A Buffet Of Lodgings. “Oh, the cat in leather looks tantalizing!”

The political campaigners with their trucks and eardrum murdering speaker systems have let up some in the last few days. Even the kids in my class had decided they had had enough of this and one kid started yelling the Japanese equivalent of “SHUT UP” on the third pass of the truck during the lesson. Now, when a child has to choose between listening to me teaching him to repeat “I like dogs” ad nauseam or have his hour derailed by the government block party outside and he chooses to go with wanting to listen to the lesson either the street voting rally is mind numbingly annoying or I am damn good at what I do. I’m going with annoyance, my friends. I ain’t that good! The class erupted into laughter when the squeaky voice on the microphone actually was silenced immediately after the shouts of this kid. I smiled lovingly at him and wanted to tell him he could sleep for the rest of the class and that he didn’t have to do any homework…at all…ever!

I have a large grouping of days off coming my way, half of which I am paid for, and as I look at such an amount of workless days heading my way combined with my usual schedule I seriously believe that this is the way jobs should be the world over: low hours and high pay. It really is nice to dream, isn’t it? I have been loosely planing another road trip with the destination this time being one of the most historically significant and tragic places in human history: Hiroshima. The name alone evokes images in me that I’d rather not see and if there is any place in the world where one can see the depths of destruction man is capable of it is here. I am no masochist, I do not obtain pleasure in suffering but there is, I admit, some morbid fascination within me to see the remnants of the bomb, something I am sure will be very depressing. I will write more of the history of the bomb and the events that sparked this catastrophic climax of August 6, 1945 in the coming weeks after I come back from what should be a very emotional excursion. I once thought the best way to get to Hiroshima would be by train but have since changed my mind and will be going by bus to cut costs. This will add about four or five hours to the trip but in taking a night bus I can sleep through the ride and save myself the extra night expenditure of a hotel stay. If I can book a hotel, of course. Not knowing the language becomes a huge pratfall here when it comes to trying to secure someplace to sleep as well as work out the bus schedule. Thankfully there is an online site in English to help me with getting to and from Hiroshima but things have not been as simple when it comes to lodgings. I really have to start making an earnest attempt at forming a nice little collective of Japanese friends that could provide aid in times like this. I have been told that securing a bed in large cities like Hiroshima should not be an issue but Golden Week changes that slightly as all the Japanese are touring about during their own time off. Although I am not comfortable in going there without anything firmly booked I can feel a little assured of being able to find some place to rest my head after the day of touring the city and surroundings because Japan offers a lodgings buffet with plenty of selection:

Hotels/Motels: These are your regular type of lodgings from your normal chain hotels and other smaller venues. All the major hotel names can be found here (best Western, Holiday Inn, etc.) and the prices are roughly the same with the equal perks (rooms service and swimming pools) at the bigger places. I stayed in one of these types of lodgings during training and the only thing uniquely Japanese about these places besides the staff was the depth of the bathtub.

Youth Hostels: You find these the world over and Japan is no different. Simply put, these are cheap places to sleep if you don’t mind rickety bunkbeds and sharing a room with many other travelers (the most I have bunked with is 16!). Being so cheap these places are a prime draw to budget travelers like me. The best thing about hostels though is not the money saving aspect but how, because of the nature of the accommodation, you are able to meet so many interesting people out traveling about like you are each with their own road stories to share. Some of these places even offer a breakfast but I am a little leary of eating sausage from a joint that packs 16 people to a room for $14 a bed.

Bed and Breakfasts and Pensions: Pretty self-explanatory. You get a bed. You get breakfast. You get sausage that doesn’t attack you after you’ve bitten into it. Pensions are similar to B&Bs and are influenced by the French lodgings from where they get their name. Both can usually be found in the countryside areas.

Ryokan: If you to experience traditional Japanese hospitality in locals uniquely Japanese you will want to visit a ryokan. Here is you will find the reed tatami mats, paper screens and often beautiful Japanese gardens. Be prepared to sit on the floor when eating, heating is at a minimum and beds are futons a foot or so off the floor however your surroundings are well worth your trepidation on shacking in up outside of you accustomed lodgings. Meals (although mainly breakfast) are served in some of the higher end ryokan and are always traditional Japanese fair of fish, raw egg and rice. The staff of a ryokan can often be a family who have owned and operated the ryokan over their many generations.

