Want to see the real Japan? Try hitchhiking

By Chris McCormack

Can’t afford the oil surcharge for the flight to Hokkaido? Having trouble getting to know the locals? Feel like you don’t know the real Japan? Try hitchhiking.

I first hitched alone when I was 17 during a summer trip around Europe. Although I visited a few museums and famous landmarks, what I mostly did was see the country and get to know the people. Because hitchhiking is illegal, and dangerous on major motorways, I crisscrossed Western Europe on the back roads that passed through small villages and countryside that most people don’t get to see. I got hooked. I traveled through eight countries in two months and only paid for transportation twice. Spending money on rides, I came to believe, was for chumps.

In Japan, I first hitchhiked on a whim. My then girlfriend and I had missed the last bus from Mt Mitake to the train station, and it was a long walk to town. So we stuck out our thumbs. We were picked up within minutes — and a whole new Japan opened up to me.

We got our second ride in Tohoku, where an elderly couple in their 70s picked us up on a small, dusty road in the middle of nowhere. I couldn’t believe it. The last thing my grandparents would do if they saw a foreigner sticking his thumb out at the side of the road would be to stop and give him a ride. I figured elderly Japanese would be even more averse to the idea, but I was wrong. It reminded me of the couple in Germany who picked me up, fed me, went out of their way so I would be heading in the right direction, and then dropped me off with a warning that I should stop hitchhiking — instead of being the scary foreigner at the side of the road, I became their adopted grandchild.

The most hitchhiking I’ve ever done in Japan was during a trip to Hokkaido. Two friends and I spent a week hitching from campground to campground. When we started, I thought there was no way we would get anywhere fast. Most cars simply don’t have enough room for three extra passengers and their bags, so I figured that the number of people both willing and able to pick us up would be impossibly small. But, again, I was wrong.

The drivers who gave us rides weren’t in a hurry. They were taking their time and were willing to share that time with us. Although they were a surprisingly diverse group — young, old, men, women, singles, couples, families — they were similar in important ways: they were kind, generous and curious about people. We shared our stories with them and they shared theirs with us. We got to know what it was like to live in Hokkaido from the locals, but we also met people from all over Japan who were drawn to the island’s clean, cool air and abundant natural beauty. We came to appreciate the kindness and generosity of the people we met, and felt more connected to the country.

Of course, hitchhikers also encounter the worst in people. It can be dangerous, and hitchers should always be cautious when accepting rides. The very vulnerability that makes it dangerous, however, also creates a space for strangers to demonstrate a remarkable capacity for goodness. I’ve always been lucky in this regard. I’ve hitchhiked in many places, and each time I have rediscovered my faith in humanity. This is certainly true of my hitchhiking experience in Japan.

In Hokkaido, one of the last rides we got was from a young man who was going to the same campground we were. He was meeting his family, his whole family: parents, siblings, cousins, grandparents, nieces, nephews. They invited us to join them and, unexpectedly and to our delight, we spent the night eating, drinking and laughing with the whole clan. When we left the next morning, the man who picked us up gave me a keychain and a photo of us all together. I still have them today, six years later.

That was my first summer in Japan, and the first time I really had the opportunity to talk to people who weren’t paying to see me. I was still struggling with the language, but it didn’t matter. Before that trip, it seemed like I might never get beyond the isolated lifestyle of expats living among expats, but hitchhiking changed it all. The wall between “me” and “them” began to crumble, and I felt that at last I was finally communing with Japan and its people.

Chris McCormack is a Canadian writer waiting to be picked up. This commentary originally appeared in Metropolis magazine (www.metropolis.co.jp).

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Latest 15 of 47 Total Comments Show All

Anung at 04:53 PM JST - 22nd October

man you must be crazy to hitchhike in japan!
Zolt at 05:56 PM JST - 22nd October

Tried hitch-hiking from Kyoto to Tokyo once, and it was not an easy experience. Japanese drivers are just not used to hitch-hikers, so it took me 3 hours of gesturing to get someone to stop and pick me up - and that someone turned out to be a colleague who had a good laugh at me! He could only take me part of the way, so had to repeat the process near Nagoya where it took even longer. Departed from Kyoto at 6am wanting, arrived in Tokyo at 11 PM, well, at least I made it but for less than 6000 yen for an overnight bus it was a bit pointless.
Hikozaemon at 06:53 PM JST - 22nd October

http://www.japantoday.com/category/commentary/view/want-to-see-the-real-japan-try-hitchhiking

Apparently there's a good book on the subject called Hokkaido Highway Blues by Will Ferguson

Here's a vid talking about it http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pZNH5vnKGYc

I haven't read the book, but it seems to be well recommended.

