#Sanjo Tsubame

[kenkaodoll]

Kamiya Dojo Monogatari Tale 78 (JUMP SQ 24/07)

About Kamiya Dojo Monogatari:

Tales of Kamiya dojo is written by Kaoru Kurosaki and published along with the “Rurouni Kenshin Hokkaido” arc in JUMPSQ. The tale involves the Rurouni Kenshin character in daily life that takes time between Kenshin and Kaoru marriage until the epilogue chapter in the original manga before the Hokkaido Arc. Until this month (June 2024) there are a total 78 chapters in Tales of Kamiya dojo. This is an unofficial translation. 

Previous Story: https://www.tumblr.com/kenkaodoll/750191530648748032/kamiya-dojo-monogatari-tale-77-jump-sq-2406

 

Kenshin leapt from the railing and first he swung down one bouncer on the bridge with the wet tablecloth on his hand.

“Uwaa!” 

Clang. The tablecloth hit the bouncer in the face. Kenshin landed on the bridge, kicking another bouncer who held a sword. 

The man whose face was pasted with a cloth was covering his face with his hands and groaned, "My eyes...! The other man who had been kicked was screaming "Aaaah" as his kicked sword fell under the bridge.

In no time at all, the two men on the bridge were out of combat.

“I owe you!” Mikio said to Kenshin and ran off across the bridge to somewhere else. It’s typical of him, a person who did not hesitate to run away.

“...”

Kenshin looked straight at Suwa. He was in the middle of washing dishes, so he had no reverse sword. How far could the opponent go against him with his bare hands and Kenji on his back?

“Tch. He is just a baby sister, what are you doing? Hey guys!"

Suwa backed up and looked at the three men who were waiting for him.

 The men step forward to protect Suwa and hold their swords ready.

Kenshin was standing on a narrow bridge over a waterway which was used for daily life. With the two men who were unable to fight and Kenshin himself, it was already cramped.

The three new men couldn’t attack Kenshin at once.

“Ah.. this…” Kenshin spoke to Kenji on his back.

“Yahiko once asked me about a way to fight multiple enemies by yourself.”

“Da—?”

“This situation is similar to the strategy we talked about then.”

That strategy to make the opponent come to himself one-on-one had come by chance on this narrow bridge.

Without a sword and with Kenji on his back, Kenshin had no choice but to play it safe and deal with the situation one-on-one.

“What’s wrong, hey babysitter? You talk to a baby. If you want to beg for your life, come to me."

Suwa wondered if it was a coincidence that Kenshin, who didn't have a sword, had knocked them both off the bridge at once. He completely underestimated Kenshin, who was carrying a child on his back.

“It’s an important old story between father and son, that it is.”

Kenshin took a fighting stance.

“Shut up, you’re a mess!”

 One of the men flashed a white blade at Kenshin, with all his might.

・

Meanwhile, a little while before that.

“I'm really sorry to bother you on such a big day… Oh, why on the first day of the cafe's opening,” Shino was talking to Megumi in a tone that sounded like she was asking for advice.

“What's wrong?”

“My stomach's just getting contractions…” Shino smiled helplessly and rubbed her stomach.

“Since when?”

“A little while ago. I was planning on asking a midwife near the tenement house to help me, but... ouch…”

“Then let's go back to the tenement house and get ready for the birth.”

“What if the baby is born now?”

Megumi encouraged the anxious Shino, “It'll be fine. The baby won't be born so soon. Anyway, where's the manager? By the way, I can't find him anywhere. Where is he?”

The only person who can take Shino home is her husband, Mikio. Megumi looked around and asked where Mikio was.

“Um, you see... he was called by a customer earlier and left. He hasn't come back since…” Tsubame said with a troubled look on her face.

“He's not here when he’s needed!” Megumi was irritated but still gave instructions,“So, where's Ken-san?”

“I just checked the washing area outside, but he wasn't there,” Yahiko reported immediately.

“We need a man! Oh dear! It can't be helped. I can't let Shino-san walk back to the tenement house, so I need to carry her on a two-wheeled-cart.”

“If Shino-san gives birth, it's a major event for the Nagaoka family... so... um, I'll do my best,” Tsubame offered.

“With your weak arms, it would be quicker for Shino-san to walk,” Megumi flatly refused.

