Recovery

While I've been sitting on my arse reading and watching The Wire, my future walking partner Erik has been busy...walking. He's also been saying nice things about me, so go over to his blog and read all about it.

Distance walked today: 0km
Total distance walked since blog began: 78.4km

Medical accident to patient

According to the World Federation of Societies of Anesthesiologists, "Adrenaline-containing solutions should never be used for infiltration around end-arteries i.e. penis, ring block of fingers or other areas with a terminal vascular supply as the intense vasoconstriction may lead to severe ischemia and necrosis."

In practical terms, that means if a patient is inadvertently given an injection in the toe of an adrenaline-based anesthetic during minor surgery, there is a danger that tissue in the toe may die due to an inadequate supply of oxygen.

My GP made a silly mistake, but to his credit he reacted quickly when he realized something had gone wrong. The biggest clue was the fact that my toe had turned white and didn't bleed when he cut into it. After patching me up and explaining what had happened, he rang a vascular surgeon at Christchurch Hospital, who recommended I be admitted immediately for treatment. My GP then arranged for a nurse to drive me in to A&E. By the time I arrived at the hospital the toe was starting to turn pink again, but my whole left foot was pretty cold, and so the surgeon recommended I go on an intravenous infusion of iloprost, a drug that counteracts the effects of adrenalin by opening up the blood vessels, helping them to carry more blood around the body.

In general iloprost is a well-tolerated drug, but it can cause a lowering of blood pressure, so the person receiving the infusion needs to be closely monitored. So I was taken to a surgical ward (I got a bed in a private room away from all the really sick people) and hooked up to an IV unit on my right arm and a blood pressure monitor on my left. I also had my own personal nurse who came in every half hour or so to check on me.

The main side effects of an iloprost infusion are facial flushing and headaches. The six hours I spent on the infusion were extremely uncomfortable. The headache was the worst thing, but being roused by the damn blood pressure monitor inflating automatically every 15 minutes just as I was dozing off added to the frustration. To make matters worse, I'd stayed up most of the previous night watching TV, so I was already in a pretty sleep-deprived state. Thankfully, once the infusion stopped at around three in the morning the headache disappeared and I was able to sleep until just after seven, when I was woken for breakfast. The surgeon came around to check on me at eight, and then again at eleven, when he told me I was free to go. I'd had Keiko bring my laptop into the hospital the night before, so in the intervening period I'd managed to catch up on a bit of work (see photograph).

It was an extremely anxious 24 hours. The low point was overhearing a nurse at the hospital talking on the telephone about the possible outcomes of not getting a patient on an iloprost infusion quickly enough, one of which is amputation of the appendage concerned. But I'm fine now. And the toe seems to have come through largely unscathed. I went back to my GP today, and he said I should be able to get back into the walking in about a week.

Distance walked today: 0km
Total distance walked since blog began: 78.4km

Preparation

Today I drove over to Grant's to borrow the second season of The Wire on DVD, and to my sister's to drop off a video. At my sister's, I took the opportunity to borrow a couple of interesting-looking novels. I'm going in for minor toe surgery tomorrow afternoon, so figured I'd better stock up on quality entertainment while I'm still relatively mobile.

Distance walked today: 0km
Total distance walked since blog began: 78.4km

Treatise on the function of art

Some of the locals I met while traveling through Myanmar earlier in the year expressed surprise that I was traveling alone. To them, the idea that someone might want to travel on their own was more than odd, it was downright incomprehensible. Eager to understand, one waiter at a hotel actually asked me point blank, "Don't you have any friends or family who wanted to come with you?" Talk about making someone feel lonely.

There are advantages in traveling alone. The most obvious one is that you can go where you want when you want. But another advantage is that you actually end up meeting more people if you're by yourself because you're more likely to be approached by locals or other travelers. As for the disadvantages, one of the biggest ones is that you don't have anyone to share your experiences with. You can compensate by taking photos or video and showing them to people when you get home, but it's not the same as having someone there by your side whom you can turn to and say, "Wow, isn't that sunset amazing," or, "Have you ever seen so many temples?"

It's been a bit like that watching The Wire. I've been watching it on my own because, well, it's not really Keiko's cup of tea, plus she wouldn't understand a lot of the more "esoteric" dialogue (heck, even I have to turn on the English subtitles from time to time to work out what people are saying). It's a pity, because the series is so good, and some of the scenes so perfectly realized (e.g. one drug dealer explaining to another the rules of chess in terms of the workings of a drug-dealing gang, and a crime scene analysis in which two detectives communicate using nothing but variations of the F-word as they methodically go about their work) that I desperately want to share the viewing experience with someone. So much so that from time to time I find myself composing little internal monologues in which I'm expressing my thoughts to an imaginary co-watcher.

