

Hikari 491, journey from Shin-Osaka to Hiroshima. Apr. 26, 2014

     Before I end this short and I believe, unfortunately indescriptive page I hope to clarify this nagging question, why are these train called bullet trains; is it because of their shape or is it the speed? But the shape is important isn’t it, as it allows the train to cut through the air resistance…….. well, I won’t discuss science facts as I’m weary of Physics nowadays.

     So while this might not have been exactly helpful, I hope to hear other such experiences, how was your first bullet train ride like? And if you haven’t been on one how do you think it would feel? Don’t get dissuaded by my words as sometimes I’m a dispassionate person about such matters.

     I also plan on writing a short guide on ‘How to sail the complex stations of Japan’, and no, I don’t know when I will get down to it if any of you are wondering, but hopefully I can finish it before some of you plan a trip to Japan. It might seem complex at first but if you understand the railway network it will be very easy to navigate when you travel in Japan.