00:00:07 John Daub: So, hello. This is Route 7, the road leading towards Aomori. I just got some cardboard at the FamilyMart right there. I have to write my sign. I have a goal today. It's Odate. Odate is still in Akita Prefecture according to Google Maps. And Odate is 100 kilometers away from here. It's almost 3:30. I have a cup of coffee from FamilyMart. It says espresso, but it's just coffee. It's pretty good. I'm really surprised how good the convenience store coffee is.

00:00:59 John Daub: I am here to write a sign. Where did my markers go? This morning, I did a live stream for those who support on Patreon. Thank you for the questions. I slept last night in the park near Akita Station. I woke up this morning and went to Oga. Oga Hanto (Oga Peninsula) is where the Namahage monsters are. They look a little scary. But it was a really fun time. When I arrived, I met a guy from Tokyo. He was also traveling alone. His name was Yoshitaka or Takayoshi, something like that. Very nice guy. We rode bicycles around Oga Hanto for about two hours. Then I came back because I got to get on the road.

00:02:05 John Daub: So here's my sign. I'm going to write Odate. And then I'm going to hitchhike this way. This town is two stops away from Akita City. So people who have left the city are here. Oh boy, what a day. This is perfect weather. It's not cold at all. I'm very hot with the jacket. But I got no place else to put it. My luggage is way too heavy. I've accumulated a lot of markers. After Odate is Hirosaki. And Hirosaki is sort of my first final goal. It's the final stop in Honshu. Which is this massive island that I've been hitchhiking for the last two and a half weeks, three weeks just about. So we're going to Odate. There's a place where the roads split, so I'm going to put both on there.

00:03:18 John Daub: Now I'm using Google Maps a lot recently. Here's a map of Japan. I'm here right now. You can see Hokkaido is not that far away. I started here. I'm going here. I'm about 85% done. That's good. Get off at Noroshiro. You can see the road curves this way. You know what? I don't think anybody's going that way. I think everybody's going to Odate. Screw it. I'm just going to write Odate. Everybody who's going to Odate anyways is going through here. If you're not sure, you can always write hōmen (direction). So Odate hōmen. That's easy.

00:05:03 John Daub: I didn't sleep too well in the tent. It was cold. Odate City. That's where I want to go. And I'm going to try to spend the night in Odate. It seems like a nice place. I have a surprise for you. When I get to Odate Station, I'm going to try to do something fun. So I'm going to livestream again on Only in Japan Go. And I'm making a video for Only in Japan Channel. But first, I'm going to just do these livestreams for Only in Japan Go.

00:06:16 John Daub: Odate hōmen. O is easy. It means big. Like Osaka, Odate. That's the first part of Odate. Now the date. Oh, there goes the train. That train goes once every 90 minutes. You can see the platform. That train doesn't come very often. There you go. That's a bit nice. I think the O could be bigger.

00:11:33 John Daub: Now the last thing I'm gonna write is hōmen, just the direction, just in case somebody's not going in that direction. Haha, nice comment there, Mela. Good one. There's some creative people out there. Maybe just to be safe, I'm gonna write Nihongo (Japanese). Okay. Yeah, that means Japanese. Somebody said I should put the smiley face back on, so that's for you. I do listen to people who give me good suggestions. And I've been taking a picture of the sign every time I do it. Yeah, there you go. I took a picture of the sign. I'm putting that on Instagram. So if you want to take a look at it later, go to Instagram and onlyinjapantv on Instagram. That's where I am putting a lot of the travel photos on there. Get a move on. Sometimes happens. Again, when you hitchhike, don't bring too much luggage. Thank you, FamilyMart. Okay, I have to cross the street. This road is really busy. I gotta find a place where traffic can pull in and pick me up. There's a gasoline stand on the other side and an ENEOS right there. That might be the best option.