Erik and I were talking about the function of art the other day, and I brought this up because I think this desire to share our most meaningful experiences with others, which is perhaps connected to the desire to reassure ourselves that we are not alone in the world, is somehow linked to the desire to create art. Sure, art is about satisfying our creative urge, but if that were the only reason for making art, then there wouldn't be such an emphasis on showing it to others, whether it be by hanging it in art galleries, spraypainting it on walls, or having friends over to our house to watch it on TV.

Years ago, one of my lecturers at university said something to the effect that the best novelists connect with readers by describing feelings, ideas or situations that are universal, that help define what it means to be human. So is this what all art is about? I while back I sought to challenge the suggestion that art was solely about the pursuit of beauty by pointing to the Sex Pistols. So perhaps a more important question would be, Is there art that isn't produced out of a desire to connect with others by expressing feelings, ideas or experiences that we think others might share? Send your answers on the back of a postcard. Or you could try the comments section.

Distance walked today: 0km
Total distance walked since blog began: 78.4km

Warning: may contain spoilers

Crikey. I can't remember the last time I was so moved by the near death of a fictional character. Last night, I watched helplessly as Detective Kima Greggs was gunned down during a botched sting operation against the Barksdale crime syndicate. I kind of saw it coming, but at the same time I was willing it not to happen. Even after watching the two would-be assassins move in on the vehicle in which Greggs was waiting along with the hapless Orlando and open fire, I hoped against hope that as Orlando was sitting in the front seat he would have borne the brunt of the assault and Greggs would have been spared. It was a cliffhanger ending, the first time the makers of The Wire had resorted to such a cliché, and the fact that they didn't show her body told me she must have survived. Still, that didn't stop me putting on the next episode and watching for another hour to see how she was, despite the fact that it was well past my normal bedtime.

There was no such drama on Wednesday night when I read in The Game of War about the death of Guy Debord, also the victim of a gun assault, but in his case self-administered. Whatever the circumstances, it's always tragic when someone takes their own life, although it had all been foreshadowed at the start of the book, and an argument made that it was inevitable given Debord's fascination as a youth with the Surrealists, who asked themselves the question, "We live, we die. Where is the function of the will in all that?" and in many cases chose suicide as the answer.

Distance walked today: 0km
Total distance walked since blog began: 78.4km

Two tablets with food twice a day

Well, another visit to the doctor's today, and confirmation that the toe is still infected. I've got another week's worth of antibiotics (back to two tablets twice a day with food, but they're cylindrical orange ones this time). The doctor did seem to think there was an improvement, though, so I'm booked in for surgery next Monday.

Distance walked today: 0km
Total distance walked since blog began: 78.4km

Hooked

Sometimes there just isn't enough time to do all the things I want to do, or have to do, in a single day. Inevitably something gets left undone. It's frustrating, but still a lot more satisfying than filling in time doing things I don't really want to do, or worse still, sitting around trying to think of ways to fill in time, which is something I've ended up doing all too often in my life.

So yesterday I got up at around 8.00, breakfasted, read the paper, showered, bathed my toe, and worked from 9.30 to 11.30. I then made lunch, watched a bit of baseball (go the Yankees!), chatted briefly with my brother in Bhutan, then worked for another couple of hours from 1.00. At 3.00 it was time for my weekly Skype session with Erik. We talked for an hour about the Kisokaido Project, the Situationists, old girlfriends, the function of art, Erik's burgeoning career as an artist, and the digestive system of pandas. After that I did another burst of work until 5.00, when I started making dinner. Keiko got home and we ate at around 5.30 and watched TV for a bit until it was time for Keiko to go to her yoga class. Between 7.00 and 8.30 I read a few chapters of The Game of War and watched an episode of The Wire. I then watched a bit of Sumo until 9.00. After that it was more reading until Kaido Tekuteku Tabi at 9.45, followed by another episode of The Wire and a few more chapters of The Game of War before bed at 11.30.

