The rain fell in sporadic bursts as the car sped down the highway in silence. I sat in the backseat calculating how much longer it would be until we reached the city.
“How many times have you done this?” asked one of the men in front. His uniform identified him as some kind of electrical engineer and his question came with a cloud of cigarette smoke that hovered in the closed car air.
“This is my second time hitch hiking to Fukuoka,” I said in a shallow breath trying to spare my lungs the poisonous air. “But I went on a week long hitch hike trip over Golden Week.”
A gruff acknowledgement sound was his only response and then smoky silence fell over the car once more.
There were four of us in the company car…three Japanese engineers, each with his own smoking cigarette, and me, a foolish foreigner out for another hitch hike (why pay for the train when the car ride is free?). I’d met them in Beppu on a rainy Friday evening when drivers were few. I’d talked to several prospects, but none were heading exactly to my destination and I was on the verge of giving up when suddenly their group walked by and casually said, “Okay, let’s go.”
I got in the car and initiated some polite introductory conversation only to be met with minimum responses. I quickly realized they were in typical Japanese working man mode: sit, smoke, sleep…do not speak. The man who had invited me into the car asked me a few questions, but soon retreated into his solitary calm. Being accustomed to this type of behavior, I opted to join them and found myself asleep along with the 2 other passengers. I will admit that just before I drifted off to sleep I thought, “I’m riding at night in a rain storm with 3 strange men. No one knows where I am and they could be going anywhere. I better be ready to aim for the eyes and groin.”
We were silent all the way into the city center where upon the “talkative” man said “Is anywhere okay to drop you off?” I told them, “Sure, I can find my way” and was released near the area I wanted to be in.
We parted ways after a 2 hour car ride with me saying, “Thank you so much! Please have a good night!” and them saying a flat, “OK.”
Out of the dozens of rides I’ve taken, this one was the most uncomfortable…but has not deterred me from hitch hiking in Japan. I still love the experience of meeting random people on the road and taking a ride in their car. It’s the explorer part of me getting fed…and writer part of me getting new material. And the cheapskate part of me saving a couple thousand yen.
