Don’t Panic
My last day in Japan was an extended 36-hour affair which was spent immersed in an adventure which was a notable mix of serenity, dash, blistered feet, “Don’t Panic!” and funk.
I’ll start with the funk part. If it were somehow possible, I would apologize to everyone who had to sit near me on Northwest Airlines Flight 386 from Detroit to Boston. I was the Grandmaster of Funk and not in a musical way. This funk was not the result of this previous week’s new menu selections. No, this was just a good old-fashioned sweat-fest brought on by me almost missing my flight back home from Japan.
Perhaps, I should start at the beginning.
The Plan
No battle plan survives first contact with the enemy. And I have seen the enemy and he is me. The plan was to get up early and go out for one last outing into Nara Park. My target: Kasuga Shrine
The shrine was a 2.7km walk one way. A little over a mile, true, but I’m a hiker. A hiker walking in Bass leisure shoes, but a hiker nonetheless. No sweat!
Since I still hadn’t bought any souvenirs yet, I would set out early after packing, get to the shrine, come back just in time for the shops to open at 9am, get back, pack the last few items, check-out and catch the 10am bus to Kansai Airport. I need to get that bus; the next one would depart at 12 noon and my flight leaves at 12:50pm.
The Presence
Finding Kasuga from the Hotel Nikko Nara is easy. Just walk straight, which I did. Eventually, the road goes uphill to a T intersection, where going straight becomes a gentle wide foot path beyond a torii.
Whereas the city folk in Nara proper left me pretty much alone, the gentlemen taking their strolls along this footpath greeted me with a “gozaimasu”, or “good morning”. I would have replied in kind if I’d known what they were saying. Instead, I simply bowed in recognition.
The park-like footpath continues across two cross streets, until it enters a more wooded area. The footpath remains wide and I continue.
The day’s length prevents me from going into much detail as this walk took place over 24 hours ago. However, I can remember quite a few details.
The close I got to Kasuga Shrine, the more of these inscribed stone lanterns could be seen along the path.
Up and up and up my stroll took me. The path brought me to staris and still I kept climbing. Meanwhile, a couple of nature paths were branching off to the side. I come to some Botanical Gardens, but they’re closed, so I keep pushing forward.
I finally reach the shrine proper, but it’s closed. However, a central courtyard is open and I go in and walk around. Within the space, is a 1000 year old tree, the subject of numerous ancient silkscreens. After looking around, I leave and continue following the pathway.
When I reach a point where I need to think about turning around, I spy a map and it shows a nearby side path which will lead me back from where I came. So, onward I go and take the side path right.
*sigh*
I’m in heaven.
There is a part of me that wants to iterate the obvious. I’m figuratively in heaven. Except, maybe not quite. Maybe it was the inate sacredness of the site, or the old age of the trees, or the total serenity of the place that set my soul to singing. I’m not really quite sure. But on that walk, in those woods, I felt it. The Presence. And I knew that I was not alone.
The Presents
Rejoining the main pathway below Kasuga Shrine proper occured much too soon, but I did have to go back. Unfortunately, I made excellent time returning to Nara proper. The souvenir shops were still closed. So, I went to the Starbucks in Kintetsu Nara station, ordered a venti mocha and people watched. It’s only 8:15am.
My plan is beginning to fray, however. After finishing my coffee, it’s still 8:45am. The shops are still closed, but now I have to go to the bathroom. I figure that I’m close enought to the hotel that I can walk there, do my business, walk back, shop, walk back, check-out and be done. As you can guess, it didn’t work out.
I underestimated the time. Let’s cut to the chase. By the time I was at the souvenir shop, it was 9:35pm. I still have to walk back, get my stuff check out and catch the bus. I checked out at 10am. I missed my bus.
Tennoji desu
While paying for my room, I explain my plight to the woman serving me and ask how much a taxi would cost. 25,000 yen, or $250.
Oh my.
She then offers that I could take the train to Kansai. I would take Nara to Tennoji, then switch to another train to Kansai. How long will it take? Hour and a half, she says. After quick calculation, I figure it’ll be enough time. Don’t panic.
My first near-mistake was boarding the 10:02 train to Osaka instead of the 10:17 train to Tennoji. Thankfully, I had already asked a gentleman on the platform about the train I was boarding and he got on to tell me to get off and get the next one. Close call. Don’t panic.
I get on the 10:17 train and listen carefully to the announcements on the PA. “Nara, Koriyami, Oji, Ryuhoji, …. Tennoji, …..”
At 11am, I hear “Tennoji desu”. My stop.
Missed It By That Much
I lug my stuff off the train, then try to find a map that I can understand, b/c my grasp of Hirogata and Chinese characters isn’t strong. Ah! Track 15 serves Kansai. I check the times. It’s still doable. Off I go.
When I get to Track 15, I see that there’s an 11:02 express to Kansai Airport. Perfect! Ummm, what does that 19 on the board mean? It seems to mean a boarding position. Where am I. 3. So, where’s 19? I walk to the right along the platform to find it.
I should have walked left. By the time, I figure it out, the express is leaving the station. Don’t panic. The 11:09 is heading to Kansai, too. It arrives and I get on.
Fast forward.
I arrive at Kansai Airport at 12pm. My flight is already boarding and I have yet to figure out this airport. International departures? That way, up the escalator and left and right and down this hall to a central area.
International departures are in either the North or South Wing. Uh-oh. Don’t panic. There’s a board. Northwest Airlines is in the north wing. Off I go.
Ah. There it is. The flight to Detroit is using D-6. And the 12:50 departure time has been changed to 12:40. 
I find the check-out desks. Ummm.. the area is roped off, but there are still some people working there. That can’t be good. I get in line and someone asks me what I need. Flight 70, I say. It’s 12:15.
She panics and enters extreme speedy mode. Come here, get out your passport, are you checking in any luggage, good, oh you checked in on-line, you needed to be here an hour before boarding. I know.
She prints out my boarding passes and sends me off.
More walking. My feet are killing me from earlier today. I can feel the blisters forming, but there’s naught to do about that.
A train? I have to take a little train to another part of the airport. Are you kidding me? My feet say, “It beats walking.”
Off we go. I have to have my carry-on luggage screened. Yadayadayada. Tickticktick. Where’s my gate? There it is. A-6. The end of the boarding line is still there. I run and take my place. Whew!
The Sweet Smell of Victory
I make it, but I’m a dripping mass of nastiness. The weather in Nara was near 80 and very humid. I was wearing a long-sleeve t-shirt with carpenter pants, decent gear for 60s in New England. After all of my running around Nara before taking the train, I was sweaty. After lugging my stuff across two trains and running across an airport, I was dampness personified… with an 11+ hour flight ahead of me.
So, as you can guess, I must have been pretty rank on the Detroit flight. Even the connection there had only left room for a 20 minute rest as I had to have my stuff screened getting off the plane and then screened again getting onto the different plane. Plus, I had to pass through customs & immigration.
But, I did it. I made it home.