A video of Shinkansen arriving at a station: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1AVaE1Em_N6BTU0RTIT6zQMLXPc_Xtt7R/view?usp=sharing
I think I have ridden on long distance trains in Italy when I was younger, but I don’t remember much of riding on the train. I can remember the stations being smaller with less stores and all the trains were on the same floor area. The stations were more chaotic, with similar amounts of people, but everyone walks everywhere. Here in Japan the walkways are more clearly defined and people are generally more organized. I was surprised when our train was delayed because of an issue with the tracks, but getting on another train was also surprisingly easy.
Thankfully, with my luggage, the train stations have all been within a 10-minute walk from our hotels. It is difficult to carry stuff up or down the stairs when there are no escalators. Because the stations are bigger on the inside, it’s been hard to get around especially with all the stairs. I feel like if I had less stuff to carry it would be perfect. Finding the platform has been really easy. I just look for the Shinkansen signs and find the platform for the area we are going. It hasn’t been confusing at all for me and I like how they have time displays and directions everywhere.
In terms of comfort, the Shinkansen is incredibly smooth. My stomach can get a little confused when we accelerate because it’s so fast, but I haven’t felt sick. I also really enjoy looking out the window. I know the new Shinkansen they’re building is supposed to be mostly underground, which is unfortunate, but worth the speed increase. These trains are very exciting to me as an engineering student and riding on them is a lot of fun. I wish I could take trains all the time in the US.
