“This is mad!” I couldn’t count the number of times that this thought ran through my mind on my short trip to Japan.

It was autumn in Hakone National Park. This is a mecca for autumn colours and promised views of Mount Fuji. I had my instructions on how to get to the ryokan where I was staying and this left me slightly on edge. I was happy with the first part – bullet train from Tokyo. But then there was a bus involved. How do you know if they’re going to stop? When do you know you’re at the right stop? How far is it between stops, should you get off too soon? Or too late?

I needn’t have worried (as is often the case) – public transport in Japan is almost impossible to get wrong. Signs and announcements in both English and Japanese and the right bus stop…