Japanese oddities

I love Japan, apart from the cold and the cost, which is prohibitive, but what I love most is the craziness, such as the Manga comic book culture, that even grown ups read, and the all night internet cafes where you can sleep over. If you get lost and ask someone for directions, rather than point they will insist on walking you to where you are trying to get to, and if they don't know themselves they will ask someone else who will then also walk with you. There was four of us trapsing around trying to find a bus pick up point the other day. Anyway here's some mad stuff...

Geishas. One of my friends back home said she wants to be a Geisha, but to be honest they freak me out. They're like female clowns with the white faces and shoes that they can't wear properly reducing them to walking with a waddle. There were loads of them in Kyoto - and Meikas, Geishas in training - wondering around, surrounded by photographers, staring misty-eyed into the distance as if they were stoned.

They're not as freaky as Nampas though. Young guys who look like boyband rejects, and hang around Osaka city centre, trying to tempt girls into bars where they're on commission. We stood on the bridge, drinking lager and taking the piss out of them. Every other country I've been it's the other way round with bargirls trying to tempt male punters, so I guess this is one for women's equality, though judging by the reactions of the girls on the bridge not one they particularly want.

I almost got into a bit of trouble in Kobe. It's a nice place but I ended up spending four days there which was too long as it's quite quiet. Anyway, one day I went for a walk up the mountains, turned a corner, only to be confronted by a warthog. I've never trusted pigs since reading Animal Farm and Hannibal, and promptly legged it. When I got back and was chatting to the hostel owner he told me they're actually very dangerous, with a tendency to gore, and the city has to employ rangers to keep them under control!