When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Neko, your photo of the Eneous station reminded me a something rather unique to Japan: almost every filling station had a small area devoted to a pile of dead (usually Yuasa) batteries. While I never asked, I suppose putting them out front makes it easier for pickup for recycling. The irony was that the stations were always so clean and neat with the exception of the dead batteries. Once again, thanks for a great look at everyday Japan - a nice change from those trite travel shows featuring the Tsukiji fish market.
Love these pictures. I always keep reading the updates on this thread.
Originally Posted by Viper pilot
Excellent pics Neko. Very informative!
Thanks... as writing a few notes helps pass late night conf calls and similar.
Originally Posted by TEF
Neko, your photo of the Eneos station reminded me a something rather unique to Japan: almost every filling station had a small area devoted to a pile of dead (usually Yuasa) batteries. While I never asked, I suppose putting them out front makes it easier for pickup for recycling. The irony was that the stations were always so clean and neat with the exception of the dead batteries. Once again, thanks for a great look at everyday Japan - a nice change from those trite travel shows featuring the Tsukiji fish market.
Yup! Battery sellers take the used ones for free.
Drivers will swap out their batteries for winter, for sales campaigns and promotions and leave their old ones with the seller.
Some locations - like Autobacs - have an ask no questions policy, and will take any battery accordingly.
They're better off recycled, than tossed in the sea.
Hopefully this does not remind you of Tsukiji:
A friend commented it looked like an anime frame (and yet more Subaru):
Appreciated, and here's a few more from Boso Hanto:
Rice fields, getting ready for harvest.
One of the many villages in the area.
Sunday, so this local store is closed - but, with a post box, trash, ash-tray, telephone, drinks, and cigarettes, it's got a few items covered.
Cigarette smoking is still mildly popular in Japan, especially with oji-san.
We're touge hunting this weekend in Fukushima-ken, so hopefully some decent photo ops too.
Leaving our local area for a weekend away, we ran a few errands before we joined the highway North...
One of those local kei dealership / mechanics, nestled among the rice fields of Kimitsu-shi.
The scarecrows are a local art project, and not something in widespread use these days, though some areas seem to enjoy them.
Rice in some areas is being harvested, and though machine planting, harvesting, and husking is used by most, some still do everything by hand.
We assume to allow greater care and control of premium grains for nihonshu (sake) and similar.
If ever too, there was an advertisement for film, it is the colors, wide latitude with great details in shadows and highlights, and the overall depth and definition in this shot.
Pity it doesn't turn out like this every time - at least not for me.
Local shrine and camphor hunting for our minka fire to smoke the thatch (it's a long story).
Then a quick burn to meet the expressway.
Tokyo Wan Aqualine; hot day, AC blasting, non-Sport mode, set back for a comfortable cruise with some music...
The rice fields of Kimitsu have the same look and landscape of similar fields around Narita. While I never heard of Kimitsu, I was surprised to learn that it is also part of Chiba prefecture, so hence the similarity. Perhaps, you know the answer, but how do farmers in Japan survive economically? Some are so small, that even a bumper crop of rice would hardly support a family. Is there government social programs that subsidizes these tiny farms?
The rice fields of Kimitsu have the same look and landscape of similar fields around Narita. While I never heard of Kimitsu, I was surprised to learn that it is also part of Chiba prefecture, so hence the similarity. Perhaps, you know the answer, but how do farmers in Japan survive economically? Some are so small, that even a bumper crop of rice would hardly support a family. Is there government social programs that subsidizes these tiny farms?
Interesting question!
Japan Agriculture (JA) and the Japanese government provide indirect subsidies through a variety of means - nothing as simple as direct cash support, but a variety of things like reduced land tax, cheap seeds, and access to storage, machinery, maintenance, and transportation.
Much like the rest of us with the universal healthcare system - we pay a percentage of what we use, but not the whole cost.
We saw this scene on our recent tour in Fukushima, and I remembered your request for similar.
It lacks the cute barrier stands and the man with a wand, but at least it has the robot wand waver...
Note ripple strips on the right too, to wake up drowsy drivers.
See ya!