I usually try to blog either during a break from work during the day or between finishing work and making dinner, but work is pretty busy at the moment, and yesterday I was just too rushed. I could have done it later, but I have this rule that I don't work in the evening, and for some reason (probably because it involves the same routine of walking into my office and concentrating in front of the computer for an extended period of time) I unconsciously place blogging in the same category as work. Plus I'm getting so much satisfaction out of reading The Game of War and watching The Wire that I want to spend as much of my free time as possible doing these two things at the moment.

I have the DVD of the first season of The Wire courtesy of Grant. With the exception of comedies like The Apprentice and The Amazing Race (obligatory mention of dubious New Zealand connection: hosted by Christchurch-born Phil Keoghan), I'm not a great fan of U.S. television, and the thought of watching an entire series of some cop show on DVD didn't appeal to me at first. Even Grant's description of The Wire as "television as art" didn't convince me. Probably because I've doubted his judgment ever since he told me how much he enjoyed Titanic. But I relented and popped the DVD on the other day when I had a moment to spare, and I've been hooked ever since.

Critics have called The Wire "the best show on television". It's also been described as realistic, novelistic, and "somewhat angry". Television audiences haven't been so kind, with ratings failing to match those of other cop shows like The Sopranos. Some critics felt The Wire was testing the attention span of its audience, but I love the complex characters and slowly drawn-out plots. And the acting, by a mostly African-American cast reflecting the demographics of Baltimore where the series is set, is top notch. Television as art? Maybe. Television as great entertainment? Definitely.

Distance walked today: 0km
Total distance walked since blog began: 78.4km

Missing

According to the Guy Debord biography I'm currently reading, a book called Enrages et Situationnistes dans le mouvement des occupations (Enrages and Situationists in the Occupations Movement), co-written by Debord but attributed to his "oafish" sidekick Rene Vienet as a kind of in-joke, was the most stolen book in Parisian bookshops after the "events" of May 1968.

Reading The Game of War made me want to have another go at reading Debord's The Society of the Spectacle, but when I had a look on by bookshelf I found it was missing. Thinking about this last night prompted me to compile this list of the best of the books I've lent to people that haven't been returned. (These are all books that have genuinely "walked". The list doesn't include recent loans that I'm sure people are still reading, or have finished but haven't quite gotten around to returning yet but will do some time in the not too distant future. Also not included are titles that I've lost but have since replaced.)

• The Society of the Spectacle by Guy Debord. See above. Yes, I know the entire text is available online, but it's just not the same, is it.
• The Ecology of Freedom: The Emergence and Dissolution of Hierarchy by Murray Bookchin. Considerable sentimental value. I ordered it at great expense from a bookshop in Tokyo while living in Japan in the 1990s. You'll know it if you see it; I underlined bits, and even scribbled notes on some of the pages (something I don't usually do), mostly meanings of words I was't familiar with at the time.
• The Blood of Others by Simone de Beauvoir. One of the few novels that I've read more than once. Adapted in 1984 into a movie directed by Claude Chabrol, "a master in the mystery genre", that wasn't absolutely dire, but did seem to tinker unnecessarily with the plot. (Obligatory mention of dubious New Zealand connection: stars "self-effacing thinking woman's sex symbol" Sam Neill as a Nazi officer.)
• Manufacturing Consent: Noam Chomsky and the Media edited by Mark Achbar. The glossy companion book to the movie, including eighteen "Philosopher All-Stars" baseball cards in mint condition. At least they were in mint condition when I last saw the book.

Distance walked today: 0km
Total distance walked since blog began: 78.4km

Browsing

Lately I've been keeping an eye out for deals on flights to Japan. I check Air New Zealand's grabaseat page nearly every morning. They're mostly domestic fares of course, but occasionally they put up international fares. I saw a really cheap fare to Shanghai a few weeks ago. You never know, maybe Tokyo will pop up one morning.

The other day I was browsing STA Travel's website when I noticed a Christchurch-Tokyo return fare of $1346 (including taxes and surcharges). It was on Air Pacific, which would entail flying via Nadi in Fiji, but when I looked on a map I saw it was actually a pretty direct route with not much of a dogleg at all. I seem to recall flying via Nadi on one of my first ever trips to Japan. Anyway, as I did when I came across a cheap fare with Tahiti Nui a month or so ago, I checked out the airline website to see what the connections were like and what sort of aircraft they operate. Only later when I took a closer look at the original website did I notice the fare was restricted to students and youths. Foiled!