Minshuku: These are lower priced ryokan with less perks. Expect to have to put out your own bedding. Because it is less likely that these places are homes run as guesthouses you may find yourself dealing with a curfew.

Kokumin Shukusha: Mainly a draw to attract domestic tourists to less traveled parts of the country, Kokumin Shukusha are found scattered around the more beautiful areas of Japan where travelers can take in the scenery. You can find them offering amazing views from hilltop locations or around national parks but being situated in these out of the way spots makes travel to them difficult. If you can get there you can expect to pay for the beauty around you as these lodgings don’t come cheap.

Shukubo: A stay in a Shukubo will certainly be a lodging experience like no other. Here you wills stay in historic temples as guests of the monks being part of a tradition of patronage offered for centuries to worshippers on pilgrimages now in need of a place to rest and mediate. Although you do not have to be a follower of the Buddhist faith to stay at a Shukubo participation in the daily motions of the monks enhances this very unique experience and offers you the best opportunities to immerse yourself in the culture. You will also be able to sample shojin ryori here, a vegetarian meal prepared by the monks. Participation is not mandatory, though, and you can simply remain in your room but the full Shukubo experience is obtained by pretending to be a monk for a day. Just be mindful when they break out the hair-trimmers because if you have had too much pre-mediation sake you may arise to find yourself looking strangely like Sinead O’Connor.

Love Hotels: I know what you freaky sick-os are thinking and you’re right! These places have one purpose and one purpose only and that is to offer private accommodations to consenting adults, per hour or per night, so that they can have some hot, nasty…daughter safe…daughter safe…umm…tea parties, hot nasty tea parties. You will find the room well equipped to live out your tea party fantasies and many of these love hotels will offered theme rooms to satisfy the kinkiest of tea seekers. Where I can understand the draw to a place like the room made up to resemble a train car I really have to wonder about the people who check themselves into the blazing pink Hello Kitty bondage room. Now those people really love their tea! You can find these places in the seedier area of town. Staying here alone might be a touch noisy however. People in Japan slurp their tea really loudly, Des.

Capsule Hotels: Live out your strange fetish of being entombed alive as a capsule hotel is just that, a small box of a room, and I use the word very loosely year because it is more like a college locker. These places are probably the strangest of places you can stay I here, yes even odder then the blazing pink Hello Kitty bondage room. It is hard to see why people would want to pay between $30 and $40 to be cramped up inside a place with the capacity of a pet carrier. Not only is a capsule hotel tiny place to crash but you are also on display in this tiny place via the fiberglass window at the entranceway. It is as though you were part of a science experiment or a new Homosapian exhibit at the Tokyo Zoo. Built one on top of the other, these look more like washer/dryer combos and are mainly used by men who missed the last train home after a night of club going excess. There are very few capsule hotel that offer places for women. This type of accommodation can be found near train stations placing them within stumbling range and will usually come with a mini-television and an alarm clock. I don’t recommend a capsule hotel to my claustrophobic readers. For all you back home if you want to get the feel of sleeping in a capsule hotel just open a drawer, wedge yourself in and close yourself in for the night.

I would not rule out a capsule hotel if only for the one time novelty. I am mainly trying to nail down a bed in a Youth Hostel, though, and I have a week left to do it before jumping into the city without a safety net. There is always the all night Internet cafes in a pinch, I suppose. I have done this one time before and you equilibrium the next day wants to do little touring around town and then there are those embarrassing keyboard imprints in your forehead to contend with. Although slightly distressed regarding the unsureness of somewhere to sleep I’m sure with so many choices, even at the start of Golden week, I should be able to find a place. I am going to have to say the Love Hotel option is out unless I find myself in extreme dire straits when it comes to tracking down lodgings. Then again, the blazing pink Hello Kitty bondage room does sound intriguing. There is something about a cartoon cat in leather that I just can’t get out of my mind. And with that, I am off to take a nice, cold shower.