“Ah... okay,” Tsubame retreated sheepishly.

“There's not enough strength here…” Megumi glanced at Kaoru.

"I'll do it! Got it. I'll borrow a handcart from a neighbor."

Kaoru rushed out of the store.

“I'll help too.”

“Me too!” Yahiko and Misao shouted.

“You guys stay here,” Megumi gave instructions to them .

“Since we won't have any adults here, don't let any new customers in from now on.”

“I got it!” Misao replied cheerfully.

“Then, once the customers who are currently in the store leave, we'll close up the store, a little earlier than planned.”

“We can run the store on our own.”

Yahiko pouted. He didn't want to close down the store early, which it's been going well.

“We deal with money and food, so when something goes wrong, we can't just say, 'The kids took care of it.'”

“We're not children.”

“If this was a shop that had been established for years, we'd leave it to you. Even though we're adults, we still don't know what to do…”

“Well, I guess there's nothing we can do,” Yahiko reluctantly agreed to Megumi's words.

“But... We'd have to turn away customers who want to come in... It’s regrettable…” Tsubame responded.

Misao made a suggestion, “If we close the shop, we'll have some leftover baked goods prepared for today, so why not give them out as an apology?”

“That's a good idea! If the cakes are delicious, maybe they'll come back again,” Tsubame smiled.

“It'll also be good advertising,” Yahiko nodded.

“Let's do that. The manager is not here to help us make decisions, but we can't ask permission from someone who's slacking off, so it can't be helped,”Megumi also agreed with the idea of ​​handing out baked goods.

And so, the group split up into a storekeeping team and a childbirth team.

・

“I've borrowed the two-wheeled cart!” Kaoru, who had rushed out earlier, jumped in.

“Leave the rest to us.”

Kaoru and Megumi put Shino on the platform of the two-wheeled cart.

“I'm so sorry... I wish my husband had been here.” Shino seemed to be in pain, so she obediently let herself be put on the two-wheeled cart.

“If you say that, this is a crucial time and none of our staff are here... Anyway, let's do our best!” Kaoru put in a lot of strength and pushed the cart. This thing was hard to start moving at beginning, she needed to put all her strength.

“Leave the cafe to us!”

“Please be careful!”

“Take care!”

Yahiko, Misao, and Tsubame sent them off until the cart was out of sight, then changed the "Open" sign hanging at the cafe’s entrance to "Getting Ready."

Not long after that,

“Oh, are you closed already?” A middle-aged male customer came in and asked regretfully.

“Yes. I'm sorry, sir. Please take this as an apology,” Tsubame handed him a baked cake.

“It's the first day of business, why are you closing so early?”

“Ojisan, today is an auspicious day for the opening of the café, but we have something even better to celebrate!” Misao blabbered on about the manager's wife giving birth.

“Oh, that's great! Then I think I'll share the sweets with my eldest son's wife, maybe she’ll get some luck.”

"That would be great."

Thanks to Misao's customer service skills, what she learned from Aoiya, even the customers who couldn't get in the store received sweets and left with smiles on their faces.

And then…

Something noisy started going on inside the store.

“Where is it? Where…?”

Mikio came in through the back door and was making a big fuss inside the store.

“Damn, what the hell is that guy doing here just now!”

 Yahiko returned to the store, leaving Misao and Tsubame to give out the sweets.

“Hey you! Where's the sakabato?” Mikio’s face was pale and he was searching for the sakabato.

“What? There's no way someone like you would touch Kenshin's precious sword. You should keep talking in your sleep!”

“Shut up, I really need it! Ah, there it is!” Mikio found the sword on his own, grabbed it, and  left through the entrance of the store.

“Oi, wait! Hey!” Yahiko tried to stop Mikio, but unfortunately...

“Excuse me, can I have the bill please?” 

A customer who was still in the store called him. Yahiko couldn't ignore him, so he served the customer.

“Mikio-sama?” Tsubame, who was handing out sweets at the entrance, noticed Mikio but she didn't quite understand what happened to him.

“Hey you! There’s something important!” Misao tried to tell him about Shino, but Mikio ran past as fast as he could, as if that wasn't the time for him.

“Hey! Listen to what I’m saying!” Misao called out, but Mikio only showed his back as he ran away and her voice didn't reach him.

・

“This is getting messy”

One of the men flashed his white blade at Kenshin with all his might.

