Thanks for sharing such a detailed chronicle of life in Japan so long ago. Just out of curiosity, have you ever come across any photos of Thomas Stevens, the first person to ride around the world on a bicycle from 1884 to 1886? A college friend and I recreated Stevens' journey from Nagasaki to Yokohama last autumn. Please see here for more details: https://open.substack.com/pub/realgaijin/p/reflections-on-the-role-of-domestique
Thanks for your kind words and apologies for the slow response.
While researching one of my articles recently I actually came across Thomas Stevens' story, but I have been unable to recall how and where… His account of his trip through Japan is fascinating and full of anecdotes that I may use in future essays.
I thoroughly enjoyed your account of your trip retracing Stevens' cycling course through Japan. The reactions of the people you ran into sound wonderful.
If I ever came across any photos of Thomas Stevens I would have overlooked them because I generally limit my search to images of Japanese people… I just did a quick search and found one photo that is used repeatedly, but I wonder if it has been authenticated. It was also used as the cover of a republication of Stevens' book:
Thank you for your reply and for reading my summary of this amazing cross-country trip.
We tried to follow the Nagasaki Kaido, Sanyodo and Tokkaido as much as possible. It was surprisingly easy to find relatively well-preserved sections of these old roads. As you probably know, there are several way-stations along the Tokkaido that have been turned into mini-museums with lots of old photos.
As we mentioned in the article, the group of bicycle enthusiasts we met in Shizuoka were particularly interested in any information - especially photos - of the "last shogun" (Tokugawa Yoshinobu) with his penny farthing. If you have any photos of this person, I am sure the people in Shizuoka would be interested.
Great! Yes, cycling opens up whole new worlds! Yes, please be on the lookout for bicycles. I can put you in touch with many people in the cycling world of Japan who would be interested.
Thanks for sharing such a detailed chronicle of life in Japan so long ago. Just out of curiosity, have you ever come across any photos of Thomas Stevens, the first person to ride around the world on a bicycle from 1884 to 1886? A college friend and I recreated Stevens' journey from Nagasaki to Yokohama last autumn. Please see here for more details: https://open.substack.com/pub/realgaijin/p/reflections-on-the-role-of-domestique
Hi Mark,
Thanks for your kind words and apologies for the slow response.
While researching one of my articles recently I actually came across Thomas Stevens' story, but I have been unable to recall how and where… His account of his trip through Japan is fascinating and full of anecdotes that I may use in future essays.
I thoroughly enjoyed your account of your trip retracing Stevens' cycling course through Japan. The reactions of the people you ran into sound wonderful.
If I ever came across any photos of Thomas Stevens I would have overlooked them because I generally limit my search to images of Japanese people… I just did a quick search and found one photo that is used repeatedly, but I wonder if it has been authenticated. It was also used as the cover of a republication of Stevens' book:
https://www.abebooks.co.uk/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=22619245729
Thank you for your reply and for reading my summary of this amazing cross-country trip.
We tried to follow the Nagasaki Kaido, Sanyodo and Tokkaido as much as possible. It was surprisingly easy to find relatively well-preserved sections of these old roads. As you probably know, there are several way-stations along the Tokkaido that have been turned into mini-museums with lots of old photos.
As we mentioned in the article, the group of bicycle enthusiasts we met in Shizuoka were particularly interested in any information - especially photos - of the "last shogun" (Tokugawa Yoshinobu) with his penny farthing. If you have any photos of this person, I am sure the people in Shizuoka would be interested.
“It was surprisingly easy to find relatively well-preserved sections of these old roads.”
This is why it is so important to move at human speed—by bicycle or on foot. It is the only way to connect with the world and the people around us.
From now on I shall keep my eyes open for photographs with bicycles!
Great! Yes, cycling opens up whole new worlds! Yes, please be on the lookout for bicycles. I can put you in touch with many people in the cycling world of Japan who would be interested.