As you know, our family now commutes monthly between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore. Flight is not really an option since we are a family of four, including one young child and an infant. Both the danna and I are not a fan of driving (I am simply a lousy driver and the danna gets sleepy easily in a moving car), yet that is the only feasible option we have now. A gruelling 4 hour drive to and fro KL and SG.
How I wish there’s a bullet train that runs from KL to SG. Wait, there will be one!! The construction of the highspeed railway of Malaysia that will be starting next year.
When Japan officially tendered for the project, I was so so excited! The danna was too, he really hopes Japan can get it because he knows how unbelivably punctual and safe the Japanese railway system is, and it would greatly benefit everyone, including our family.
Imagine traveling from KL to SG in only less than two hours!!! And all of us can rest in the train, take a nap or even just talk and play with the kids.
I love Shinkansen, also known as the famed Bullet Train from Japan. I do. The first time I ever went on one was in 2012, from Fukuoka to Kumamoto.
Haha pardon my outdated fashion XD.
The first time I saw the bullet train I felt as if I have met an idol. I was so excited to take a picture with it.
It looks too cool and smart!
After that I had many other experiences with Shinkansen, especially when I was on the Tohoku project. We basically rode Shinkansen every single day, multiple times to tour around the Tohoku region.
This was me in the bullet train on route to Morioka, Iwate prefecture all the way from Tokyo.
I have said it in my previous post but i’ll say it again.
Morioka is over 500km away from Tokyo (Just to give perspective, Kuala Lumpur is about 350km from Singapore.) And this Shinaknsen ride took only slightly over 2 hours. 2 hours 13 minutes to be exact.
It was super super amazing.
Another Shinkansen ride from Ninohe, Iwate prefecture to Sendai, Miyagi prefecture, only took one hour.
I hadn’t even napped deep enough and we have reached another prefecture already lol. Shinkansen is undoubtedly the best way to travel in Japan from prefecture to prefecture. Basically you can almost travel the whole Japan with Shinkansen, from Hokkaido all the way to Kyushu (except Okinawa)!!!
A few more reasons why I love the Shinkansen:
You get to enjoy some of the most beautiful sceneries of Japan’s countryside. When I visit Japan we usually hop from big cities to other big cities, like Tokyo to Osaka, etc. But on a Shinkansen ride, you get to experience the more rural part of Japan. Traditional Japanese houses, daikon fields, snow covered meadows and mountains… It is one of my favorite things to do. Sometimes I will rather just look out the window and drift away in day dreams than to take a nap.
And when you are feeling sleepy, Shinkansen is also super comfy for a nice rest. It is spacious, extremely clean and also quiet. Do you know how quiet it is?? (Other than the white noise of the train moving, which is actually very soothing.)
A picture I took in the Shinkansen. Basically the Japanese people are so ridiculously considerate that they are worried that keyboard noise will disturb other passengers! @.@ So when I took this picture I too had to make sure my camera didn’t make any sound haha.
And and and!!! Every seat has a power point so you can always charge your phone and laptop if you need to work.
Before I forget, there’s also Ekiben (bento sold at train stations)!!!
Usually they will sell bentos that highlight the prefecture’s delicacies. For example if you are about to visit Fukuoka, you’ll likely see mentaiko on the menu XD.
Those are just some of my personal reasons why I love the Shinkansen in Japan.
But there’s more to it.
The Shinkansen has been running for 51 years in Japan, and so far there has been zero accident. Zero!! That’s really beyond amazing. It has unparalleled safety standards, as detailed and thorough inspections are carried out every day.
Other than that, Shinkansen also has excellent service record. It has always been on time in the 51 years that it’s been operating. In 2014, the average lateness of the Shinkansen was a mere 54 seconds!
I love Shinkansen T_T.
Bought Junya a Shinkansen to add to his Tomica collection, just to show support!!
If you love Shinkansen too, or are thinking of visiting Japan in the near future, there’s a Shinkansen exhibition happening on Level 6, Tokyo Street, Pavilion, Kuala Lumpur from now till end of August!!
For people who love the speed machines.
The Japanese Drum Team will perform at Pavilion in July, don’t miss it out!
Many of my readers always ask me how to get the JR passes, and which type of traveling pass is the most worthwhile, so here’s your chance to find out everything you need to know at the exhibition!
For more information, visit
www.facebook.com/myshinkansen!
I really really hope that Malaysians will get to experience the amazing Shinkansen right in our own country <3 Please support the event! 😀
We’ve always gotten the JR Rail Passes for our Japan trips because it makes it so, so easily to catch the shinkansen and JR lines and reserve tickets with no additional fee! I love taking advantage of the pass and riding the shinkansen as much as possible even if it’s just from Kyoto to Shin-Osaka or Tokyo station to Shinagawa lol. But ofc, it’s most useful for roundtrips like to and from Tokyo and Kansai or Tohoku regions and that’s how we were able to take a day trip to Sendai with no issues at all!
During this most recent trip, we even went from Sapporo to Hakodate and then down to Tokyo and later down to Osaka and Kyoto! It was great and much easier than flying for us because we didn’t have to worry about dealing with getting to and from the airport(s) and the trains are so timely! I’m excited for you and your family to have another option for transportation.
We’re trying to build a rail system in Hawaii but so many are against it and it’s meeting a lot of resistance even though it’s already half built and would be really great for number of residents once completed 🙁
As a Malaccan who works in SG, one of my bday wish is to have train from SG-Melaka lolol cos the only public transport is bus -_- i cant even take flight even if im willing to pay lol. 4-5 hours (include time spent at immigration especially during peak hours) bus is just ridiculous its so time consuming thats why i really hate going home ._. (I never even like going home when i was studying in KL last time when the its just a 2 hours drive)
i really hope this shinkansen plan will complete asap and those ppl who taking shinkansen here can be as polite and considerate as the japanese~~