The blade almost hit Kenji if Kenshin didn’t dodge it in time, so he jumped back and landed behind the bridge.

All he had left as a weapon was the tablecloth in his hand. He put some distance between himself and his enemy, buying himself some time to think about what to do. At that moment...

"Here you go! Now there's no debt!” Mikio's voice rang out as the Sakabato came flying.

Kenshin caught it with his hand.

“Kyaa kyaa!” Kenji cried out happily.

“Hey! But what's the point of handing a sword to some babysitter?” Suwa still underestimated Kenshin.

But...

Kenshin quickly pulls out his sword.

“!”

Blood drained from Suwa's face.

“That's a reverse-blade sword... A cross scar on his cheek... That babysitter, I can’t believe this…”

Notes:

*sakabato: reverse-blade-sword

.…..to be continued in chapter 79……  https://www.tumblr.com/kenkaodoll/757126529274806272/kamiya-dojo-monogatari-tale-79-jump-sq-2408?source=share

TLnote(1): translating Japanese is so hard because the sentence structure is very different compared with English. Also the style of writing is different, plus there’s a lot of figurative, poetic language and things that don't make sense if it’s directly translated into english. So forgive me if this is very weird to read, and please tell me if you want to give corrections. 

TLnote(2) I will provide the original Japanese text for correction if any of you who read have better knowledge of the Japanese language. Just dm and I’ll send the file.

TLnote(3) Dtninja had translated some earlier chapters on his website. You can go and check on there

Read the rest of the story here: https://at.tumblr.com/kenkaodoll/kamiya-dojo-monogatari/5dqxxnmq29m0

[vestal-spirit]

Yahiko and Tsubame

Rurouni Kenshin

For fanzine

[redheadinjapan]

The Trip to Tsubame-Sanjo Was A Hit! *Activity Archive*

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to take a trip to Tsubame-Sanjo, two cities just south of Niigata City. It’s only 20 minutes by Shinkansen or about an hour by local train if you want to take the really cheap route. But don’t let Google Maps trick you: the Shinkansen is only 1,600 yen from Niigata City if you get a non-reserved seat, almost half of the reserved seat price they show. Whatever route you choose, though, a trip to Tsubame-Sanjo is definitely worth it as there’s plenty to do.

Tsubame and Sanjo are known for their metalwork. Flooding in the area made farming difficult, so residents took to making nails to compensate. This work eventually led to more of the crafts we got a chance to see, the first of which was tsuiki copperware at Gyokusendo. After finding copper in nearby Mount Yahiko, Tsubame artisans started crafting copperware. At Gyokusendo, we got a tour of the workshop where they still make pots today as well as a special chance to make a copper plate. Unfortunately, while the tours are open to anyone, the crafting experience isn’t–at least, not yet. For now, it’s only for special events, but it might one day become something you can add on.

However, just the tour itself was fascinating, as you can learn about the history of Gyokusendo and the artisans’ process for making pots. If you’re interested in knowing more, I have an article on the Edge of Niigata website that talks more about copper making, its history, and its present. (https://edge-of-niigata.com/blog/3493/)

After all that hammering, next on the schedule was lunch. At Kamameshi Shogetsu, we were treated to the traditional dish of their name, kamameshi (literally, “kettle rice”). As the translation suggests, the central dish typically includes rice and seafood cooked in a kettle. Cooking it this way burns the bottom of the rice a little, which adds a crispy texture to the dish. This type of meal used to be eaten by groups out of the same pot, but at Kamameshi Shogetsu, you get a serving all to yourself, which is good because you might not want to share. On top of that, it comes with sides ranging from the more typical miso soup to egg custard and some very good sashimi.

The next two stops on our trip to Tsubame-Sanjo had us taking a look at iron metalwork. While Tsubame is known for copperware, Sanjo leans more towards ironwork. Our first stop, the Tojiro Knife Factory, was still in Tsubame, but it was a good introduction. We talked to their main blacksmith while he worked before checking out parts of the factory. In the end, the blacksmith showed us some engraving, the hardest part of knife-making at Tojiro since one mistake could ruin the product. He even made us each a souvenir metal keychain with our names. The only downside was parts of the factory were closed and not many people were working because it was the weekend, so definitely go on a weekday if you can. 