00:17:17 John Daub: I hear people coming off the trip. Oh, the train's still there. He's wearing a helmet. I don't see Japanese wearing helmets very often. The train's still there. That's interesting. I guess it's one line and that train waits there while the other train goes by. I really wanted to shave this morning. What you gonna do? All right. Anybody have any questions while I drink my coffee? If you have any questions, go ahead and ask me and I'm gonna answer them and then I'm gonna go to that gas station and start hitching.

00:18:18 John Daub: All right, comment. He looks like he didn't bathe in a year. Thanks a lot. Hey John, how long does it take to grow a beard? Come on, Julian. Hitchhiking. It's not too bad. It's not easy, but you're roughing it. You're out here to find a ride and meet people so you have to look not great, but good enough. It's about 3:35 right now. Yeah, my plans after I get back to Tokyo: maybe relax and edit the DVD. I have to edit a lot of videos. I'll probably be just at home editing for two straight weeks. Is coffee expensive in Japan? I don't know. I don't think so, about the same maybe.

00:19:24 John Daub: What inspired you this journey? Kayser, that's a great question. I'm inspired to do this because in 2003 I did the same trip, and I wanted to do it again. The reason why I'm still here is because what I did 14 years ago hitchhiking. And I wanted to share this experience with you and also do it again for me because it's been 14 years. And I want to feel that same passion that I had when I did this trip the first time and I totally have. I've changed, sort of put my life in another direction. And it has been a good tradition. This trip, you know... Whoa, kids riding a bike right in front of the car. They are really angry. See the kids. I don't think the kids are very smart in this town.

00:20:21 John Daub: So I'm inspired to do this trip because I did it 14 years ago, and I want to share the experience with you. That's a scary scolding. He didn't just go in front of the car once, he did it twice. And he wasn't wearing a helmet like that other kid. I think it's a model citizen. Will you make a second question and answer video? Yeah, I'll do a Q&A video at the end but again most of stuff will be on Only in Japan. I traveled to 71 different countries over the last 20 years so I've already been in Australia like five times. I don't know, I might go back. I'd love to go back to Australia. I'll go back in the winter when it's summer there. I'm not traveling with Korea but a good friend of mine did a couple of times.

00:21:13 John Daub: Kate's last stream in FD finishes journey? Yeah, on the Only in Japan channel I will livestream on the main channel. Will you go to Hakone? What's in Hakone? I mean, a lot of YouTubers now are doing the same crap over and over again. Not that it's crap, it's just for me, you know, if it's been done a hundred times I don't want to do it. I like to believe that I have been here long enough that I can find original ideas that every other YouTuber hasn't done. And you've got to be different. You have to be original. And I'm out here looking for original stories and I found a ton of them. That's what this channel is all about. It's not about copying what some other person goes out to the suicide forest and makes a video in there and everyone asks me, go to the suicide forest. I'm not going to the suicide forest. That's idiotic. I'm not going to copy what somebody else did. Although I probably could do it better. But I don't copy other people. There's too many ideas to start doing what everyone else is doing.

00:22:23 John Daub: Will the DVD be available aside from Kickstarter? Yeah, but initially it'll be on Kickstarter. So I would buy it there and maybe in a few months there'll be the DVD. Whatever's left over will be available outside of Kickstarter later on. Where have you not visited in Japan? Yakushima and Kagoshima. There's a lot of the islands. But I've been now to every prefecture I think twice. Yeah. I want to go also to Hokkaido. Some of the far reaches of Hokkaido. The corner. I work in Shell Petrol and want to know what the petrol price there is. Hold on a second. High octane, 137 yen for a liter. And regular gasoline is 126 yen. Okay? Those are the gasoline prices. It's sort of expensive. And I guess that's diesel is 105 yen.

00:23:35 John Daub: Do you own Godzilla insurance? No. How old are you? None of your business. Do you have a 7-Eleven or FamilyMart? 7-Eleven. Is Void Rush...? I don't even know what that means. Besides your awesome private onsen, I thought you were going to... I'm going to show more of your private stay. Private stay? What do you mean? Like in my room and stuff? Buy the DVD. How was your hitchhiking trip different from the first one? I think I mentioned this last time. People stopped more because they were curious last time. This time they're stopping more because they genuinely want to help me. It's a little bit different in that way. There weren't that many foreigners on TV. Japanese weren't exposed to many foreigners. Now they have been in a way. So it's different in that sense.

