#tdaihj Days -2 to +2: Canberra to Osaka to Naruto

Monday 29 Sep to Friday 03 Oct 2025

NB. These first few blog posts reflect a bit of on the job learning as well as being done in bulk to catch up to the current day. They will get better as the technical aspects become more familiar including editing the media aspects.

#tdaihj Day -2 Monday 29 September

A good start to the trip * 4:

Premium airport drop off service courtesy of Ms Elly!

I hadn’t been able to book in advance a second piece of check in luggage i.e. the bike. The system said this was because part of the trip was with another airline and that I would have to organise it at check in. I did flag in advance with QANTAS that I was bringing a bike. However I was expecting that I might end up paying extra because of not being able to book in advance. Anyway at check in – despite the staff (incorrectly) saying I could have booked the extra luggage piece online – in the end it was checked in without any charge. I did not query why😀.

Then I remembered I had a complimentary QANTAS Lounge pass that need to be used – so lived it up for an hour or so.

Lastly Canberra to Sydney (1 hour) and then Sydney to Tokyo (9.5 hours) – had my preferred aisle seat but also the window seat next to me was spare. Made the trip that little bit more comfortable.

#tdaihj Day -1 Tuesday 30 September (Honshu island)

Good fortune continued.

Processing through immigration was straight forward – information preloaded via app. Virtually no waiting for luggage and just as I went to ask about where to collect the bike box (oversized luggage) it was brought to the same carousel.

Then when I went to clear customs – because of the bike box I was taken to a processing point off to the side with no one else being dealt with and bypassed the other much longer queues.

Flight from Tokyo to Osaka (1 hour) – the “spare seat next to me” god was still smiling on me. At Osaka airport – again no delay in getting bag and bike box. And pre-arranged airport pick up went smoothly.

For a quick snack I acted on nephew Stephen B’s suggestion and got something at one of the ubiquitous 7 Eleven stores nearby.for snack lunch – as per Stephen Bell’s advice.

Went exploring in the warm/hot weather looking to buy chain oil for the bike. The first 3 “bike” stores suggested by Google were false leads First one restored old bikes but didn’t sell parts etc. 2 other places had lots of bikes and may have been rental places as also didn’t sell parts etc. The 4th place “Trek” did have some amongst the limited range of what it did sell.

Back to hotel to check in – one hour early- they gave me the same room for all 3 nights i.e. the one I paid for and the 2 paid for by TDA so I didn’t have to change rooms and had the room to myself.

#tdaihj Day 0 Wednesday 01 October (Honshu island)

After breakfast, the first task of the day was to start assembling the bike. The bike mechanic would be available in the afternoon to assist if there were any issues.

Paused the bike assemble to attend the scheduled 2 hour Rider Briefing where met the TDA crew and they ran through how things would work through the ride and answered any questions. Coincidently sat with Peter the other Australian on the tour. A WhatsApp was suggested for all the riders which was acted upon.

After lunch Lunch with Peter Boland (Australia)

After lunch (with Peter) I finished assembling the bike and proudly sent a photo to Mal, the bike mechanic who built my bike. 30 seconds later Mal replies to advise that the front brake cable incorrect position – which a photo I had taken prior to disassembly confirmed.

After much discussion and creative but ineffective suggestions to avoid having the remove the handlebars, I did the latter and the situation resolved itself.

I also inadvertently discovered that the Smart Keyboard cover for my iPad provides hard case  protection. Unwisely I’d placed it on the ground on top of a flattened cardboard box and when I went to pick it up there was a print from the sole of a sandal on the white cover i.e someone had accidentally stood on it.

I went to dinner with Barbara and though we thought we had conquered the self-service ordering tablet the final bill did not fully reflect what we ordered (i.e. less items).

#tdaihj Day 1 Thursday 02 October (Honshu island)

The main activity for the day was the scheduled mini (15km) cycling tour of Osaka – featuring the Osaka castle late morning through to early afternoon. The weather was very pleasant to ride it – perhaps signs also that I’d acclimatised a little from the Canberra spring.

It was a good opportunity to reacquainting myself with GPS bike navigation on the Garmin. Also to practice with my new toy – a GoPro which I’d mounted on my bike helmet and set up to operate from my iPhone mounted on the handlebars.

At lunch there was underground bike parking – pay 150Y however not secure as anyone can pay to release a bike just knowing the number of the bike stand. That is you were paying for a place to park your bike not to secure it.

Post ride clothes washing was done using hotel washing machines, activated and paid for using an app via QR Codes.

#tdaihj Day 2 Friday 03 October (Honshu island to Shikoku island)

Friday was a travel day from Osaka to Naruto by bus. This was because the logistics of cycling out of Osaka were considered too difficult and the “scenery” of limited interest.

 I sat and chatted with Tony from NZ up until the rest stop.

We arrived in Naruto around 11:30 (after about 2.5 hours).

As we couldn’t check into our rooms until 3pm a group of about 10 of the riders decided to have a warm up ride. 7kms into the ride my bike chain broke – first time ever that has happened to me. Compounding the surprise was that it was a new chain.

So I was the first rider in the group to activate the road side rescue service. 😀. Called Colleen the Tour Leader, dropped a pin and shared via WhatsApp to indicate location. 10 minutes later Haldun, the bike mechanic came and picked me up.

I had overlooked to bring with me (I thought I had) the required chain link replacement (different bikes have different chain sizes). Haldun, with the assistance of Kazu the local support person, rang several bike shops before they located one that had the type of replacement link required.

Kazu and the hotel staff arranged a taxi and briefed the driver. The driver made sure I had Google Translate and we chatted using that on the 30-45 minutes taxi ride. He waited whilst I went inside to get the replacement link and another chain as a back up. As in most cases the staff were very helpful and welcoming. They asked me to complete survey about cycling in the prefecture and gave gift in return for the promise to do so.

Once back at the hotel Haldun did the necessary to install, as he put it “the world’s most expensive replacement chain link”!