After that, we finally made our way across the tracks to Kaji Dojo in Sanjo where we made a letter opener from a nail. Kaji Dojo has several different forging experiences, of which paper knife making is the most expensive, but that's not saying much since it’s only 1,000 yen. While we were a little short on time and the forgers didn’t speak much English, they were very helpful and made sure we all got a nice final product.

Our day ended with another copper experience, this time including some engraving. the instructor had us practice with scrap copper before moving on to the real thing: a leaf chopstick holder. We each got a small flat copper leaf that we first engraved with a chisel to make veins, then used a rubber hammer to bend it just so to make it stand. Surprisingly, I found the engraving to be one of the hardest things we did that day. It took me nearly all of my practice pieces to somewhat get it down, and even then the first few lines on my leaf were shaky. However, I did manage to hammer mine so it wasn’t too wobbly without much help, though the instructor still made a few adjustments. The final step included bending the stem and tip of the leaf up slightly so that your chopsticks don’t go rolling off.

My trip to Tsubame-Sanjo was an unforgettable one. Not only did we get to experience the rich history of metalwork in the two cities through tours and firsthand experience, but by the end of the day, I had a nice collection of souvenirs to take home too. I still don’t know what to do with them all, but I’m happy to have them to simply decorate my new home. And the best part of all these places is that they’re mostly along the Yahiko line, so they’re not too hard to get to.

My souvenirs:

If you’re thinking about a trip to Tsubame-Sanjo, here are links to all the places mentioned:

Gyokusendo- https://www.gyokusendo.com/en/ 

Kamameshi Shogetsu- https://goo.gl/maps/y6k3tDoq5uTv2LQ1A

Tojiro Knife Factory- https://www.tojiro-japan.com/open-factory/ 

Kaji Dojo- https://kajidojo.com/ 

Leaf-making- https://www.hashioki.work/

[ramenhaven]

Niigata Tsubame Sanjo Ramen. Made from scratch: pork chintan, niboshi dashi, shoyu tare, seabura, chashu, ajitama, diced onions and sliced negi. Store bought: nori, menma, narutomaki and noodles.

[japanspecialtravel]

In the western plains Niigata Prefecture, lie one of the industrial hearts of Japan in Tsubame Sanjo.

With rice paddies stretching into the distance and local waterways dotted with fishermen hoping for one last catch before settling in for the evening, a visitor could easily be lulled into the notion that these cities are like any number of other sleepy countryside towns. One walk through the rust-coated streets of downtown though, and the clanging of hammers on anvils and the whirring of machinery brings forth the realization that Tsubame and Sanjo are actually cities of industry.

[kenkao-love]

Yahiko, Tsubame and Megumi being also KenKao shippers.

[plague0012]

[phantomstatistician]

Fandom: Rurouni Kenshin

Sample Size: 804 stories

Source: AO3

[shanghiman]

They're all grown up.

[kenkaodoll]

Kamiya Dojo Monogatari Tale 76 (JUMP SQ 24/05)

About Kamiya Dojo Monogatari:

Tales of Kamiya dojo is written by Kaoru Kurosaki and published along with the “Rurouni Kenshin Hokkaido” arc in JUMPSQ. The tale involves the Rurouni Kenshin character in daily life that takes time between Kenshin and Kaoru marriage until the epilogue chapter in the original manga before the Hokkaido Arc. Until this month (April 2024) there are a total 76 chapters in Tales of Kamiya dojo. This is an unofficial translation. 

Previous Story: https://www.tumblr.com/kenkaodoll/745210446270889984/kamiya-dojo-monogatari-tale-75-jump-sq-2404 

The night passed.

Finally the day had arrived. It was the first day of the opening of the Rabbit Cafe. Kaoru, Megumi, Misao, and Tsubame, all dressed as waitresses in bluish-gray, wide-brimmed dresses and frilly white aprons, they had finished their preparations before the opening and were all gathered around, looking somewhat restless and uneasy.

“I'm kind of nervous about opening a rabbit café for the first time,” Kaoru told Misao.

”Shall I teach you a method to relieve the tension that has been passed down through the Oniwabanshu?”

“It sounds like it might work. Please let me know.”

“Write the character for "person", *hito (人) in the palm of your hand…”

Before Misao could finish, Megumi immediately interrupted.

“Everyone does it, not just the Oniwabanshu.”

