Settling in for the first night
After braving the trains from Kansai airport, it was a short walk to my hostel (wonderfully named the "Banana Hammock") for the first night. I arrived just after the sun had set, and was the last to check in for the night. I sat with the owner in the front room and we went through the check in process while we chatted. He asked if I was only in Japan for one night, as I was checking out in the morning. I explained that I was here for 3 months, and that I was hiking to Tokyo. The look on his face morphed rapidly from confusion to disbelief to astonishment in rapid succession. "That will be 600km, and you are going to... walk??" "Well, actually my route is about 1000km, but what better way to see Japan, right?" I replied. His hand shot out and shook mine, a gesture I was not expecting in Japan. I am really begining to understand that what seems like an exciting (if not daunting) adventure to me borders on lunacy to most people I discuss it with....