Japan Trip Update – DT 325

Summary

Dirt Talk by BuildWitt – Episode: Japan Trip Update (DT 325) Release Date: March 31, 2025
Host: BuildWitt (John, Mike, & Chris)

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1. Introduction to the Japan Trip

In this episode, hosts John, Mike, and Chris share an in-depth update on their inaugural trip to Japan. The trip was primarily centered around their collaboration with Hitachi, exploring the intricacies of Japanese manufacturing and cultural nuances. The team delved into factory tours, customer interactions, and urban explorations, providing listeners with a comprehensive overview of their experiences.

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2. First Impressions of Japan

a. Urban Landscape and Cleanliness

The hosts were immediately struck by Japan's pristine environment and impressive urban density. Mike remarked at [02:31]:

"It's beautiful... very clean, spotless. It's probably the cleanest place we've been to in terms of."

John added his frustration with the lack of public trash cans, highlighting the extraordinary cleanliness of Japanese streets despite the absence of common waste disposal facilities.

b. Cultural Shock and Density

Japan’s urban density was a recurring theme. The hosts discussed how Tokyo's sprawling metropolis surpasses many of the world's largest cities in terms of population concentration. At [04:35], John speculated:

"I think Japan might be number one [in density], maybe Bahrain or something random."

They also touched upon the vast expanse of Japan's geography, noting the significant distance between its southern and northern regions, which offers diverse climates and environments within a single country.

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3. Exploring Hitachi Factories

a. Small Excavator Factory Visit

The first factory visited was dedicated to small to medium-sized excavators (15-35 tons). Chris shared his admiration for the factory's efficiency and organization:

"They were super accommodating. Being able to go on the actual assembly line was awesome. It was a well-oiled machine." ([12:21])

John was particularly impressed by the "just in time" manufacturing process, stating at [13:56]:

"They were just getting exactly what they need for the machine on the assembly line when they need it. There's not a lot laying around."

b. Mining Machines Factory Tour

On the second day, the team toured the mining machines factory located near the port. This factory showcased the assembly of massive mining excavators, including models like the 5600 and 1200-ton machines. Mike highlighted the craftsmanship and pride of the workers:

"They were really proud of their work too. Nobody was having a bad time. They looked super happy to be there." ([16:25])

A standout moment was the live demonstration of a new machine where Chris observed:

"They just started spinning and throwing the boom around. It was pretty cool." ([17:05])

The hosts praised the visibility and cleanliness of the excavator cabs, with Mike noting at [40:42]:

"The cab was immaculate, spotless... the visibility in the cab is unlike any big excavator."

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4. Port Visit and Machine Exportation

The port visit was another highlight, where the team witnessed the preparation and loading of Hitachi machines for export. John expressed his excitement about seeing machines "drive out of the factory":

"We got to see some big machines literally drive out... pretty damn cool." ([31:29])

Mike shared his enthusiasm for the drone footage captured at the port:

"They let us bring out the drones and whatnot. We were able to get really tight shots with those machines." ([35:05])

The port was bustling with an array of Hitachi machines, ranging from small excavators to massive mining trucks, ready to be shipped worldwide.

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5. Meeting with Fujisako Quarry

A significant portion of the trip involved meeting with Fujisako, a quarry owner. The interaction was both culturally enriching and professionally insightful. John recounted the initial meeting dynamics:

"There were so many people... but fortunately, I have the translator with me, which was amazing." ([35:55])

During the quarry visit, the team observed the operation of a 5600 excavator. Mike was particularly impressed by the operator's skill and the machine's performance:

"He was chill as a cucumber... the cab was incredible, perfect for filming." ([40:31])

John highlighted the meticulous maintenance and presentation of the machinery:

"The cab was immaculate, spotless... very proud of what they do." ([40:42])

The hosts appreciated the hands-on demonstration, where they watched the excavator maneuver with precision in a confined space, showcasing Japan's engineering excellence.

