Ogasawara, Part One

Last month I briefly mentioned a recent trip:

And just last week I was whisked away for a surprise free trip to, well, you'll find out soon enough. It involved a few days of heaven, a few hours of hell, and exciting events like almost getting eaten by a (probably) imaginary shark and finally finding out what and where Canada's famed (in Japan only) "Maple Kaido" is.

Well, the trip was to the Ogasawara Islands, and it was one of the best things that happened to me in ages. So it's about time I blogged about it.

I was chosen as one of 10 foreigners to take part in a six day "fam tour" (I didn't know what it meant either) to the islands, with the Tokyo government footing the bill. With us were two Tokyo government employees, two representatives of a travel consultant company, and one of Japan's leading travel experts.

You might be wondering how on earth I managed to get in on this, and I still have no idea, other than really good luck. You might also be thinking that a free trip sounds too good to be true, and wondering what the catch was. The only catches were this: the trip was full of pre-planned tours leaving very little free time to our own thing, and we had to give our impressions of the islands and our advice for improving tourism services for foreign visitors. This involved two meetings with local tourism people as well as filling out a lengthy questionnaire, and although I tried to fulfill my duties well I am sure I got the better end of the bargain than the Tokyo government did.

You might also be wondering where on earth the Ogasawara Islands are, so read on: they are about 1000 km south of Tokyo, and like the Izu Islands are actually part of the municipality of Tokyo. But it would be hard to find a place that's more different from Japan's capital: these beautiful islands are lush with tropical vegetation and dotted with gorgeous white sand beaches. And they're sparsely populated: only two islands are inhabited by civilians, with Chichijima and Hahajima (literally "Father Island" and "Mother Island") sharing 2244 residents between them. Among the other 30 or so islands is one you've probably heard of: Iwo Jima (now called Iwoto in Japanese), currently used by the Self Defense Forces and the American Navy for training but off-limits to regular folk.

The Ogasawaras are also know as the Bonin Islands in English, Bonin being a corruption of the old Japanese name Bunin, which meant "uninhabited". That's exactly what the islands were until they were colonized in 1830 by a small group of Americans and Hawaiians, with Japanese, Europeans and other Pacific Islanders eventually settling in as well. Residents were evacuated from the islands during WWII, and although non-Japanese were allowed to return under American occupation, Japanese residents were only allowed back when the Ogasawaras were returned to Japan in 1968.

Because of the islands' distance from other islands many plants and animals evolved in isolation, and thanks to the relatively late introduction of human inhabitants most of those species are fairly well-preserved. Well over 100 unique species can be found on the Ogasawaras, and the waters abound with sea life, including dolphins, whales, sea turtles and the giant squid (including the first giant squid to be captured on film), earning the islands the unofficial title "The Galapagos of the East". The Ogasawara Islands are currently being evaluated for World Heritage status, and if its granted (a decision will be made in 2011) an increase in tourism, particularly by non-Japanese, is expected.

Most of the information above I learned from research after I was accepted as a participant for the tour. Before that I had heard only three things about the Ogasawaras: that they were very far away, that some horrible stuff had happened there during the Second World War, and that marijuana is rumoured to grow wild all over the place and thus the islands are popular with a certain subset of people. Of those three things the first two proved to be true and the third, although I saw a few people who definitely looked like they enjoyed the devil weed, I never did see any growing wild. Not that I was looking or anything.

So now that the introductions are out of the way you may be wondering why, if Ogasawara is so great, I haven't visited before? Because a ferry ride is the only practical way to get there, and it takes 25.5 hours and costs 23,250 yen (plus fuel surcharge) for the cheapest one-way ticket. There is no airport or high speed ferry service (both have been considered but ultimately failed to come about), so pretty much the only choice is to take the Ogasawara Maru from Tokyo to Chichijima. That 25.5 hours, by the way, is only in good weather (in bad weather the journey can take much longer or even be canceled) and its another couple hours on a different boat to get to Hahajima. Throughout most of the year the ferry goes back and forth once a week, so the absolute shortest trip you can take is six days.