Actually, I think I'd prefer to fly as directly as possible even if it means paying a bit of a premium. Often with the cheaper, non-direct fares you end up paying more anyway because you need to stopover somewhere. So that means either Air New Zealand or Japan Airlines (who code share, so it'll be an Air New Zealand plane in any case). Last year Japan Airlines came out with some cheap deals in June, so hopefully they'll offer some similar bargains this year. Japan Airlines also let you fly open jaw at no extra cost, which means I can fly into Kansai Airport on the way there and out from Narita on the way back, eliminating the need for a domestic plane or train ride back to our starting point at the end of the walk.

The toe's feeling pretty good today, although it's still not 100%. Keiko and I went out for lunch, and it was so nice to get out of the house for a couple of hours. I think I may have a bit of nail taken out next week once the infection has died down completely. That'll mean taking even more time off from walking while the toe heals, but hopefully less chance of a relapse once I do finally get back into training.

Distance walked today: 0km
Total distance walked since blog began: 78.4km

Uncanny Resemblances Part 2: Walking Fool and Joe Jackson

Tourism again

The other day while doing a bit of research on hatago (inns that provided accommodation and meals for commoners, as opposed to honjin, which were reserved for daimyo, or feudal lords, and their retainers), I came across this interesting article which explains how the development of the Nakasendo and the other major highways of Edo Japan was closely linked to the introduction by the Tokugawa shogunate of the sankin kotai, or alternate attendance, policy.

Although details of this policy changed throughout the 250-year rule of the Tokugawa clan, in general terms, the requirement was that daimyo had to move periodically between Edo and their fief, usually spending alternate years in each location. Also, members of their family were forced to live permanently in Edo as hostages. The idea was that the expenditure necessary to maintain residences in both locations, and to make the processions (sometimes up to 350 strong) to and from Edo, would financially strain the daimyo and prohibit them from waging war.

But what initially caught my eye in this article, particularly in light of my recent posting on tourism, was the heading: How shoguns created the world's first travel industry. The author argues that Japan was "the first country in the world in which great numbers of ordinary people routinely traveled long distances on pleasure trips".

While there's little doubt that the sankin kotai system was a major factor in the development of the five highways and the network of inns of various grades along these highways, I do think this statement rather glosses over the severe restrictions that the Tokugawa regime placed on domestic travel (overseas travel, of course, was strictly prohibited).

There was a travel boom among the ordinary populace in the Edo period, but it was centered on short trips to hot springs or for sightseeing, since movement around the country was not officially permitted except for those on pilgrimages or other visits of a religious nature. Movement in and out of Tokyo in particular was severely restricted, with barrier towns established on all the main highways leading to the capital. (In one of these barrier towns, Hakone, the original checkpoint buildings have been restored and transformed into a museum.)

So what category of travel does the Kisokaido Project fall under? Well, I don't think it can be classified as tourism in the Debordian sense (i.e. "the leisure of going to see what has become banal"). Nor is it a pilgrimage as such, although it does have elements of a pilgrimage, albeit in a totally non-religious sense. I like to think of it as a journey whose route and timing have been determined in advance, but whose true purpose and meaning will only be revealed as the journey unfolds. One thing that's certain (and Debord would certainly approve of this) is that fun will be had.

Distance walked today: 0km
Total distance walked since blog began: 78.4km

Uncanny Resemblances Part 1: Walking Fool and William Katt

An idea for a movie

I've had an idea for a movie.

Two "artists," one from New Zealand and the other from New York (to be played by William Katt and Tom Green respectively), meet up in Japan and set off dressed as clowns on a 530km-long trek from Kyoto to Tokyo to raise awareness about global warming.

The New Zealand clown develops an ingrown toenail, but he is determined to see the project completed, and so hacks off the munted appendage with a knife.

Upon reaching Nagano prefecture, the two have an argument over where to stop for lunch. The toeless one wanders off into the forest in a huff, and is attacked by a Japanese Black Bear, who is attracted by the sound of a Swiss cowbell his sister gave him in the mistaken belief that it would ward off the animals. (The Swiss cowbell in fact produces a sound that is very similar to the mating call of the Japanese Black Bear.)

While attempting to escape the bear's clutches, the Kiwi clown loses his balance and stumbles. The New York clown rushes to his aid, and in a desperate effort to save him, grabs the cowbell and leads the bear away into the forest, enabling his injured companion to scramble to safety.