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6. Cultural Experiences Beyond the Factory

a. Urban Adventures in Shinjuku

The team explored Shinjuku, one of Tokyo's most vibrant districts. They described the area as an overstimulating blend of businesses and bustling crowds. Chris likened it to "a game of Frogger":

"You're just trying to avoid all the people while trying to get onto the right train." ([47:06])

b. Shopping and Entertainment

John and Mike shared their visits to iconic Japanese establishments, including a unique DVD store and the famous Don Quixote multi-level shopping centers. They marveled at the diversity and eclectic nature of Japanese retail environments:

"It's like an antique mall with a million times more stuff and flashing lights and sounds." ([46:02])

Mike recounted the intense sensory experience:

"Everything has a mascot... people just dress up, they cosplay." ([19:50])

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7. Reflections and Future Plans

The trip to Japan was a blend of professional growth and cultural immersion for the Dirt Talk team. They admired the efficiency of Japanese manufacturing, the passion of its workers, and the unique urban lifestyle. John concluded the episode by expressing gratitude to Hitachi and sharing plans for future travels:

"Thanks to Hitachi. And with that, we will probably be back after Europe." ([47:48])

The hosts hinted at upcoming adventures in Europe, including visits to Germany, the Netherlands, and Italy, promising listeners more exciting updates in future episodes.

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Notable Quotes

• John at [04:35]: "I think Japan might be number one [in density], maybe Bahrain or something random."
• Mike at [12:31]: "It's probably the cleanest place we've been to in terms of."
• Chris at [12:21]: "They were super accommodating. Being able to go on the actual assembly line was awesome."
• Mike at [16:25]: "They were really proud of their work too. Nobody was having a bad time."
• John at [31:29]: "We got to see some big machines literally drive out... pretty damn cool."
• Mike at [40:42]: "The cab was immaculate, spotless... very proud of what they do."

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Conclusion

"Dirt Talk" Episode DT 325 offered listeners an immersive journey through Japan's industrial landscape and vibrant culture. The hosts' firsthand accounts of Hitachi's manufacturing prowess, coupled with personal anecdotes from their urban explorations, provided a rich and engaging narrative. This episode stands as a testament to Japan's blend of tradition and cutting-edge technology, all seen through the enthusiastic eyes of the Dirt Talk team.

Transcript

[John]

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[Mike]

My first.

[John]

That's Asia, Technically speaking.

[Chris]

Yeah, I guess that is Asia.

[John]

Yeah. It's kind of like its own thing, the Middle east, but, yeah, technically, the continent of Asia. Yeah.

[Chris]

I never realized that.

[John]

Yeah.

[Chris]

Because you don't think Asia when you go to the Middle East.

[John]

No, but it's definitely different. Like, it's definitely not Western, so. Yeah, yeah, yeah. But, yeah, I was just about to.

[Chris]

Say first time in Asia, but I guess not.

[John]

No. Your first time in Asia?

[Mike]

My first time in Asia, yeah. Big culture shock.

[John]

Yeah.

[Mike]

Yeah.

[John]

First time to Japan. I'm not even sure how the. I would need to go. Look back at emails and everything, how the trip came together. Maybe it was through Dino. Maybe he was initiated through Gabe at. I talked to. I don't know how it was initiated, but Hitachi had us out for a few days for a week, which was very cool, a very good time.

[Mike]

That was unbelievable.

[John]

First off, what'd you guys think about Japan?

[Mike]

It's beautiful.

[John]

It's very pretty.

[Mike]

Yeah. Very clean, spotless. It's the probably the cleanest place we've been to in terms of. And there wasn't a trash can around, which was surprising for how clean the streets were.

[John]

It was frustrating that there were no trash cans anywhere there.

[Mike]

There. Yeah, that was. That was pretty rough. The food. The food was probably the biggest thing on the trip. Yeah, it was different.

[John]

Yeah.

[Chris]

But I feel like one homeless person.

[Mike]

Yeah.

[John]

I Saw one home and it was in one ghetto. Yeah.

[Mike]

Which was very rare in Japan. There's not a lot of those.

[John]

Yeah. For how the cost of living is very, very high there in Tokyo. I was looking it up. Just the cost of like a very small apartment. Like half a million dollars.