There are a few alternatives, but the occasional private cruise ship or military helicopter flight is likely beyond the reach of most, and although it's possible to save a little bit of money by booking a passage on a freight ship that regularly visits the island, the trip takes over two days and has very limited spots for passengers.

Still, those who have the time and the money (or are lucky enough to snag a free trip) will find a visit to the islands more than worth the hassle. This was one of the most beautiful places I've been, and I liked it so much that someday I hope to actually go on my own dime.

We set sail from Tokyo's Takeshiba Sanbashi Pier on November 25th last year. That's the Ogasawara Maru above (or at least the part of it that would fit in my viewfinder), but those aren't Tokyo skies- we were a bit rushed that morning so I took this after we arrived in Chichijima. No, the skies over Tokyo were grey and dull, making me really glad to be leaving. Below is the view while we were heading through Tokyo Bay:

At Takeshiba we were all introduced, and given a speech and send off from the president of Mile Post Consultants, the company arranging the trip. We looked like a promising bunch, and I was pleased to have already met two of the other participants. Here we are, in a picture taken the next day while on a tour of Chichijima:

Back row, from left: Fukawa-san, general manager of marketing and planning at Mile Post; Charles, New Zealander and founder of Bungy Japan in Minakami; Helen, a translator also from New Zealand, who I know online from a few forums (including eGullet) and had met once with a few other eGulleters for lunch; Maya from Bulgaria, Outbound Travel Rep at the Japan Association of Travel Agents; me; a mainland Tokyo government staffer whose name escapes me; Mark, an Australian who runs HappyRaft in Shikoku; our local tour guide that day (not accompanying us on the ferry); Saito-san, marketing and planning manager at Mile Post; and another mainland Tokyo government employee whose name I can't remember. Front row, from left: Tim, an American studying law in a Japanese university; Laura, a British translator; Kobayashi-san, secretary general of the Japan Ecotourism Society and director of the Evolution Tourism Institute; Australian Robert, general manager of Elanex Japan KK, a translation company; Mike, a New Zealander who owns Canyons in Minakami, who I'd met briefly when I did some rafting and canyoning up there a few years ago; Han, a business lady from China; and a local Tokyo government employee (not with us on the ferry).

All in all an impressive bunch, and soon I was wondering why I was there with them. I was certainly the least accomplished of the foreigners, and also the least fluent in Japanese. Which mattered, because the entire tour would be conducted in Japanese, as well as the questionnaire at the end. But what the hell, I was there so I vowed to make the most of it.

This was my seventh trip out of Tokyo Bay (the ferries to Oshima and Mikurajima follow the same route) so I didn't feel the need to linger up on deck to enjoy the view, which is not very enjoyable (at least by daylight) anyway. Besides, it was freezing, and the winter jacket I'd figured would be too hot was barely enough to keep the wind out. So I went I checked out my room instead.

There are only two classes- 1st and 2nd- but a number of options within each one, and our rooms were lower 1st class. They had four beds, a little table and chairs, a TV and DVD player (not knowing about the DVD player- there was also a library of DVDs to borrow- I had brought my laptop and a several DVDs, which I instantly regretted), and a view. The room would have cost 46,500 yen per person plus fuel surcharge and although the picture makes it look cramped, it was quite nice by ferry standards. I've done lower 2nd class, the cheapest option available, on a 9 hour trip from Hokkaido to Aomori and a 24 trip from Kyushu to Okinawa, and sharing a floor with dozens of other people, many of them drunk, is not nearly as fun as it sounds; upper 2nd class on the ferry to Mikurajima has similar bunks but in a much more cramped room with about a dozen other people and no extras like seats or a TV. So it may not look like much, but we were traveling in style.

