When I left Mt. Fuji on Sunday,
there were mixed feelings running through my heart: I thoroughly enjoyed Lake
Yamanaka and the time there. I rested
and got my batteries charged for the next leg.
I was apprehensive of my last destination in Japan: Yamaha Factory, the
place where my bike was born! I was in
contact with Kenji Takizawa San (Sir) for a while, but I had no idea what he
had planned for my visit.
The day was humid again and as I
woke up I somehow pinched a nerve in my spine and I could hardly walk. It was a painful packing experience and the
climbing on the bike was accompanied by shrills of pain. I rode very slowly, taking in every landscape
of this fantastic country, because I knew soon I will leave Japan and I felt
very sad. This place enchanted me with
its culture, places and people and I didn’t want it to end.
39.000 km from Swakopmund, Namibia, 23 countries and a lot of sweat,
cold, dust and rain, I reached Yamaha Factory in Iwata Japan, thus bringing my bike
back to her birthplace. It was a day to remember: Mr. Kenji Takizawa
arranged in advance for my welcome, starting with a surreal Oguni Shrine
ceremony where the monks had special welcome and well wishes for my expedition
and my project. The atmosphere at the Temple was magical: I was asked to
wait in a beautiful room with sliding rice paper doors, I was served hot tea by
a lady dressed in an amazing kimono and the music and movements during the
ceremony were incredible. The sound of
the Japanese drum was accompanied by soft, gentle flute music. I couldn’t believe that it was me who was
experiencing this!
Then a fantastic Kobe beef dinner, Japanese style (drinks and all) and
then we headed to Kenji San’ home, where I spend the night in a true Japanese
place. His family (Saori, Kenji’s wife,
Yudai and Tomo, their two sons), embraced me as one of their own and I felt
extremely welcomed there. This brought me closer to understand the Japanese
culture and it only opened my appetite for more.
In the morning I arrived at the Communications Plaza at Yamaha where
dozens of employees were waiting for me with flowers and gifts. After a
photo session and a short introduction of my itinerary and project, I visited
the Showroom (where I felt like on a Star Trek film) and then the tour of 2
factories, where I saw the assembly line where my bike was born in October
2010. The factory is spotless, the technology mind blowing and the
cleanliness, discipline and organization unreal. Robots were moving
everywhere, carrying parts and spares to the appropriate places, and I saw
bikes coming out of the boxes in pieces and few minutes later, completed at the
other end of the line, where they were sent for packing. I could read the
stickers where these bikers were sent: Peru, Dubai, Durban, US, Canada,
etc. The logistics behind all this are immense, and yet, everything was
working perfectly.
What shocked me the most was the unassuming attitude of the Yamaha
executives... even though this is a work of genius, they were acting as normal
as the everyday guy, as if this is the norm here and no one feels
special. I beg to differ... I have been in many places in my life, but I
have never experienced the level of professionalism and perfection I have seen
here.
I want to specially thank my friends and my dealers from Swakopmund: Jan
Soderlund, Anja Soderlund and Mario Prinsloo, who, not only for being my
fantastic Yamaha people in Namibia, but who became close friends. I want
to thank Yamaha South Africa for connecting me with Yamaha Japan and last but
not least, Mr. Kenji Takizawa San, Mr. Ueguchi San and Mr. Fuji San, who have
treated me royally while in Japan and are currently helping me with contacts in
Colombia and Chile with the Yamaha People there.
I have always loved the Yamaha
products and I am in love with the Super Tenere. The clock on the bike
shows 67.000 km, done through some of the worst terrain on the planet and I
changed no parts, I had no broken pieces, and I still ride on my original
brakes.
I know very well that there are
good bikes out there, but I stand by my Yamaha, because the durability and
quality of this machine saved my life in many instances and took more than half
of this planet.
My bike now is packed in a crate
and shipped out to Vancouver where a new adventure awaits. The shipping process
is such an involved process, that without the help of Kenji San and Ueguchi
San, I would have been buried in paperwork that I didn’t understand and I would
have probably never see my bike leave this place. It was their dedication again that saw me
complete this process.
My last night in Japan was spent with the
Takizawa’s again and a friend’s family watching a spectacular 2 hour fireworks
show, the biggest in Japan, while sitting in a beautiful Traditional Japanese
home, eating Ramen noodles and sipping tea.
Everything in Japan is deeply rooted in my heart and it will never go
away. I am in awe of this nation which
managed to stand on top of everything else and to find a balance between modern
and ancient, between stress and peace and to produce things that help the lives
of the entire world, from machines to music and everything in between.
I am now spending the last few
hours before the flight writing this blog and eating my last spectacular meal
here: a French Creperie (if you can believe that) run by a young Japanese
family in the little village of Makinohara, who spent some time in Paris and
opened this shop here. The crepes they
make are not only authentic, but incredibly tasty, fresh and full of
imagination. You will see some photos below.
I am closing this post with great
admiration in my heart for the Japanese people and for my new friends in
Japan... Thank you everyone at Yamaha for your warm welcome and your
friendship, thank you Takizawa family for your hospitality and kindness, none
of which will ever be forgotten.
I am watching the remainder of
Typhoon Halong sweeping the beach with high winds and powerful rain, and I know
that on the other side of this ocean lies Canada, my country, where my family
is and I have new challenges ahead. I
look back to my experience here and I take a bow to my favorite country in the
world.
さよなら日本とはどうもありがとうございました
PHOTOS BELOW
On the way to Iwata
