Day 3 Meeting Tama

Today was a special day as it was a visit to one of the railways that I had planned. The Wakayama Electric Railway is a cast-off operation from the large Nankai railway company. It is also known as the Kishigawa Line and has some interesting marketing ideas. Being a marginal railway that Nankai no longer desired to operate a company was formed that included the local council as a major shareholder. The line is 14km long and passes through 14 stations. The TV crew were with me again today and had permission to film and also arranged a P.R. person to be present (very official).

The day started with a trip on the JR Osaka Loop line to Shin Imamiya where we boarded a Ltd Exp service to Wakayamashi which was a pleasant trip. I hadn't travelled on Nankai trains so took the opportunity to snap a few shots while waiting.

Nankai set at Shin Imamiya

Nankai set on the Koya line at Shin Imamiya

Train spotting at while waiting for the Ltd Express

Once we arrived at Wakayamashi we had a short transfer trip of two stations on a JR service to get to the  the start of the Kishigawa Line. This two car set appears to be captive on the short shuttle runs on the line between Nankai and JR stations in Wakayama.

JR shuttle service between Nankai and JR stations at Wakayama

Once at the JR station at Wakayama we headed over to the platform that the Kishigawa Railway uses. We had timed it so that we would travel on the Tama train. It arrived soon after I had been introduced to the P.R. lady.

Tama train

The Kishigawa line operates two-car sets and they are painted in themed liveries.  Tama is the stationmaster at Kishigawa station and is a local icon. She has helped turn the tables on the lines profitability. I travelled the length of the line and got a close up meeting with Tama.

Stationmaster Tama with the Assistant station master in the background.

A real meet and greet.

After lunch in the Tama Cafe and some purchases from the Tama shop, I ventured back along the line to the midpoint and was lucky enough to be shown around the depot and signal panel. By this time the TV crew had left to return to Tokyo and I was alone to poke around the countryside at my pace. Unfortunately they took the interpreter with them so it was a little charade like but I was treated well by the assistant SM who like most employees does any job required to run the little railway.

Omocha Densha. Toy themed train that is full of toys.

Ichigo densha. Strawberry themed train reflecting local produce.

A look into the depot with two Nankai liveried sets

Special Olympics themed train.

After a brief look around the countryside I retraced my steps back to Namba station (Nankai) in Osaka. I arrived after dark and took the opportunity to take some more photos of the varied Nankai rollingstock. I was also lucky enough to see the Star Wars themed Rapid Service set, and judging by the crowd that were waiting to see and photograph it, Star Wars and gunzeling are both popular in Japan.

Nankai set at Namba

Nanakai set at Namba

Nankai Rapid set for Airport services

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  Star Wars Rapid set

Overall a great day with a variety of trains, countryside and hospitality. This evening I moved my accommodation from one side of Osaka to the other but still within easy reach of the subway network.

Day 2 after lunch.

The second half of day 2 involved riding the Osaka Monorail and then making our way back to the hotel via subway. Lunch was at a smallish restaurant at Senrichuo with okinomiyaki all round. A great way to ease into Japanese food, a filling pancake with many options, similar to a pizza I suppose.

Lunch with the Tokyo TV crew

After lunch we headed up to the monorail station and boarded a westbound service to Osaka Airport. My interpreter informed me that the monorail was built for the World Expo and linked the site with the airport. It is now over 21km long with a branch line that serves three university campuses and is integrated with the public transport system of northern Osaka.

Osaka monorail

I have only been on one other monorail, that of the now demolished Sydney system, and there is no comparison between the two. The service is fast and smooth and a genuine solution to a transport need. It is also elevated throughout and double tracked. Signalling is in cab and operation is visible as with most Japanese trains by a glass bulkhead behind the driver. There are good views of Osaka and of the depot while travelling along the route. Many railway lines are passed and a good view of a Shinkansen depot is available towards the eastern terminus.

Monorail cab view

Once at the airport I alighted to watch the operation of the pointwork which is graceful and interesting to watch. It would be interesting to be here in peak times. From here we travelled back towards the eastern terminus passing the depot and the junction to the branch line. The sun was beginning to set and the lighting over the city was beautiful.

Pointwork at Osaka Airport

We changed back to the subway at Dainichi and I led the TV crew on a wild goose chase back to the hotel using three different subway lines. By the time we resurfaced at Tanagawa  they informed me we had been on the go for 6 hours, ridden on 9 subway lines and 12 different vehicles, they seemed worn out.