Although the rooms were for four people they kindly put only two of us in each room. My roommate was Laura, who came across as laid back but soon revealed a wicked sarcastic edge and a bit of a party girl attitude. Soon after we'd settled in she whipped out a mickey of whiskey and took a generous gulp, then thoughtfully held the bottle out to me. I declined, seeing as I was terrified that my seasickness meds weren't going to work, and well, it was barely 10:30 in the morning. But I took it as a good sign. This was definitely going to be an interesting trip.

I spent the day exploring the ship, reading through the heaps of tourist brochures and we'd received, and getting to know my fellow tourists. Poor Laura soon was hit was a killer bout of seasickness and spent most of the trip in bed (apparently whiskey doesn't guard against motion sickness- who knew), so I tagged along with Helen and Maya. We made frequent trips to the decks to watch passing islands (pretty much the entire Izu Islands chain can be seen on route, but night fell before we could see them all) and check the weather. By the time the sun was setting, above, it had warmed up considerably, and my jacket was packed away until the return trip.

After the sunset we broke out the snacks, some brought from home, some bought on board. And when adults and snacks get together in Japan there is always alcohol involved, so we stocked up on that too. I was surprised at the wide amount of adult beverages available on board: beer and sake, of course, but with a far better selection than is the norm, along with wine- in bottles and cans(!)- and two products of the islands: rum and passion fruit liqueur. I settled for some rum and Diet Coke, vowing to take a picture of the rum bottle later when the light was better (but never getting around to it, which is just as well because the rum, sadly, was terrible).

Like all ferries in Japan, this had a small concessionary selling souvenirs and basic toiletries, vending machines all over the place selling snacks, soft drinks and alcohol, and a snack bar offering curry rice, ramen and such. It also had a few things I'd never seen before, like a number of lounges, a children's playroom, a DVD library and viewing room, a karaoke room, and a full service restaurant. The restaurant was actually quite decent, if a little pricey, and although I was pretty full from snack time we had a late dinner there.

I had a bowl of oden (seafood, eggs, vegetables and other tidbits simmered in a salty broth) and a small bottle of wine of a type that I would never normally buy, but when in vacation mode almost anything tastes nice.

Next morning I awoke to discover the grey skies were long gone and it was t-shirt weather. I slept through the sunrise, unfortunately, but the view of the blue sky and wispy clouds was pretty enough.

Soon I could spot seabirds like this katsuodori (brown booby) and the occasional flying fish. The birds were flying alongside the us, waiting to spot flying fish as they escaped from the boat, and I was treated to many a dive, although I never got to see a successful catch. What I was really hoping to see was whales or dolphins, which can sometimes be seen from the ferry, but none materialized.

A tourism official from the islands was on board and gave a talk about the islands' wildlife (he'd also given a slide show about tourism in general the night before). I'm not sure if this is a regular thing on the ferry, but it was nice to learn a little, and even nicer to have something to do.

Finally we spotted land. I think many of the little islands were named as we passed but I didn't bring my notebook for the lecture so have no idea what they are, except that they began with the Mukojima group of islands and ended up at the Chichijima group.

Probably the Mukojima Islands.

Maybe the northern tip of Chichijima.

Definitely Chichijima.

And then, finally we entered Chichijima's Futami Bay, and our long journey was over. 

Part Two to is here. Check out more pictures from the ferry here, and pictures from the entire trip here.

Comments

[kat]

what a great chance!

[chris q]

Beautiful photos! Hope you said something about the necessity of an airport if they expect tourists, as I for one could not take 25 hours on a ship with living quarters that look like that! Those are quarters for an overnight crossing. I think the cost of it is way too expensive for most tourists, but then maybe that is what they want, an exclusive experience.

[Karen B]

Wow...looking forward to the next set of photos. Meanwhile, "fam tour" = familiarization tour.

[Tamara]

Oh gosh. I have to make sure my sweetie never finds these photos, or he'll want to hop on a plane to get there ASAP! Actually, /I/ want to hop on a plane and go there. 16 + 25 hours in cramped quarters would be a small price to pay to escape the Midwest (which is currently covered in piles of evil snow).