Peace
Ninjazilla at 07:39 PM JST - 22nd October

That book is great, really funny.Its been renamed Hitching rides with the buddha.
timorborder at 09:14 PM JST - 22nd October

Lay off the hitch hiking. Too many loonies in Japan.
Ninjazilla at 11:35 PM JST - 22nd October

In the book Hitching rides he doesnt meet any dangerous people but alot who wanna preach about how (fill in the blank) Japan is.
BurakuminDes at 12:42 AM JST - 23rd October

Mate, nice idea, but you are living in the past. Japan is no longer a safety country to hich-hike in - you are likely to end up knifed, decapitated ... or worse.
Otaru at 02:59 PM JST - 23rd October

I had to hitch hike once from Akigawa back to Otaru when my truck broke down. An old farmer picked me up. He didn't say much to me on the way, we talked about beer so I bought him some of his favorite as a thank you. Other than an emergency, I don't think I would hitch hike in any country...even Canada!
isthistheend at 08:53 PM JST - 23rd October

Before hitching, why not get inundated by riding the crowded a.m.and p.m. trains. If you ever get a seat, its quite likely the lass or chap sitting besides you is quite perturbed to have a foreigner seated next to or in between them. Japanese become helpful on occasion when you are in trouble situation like dropping your cell phone, which is most appreciated, but in a normal situation, getting a courtesy is about as easy as pulling a tigers tooth. And not too much smiling about it either. So before putting out your thumb, learn to sit up or stand up straight and not make a move on the crowded trains. That is where part of the "real" Japan is. I put up with 95% of the xxx that I have to. When the additional 5% comes, I find myself speaking up inspite of knowing that doing so makes "the others" uncomfortable. Dick Chaney em!
floyd_43 at 09:48 AM JST - 24th October

God, that story brings back so many great memories!! A pity its considered unsafe to hitch hike these days because it really is an amazing and fun way to meet people and see places!!
Disillusioned at 10:26 AM JST - 24th October

Are you kidding! Hitch hike around Japan? I'd feel safer hitch hiking around the western suburbs of Sydney!
akami at 05:34 PM JST - 25th October

I've hitchhiked between Iwate and Yamaguchi many, many times, not mention Kyushu and my only time ever in Shikoku was a hitchhiking trip.

It's funny to see some of the responses and although some of the fears are valid, moreso now than previously, they show an elitist attitude that they know more about something they've never done than those who have.

For those who think it's too difficult, they're right, and probably should avoid other difficult things like surfing, mountain climbing, living in a foreign country and interacting with the local populace outside of urban comfort zones etc...

There are ways to make hitching easier or more difficult but getting directly between the bigger cities is generally more difficult.

As far as the dangers involved, it can be scary at times, and most rewarding at others. The single scariest incident for me was a van full of middle easterners who pulled over and started shouting and arguing among themselves whether to give me a ride or not. The ones who thought they should give me a ride won and the ones who had been glaring at me smiled and said that I should get in. I opted for waiting till I could get a ride to my exact destination.

The final decision as to whether anyone should try hitching or not is theirs to make but by all means, try to take some rational precautions in your approach.

In closing, I have also hitched several times with my girlfriend in the Touhoku and Chuugoku areas of the country and once with another girl from Saitama to Niigata, all with nothing but the kindest of interactions.
warispeace at 07:56 AM JST - 26th October

I'm with akami, hh-ing is a great experience in Japan, but then I've also hh-ed in Europe and down the west coast of the US, so it seemed tame in comparison.

I remember one guy who picked my mate and I up in the early morning in Hokodate, after we had drank ourselves silly on the ferry from Otaru. He dove us in to Sapporo while we slept and in the end pulled a US$20 out of his wallet for us, thinking we were hard up, which we were at the time. Great guy!

Don't miss your chance to see another side of Japan while you are here.
RakishGadfly at 10:28 AM JST - 26th October

akami;

For those who think it's too difficult, they're right, and probably should avoid other difficult things like surfing, mountain climbing, living in a foreign country and interacting with the local populace outside of urban comfort zones etc...

Good point.

I second the point made earlier that people out in the sticks are friendlier and less nervous about foreigners than Tokyoids - Tokyo is not Japan.
ptolemy at 12:47 AM JST - 30th October

Lets go fun time hichihaikingu!