28. Chapter: Excursion into the Japanese Desert and a Foiled Camel Ride

Yesterday I went to the desert. I had read that there is an amazing sand dune near Tottori that is 16 km long and has three ridges right by the Sea of Japan, and since I had a JR-West wide area pass for 5 days, I thought I would take advantage of it and go there.

Two and a half hours there, two and a half hours back, and two and a half hours to return. The train ride alone, along the entire northern coast with mountains, gorges, and many little towns by deep wild sea bays, was already worth the entire outing. Then came the desert, and I had really intended to cross it while sitting on a camel, but contrary to all announcements, there was none to be found.

So I marched on, just like hundreds of other tourists. The area is vast and impressive, there are again 100 prohibitions: You cannot swim on that long dream beach in front of the dunes, you cannot draw in the sand!!! You cannot take any sand with you! And so on and so forth, but at any rate, you can move freely everywhere, and since the sand is surprisingly firm, it's not a problem to climb up all the hills and ridges, slide down, or jump, fly with kites, or use some sort of sand sled to slide down the mountains. Whole school classes are being herded up the slopes by their sports teachers, and groups jostle at the top edge to take their selfies and photos.

The views of the steep cliffs down to the sea are almost dizzying, but I must admit: I am a bit disappointed. I prefer my desert more untouched, and here it is difficult to find a spot where the sand is beautifully rippled and wavy, and not destroyed and trampled by footprints. I liked the Gran Canaria dunes better.

At the very end of my long walk, I finally see two camels standing from a distance, but as I get closer, it turns out that riding is not allowed today, and the animals are only available for photo shots, 600 yen for a photo with your own camera. People are standing in line, climbing the steps up, struggling onto the seat on the animal and getting their pictures taken with big smiles for two seconds. I graciously decline; it's a shame, really, it would have been funny, and I would have loved to sit on such a desert seesaw!

Instead, I drive back to Kinosaki and sit a bit under the steaming waterfall in the hot bath.