Alone, the toeless one vows to continue the journey in honour of his missing partner, and pushes on to Shimo-Suwa, where the Onbashira festival is in full swing. On hearing his story, the festival organizers agree to let the clown ride one of the logs down a hill as part of the ki-otoshi ceremony.

A long-time fan of U.S. actor Slim Pickens, the Kiwi clown decides to don a cowboy hat for the log ride, and takes a video camera with him to film the event. Things go spectacularly well, until he loses his balance as he tries to adjust the focus, and ends up capturing the moment of his own death as he is crushed beneath the massive trunk.

I'm not sure how that ending would go down with U.S. audiences. Perhaps there could be an alternate ending in which we learn that the New York clown is still alive. He turns up at the Onbashira festival just in time to see his partner hurtle down the mountain to his death, rescues the camera, and edits the footage into a film which goes on to win an Academy Award.

Distance walked today: 0km
Total distance walked since blog began: 78.4km

Silver linings

The toe felt pretty good this morning, about as good as it did last Thursday when I was able to drive over to the other side of town to see some friends, and definitely a lot better then Saturday, when I was completely housebound. But there were still signs of an infection, so I made an appointment with the doctor and went to see him just after midday. I came away with a prescription for another week's worth of a different antibiotic (one small yellowish tablet at night with food, as opposed to the old two white tablets twice a day). We're going to review things again in a week once I've polished those off.

This period of enforced inactivity hasn't been completely without its benefits. Sunday was the first day of complete relaxation I've had for a very long time. I got up latish and watched a bit of the replay of the Crusaders' Super 14 semifinal before having a bath. The rest of the day I spent watching TV, listening to music, and reading. For dinner I sent Keiko out to buy fish and chips, despite the fact that she doesn't like them.

I finished reading Nelson Demille's latest thriller, Wild Fire, which I found unconvincing and a bit of a disappointment, especially after Word of Honour, which I'd finished just a couple of weeks previously. The latter is probably my favourite DeMille book to date, although I also enjoyed Spencerville. DeMille and Gerald Seymour are really the only thriller writers I care for. I usually take one or the other with me whenever I go overseas to pass the time in airports, aeroplanes, and hotels.

Also on Saturday I started reading Andrew Hussey's The Game of War: The Life and Death of Guy Debord. It's an old library copy someone lent to me years ago that remained untouched on my bookshelf until a week or so ago when for some reason, I can't remember why, I suddenly felt the urge to read it and so promoted to the top of my admittedly short reading list. As a vastly more experienced fellow blogger reminded me the other day when I felt I had nothing worthwhile to say and resorted to posting a quote from Debord, I vowed to keep this blog apolitical, so I won't comment about the contents other than to admit that the passionate, iconoclastic, uncompromising, totally committed, no-holds-barred, fun-loving approach to art/life of Debord and those around him is something that I've long admired. Or rather, envied.

Distance walked today: 0km
Total distance walked since blog began: 78.4km

The first leg

As I mentioned a few posts ago, the walking map of the Nakasendo I ordered is missing the first leg of our journey from Kyoto to Kusatsu. So the other day I plotted the route (the squiggly blue line) on MapMyWalk. To the best of my knowledge, this is as close to the actual route of the original Nakasendo as it is possible to walk today.

http://www.mapmywalk.com/walk/japan/kyoto/363672975

Cabin fever

Lovely weather today. I tried putting on some sandals to go outside, but the toe was just too sore. So it'll be back to the doctor's on Monday. Yesterday I managed to cycle down to the supermarket. Just as I was coming home a southerly change came through and it rained for an hour or so. I thought of putting on my new jacket and standing outside in the rain, just to see how it felt.

Distance walked today: 0km
Total distance walked since blog began: 78.4km

Bears

The traditional method of avoiding confrontations with the Japanese Black Bear is to carry a little bell, the sound of which is supposed to prevent them approaching. In light of this news, no doubt bell-sellers are doing a roaring trade.

Enough about the toe already

Lately I've been watching a program on the Japanese TV channel NHK World called Kaido Tekuteku Tabi (which roughly translates as "Plodding along the Old Highways"), in which Japanese "sports celebrities" walk the old highways of Edo Japan.

The first series aired from April 2006 and covered the Tokaido. The format involves the celebrities walking usually one or two stages a day, stopping to talk to people, etc. along the way, followed the next morning by a 15-minute live broadcast in which they recount the previous day's journey. The presenter for the first series was former Japanese soccer international Teruo Iwamoto. Iwamoto has a New Zealand connection in that he played two games for Auckland City FC during the FIFA Club World Championship 2006, failing to prevent the Auckland team finishing last. I'm not sure if he was any good as a soccer player, but he certainly wasn't much of a celebrity, which kind of made me lose interest in the program after a while.

