Michael John Grist trespasses in Izu-Nagaoka

To Japan With Love

View Photos (1) Image © 2009 To Japan With Love

Excerpted from To Japan With Love: A Travel Guide for the Connoisseur, available from ThingsAsian Press.

Abandoned in the 1990s, Sports World occupies an idyllic position at the crown of the Izu Peninsula, overlooking a wide swath of richly forested mountains and valleys. In its heyday it was a sport and relaxation haven, featuring tennis courts, miniature golf, a dive pool, restaurants, a hotel, a huge wave pool, a spa, and a gym. Now it's the haunt of the occasional skateboarder and graffiti artist, or curious tourist like me.

At around ten at night, I arrived at nearby Izu-Nagaoka Station, and spent over an hour walking to Sports World, where I planned to set up camp and explore the following morning. I had decided not to use taxis, on the off chance the driver realized I was intending to trespass and notified the police. Also, the long walk served to better sever me from everyday reality, readying me for my solitary plunge into the depths of the ruins.

It was very dark when I arrived. I made my way through the first barricade and walked along the moon-swept, empty car park. At the ticket gates there were barbed wires, but I easily slipped underneath them. The entrance to the Games Center was veiled in darkness. Stars were visible in the sky, which almost never happens in Tokyo. I wanted to head for the mini-golf course, thinking it would be a good open place to camp. I walked by graffiti-covered walls and ruined cars, including one flipped on its roof, and down a long open road covered over with grass and weeds. To my left was the golf course, completely overgrown.

I experimented with my flashlight. I wore it on my head, but this too severely limited my vision to only the direction I faced. I also worried that it would draw attention to me. I was never concerned about ghosts or monsters when in a haikyo (ruin)-only about meeting crazy people. Who else-besides me-would be in a place like that at an hour like that? 

Fortunately, there was light enough from the moon to get by. I was able to reach the bottom of the park and the big wave pools, and decided that rather than set up camp right away, I would head up to check out the hotel. The path was completely overgrown, so I had to push my way through the greenery. At times I thought I heard voices, and froze. At other times a strange pig-like grunting sound came from the end of the biggest wave pool. I hurried on.

At the hotel, I entered the first room I saw. Its door had a chain bolt, and I put it on immediately, then walked through the room. I checked the sliding door. It had been smashed at the lock, but the lock still seemed to work.  

I was amazed at how well preserved the room was, about thirty square meters, immaculate and clean. Apart from some shards of glass by the screen door and a few dead cockroaches, it looked exactly as it must have fifteen years earlier, when it was abandoned. The bathroom was sparkling, the toilet paper in a neat triangle, the toilet with a paper welcome sign on it, and the complimentary toothbrushes and shampoos all in place. In the main room, the TV sat with its remote controls neatly aligned beside it.

For a while, I enjoyed the wonderful moon-lit view of distant mountains, the complex's central lake, and the ghostly silhouettes of the other hotel blocks around me. Slowly, though, as I spent more time silent, unmoving, and alone, the stillness of the place crept over me.

I felt a sense of fear, prompting me to lock the screen door, draw the curtains, and drag chairs and tables in front of the entrances. But there was also a sadness, that the place was empty, and that I was there by myself, as if Sports World wanted more people, more life, more color. I went to sleep, and dreamed of my room being broken into by people I knew, and our adventures among the ruins.

The next day dawned glorious. I opened my curtains wide to a spectacular mountain view, the lake and overgrown jungle of palm trees on the golf course all bathed in bright hot sunlight. I stepped out onto the balcony with my tripod to take photos and videos of the place.

As I panned across the vista, I spotted a man in a blue uniform and cap striding along on the far side. I immediately thought, He's a security guard and he'll kick me out. I stared at him for a moment, unsure of what to do and not wishing to draw attention to myself by retreating back into my room. Eventually I ducked, and watched him walk away through a gap in the rail.

I didn't see him again, but I laid low for a while. I ate my breakfast, then left the room. I fought my way back down the tangled paths. At the wave pools, which were coated with red rust and algae, I dallied and looked around the creeper-covered restaurants. At one, in a corner of the complex where the outer fence met a small road, a girl appeared at a hole cut in the fence.

I had my tripod set up to take a photo of a solitary cash register. She crept through the hole with a camera in her hand.

I smiled and said hello in Japanese. She said hello back, then asked me if it was okay to come in and take some photos. I said, "Sure." She went on past me.

I walked up the main thoroughfare, stopping to look into the dive pool. Back at the Games Center back lot, I saw the girl again, on some kind of modeling photo shoot with three friends. We didn't say anything, just regarded each other with curiosity and then moved on.

FACT FILE:

Getting to Sports World
Sports World is an easy day trip from Tokyo. Take the Kodama Express Train from Tokyo to Mishima. Transfer to the Izu-hakone Tetsudo-Sunzu Line to Izu-Nagaoka Station. From the station you will have to walk, as Michael did, or hire a car. Ask the staff at the car rental office for directions. (Editor's note: Since we don't officially condone trespassing, once you get to Sports World, we'll leave the breaking in part up to you.) 

Japanese ruins
Japan's many haikyo are quickly becoming famous-both within the country and around the world. It's no surprise as there are just so darn many of them, often at ridiculous scales, with ridiculous design motifs, all left exactly as they were when abandoned. In other countries, these giant theme parks and gorgeous old museums would probably have been torn down or preserved for the sake of history, but not in Japan. Here they molder, rot, and sink into the past as the world moves on around them. Exploring these places, especially in a country with such an opaquely difficult language, can require a fair bit of resourcefulness, but tracking them down is well worth the effort. To get started, check out Michael's website. Good luck!
www.michaeljohngrist.com

Nippon no Haikyo
This is one of the guidebooks I use to find haikyo all over Japan. It has maps, photos, and some history for almost all of the included haikyo. The drawback is that it is only in Japanese. However, with basic hiragana writing system and map-reading skills, you should be able to put it to use. The book is published by Indivision (ISBN: 978-4-9903712-0-3).
www.indivision.cc (Japanese)

To read more essays from To Japan With Love, click here.

Published on 12/21/09