00:24:27 John Daub: What has scared you during your hitchhiking experience? I lost my drone in Iwakuni. Go back to the last video on the Only in Japan channel. Find that story. That was scary. What is your favorite anime? Chibi Maruko-chan. Is your last stop in Wakkanai? My last stop is Tokyo to go home. But yeah, Wakkanai. It's so much cheaper than the US. The gasoline? Yeah. Hello from Seattle. Hello from Akita. Are you going to hold the sign up? Yes. In a second. What is your favorite place in Japan? Wherever I'm going next. Maybe Hiroshima. Hiroshima is high on my list.

00:25:11 John Daub: What's your job besides YouTube? I've been doing a couple shows for NHK World. As well as making video content for clients. I own my own business here in Japan. I own a company. Yakushima. Yes. Do you understand Okinawan accent? Sometimes. Will the DVD be available in Europe? Order from Kickstarter and it tells you where it'll be sent. Worldwide or... I think they're all worldwide. Hello John from Spokane, Washington. There's a guy basketball player from Gonzaga that was in Toyama. That's originally from Toyama. Ryo something. And he's playing for Gonzaga which is in Washington. How'd you get started in Japan? I just got on an airplane and was teaching English to children.

00:25:59 John Daub: Has anyone super sketchy looking pulled up your ride and then you decline? No. Nobody has. Does that sign mean self-serve? Yeah. It says jiko (self-serve). When will you hold the sign up? Like in one minute. I gotta walk over there. The people that picked you up and offered you to let you stay at their house offsite? Yes. They're very nice. They might even be watching. Have you ever been to Yakushima? No. Their private house? Yes. You are going to hitchhike to cross the sea as well? No. I'm taking the ferry.

00:26:31 John Daub: So do you like this trip more? Yeah because I don't remember the last trip as well as I used to. Do people mistake you as a hobo? Shut up. No. Are you going to feature the people you meet along the way in your DVD? Yes. How about Taiwan and a lot of old Japanese things? That sounds cool. I've been to Taiwan twice. A friend of mine who is like a blonde, she's sort of a celebrity in Taiwan named Annie or Anna. She's Russian, blonde hair. She's on a lot of TV shows now. Used to work with her in NHK. Now she's big in Taiwan. Smart move to go to Taiwan and not stay in Japan because they have too many blonde talents here.

00:27:17 John Daub: Do you ever have time to take for Tokyo 2020? No. I'm contracted by them and when the directors want me to work for them, they'll call me and I go and do a report with them. But to be honest with you, if they call me, I'll think about doing another episode. This show is a really good show. Those people offer you less stay at Wakkanai. Okay. I think we got enough questions. Thank you so much. Wow, that's a lot of questions. When do you think your trip will end? It ends when I reach Wakkanai. I came here for holding up the sign. Toby (crow), just wait a second. I'm going to throw this away. Hey guys, don't go anywhere. I'm going to hold up the sign, but I got to throw this away.

00:28:04 John Daub: Are you still there, Toby? Toby's been asking me. He came here only for seeing the sign. He didn't come here for a question and answer. So if you have more questions, blame Toby. Toby got angry at me and he told me to go and hitchhike now. It's Toby's fault. Toby did it. I'm kidding. I'm just having fun. Poor Toby's getting it now. I'm sorry, Toby. Toby, man. Toby is right though. I should get on the road. And then there was the gasoline guy. Here's the gasoline stand. Gasoline guy. There you go. Self-serve. Yeah. They're laughing at me. They know I'm a YouTuber. So this is for the gasoline guy. Boy, Toby's more popular than I am. Stop messaging Toby. I'm getting jealous. I'm just kidding.