The second series (bits of which I saw) aired late last year, and focused on the Nakasendo, which was walked by a former Olympic speed skater, Ikue Teshigawara.

The series currently screening covers the Koshu Kaido, which links Tokyo with Shimo-Suwa in Nagano prefecture, and once again is being presented by Ikue Teshigawara. It's an interesting program that introduces lots of quiet, out-of-the-way Japanese places full of honest, friendly country folk. It also explains a bit of the history of each area. Yesterday's episode, for example, featured a beautifully preserved honjin (an inn officially appointed for use by daimyo, or feudal lords).

I'm particularly looking forward to the final episode, because Shimo-Suwa is also a stop on the Nakasendo. It's a hot-spring resort on the edge of a big lake, and it's where Erik and I plan to spend the only rest day during our walk later this year.

Shimo-Suwa is also the site of one of Japan's most well known festivals, Onbashira. The purpose of the festival, which is held once every six years, is to symbolically renew the Suwa Taisha shrine. Huge trees are chopped down using special ceremonial axes and dragged down from the forest by teams of men pulling long ropes. The fun really starts when the logs are skidded or dropped down steep slopes. During this part of the festival, known as ki-otoshi, local men ride the logs down the hill to prove their bravery. Several usually end up getting injured or killed.

Luckily the festival isn't being held this year, otherwise I could imagine Erik encouraging me to don my clown costume and take a ride on one of the logs in the interests of art, or moviemaking, or something. Come to think of it, that would make quite a nice little movie. Better than this effort, although it does at least give some idea of what we could expect. The next festival is in April 2010, so we have three years to do some planning.

By the way, Kaido Tekuteku Tabi is accompanied by a great website. It's in Japanese, but just try clicking on all the links and you should find some nice photos and maps relating to all the series to date. The Nakasendo section has pictures of the prints from The Sixty-nine Stations of the Kisokaido together with photos taken at each location showing what they look like today. Nice.

Distance walked today: 0km
Total distance walked since blog began: 78.4km

The toe saga continues

Nothing much to report. I haven't slept well the last couple of nights because of my toe, although it seems to be better this afternoon.

Yesterday I biked over to Barrington to see my tax consultant. Since then the toe's been too sore even to put shoes on, let alone walk anywhere, plus I've been really busy with work, so another fat zero in the "Distance walked" column today, I'm afraid. It's been lovely weather for walking, which just compounds the frustration.

I have been spending a bit of time online looking into accommodation options for the Kisokaido Project. I've discovered that in addition to Daikokuya, there are at least five other Edo-period lodgings along the Nakasendo that still offer accommodation to travelers. Our schedule is such that we should be able to stay in one of these: Kanemaru Tsuchiya Ryokan.

Distance walked today: 0km
Total distance walked since blog began: 78.4km

The Munted Toe

This morning I hobbled down to the doctor's and had him check my ingrown toenail. To cut a long story short, he gave me a prescription for some antibiotics and we're going to review the situation in a week to see if I need surgery or not. I told him about the Kisokaido Project, and how I really wanted the toe to be right in October to November, and he suggested that if I was still having trouble I should have the offending bit of nail cut out about six weeks before I leave, which would give the toe time to heal but ensure the nail wouldn't grow back and cause trouble during the actual walk.

By the way, my brother Mark left a comment suggesting I post a photo of the toe on my blog. What a sicko! I'm sure there's something in the Blogspot Terms of Service about that sort of thing. If there isn't, then there certainly should be. So no photo. But what I can do is post a piece of art (pictured) I made a couple of years ago after I had surgery on an ingrown toenail on my other foot. I've called it The Munted Toe. I'm thinking of putting the original (ballpoint pen on note paper, 69 x 120 mm, unframed) up for auction on Trade Me, but I've decided to give you, my loyal readers, first option. You can leave any offers in the comments section.

In other news, Erik and I have decided to put back by a couple of days our scheduled departure from Kyoto so that we can catch the Jidai Matsuri, one of the three big annual festivals in Kyoto, on October 22. We'll now be leaving on October 23.