[Chris]

Oh, yeah, I'm sure. Crazy, isn't it like top five up there with most expensive cities in the world.

[John]

It must be. It was the biggest, biggest city in the world too. Yeah.

[Chris]

I feel like it's in New York, L.A. tokyo. I know Beijing is on there.

[John]

Beijing, maybe. London is pretty expensive. Paris maybe, I don't know. Dubai.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[Mike]

I feel like it was the, the biggest city in the world. Didn't really like come into play until we got there. And then it's just expanse. Like you look out and it's just skyscrapers.

[John]

Yeah. I, I, you can't, you can't really comprehend it until we went up that tower. And then you're looking out over the city and it just doesn't end. It's just non stop towers as far as you can see, which was pretty wild. But like where we stayed, it's like, yeah, I'm in the city. But I felt like you were in some downtown. But then you keep driving and it's just like more downtown, more downtown, more downtown. It just doesn't.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[John]

And the highways are elevated so you can kind of look out over the city as you're driving. It's just enormous.

[Mike]

The place, the expanse is unlike anything I've ever seen. For sure.

[John]

Yeah. I would say I think Japan is maybe the most dense country in the world besides India. Maybe now, but India is a big landmass.

[Mike]

Yeah.

[John]

It's a big place. So by, by like density, I think Japan might be number one.

[Mike]

Yeah.

[John]

It could be like Bahrain or something random. Like that was super, super small. Yeah. Or like.

[Mike]

Yeah. One of those tiny little islands in the middle of Pacific or something.

[John]

Yeah.

[Mike]

It's completely packed out.

[John]

Yeah.

[Mike]

But they, for the amount of people that they have, it's kind of ridiculous.

[John]

It's not that, it's not that big, but I didn't realize how, how long it is.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[John]

You might want to move that up.

[Chris]

Thing is sagging.

[John]

It sags a little bit between the southern and northern part of Japan is a greater distance than Key west to Maine.

[Mike]

Really?

[John]

Yes.

[Mike]

That's, that's kind of shocking.

[John]

I didn't know that.

[Mike]

I didn't even think about that.

[John]

Because of all the islands.

[Chris]

Oh yeah.

[Mike]

You got to go all the way down to Like Okinawa. Yeah. Super south.

[John]

So they. Yeah. And he was like, yeah, you can, you can. I mean, it's. It can be freezing at the northern part of our country, but you can be swimming at the southern part of our country. And I was like, that's crazy. And then I thought, wait a minute, we can do that too in America.

[Mike]

It's just weird because it's not an island. In the middle of it is ocean.

[John]

Yeah, it is. It is weird, but it's.

[Mike]

Yeah.

[John]

I started looking at it on a map and it's crazy. The expanse that it covers.

[Mike]

I wonder what the. What the actual land mass, like, states wise, how many. Like the physical main island is of Japan. It's gotta be like a South and North Carolina put together or something like that.

[John]

Or maybe like all of it can fit in California.

[Mike]

Yeah. Yeah.

[John]

I mean, maybe that's an ignorant thing to say, but I feel like it's not that much bigger than California. No.

[Mike]

And there's as many people. Way more people.

[John]

Way more.

[Mike]

Yeah, way more.

[John]

Yeah. In Tokyo. There are 35 million people in Tokyo. See, a country was great, very clean. But honestly, most cities we've been to, most cities I've gone to, big cities are cleaner than most American cities. Oh yeah, Like Copenhagen, way cleaner. Dubai, way cleaner.

[Chris]

We can't comprehend clean cities over here.

[John]

No, like Santiago, way cleaner. I mean, every continent, it's like. And yeah, I've been to some that are a little rough too. But comparatively like you think like San Francisco is or New York City, like creme de la creme, but no way, not even close.

[Mike]

And I think the big difference is like our tourist areas are dirty too. And it's like their tourist areas aren't their tourist areas. And they're like normal areas are super clean. Whereas like everywhere here is like our cities are kind of dirty.

