Cycle World

During the "bubble economy" of the 80's, the Japanese had more money than they knew what to do with. So they built theme parks. Lots of 'em, all over the place, with really wierd themes. There's a ninja park just outside of town here, and I've read about a park somewhere that has scaled-down models of major world landmarks. But this weekend I went to Kansai Cycle Sports Center.

The place reeks of has-been glory. It's way out in the middle of nowhere, like they were expecting a city to grow up around it. Very few visitors and the staff attire was a mess. Everything is dirty and dilapidated. Paint is peeling everywhere, rust all over the place. Worst of all, the bikes have flat tires.

But, oh, the bikes! Bicycles galore, and the rides all have some bizarre cycling-related bent. For example, we did a roller coaster first - a roller coaster with foot pedals! Check out this twist on the parachute drop; you have to ride a stationary bike to make the thing lift faster.

I'm guessing the park makes a good bit of its operating money on bike racers as well as visitors. They have a huge, banked race track in the middle, and it seemed to be quite popular with some experienced riders. From what I hear, bicycle racing is big money, as the Japanese love to gamble.

The center of the park focused on a variety of what I would call "concept bikes." The Japanese are notorious tinkerers and inventors, so it's no suprise that the park is packed with tons of wierd designs. They've got unicycles, scotters, luges, and even bikes with square wheels! I can't begin to describe all the ways they've come up with to make these things go, so just use your imagination here.

Home

Not home, home, mind you. I mean my home here. Since I'll be moving in a few weeks, I think I should take some time to reflect on the apartment I've occupied for the last two years. It's been real.

This is where I spend most of my time at home, especially now that's it's so fucking cold. My desk and computer are my closest companions. If I could sit here for a million years, I'm sure they would evolve to become a part of my body. I got the desk over the summer; before that, I had a kotatsu. That's a low Japanese table with a heating elelment underneath. It's good in the winter when you put a blanket on it and stick your legs under, but it was killing me sitting on the floor. I have bad knees. Now I have this lovely computer desk from an upscale interior store, with a nice rug from another upscale interior store. I'm living large, my friends.

The other "popular" part of my room is my bed, where I spend the other half of my time at home. The Japanese are not partial to beds; they usually sleep on futon mats. Again, I'm not a fan of the floor - sitting or sleeping on - so I went out of my way to secure a nice, big bed. Granted, it's not as soft as the ones back in the states, and maybe twice the price, but it suits me fine out here. This one was bought at Muji, which is one of the coolest stores on earth. The whole nine yards of it ran up around $600, but sometimes you gotta spoil yourself. With winter in full effect, I've piled it so high with blankets that I can barely move once I'm under the covers. It's just as well, since I never wanna get out of bed in the morning (afternoon) anyways.

If you look at the bed picture you can also see my neighbors out the window. That is, a brick wall. What a view!

Here's where I eat breakfast and throw all my shit when I come home. This could be some soft of "dining area," but I always eat dinner at my desk while watching cartoons. You can also see my dryer. Of course, I mean the thing I hang my clothes on to dry, since my apartment doesn't have an "outside." Unless you count those brick walls. Oh, I've also stacked a bunch of big boxes against the wall here. You know, in case I need them....or something.

This is where I do my housework. Cooking, laundry, bathing, all in one easy-to-use corner. You can't see the gas range in this picture, but I do, in fact, cook with fire now. It's pretty much unheard of to use electric heating elements for cooking in Japan. The water faucet and shower there also use gas heating. I was really freaked out about blowing myself up when I first started using gas, but now it's just plain old fun. It's also much more efficient; water is actually hot and food cooks faster. I can get boiling water out of the tap in about 30 seconds; great for cold winter mornings.

Finally, the piece de resistance of my apartment, my toilet. It's a delightful blend of Japanese and Western, both uncomfortable and difficult to use! While not as bad as the traditional trough you would normally find in Japan, this one is pretty close. It still has the trough part on the inside, but it seems someone just slapped a bowl-like attachment on top. It can do the little or big flush (little is for when you want to cover your own sounds with those of running water). It's very hard to clean with a toilet brush. And - this is great - if you sit on it, it's almost impossible to close the door. That's because your knees stick out of the doorway. Thank god I live alone, I just leave the door open.