Thanks for the explanation concerning farm support. Having visited the local rice mills in my Akasaka neighborhood, I have to think the Government of Japan enforces trade barriers for the importation of rice (and other foodstuffs). For example US-grown Japaonica-style rice sells for about $1/kilo in 20 lb bags. However, Japanese rice milled locally was sold for $10/kilo. Of course with everything grown in Japan, local produce comes with folklore: rice from one prefecture or melons from another, were always alleged to be the "best" and sold for ridiculous prices. However, I suspect that prices set for local agriculture were artificially high as another means to support farmers. Correspondingly, everything made and sold in Japan were vastly overpriced, so as to maintain Japan's unique economy.
Thanks for the explanation concerning farm support. Having visited the local rice mills in my Akasaka neighborhood, I have to think the Government of Japan enforces trade barriers for the importation of rice (and other foodstuffs). For example US-grown Japaonica-style rice sells for about $1/kilo in 20 lb bags. However, Japanese rice milled locally was sold for $10/kilo. Of course with everything grown in Japan, local produce comes with folklore: rice from one prefecture or melons from another, were always alleged to be the "best" and sold for ridiculous prices. However, I suspect that prices set for local agriculture were artificially high as another means to support farmers. Correspondingly, everything made and sold in Japan were vastly overpriced, so as to maintain Japan's unique economy.
Bwa ha ha haaaa...
Yeah, those ¥100,000 melons never made any sense to me!
Things have changed a bit though, as discount stores now exist, and Japan now knows it can also buy off the internet, so the reason for bubble prices has decreased.
Some local goods, like rice, still command a premium, because there is a difference in quality.
But as an example large-scale rice use - restaurants and konbeni onigiri typically use foreign rice.
No one complains...
Running north through Tokyo, we took the Rainbow Bridge with a random Cayman S and a 991 of some sort...
Running up the Wangan, around the C2 loop, and out Shutoku 6, and then the Gaikan to the Tohohoku Expressway is a good way to see the vastness of Tokyo.
It seems to go on for ever.
One more then...
The plug-and-play pigtail routine is very easy!
You also pass the Asahi Beer Hall and the Tokyo Sky Tree.
Though you can see the Sky Tree from just about anywhere, being the world's tallest tower.
The Asahi Beer Hall, also known locally as the Flaming Turd, was the location of a shoot for the Porsche factory calendar in 1993.
A friend and his C4 might reshoot this one day.
Clear roads opening out into the country.
Very little traffic, even for a weekend morning.
Our onsen hotel was the little building on the left, with the rooms opening up, like the basement ofuro, to the river below.
With a short run on the expressway, the next day we took off into the mountains for our first day of touge hunting.
Again, other than the occasional farmer in their kei, we had many of the roads to ourselves.
Even if we got stuck behind a slow moving truck and a yellow line, we only had to wait a few minutes before they pulled off on their short journey.
Fields of soba, farmed for noodle grain, with the flowers supporting the local bee industry.
Kura kamon 八◯ , perhaps read as plain '80' or a play on words for All Round Luck or something equally obtuse.
Some really nice roads to enjoy, slowing down to the posted limits for the little villages, but with clear visibility we were able to open the taps a bit.
Relatively rare stone kura, and stone kamon.
Living minka, with 4WD Toyota, necessary for winter access.
Walking this village, one of the locals told us to fill up our water bottles from the surprisingly cold, but delicious water flowing through the village.
Honor stand for some local produce, and ahem ... bear claws for sale.
With bears a local hazard, we're not sure of their wildlife status, but with their claws on sale as trinkets we assumed locals were allowed to off the occasional kuma.
Apiaries were to bee seen all over a number of valleys in the area.
Though, we're not sure we would enjoy them outside our bedroom window.
The honey though, we did enjoy, purchasing a number of jars.
Looking for lunch under Covid-19, we generally get some quick snacks and go and sit beside the road or similar.
Here, we had to stop at the Hello Shop, and say hello...
Is that ramp in front of the Hello Shop an afterthought for wheelchair access? And is that a payphone outside too?
Ramp? They're about in a few places, and this one might be a post-construction installation, not sure as we did have building access guideline updates over the last decade or so...
It is for sure however, a payphone!
They are still about all over the place in Japan, including their fax machine ports.
08-23-2020, 09:35 AM