[Amy]

Kat, it really was!

Chris Q, there were once good reasons for not having an airport, and I'll go into those in a later post. I agree that it's prohibitively expensive and of course my recommendations included creating more ways to get to the island and reducing prices somehow. But most of the others disagreed suggesting that the islands would be better off remaining, like you said, an exclusive experience.

Thansk Karen!

Tamara, there are probably more accessible tropical paradises (my parents leave for Negril, Jamaica in a few days, the lucky bastards). But I do think the Ogasawaras are worth the trip.

One thing though, I didn't consider our quarters to be cramped at all, I thought they were quite spacious compared to what I've experienced. A 2nd class ticket would offer more space (but you'd have to sleep on the floor and share the very large room with a couple dozen strangers), and there's lots of space on the boat to roam around. I never felt claustrophobic at all.

[Sarah]

Wow, that looks like a great oppurtunity! GOing back to the yukata thing, I suppose I'll have to find whoever does the yukata for the sumo wrestlers and throw myself at their mercy! :P Of course, it would help if I could hurry up finishing the degree and GO to Japan already...

[Amy]

Sarah, I asked about that and was told that although mens fabric bolts are a bit wider, the patterns are usually not suitable for women. They humoured me though and let me look through what they had, but they were right: nothing appealed to me. But you might have different tastes or find a better selection, and by the time you get to Japan there may indeed be yukatas for Amazons.

[Mari]

Amy, that sunset photo is magnificent...

[Tamakikat]

Hi there Amy!

Looks like you won the lottery with this trip.

Look forward to reading more of your account in Part 2.

TK

[baby crib]

Nice pictures! I like it! The photo with the sunset is so beautiful! I hope I can also get a chance to go here!

[Speak Japanese]

WOW! I wish I had done something like this while I lived in Japan

[jammni]

Really great view .Must visit place .
Clean Whites

[sai]

Hi Amy,

I'm looking into going to the Ogasawara Islands this May but I'm now a bit double-minded. What would you recommend - the Ogasawaras or the Izu islands?

Thanks!

[Annie]

what a pretty place!

[Mark]

Hi Amy
Its Mark from HappyRaft.
Great Blog and Pictures!
Makes me want to go back.
Come down to Shikoku and see us sometime.

[Peter]

You are so lucky to have had a trip like that! I think I will bring my family there. It seems a perfect son gift. thanks for posting.

[mark]

looks wonderful, thank you for your nice story.
i hope to go at end of april.
can i ask you some advice; do u know a great hotel in tokyo?

cheers
mark/ amsterdam

[Erizabesu]

Hi Amy! Your photos are great. I'm glad you could join this trip. I also had a chance to go, but my schedule couldn't accommodate the date. So, I went to Hachijojima in the Izu Islands instead. Please have a look on my Chibaraki blog.

[Amy]

Sai, it really depends on how much time you have and what you want to do. If you just want a nice beach, the Izu Islands may be better (Niijima is known for its beaches but most other Izu Islands have decent ones as well). Likewise if you just want to swim with dolphins (Mikurajima and Miyakejima are the places to go). But if you want the above plus truly spectacular scenery, few tourists, and whale watching, go to Ogasawara.

Hey Mark (HappyRaft), great to hear from you. How's the rafting down in Shikoku this season?

Mark (Amsterdam), do you mean a hotel in mainland Tokyo or a hotel in Ogasawara? Lots to choose from either way and it depends on your budget.

Thanks Erizabesu. That's really too bad you couldn't make it. I did read about your trip to Hachijojima and it looked great. I've always wanted to go and now the ferry ride no longer looks so daunting after Ogasawara! Interestingly the two places share a lot of culture, as I think some of the original Japanese settlers came from Hachijojima (and later on Hachijojima is where some of the banished Japanese Ogasawara residents went when their islands were under American control post WWII).