“Eh! Really?” Misao was surprised.

“You write the hito (人) character in your palm three times then put it in your mouth and act like you swallow it, right?”

“Bingo! So this wasn’t a special method handed down to the Oniwabanshu,” Misao was disappointed at Megumi’s words.

“Yes, I know that too,” Kaoru followed up.

“Damn, Jiiya has played me for a sucker!”

“I know that old men would do such pranks. He didn’t tell you immediately, but eventually you will find out that everyone knew about it, even if they weren't the Oniwabanshu. Then when you realized it for the first time, you were already tricked by him.” The lie was like a time bomb.

“I've been tricked!” Misao was very frustrated.

He is a funny old man, isn't he?” Tsubame said, and Yahiko, who had been listening from the back room, came out and shrugged his shoulders.

“Yes, he can be too funny sometimes.”

Since today was the first day, Yahiko and Mikio's wife, Shino, were waiting behind the room, just in case they needed help.

Yahiko and Shino were not dressed in Western-style clothing because they were waiting in a place where customers couldn’t see them. They were dressed normally.

The plan was that while everyone was working in the cafe, if a customer came in and wanted to buy rabbit, whoever was available would take care of it. However, if there were too many customers who wanted to buy rabbits, the situation would be very hectic. The cafe had a fixed number of seats, so there was a limit to how busy it could get.

However, since it was completely unknown what would happen, it was decided that Yahiko and Shino would wait and see to respond in case of an emergency.

However they had their own reasons. Yahiko wanted to see the usual face of his friends, and Shino wanted to see Mikio in his high spirit.  

“Today, the members of the Rabbit Club, which Usagawa-san represents, will be here, so we will definitely be busy,” Mikio spoke at the morning briefing before the store opened.

“The first impression you make on the first day is very important! I look forward to working with you today.”

“Eh! What he just said? I didn't know he could say such an auspicious thing,” Yahiko was so surprised that he unintentionally whispered to Tsubame.

“Well, um…” Tsubame lost a word.

“He’s going to be a parent now, he'd better be able to say something like that, or else we'll be in trouble,” Shino patted her big belly and spoke to Yahiko in a whisper.

“Ah... Mikio-sama's…”Tsubame bowed his head.

She had wanted to greet Shino ever since she arrived at the store, but she had somehow missed it.

“You must be Tsubame-chan. I heard about you from him,” Shino looked at Tsubame and smiled.

“Eh?” Tsubame was very curious about what was said, but she didn’t have the courage to ask her about it. 

“Hey, there!” Mikio looked at Yahiko, Tsubame, and Shino and shouted.

“The manager is giving you a very important briefing, so you should not chit-chat casually.”

“Hey, hey!”

“I.. I'm sorry, sir.”

“My bad.”

Yahiko, Tsubame, and Shino each apologize to Mikio.

“All right, everybody, take your positions! We're about to open!”

 Mikio cheerfully urged everyone to get ready, like he was commanding a battle.

The waitresses line up in front of the entrance door, while their helpers, Yahiko and Shino, wait in the back room.

Mikio glanced out the window and saw a few customers waiting for the store to open. Are they members of the Rabbit Club, or are they just a fan of new things?

“All right, everyone. I'm going to open this door. Once we open this door, there's no going back.”

“Yosh!”

 Kaoru, Megumi, Misao, and Tsubame all pumped their fists in the air and shouted with all their might. From the room behind Yahiko and Shino’s voice also could be heard.

・

And then the store opens!

“Welcome!”

Mikio opened the door, and Kaoru, Megumi, Misao, and Tsubame greeted the customers in cheerful voices.

The first guest to come in was....

It was Kenshin.

He entered with a smiling face, carrying Kenji on his back.

Mikio opened the door and saw an unexpected person, letting out a strange voice.

“Ooooh! Oh, you!”

For a moment, he almost ran away. He had reflexively turned away, remembering once he stared at him with scary eyes. But this time Mikio was not just a thug. He was the manager of the Rabbit Café.

“…”

Mikio took one deep breath to prepare himself.

”Why did you come here?” He sounded intimidating.

This was a completely wrong response for a manager, but it was better than running away.

“Mikio-sama,” Tsubame helped him out in a whisper.

“This is the time when you say 'irasshaimase' (welcome).”