[John]

But even like, like the sidewalks are like clean. Yeah, like tidy. They're not, they're not grimy. You go to New York and it's. It, there's just like a layer of grime over everything. Everything needs a good power washing. Whereas there, everything was clean because I ran a lot and just every sidewalk, everywhere I was was just really nice and tidy. Like even there were police officers cleaning, cleaning up around the palace, picking up trash, this and that.

[Mike]

Me and Jack were walking to breakfast one day and there, there was a dude. There's a lady, actually, she's a crossing guard. She had like a police outfit on, like as a crossing guard and she had her broom sweeping up and she was like Helping people pass as she was sweeping. Yeah, it was like, stuff like that you don't even think of. Like, she has like three jobs right there, but she's a police officer.

[John]

No, I saw a guy outside of a construction site. He had the full traffic control get up, which they take very seriously. They've got like the helmet with the little shield and then the headset they all had. The traffic control guys had headsets with a little microphone, like you're on a motorcycle. And then they had the vest, but that was light up, so the whole vest had lights all over it. So you could not miss these guys. And then he had. It was outside of a construction entrance and he had a little broom and a little dustpan and he was like sweeping up outside the construction entrance. Like, what. What is going on here? This is so different to us.

[Mike]

It doesn't really make sense because that's four different jobs there. But I mean, to them it's like just part of their culture. Everybody there just works, you know, they're just good at working well.

[John]

They're very serious.

[Mike]

Yeah.

[John]

Like their, their career is a really big deal. Based on what I'd heard before, based on what I've read and then based on what I experienced, like, even every cab driver, shirt and tie, like, suit jacket, they're. Oh, yeah, they're. Everybody's very, well standard.

[Mike]

The standard that's Uber.

[Chris]

Bottom level Uber in Japan is better than the. Whatever. It's the luxury Uber. You know how you can like choose different. Yeah, Uber's over here. Like their standard one is better than the luxury one over here.

[John]

Dude, I don't know what's happened to Uber over here, but it's dog.

[Mike]

Nowadays they just let anybody run.

[Chris]

They just let anybody run that shit.

[John]

Yeah. And. And most of the time it's a clapped out Nissan Altima 2007 Zigre.

[Mike]

Burns in the reef.

[John]

Yeah. Reeks of weed. You open up the door and you're just slapped in the face with like shitty air, air freshener and weed.

[Chris]

I'm telling you, the.

[Mike]

Yeah, they open our doors for us.

[Chris]

The move for Uber is you get the comfort. It's like $5 more and it's night and day better than the standard.

[Mike]

No, no. Here. The fact you don't even have to do that.

[John]

Oh, I always get the comfort one. Yeah, because you get like, it's only clean.

[Chris]

It's only like $5 more.

[John]

That's what Uber used to be. Because I remember, I feel like the drive you had to qualify for a certain Car. Now it's like they don't give a fuck.

[Chris]

You got a backseat.

[Mike]

Cool.

[Chris]

Okay.

[John]

Yeah. Even if that like they. I don't even think they check at all anymore. Like you, you probably like a 6 year old could sign up for Uber nowadays.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[Mike]

It even used to be like if you had less than 4.9 stars, you weren't getting a ride. Like that's the, that was like the. Now I, Now I get 4.72 stars on Uber. I get rides from those guys all the time.

[John]

But anyway, so yeah, Japan, very serious, Very clean, very tidy, very orderly.

[Chris]

Incredibly hospital.

[John]

Super, super kind.

[Mike]

People were awesome.

[Chris]

That was incredible.

[John]

Over the moon. Yeah, they were.

[Chris]

When we showed up to the factory and they said, yeah, we put the flag up because you guys are coming.

[Mike]

I was like that got my blood boiled. I was like, hell yeah.

[John]

That was wild.

[Mike]

That was awesome.

[Chris]

So that's the nicest thing I've.

[Mike]

We.

[John]

We fly out there, we go through Chicago. It wasn't that long of a flight.

[Mike]

No.

[John]

Was 12, 13 hours there and then.

[Mike]

Back was like nine.