00:31:01 John Daub: Toby, this is cool. I don't know if you've ever seen this before. I'm going to turn this around the other way. See the car? That's the car wash. The car stays stationary and it moves back and forth. That's how they wash the car. I thought that was pretty cool. Oh, they're done. Buy some gasoline for the people who pick you up. No, thank you. You know what? If they asked me, I would pay. In fact, I often ask to treat the people at hitchhike. I ask them if I can treat them and they say no and they get angry because they treat me like I'm their guest. That's a good thing. This is an underground walkway. What I'm going to do is to the people who help me, I'm going to send them a free copy of the DVD. I think that's a really good idea. A really good present, don't you? This has been a part of everybody. Everybody who's picked me up and taken me to this exact spot. The reason I'm here is because of the people who picked me up. It's really that simple.

00:32:35 John Daub: All right. Sorry. It says here that the network's changed from 4G to Docomo 3G. Stop blaming Toby. Blame Docomo now because Docomo's connection is bad. It could be the YouTube app too because I've been having trouble with the YouTube app. This is awesome. You guys can't see it because it says bad connection but there's a bus stop that's perfect for people to pull in. This is totally the place I'm going to hitchhike from. Right there. Yes. This is awesome. Hey, Michelle. Thanks, Toby, for taking the heat off. You're going to have to get off me and sign Donald Trump. Oh, my. This is crazy. You guys are funny. I'm here now.

00:34:03 John Daub: The connection is bad. I'm not sure what to do. All right, Toby. You took some heat, brother, but this is for you. If I get picked up, I'm dedicating this ride to Toby. So, guys, before I hitchhike, I get the GH5 out and I take some pictures of the hitchhiking for the DVD. This is my tripod. This is the Manfrotto Befree tripod, and it folds up to such a compact size, but it's got a very good fluid head on it. So, it works pretty well. I have to do these shots for the DVD. So, just bear with me. Well, all of a sudden, it got super quiet. It's kind of eerie. I got American mikan. I forgot to push the record button on the GH5.

00:39:58 John Daub: Sorry, when I was in Toyama, or Kanazawa, the lady stopped when I was taking these one-minute shots for the video. Toby, I'm starting to hitchhike for real now. Okay. I'm going to record it also with this GoPro camera. Because everyone's saying they want a copy of this in DVD. You guys still on Toby? I'm so sorry. I also have to keep an eye on this. I also have this Tascam recorder so I can record the audio separately really close to my body. But I always forget to turn it off. That's the problem with this Tascam. Audio is probably the most important thing with any video. If you don't have good audio, you don't have a good video. It's as simple as that. Hey, Toby, I'm holding the sign, brother.

00:43:46 John Daub: Someone's going to stop any minute. Hopefully not on a bicycle. The cars up ahead can see me holding a sign at the intersection, so it's good to be visible. Kid rode his bike. He stopped 50 meters away. Now he's watching me. You know the routine. They come in waves. Our battery's at 20%, just so you know. See, people are driving slow. They're reading the sign. That's a good thing. It's a very good thing. Another train's going by. Here they come. Going to turn green in three, two, one... It changed. Another train's coming. He stopped. Coming right now.

00:51:28 John Daub: A very big wave. It's a big, big wave. I think there's 100 cars backed up at the light now. Things are going to start getting interesting now. I'm not jumping. Don't worry. I was just joking. Really. I was just kidding. I love this. It's a 10% battery life. Sorry, guys. It looks like it might not happen with you guys. I'm just kidding. I'm not tagging you guys on the broadcast, but you never know. One more wave. You try to answer with a cardboard sign. It's not as easy as you think.

00:58:44 John Daub: Thank you, everybody, for tuning in. Come back and leave a comment on the feed. Come back and leave a comment, and I'll try answer tonight. Thanks so much for joining me. Sorry I can't show you with a happy end of the story, but I've just got to keep on going and hopefully get that ride to Odate. Check Instagram. I'll show you. If I make it to Odate, check Instagram for pictures, okay? See you, everybody. Thanks for the good lucks. Mata ne.