About to leave Osaka Airport

Before we retired to the hotel there was one last place I wanted to visit. On a previous trip I had seen a rail related sign near the station, that I had since learnt was a railfan library. What better time to visit since I had an intrepreter with me. We entered and with some great interpreting spent the next 90 mins poring over timetables, graphs, photos and books of trains. I had found a real goldmine and hopefully a new friend.

The railfan library opposite Noda station

Day 2 Hit the ground running

My trip was loosely planned but needed to coincide with ticket availability. My first three days were to be using a Kansai Thru Pass that allowed unlimited travel on nearly all train services within Kansai except JR. This is a great value ticket for the Nori-tetsu. I met the TV people and detailed what my intentions for the day were. They had to be modified a little to suit the requirements of the TV crew and their process of obtaining permission to film. The holiday started to become a little more complicated, but run with it.

I decided to spend the day in Osaka and wanted to travel on the New Tram and Monorail in particular. The TV crew weren't able to get permission to film so still pictures were used. We started off a little after 1000 and headed to Cosmosquare utilising two subway lines. Here we changed to the "New Tram" line.

New Tram vehicle at Cosmosquare terminus

The "New Tram" or "Nanko Port Town Line" is an automated people mover similar to what you may find at larger airport terminals. It is an 8km line with subway connections at both ends. As with transit systems that have platform doors photographing can be challenging but I alighted at a mid-point station to try my luck. The advantage, as with most Japanese trains is that a view out the windscreen is available.

A look out the windscreen

The departing set we just alighted from

A set heading back the other way

A set of "points"

After a little bit of photography we re-boarded and continued on our way. The entire line is elevated and unmanned. The depot was passed but is off at ground level with few photo opportunities from the vehicles. The line is "double-tracked" throughout with some locations with "turn-back" sidings.

Arriving at the terminal

Once at the terminal we transferred back to the subway system. Firstly on the Yotsubashi Line to Daikokucho, then the Midosuji Line to Shin-Osaka. At Shin-Osaka, which is the interchange station for the Shinkansen (Bullet Train), we had to change again to a following service as not all trains continue past Shin-Osaka. Once aboard the next train we continued to the terminus at Senrichuo. 

The second half of day 2 will be in the next chapter. Cheers.

Where the idea came from and off I go

The idea for this trip originated in one of those moments when I was scheduled to have leave at a time when my wife wasn't able to. When Jetstar had a super sale that included a free flight home and a pretty good deal outbound to Japan that coincided with my holiday dates it became a "no brainer". With the blessing of the lovely wife to go and ride as many trains in Japan that I could (so she wouldn't have to endure my interests on our next trip to Japan) I started my planning.

We have been to Japan twice before and travelled with JR (both Shinkansen and Rural services) so I wanted to try some private rail companies and short lines. I was to fly in and out of Osaka, so based my travels in the Kansai area. Plenty of variety and opportunity to quench the gunzel interests here. I would be away for 13 days and was keen to travel on as many railways as possible.

Day 1:
An 0630 flight from Tullamarine to Cairns meant an early start from Geelong. My flight was domestic to Cairns, then after a short break on to Osaka. We had tried this on our first trip to Japan a few years bag and missed our connection due to being fog-bound in Melbourne, no such problems today. At 1800 local time I found myself at Kansai Airport and about to start my adventure.

Looking into the rear cab of an Osaka subway train

I had learnt the Japanese word for gunzel as I wanted to be able to explain myself if I was questioned as to my intentions while lingering around stations. It turns out there are differing labels depending on your interest. I decided that I would best fit in the "Nori-tetsu" (enjoys riding trains) and "Tori-tetsu" (enjoys photographing trains) bracket. As it turned out I was wise to learn this terminology as I was approached by a TV crew at the airport. They were from a popular TV show that follows what tourists to Japan are interested in and I could ably explain my intentions. They were wrapped to have ran into me and asked if they could tag along and film my trip. As I was intending to have a pretty flexible holiday I agreed.

They travelled with me to my hotel and interviewed me to gain some background information and work out what I had planned. That night I finally got to bed about 2300 local time, needless to say I was stuffed.

Back on one of the easiest subways to get around on.

An adventure in Japan

An adventure in Japan

Osaka subway

Broadening the blog to include some adventures of a different format. In December I was luckily enough to be able to visit Japan for a train enthusiast  trip. It turned out to be a fantastic trip with a few suprises that I will elaborate on over the following blogs. If you are interested in Japanese trains, keep an eye on this blog as I share my trip with you.