A dedication to my baby: My 99 Honda Civic Sedan

Upon my arrival to Japan, my new colleague in the English Department asked me "So did Krin (my predessessor) leave you his car?". My visit school being a good 14k away, it was clear that life was going to be hard without a car. So, with the help of my colleague I got myself a lease. It was a little more on the expensive end at 29,000 yen per month, and I was asked to pay the 7000 yen for shaken (Japanese car registration and servicing). The Wagon R was just what I needed, or so I thought.

Mum and the Wagon!

Like most K-car's the Wagon was super convenient; you can carry a lot of things, move the seats around to store even more, have a nap.. However, when it came to moving a group of foreigners through the coastal mountain roads, the little Wagon R just would not cut it. It would struggle, moan and over-rev through the passes. It was then that I decided  "I need a real car if I'm going to stay". 

Just under 400,000 yen including shaken, a years insurance, new tyres and the car itself, the Civic and I were a match made in heaven. The new ALT's had just gone through the lot and made their choices... but here was a little car, with manual transmission and little over 80,000 k's on the clock for a 99 model, complete with hipsterific cassette deck. 

Tadaaaah! 

So far, she's taken me as far north as Himi, Toyama prefecture, as far west as Onomichi, Hiroshima and as far south as Arida, Wakayama Prefecture. Next trip will be to Shirakawa-go, Gifu and Nozawa Onsen in Nagano prefecture with my dear friends Dimi, Ben and Veronica. I can't wait! 

She fits a whole bike too! Mukashima, Hiroshima

So here we are many road trips later and my baby is only just about to tick over to 100,000k's. When this magical number happens, I hope I'm in a place along the road where I can easily pull over and celebrate. My baby has brought me a lot of driving joy. 

Isn't she lovely!