shinkansen

8th October - Kyoto

'Japan's cultural capital' is well know for its wealth of temples, zen gardens and shrines. So arriving by bullet train into the city's modern station building came as somewhat of a surprise.

Travel on the shinkansen has eclipsed all other forms of transport that I have experienced*. You sit in a massive arm chair, with enough leg room for even the tallest of freaks, and are smoothly whisked off to your destination. In addition, the newer 'Nozomi' (which translates as something like 'dragon punch' or 'flying dagger') trains look like some form of high-spec power ranger.

The station is equally as futuristic. It has the biggest flight of stairs I have ever seen; if you took a tumble on that kiddie, you could be going for quite some time. As with many of Japan's newer architectural feats, the building also serves as a shopping mall.

* This includes piggy-back through the streets of Chamonix and being driven in Jody's MX5.