Day Ten: The Final Day of the Nakasendo Way (And More Rain)

 Hi everyone, it’s Harper and Miles. We woke up with a slow morning, still tired from staying up late the last night, drawing and talking. Our breakfast was a delicious assortment of traditional Japanese foods including egg and ham, miso soup, and salmon. After getting ready and thanking the inn keeper, we set off in the wet mist of the morning. Once we got to the train station, we heard the news that our train was more than 25 minutes late and was of risk of being canceled due to the weather. Yo, our well prepared tour guide, ordered the group a taxi and a van to take us to our trail head. As we started walking the rain began to pick up and the dirt we walked on turned to goopy mud. We walked a grueling and steep uphill trail through the mountain until we peaked at the small shrine at Torii Pass. At the shrine, Harper sang a short yet beautiful rendition of Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head. We our descent into the valley being careful to not slip as rain came down like a samurai rushing to battle. A slippery hike down led us to Narai the best preserved and wealthiest of the 69 post towns on the Nakasendo Way. 

In Narai the group split up for lunch. Harper, Lucas, Nick, and Miles found a delicious soba restaurant on the Main Street. After lunch, some groups walked around and explored the shops while Harper, Lucas, Nick, and Miles set off to find the famous, local bridge. We found the bridge but not after a torrential downpour soaked us to the bone. Once again Harpers camera suffered the wet fate of the rain. After attempting a selfie on the bridge, the bros headed to the train station half an hour early to warm up. We all boarded the train and got off at Matsumoto. 

A short walk took us to the hotel from the train station. Taking 20 minutes to freshen up and Harper Johnson taking a world record speed shower, the group met in the lobby ready to explore the city. With clear boundaries set, small groups formed and we were ready to set off. Uriel, Isabel, Mira, Megan, August, and Zara took the more generic route heading to Matsumoto’s Main Street. On the other hand, the bros adventurously triumphed 5 miles in the incorrect direction and had to follow a river back to the town. After reconvening as a group, we all walked to a nearby restaurant. There we feasted on a variety of food ranging from fried chicken to beef tongue. We came back to the hotel and reflected upon group culture in Japan. Afterwards, some went to bed while others stayed in the lobby to eat the free tonkotsu ramen.