tasuki said:Reading us ***** like this makes me wonder why we stay...
how spooky. any rats into it?senseiman said:There was a huge parking lot full of waste high weeds growing through the cracks in the asphalt but not a single car. We went up to the reception building, a huge 3 story complex, and found that it was completely deserted save for one lonely person working in in the coffee shop, which had no customers. She seemed quite surprised to see that someone had actually come in and was even more taken aback when she found out that we weren't there just to ask directions, but to actually use the recreation park!
...
The amount of cobwebs on the bikes told us that we may well have been the first people to ever actually rent them. We wiped the only two we could find without flat tires off and made our way towards the dam, which marked the start of the cycling trail.
...
What could possibly be wrong with a little cycling trail, you may ask. If it were built by sane people, nothing. But the people who designed the Hattoji dam recreational park could never be accused of sanity.
...
On the way, we saw the remains of the peddle boats, their dock half submerged in the lake and the boats covered in filth. When we arrived at the beach we found that it had been turned into one of Japan's many illegal dump sites, with piles of garbage littering the whole expanse.
...
The whole experience was quite interesting. The two of us had a multi million dollar recreation park that was designed for our enjoyment entirely to ourselves and yet were not able to find a single thing in it that wasn't depressing, let alone enjoyable.
florence is amazingBramicus said:Heck, reading all this makes me wonder if I really want to go visit! Maybe I'll switch from Japanese to Italian and go visit Florence next year.
Gunkanjimadeadhippo said:that original post seems like a cool adventure
i like that sort of ****
the whole idea of places that were once prosperous but are now wasteland appeal to me
like an end of the world survival type thing
Sometimes the old posts are still the best! (This is the OP to this thread, and this post is probably the single biggest reason I became interested in Jref in the first place. I couldn't stop laughing, because these places really do exist!)What is the worst tourist attraction you have been to in Japan? I'd like to share my own story and see who can top it.
My worst tourist attraction would have to be the Hattoji Dam recreational park in rural Okayama. My wife and I were staying at an international villa for a few days nearby and we found this brochure for the dam complex. It was full of pictures of lots of attractive happy people swimming on an artificial lake, riding peddle boats shaped like ducks and having a good time. Normally a dam isn't my idea of a good place to visit, but we wanted to go for a swim, so we decided why not.
When we got to the place, the first thing we realized was that the pictures in the brochure were all taken about 10 years ago when the park opened. We showed up on a sunny Sunday afternoon, but didn't find any happy attractive people. Or any disgruntled ugly people for that matter. There was a huge parking lot full of waste high weeds growing through the cracks in the asphalt but not a single car. We went up to the reception building, a huge 3 story complex, and found that it was completely deserted save for one lonely person working in in the coffee shop, which had no customers. She seemed quite surprised to see that someone had actually come in and was even more taken aback when she found out that we weren't there just to ask directions, but to actually use the recreation park!
We asked what we could do, and she suggested renting some bicycles and going for a ride around the lake. My wife asked about the paddle boats, but was told they were not available at the moment, so we agreed to pay the 500 yen fee for the bikes instead. She gave us 2 keys and told us to go to the garage in the back of the building to choose some bikes.
The amount of cobwebs on the bikes told us that we may well have been the first people to ever actually rent them. We wiped the only two we could find without flat tires off and made our way towards the dam, which marked the start of the cycling trail.
The lake itself could have been not too bad looking even with the dam. It was surrounded by lush green mountains on all sides. Unfortunately the designers had decided that a cycling trail was absolutely necessary to the parks succes and this ruined the scenery completely. What could possibly be wrong with a little cycling trail, you may ask. If it were built by sane people, nothing. But the people who designed the Hattoji dam recreational park could never be accused of sanity. The cycling trail is built along a range of beautiful mountains, about 100-200 metres below the peaks. The engineers decided it would be a good idea to clear cut all of the forests on the mountainside located above the cycling trail and encase the remains in concrete to prevent landslides. As the cycling trail runs for several kilometres, this meant that about half a dozen mountains got buzz cuts and there isn't a single attractive peak left in the whole area! All this to protect a measly 2 metre wide track that nobody ever uses. What could have been a bicycle ride through a lovely forest was in reality about as appealing as a bicycle ride through a highway interchange.
Undaunted, we decided to follow the cycling trail to its finish, where there was a really nice beach according to the map we had. On the way, we saw the remains of the peddle boats, their dock half submerged in the lake and the boats covered in filth. When we arrived at the beach we found that it had been turned into one of Japan's many illegal dump sites, with piles of garbage littering the whole expanse. We decided to give swimming a miss and call it a day.