Oh, and yesterday while shopping at Riccarton I found some nice Gore-Tex jackets on sale at Kathmandu, so I bought one! Normal price $569.90, reduced to $249.95. It's just the right length, a nice colour ("Ocean"), and a perfect fit. I can't wait to give it a test on my next rain walk. I'll just have to wait for the toe to clear up first.

Distance walked today: 0km
Total distance walked since blog began: 78.4km

Podiatry and palanquins

Bloody toe! I was thinking if the worst comes to the worst I could always do a Jacob Oram and cut the damn thing off. But then I recalled reading somewhere that the big toe is a particularly important appendage in terms of maintaining one's balance while walking, so maybe that's not such a good idea.

Another option would be to get Erik to carry me along the Nakasendo. Don't you think that would be an amazing art project? To maintain a certain level of historical accuracy, we could use one of these Japanese palanquins, known as a kago. Or better still, one of these souped up versions with gold lacquer, called a norimono, which were reserved for the higher-ranking feudal lords. You see, apart from the odd ox-drawn cart, they didn't have much in the way of wheeled transport in Edo period Japan, so anyone of any importance traveling on the highways either rode a horse or was carried in one of these palanquins. Of course, this plan would entail roping someone else in to help, since we'd need two people to carry the thing. Any volunteers?

Incidentally, the ukiyoe above is from Hiroshige's Fifty-three Stations of the Tokaido, and shows Keiko's hometown of Mishima.

Distance walked today: 0km
Total distance walked since blog began: 78.4km

The toe takes a turn for the worse

The toe's not looking all that flash, I'm afraid. I think I might be taking a trip to the doctor after all.

So no walking today, although this afternoon I drove into town to look at rain wear at the Fairydown clearance shop. Fairydown has a very interesting history. Apparently Sir Edmund Hillary wore a Fairydown jacket - and slept in a Fairydown sleeping bag - when he and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay conquered Mount Everest in 1953 (obviously he wasn't actually in the sleeping bag when he got to the top, but you know what I mean). In 2003, however, the brand was renamed Zone because market researchers came to the conclusion that the "fairy" in the name was putting off Australian males who thought it was a bit, um, gay. But obviously the re-branding didn't pay off, because in 2005 they changed it back to Fairydown!

Then things really got confusing. From what I can gather based on various news reports and forums, in 2006 Arthur Ellis (the company that owned the Fairydown brand) was bought by Alp Sports (another outdoor clothing retailer), which was owned by Jan Cameron, who also just happens to be the owner of yet another outdoor clothing retailer, Kathmandu. Or at least she was until September last year, when she sold her remaining stake in the company for $275 million.

Anyway, I only found this out a few minutes ago while googling to see if Fairydown have a website (they don't). This afternoon all I was interested in was getting something to keep me dry while walking. The Fairydown clearance place had a pretty good selection of stuff, and the prices were certainly very reasonable ($199 for a Gore-Tex parka), but unfortunately they didn't have the size and colour combination I was after. On the way home I checked out the Kathmandu clearance shop (totally unaware of the Fairydown connection), but their Gore-Tex rain wear seemed to be a lot more expensive. So I may stick with the rain suit I bought in Japan for the time being and see how it goes on some longish walks. Once I get the toe sorted out, that is.

Distance walked today: 0km
Total distance walked since blog began: 78.4km

Tourism

"Tourism, human circulation considered as consumption, a by-product of the circulation of commodities, is fundamentally nothing more than the leisure of going to see what has become banal. The economic organization of visits to different places is already in itself the guarantee of their equivalence. The same modernization that removed time from the voyage also removed from it the reality of space."

- Guy Ernest Debord

Distance walked today: 3km
Total distance walked since blog began: 78.4km

Odds and ends

Today's post is mostly just a few things relating to this blog and the events of the past week that came into my head while walking into town this afternoon to meet Keiko for dinner.

Firstly, it's good to see some people other than Erik posting comments. (Not that I don't enjoy your comments, dude, it's just nice to know I'm reaching the uninitiated.) So keep them coming. I know some of my family are regular readers, so let's hear some feedback from you guys, too.

On a totally different note, I noticed a bit of inflammation around the nail on my left big toe after Saturday's hill climb. It hasn't been sore enough to stop me walking, but it hasn't been getting any better, either, so today I was considering going to the doctor to have it checked out. But this afternoon I tried a little first aid of my own instead (I'll spare you the gory details), and it seems to be on the mend.

