Not this time, Japan

No this time, Japan
Originally uploaded by Jerry Tok.

The past 10 days has been really colorful and exciting for me. 25 hrs ferry from Incheon to Tianjin. I walked (or trekked) The Great Wall of China. Took the world's highest train from Beijing to Lhasa. Set foot for the first time on the rooftop of the world.

The last 2 days of my stay in Seoul was a big dilemma for me. I've been thinking about going to Japan by ferry.

From Pusan(south of Korea), there are ferry to 4 ports in Japan- Shimonoseki, Hakata, Hiroshima and Tsushima with Shimonoseki being the nearest to Pusan.

From Japan, one can take ferry from Kobe to Shanghai, Tianjin and Qingdao.

Here's my plan-travel to Pusan, take ferry to Shimonoseki, bullet train to Tokyo. My return journey would be- Tokyo to Kobe by train, Kobe to Tianjin by ferry, Tianjin to Beijing by land, then Beijing to Lhasa by train.

Unfortunately, Japan is not a backpackers friendly place. Just on transport alone, I'll cost 1000 sing. I was drawn to the uncommon mode of transport to cross country's borders. Would I go for it at the expense of bursting my budget? I decide on a "no". As I told Charmaine and Raymond that I don't want to return to Singapore broke and jobless.

I'm keeping the ferry itinerary in mind. I might do it some time in the future,