8 Minutes and the Click is Ticking

 

Giant statue protecting the city

View from our deck

Female Snow Crab

Cooked rice with Fish

Today was a travel day, but not without stress. One of the unique features of train travel is you can send your luggage ahead to the next hotel and not have to take in on the train. In our case we, we took only a small amount of clothes and stuff with us, the rest was shipped to Tokyo where it will be waiting for us in our hotel room when we arrive. It is all quite efficient.

We were heading by train to Beniya Mukayu an Onsen not far from Kagaonsen, an area with many Japanese onsens. Onsens are are Hot Spring bathing facilities and resorts.

We knew we would have to change trains at 

Tsuruga Station and we only had 8 minutes to find the correct train and board it.










The tickets had been pre-purchased for us and we each had 4 tickets. Before we left Shinmonsen we showed the 8 tickets to the concierges. They rearranged them in all kinds of patterns, and discussed among them selves what tickets needed to be shown at what station. After what was kind of like an Abbott and Costello movie they gave up trying to figure it out. When we arrived at Kyoto station we showed the tickets to the ticket-taker in the ticket booth and he looked at them switched them around and continued fumbling with them. He basically said board the train and figure it out when you transfer. That didn't give us a high degree of confidence anyone knew what to do.
We arrived at Tsurga Station where we needed to transfer within the 8 minutes we had between our train's arrival and new train's departure. It should be said the Japanese trains are ALWAYS on time. They wait for no-one. We got off the train and started running as fast as we could but we really didn't know where in the station we should be heading to. I was hoping to see a station agent I could show the ticket to or at least an electronic sign saying what track we should be on. There was none!
I saw what I was assumed was a conductor walking with his bags (he was in a uniform so I suspected he worked for the railroad). He had all kinds of baggage with him,  going home after his workday was over. He dropped all his Luggage, umbrella and briefcase on the floor when I showed him the tickets and started walking very fast towards a gate. He talked to someone and got us through the gate and pointed us towards an escalator, we ran up the escalator and jumped on the train, hoping it was the right one. We were in the wrong car, but the right train. The train pulled out, we had just made it.
We never would have made it with the assistance of that kind man. This is so typical of the Japanese. They are incredibly helpful and polite. I am sure all his luggage was safe, left in the middle of the terminal. We struggled down the aisle with our luggage and finally found our seats. Whew, we made it within the allotted 8 minutes - barely.

We were met by a representative of Beniya at the station and driven to the Onsen. It seems weird but it really is fun, in the onsen you are given traditional Japanese Yukatas to wear. No one wears western clothing. Everyone is in Japanese drag. The only issue is Yukatas don't have pockets, where do I put my camera, room key and pills?
It was raining but that was all right because we didn't plan to run around, we just wanted to relax. The view from our room of the trees and garden is spectacular. It is cool here and the rooms are well heated, and even the floors are heated. It is quite cozy.
The Onsen's serve incredible meals and since it was Snow Crab season we had a multi-course dinner centered around the Snow Crab. It was excellent. Tomorrow we have nothing planned except massages. Sounds perfect to me.