The whole experience was quite interesting. The two of us had a multi million dollar recreation park that was designed for our enjoyment entirely to ourselves and yet were not able to find a single thing in it that wasn't depressing, let alone enjoyable. It is hard to beat that level of incompetence, I really think these small towns have too much money on their hands!
LOL, the best story I have heard in a long time.What is the worst tourist attraction you have been to in Japan? I'd like to share my own story and see who can top it.
My worst tourist attraction would have to be the Hattoji Dam recreational park in rural Okayama. My wife and I were staying at an international villa for a few days nearby and we found this brochure for the dam complex. It was full of pictures of lots of attractive happy people swimming on an artificial lake, riding peddle boats shaped like ducks and having a good time. Normally a dam isn't my idea of a good place to visit, but we wanted to go for a swim, so we decided why not.
When we got to the place, the first thing we realized was that the pictures in the brochure were all taken about 10 years ago when the park opened. We showed up on a sunny Sunday afternoon, but didn't find any happy attractive people. Or any disgruntled ugly people for that matter. There was a huge parking lot full of waste high weeds growing through the cracks in the asphalt but not a single car. We went up to the reception building, a huge 3 story complex, and found that it was completely deserted save for one lonely person working in in the coffee shop, which had no customers. She seemed quite surprised to see that someone had actually come in and was even more taken aback when she found out that we weren't there just to ask directions, but to actually use the recreation park!
We asked what we could do, and she suggested renting some bicycles and going for a ride around the lake. My wife asked about the paddle boats, but was told they were not available at the moment, so we agreed to pay the 500 yen fee for the bikes instead. She gave us 2 keys and told us to go to the garage in the back of the building to choose some bikes.
The amount of cobwebs on the bikes told us that we may well have been the first people to ever actually rent them. We wiped the only two we could find without flat tires off and made our way towards the dam, which marked the start of the cycling trail.
The lake itself could have been not too bad looking even with the dam. It was surrounded by lush green mountains on all sides. Unfortunately the designers had decided that a cycling trail was absolutely necessary to the parks succes and this ruined the scenery completely. What could possibly be wrong with a little cycling trail, you may ask. If it were built by sane people, nothing. But the people who designed the Hattoji dam recreational park could never be accused of sanity. The cycling trail is built along a range of beautiful mountains, about 100-200 metres below the peaks. The engineers decided it would be a good idea to clear cut all of the forests on the mountainside located above the cycling trail and encase the remains in concrete to prevent landslides. As the cycling trail runs for several kilometres, this meant that about half a dozen mountains got buzz cuts and there isn't a single attractive peak left in the whole area! All this to protect a measly 2 metre wide track that nobody ever uses. What could have been a bicycle ride through a lovely forest was in reality about as appealing as a bicycle ride through a highway interchange.
Undaunted, we decided to follow the cycling trail to its finish, where there was a really nice beach according to the map we had. On the way, we saw the remains of the peddle boats, their dock half submerged in the lake and the boats covered in filth. When we arrived at the beach we found that it had been turned into one of Japan's many illegal dump sites, with piles of garbage littering the whole expanse. We decided to give swimming a miss and call it a day.
The whole experience was quite interesting. The two of us had a multi million dollar recreation park that was designed for our enjoyment entirely to ourselves and yet were not able to find a single thing in it that wasn't depressing, let alone enjoyable. It is hard to beat that level of incompetence, I really think these small towns have too much money on their hands!
Kyoto, for example, with its garish neon signs and all, is what a major city is supposed to look like. Powerlines and vending machines might be eye-sores for visitors who are expecting to see sceneries straight out of Hokusai paintings...
It just appeared toward the bottom of a post!Wow, I'm impressed you found this old gem!
I know many people in the UK who'd like to visit Tokyo because they like the idea of the bright lights of Ginza, the Shibuya crossing, gleaming skyscrapers and karaoke bars etc. Basically they want to be on a 'Bladerunner' set.I've never understood the appeal of Tokyo in general as a tourist destination. If you're from overseas and you invest the time and money to visit, there are so many more interesting places to experience. I suppose a lot of it has to do with what you know about Japan. Ask the average person about Japan, and they'll likely mention samurai, Mt. Fuji, and Tokyo.
Yes, I just don't 'get' those thingsIf you're into anime/cosplay culture, I guess your interests diverge from my own.
I went to have a look at the electronics shop. It was fine for half an hour!Perhaps for such people Akihabara is more compelling?
PS: I'm excited to see a 22-year-old thread resurfacing.
Until 20some years ago Akihabara was the electric town where one could shop for cheap electronics and parts