Mikio gasped hearing her voice

“Irasshaimase!”

 He greeted Kenshin with a stiff smile.

“Today, I came to see my wife in her finest clothes,” Kenshin told Mikio.

“Oh no, Kenshin,” Kaoru broke into a smile.

“Does it look good?” She picks up the hem of her waitress dress and spins around.

“For me, my favorite is your regular training clothes, but the Western clothes suit you as well, that you do.”

Kenji who’s carried by Kenshin, was also cackling happily.

“What are you guys doing? Cut the crap and get to work.”

“Then let's have some tea,” Kenshin replied to Mikio's request with a serious expression.

“Please come to our seat over here,” Kaoru led Kenshin to a table.

“Tsk… our first guest is her family. How long has he been waiting in line with his child?” Mikio grumbled and invited the next guest in.

“Irasshaimase!”

The second guest was a member of the Rabbit Club.

The third and fourth guests were also members of the rabbit club.

 “Usagawa-san told me I could see cute rabbits while sipping a cup of delicious tea.”

 The men in the group look fondly at the rabbits.

 “Can I take a good look at that rabbit over there with the nice fur?”

“Please let me see that little rabbit with the brown ears.”

“I'd like to see that little rabbit over there!”

“I want to give the rabbits some *komatsuna. Eh, it’s sold separately? How much?”

The members of the rabbit club seemed very satisfied with this breakthrough opportunity to interact with the rabbits.

Then it got out of hand, not only for Kaoru and the waitresses, but also for Yahiko and Shino, who were also really busy helping out.

“It can't be helped…” Mikio looked at the rabbits and growled at Kenshin, who was slowly sipping his tea.

“You know, it's so crowded, can you think about it a little.”

Hearing that, Tsubame hurriedly apologized.

“I am terribly sorry!”

She then chided Mikio.

“Mikio-sama, you shouldn't talk to customers like that.”

“You’re so annoying. I don't like to treat him like a customer.”

“But you said it's important to make a good impression on the first day.”

Kenshin smiled at Tsubame.

“I don't mind. The rabbit café was so interesting that the manager had a hard time. I'll go home soon.”

“No, I didn't ask you to leave the store. It's the other way around.”

“What do you mean by ‘the other way around’?”

“I need your help. Your wife and her students are helping. As a house head you should help out too,” Mikio threw the apron at Kenshin.

“Oro~?”

・

Although the first day had only just begun, this rabbit café seemed to have a promising future.

They served tea and sweets, sold live rabbits, and had a lot of customers! Sales are also going well!

It was a wide difference from last year, when Mikio was selling rabbits by himself.

Will there really be customers for such an unprecedented new-age business as a rabbit café, or will anyone buy rabbits there? Mikio was a bit skeptical about Usagawa's plan for this rabbit café. But even if this did not work out, it was Usagawa’s money, not Mikio. His pocket would remain unschated. On the contrary, he would be paid as a hired manager, so it could only be a good thing whether it sold well or not. He thought it would be convenient no matter which way it went.

When he actually saw customers coming in and being pleased with the product, he was glad I could sell it. A sense of fulfillment that he had never felt before welled up from the bottom of his heart.

・

Mikio was in a good mood.

The door of the store opened.

“Irasshaima-…”

“Hey”

Suwa appeared at the store.

 “I've come to pick up... The clay.”

Suwa's smile brought down Mikio’s mood.

Notes:

*Hito(人): Kanji character for man/ person

*Jiiya: grandpa

*Irasshaimase: welcome

*komatsuna: Japanese mustard spinach, a leafy vegetable.

.…..to be continued in chapter 77……  https://www.tumblr.com/kenkaodoll/750191530648748032/kamiya-dojo-monogatari-tale-77-jump-sq-2406

TLnote(1): translating Japanese is so hard because the sentence structure is very different compared with English. Also the style of writing is different, plus there’s a lot of figurative, poetic language and things that don't make sense if it’s directly translated into english. So forgive me if this is very weird to read, and please tell me if you want to give corrections. 

TLnote(2) I will provide the original Japanese text for correction if any of you who read have better knowledge of the Japanese language. Just dm and I’ll send the file.