Tuesday's 5.5km was a morning shopping expedition, and as it was spitting when I got up I thought I'd give my old rain suit a test. It's a Gore-Tex one I bought in Japan years ago and stopped wearing after I more or less wore the seat out by cycling in it to university over several winters. I thought I might have thrown it out, but I found it in a bag stashed at the back of the hallway cupboard. Anyway, despite the fact that it stopped raining pretty much as soon as I stepped out the front door, I kept the rain suit on just to see how it felt. I got a few odd looks from people along the way, and the guy at the liquor shop quipped in that jovial, ironic manner that we Kiwis specialize in, the one that Paul Theroux mistook for sarcasm, "You're all ready for the blast, then?" Then again, maybe he was being sarcastic. The "blast" didn't come till the following day, when I once again donned the rain suit for the 3km journey to the local supermarket and back. It seemed to do the trick. I'll just have to remember not to sit in any puddles.

After writing yesterday about Daikokuya, I had a look today at the tentative schedule Erik and I have put together for walking the Nakasendo which has us leaving Kyoto on 20 October and realized we could be staying there on my birthday. I hope they have some good champagne.

Finally, it's so nice to see there are still people around who look you in the eye, smile and say "hello" when you pass them in the street.

Distance walked today: 5.2km
Total distance walked since blog began: 75.4km

Accommodation

During our walk we'll be staying in a combination of business hotels, ryokan (traditional Japanese inns), and minshuku (Japanese-style guest houses). This ties in nicely with one of the themes of the Kisokaido Project: the old versus the new (Kyoto versus Tokyo, the old highways versus the new motorways, me (46) versus Erik (36), etc.).

Japanese business hotels can be pretty impersonal and the rooms are usually quite small, but they're cheap, clean and convenient. They often have coin laundries, and sometimes even offer free breakfast. You can also have a shower in the morning, something that's not always possible at Japanese-style accommodation.

In most cases, ryokan will be over our budget of 10,000 yen a day, but we may find one or two cheap ones along the way. Ryokan are all about tradition, service and atmosphere. In many cases the meals are a real highlight, usually consisting of multiple dishes including local delicacies, all served in your own room with sake and/or beer. Bathing is done in the traditional Japanese style in a communal bathtub. It's definitely an evening affair, and there's rarely the opportunity to take a morning shower.

Minshuku are similar to ryokan in many respects, but are generally cheaper, almost always family-run, and lack the attentive service which is a hallmark of most ryokan.

In some places our options will be limited. Two towns where we'll definitely be staying in ryokan or minshuku are Magome and Hosokute. Because it was bypassed by the main railway line, Magome fell into relative obscurity for a time, but in recent years it's been restored and is now a popular tourist destination. I visited Magome in 2003 when I walked a short section of the Nakasendo on my own, and although it does attract tourists by the busload, I found it a charming town in a stunningly beautiful location. There are no business hotels in Magome as far as I know, only a handful of ryokan and minshuku.

Like Magome, Hosokute is quite a way off the beaten track, but unlike Magome it hasn't been restored or turned into a tourist attraction. Interestingly, when the Nakasendo was first opened, the post town of Hosokute didn't exist. It was added later because the 16km-long mountain path between Okute and Mitake was considered too long for a single leg.

Today Hosokute is a sleepy little town full of elderly people (all the young ones have gone off to the city to find work apparently), with just a couple of old buildings remaining. One of these is an inn called Daikokuya. The inn has been in business since the Edo period, although the current building is a relative newcomer, having been built in the 1850s after a fire destroyed the old premises. It's a delightful old building with lots of wooden pillars, mud walls, and an earth floor in the entrance hall. And it's the only accommodation in town.

Distance walked today: 3km
Total distance walked since blog began: 70.2km

Walking map

The other day the Nakasendo walking map I'd ordered from the people behind the Gokaido Walk website arrived. Apart from the fact that it's really designed for people walking in the opposite direction to our intended course (i.e. Tokyo to Kyoto), and that the first two stations are missing (the section from Kyoto to Kusatsu is regarded as part of the Tokaido and so is not included) I'm extremely pleased with it. It's a handy size (it comes in a plastic container roughly the same size as a toilet roll) and has just the right amount of detail, including suggested accommodation, historical facts, and signs to look out for along the way. You can either use it as it is in roll form, unrolling it as you go, or fold it concertina fashion every 5.7cm, which is the equivalent of 1km in real life. Apparently the map is about 28m long when unrolled!

Distance walked today: 5.5km
Total distance walked since blog began: 67.2km