TLnote(3) Dtninja had translated some earlier chapters on his website. You can go and check on there

Read the rest of the story here:

https://www.tumblr.com/kenkaodoll/686193523858538496/rurouni-kenshin-tales-of-kamiya-dojo

[anubis-005]

When your (not) parents are gross in front of you.

[redheadinjapan]

Travel in Niigata: Echigo One and Two-Day Passes

I recently learned some interesting new ways to travel in Niigata. Not only is there the JR East Nagano, Niigata area pass that also includes Nagano and Tokyo as well, but there is also the Echigo One-Day Pass and Echigo Two-Day Pass. These two passes both have more limitations than the JR East Niigata area pass, but they’re also much cheaper, making them worth it if you just need a couple of days of unlimited local train rides. It’s nice to know there are so many options for getting around Niigata!

The Echigo One-Day Pass (えちごワンデーパス) can be purchased any day of the year for a full day of use. You can buy it at the ticket machines or the window for 1,570 yen, which is certainly worth it if you’re planning on taking even one or two long train rides. It does have a pretty limited area, though, only including Niigata city and the immediate surrounding area. That’s more than enough space to cover in a day, but you won’t be able to go much further in any direction than Nagaoka, Aga, or Murakami. It also only works on trains–not buses–and both the shinkansen and limited express trains are extra since you have to get a limited express ticket, too. Still, it’s a good pass for if you plan to travel in Niigata, but want to stay close to the city.

Another option is the Echigo Two-Day Pass (えちごツーデーパス). The Echigo Two-Day Pass is 2,740 yen and includes a lot more of Niigata. In fact, it includes most of Niigata prefecture as well as a couple of stops in Fukuoka on certain train lines. However, as with the One-Day Pass, you can’t use it for buses and the shinkansen and limited express are extra. It also can only be purchased for weekends and holidays right now, which includes uses for Friday-Saturday and Saturday-Sunday. This pass works best if you want to travel in Niigata for a weekend and stop at a lot of places, especially if you’re planning to stay somewhere along the way. Since the local trains are slower, it can take a while to go to and from somewhere in one day.

Find more in Japanese here: https://www.jreast.co.jp/niigata/echigo-1day2daypass/

Find more about which trains you can ride in Japanese here: https://www.jreast.co.jp/tickets/info.aspx?GoodsCd=2654

Additionally, there’s also the JR East Nagano, Niigata area pass. This is like the regular JR East pass, but a little cheaper in exchange for the more limited area. While it is a lot more expensive at 18,000 yen, it comes with the widest area (including Nagano and Tokyo!), unlimited shinkansen rides, and 5-days worth of usage. It’s a good investment if you’ll be visiting for a while and want to make your way around the prefecture or just want to pop down to Tokyo for a few days. This pass is actually less than one round trip from Niigata city to Tokyo on the shinkansen, so even using it for one day saves you money. You can even get reserved seats for no extra cost. Just hit “Reserved Seat” then “Reserve seat with a discount ticket” on the machine, put your JR pass in, and pick your seat. The best thing (for me at least) is that, unlike the JR West pass, even foreign residents can buy JR East passes with their passports.

Find more here: https://www.jreast.co.jp/multi/en/pass/eastpass_n.html

At this point, I’ve gotten the chance to use all three of these passes: Echigo One-Day to visit Tsubame-Sanjo, Echigo Two-Day to go to the Tokamachi Snow Festival, and JR East during my trip to Tokyo. I’d say of all the passes, the Echigo Two-Day pass is the least worth it. As great as it is that the Two-Day pass covers a widerarea since you can’t use the shinkansen without paying extra, it’s not great for traveling those distances. Plus, it’s limited to weekends and holidays, so if you’re there for a few weekdays, you’re out of luck. The One-Day pass’s limited area means you can reach even the farthest stations in around an hour and JR passes don’t limit shinkansen use, but if you use the Echigo Two-Day pass to travel in Niigata, you might find yourself seeing more of the trains than the prefecture itself. However, all three are good for their own circumstances, so really consider what’s best for your trip.

[ramenhaven]

Made a bowl of Niigata Tsubame Sanjo ramen yesterday. Pork base with niboshi dashi added. Probably my favourite soup to date.

[gekkotta]

[ Sanjo Tsubame x Yahiko Myojin ]

By Gekko

[kenkao-love]

What Kaoru realized after the battle in Kyoto.

[plague0012]

Hokkaido-hen & first words