[John]

Yeah. Quick. But we went through LA. But to, I mean from Chicago. It's pretty incredible that you can go to Japan. I mean it was within 24 hour period. I was in my bed at home to then having dinner in Tokyo.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[Mike]

Yeah.

[John]

It was pretty long, which is pretty incredible. So we, we got into Tokyo, we did some sightseeing which was, which was fine. I didn't. I learned a lot about the Imperial family. I didn't totally understand how long the Imperial family's been around for. It's the longest lineage of any monarchy in the world.

[Chris]

Yeah. And they don't do anything right. They're just, they're not.

[John]

Post World War II. No. It was a really big deal. But that was like the sticking point. Post World War II was the imperial family and the emperor, like that was the most sacred of sacred cows was the emperor. So that was cool. But then we got to the visit which was two days with Hitachi, one day with a customer.

[Chris]

Yep.

[John]

So first day we went to the small excavator factory which was like 10, 15 ton machines, small, medium excavators up.

[Chris]

To, I think it went, they said it went up to 30.

[John]

30 ton? 35. So most of the machines I think we saw were between 15 and 30 ton.

[Chris]

Civil construction.

[John]

Civil construction machines. Yeah. Yeah. What'd you guys think about the first factory?

[Chris]

It was, it was. I mean our experience was great. They were super accommodating. Being able to go on the, on the Actual assembly line was awesome. But like as far as the factory itself, it was, that was a well oiled machine. Man.

[Mike]

They were turning and burning.

[Chris]

There are a lot of people. And everybody was just dialed in doing what they needed to do.

[John]

Yeah. Like that's what I feel like. That's when you know something. When they're really good at something is when there's no chaos.

[Chris]

No, there's, there's, there's a lot going on. But it was controlled.

[John]

So much going on. Like stuff going on everywhere.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[John]

But not a single ounce of chaos in that building.

[Chris]

I think the only reason why it might have felt. Felt a little more chaotic to us is because we had an entourage.

[Mike]

Entourage. I knew you could say that it.

[John]

Was, it was, the entourage was.

[Chris]

I think if it was like just us three and like maybe one or two other people, it wouldn't have been as bad. But like having like eight people follow us around, I felt it was 30.

[Mike]

There was third. Once we got into the, the talking part of the factory, there was at least 25 people.

[John]

And I don't even know where all the people started to come from.

[Chris]

They just kept tagging along.

[Mike]

Yeah, they just started tagging along.

[John]

Groups started getting bigger and bigger.

[Mike]

They were walking with us too. I was like, they. From one spot, they were like coming along with us in the factory. I had to back up and take a shot of it. Cuz it was like wow.

[John]

No, I, I, you know, I was like, make sure you get that because this is hilarious.

[Mike]

There's like 25 people on Aaron.

[John]

It was out of control.

[Mike]

That was funny.

[John]

Yeah. It was my first time seeing Japanese manufacturing. And it could not have been more impressive. They were just, they were just dialed in like everything. And the whole just in time thing was remarkable to see too. That's what they're very famous for is the just in time. Like there's not a lot of shit laying around the factory. They're just getting exactly what they need for the machine on the assembly line when they need it. There's not very much sitting there ready to go. It's not like there's 17 engines within the factory. There's like three and they're just for the next three machines. And then one goes onto a machine. Then forklift brings in another one and brings in another one.

[Mike]

It was every 22 minutes.

[John]

They don't want to talk about that.

[Mike]

Oh yeah, yeah, we cut that.

[John]

Yeah, we'll cut that part out.

[Mike]

Okay.

[John]

But it was a moving assembly line.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[John]

So each machine was on a little Jig, I guess to prop it up off the floor because it didn't have the undercarriage on to start. And then they would bring the frame in from another part of the factory. We didn't get to see the fabrication, which is fine. The welding robots and everything like that. It's cool. But we were like them. We were the first outsiders allowed to film ever before. They kept saying like they haven't done this before so they're not totally sure how this is going to work out. Which was part of my angst when we started. I was like, I don't know how this is going to be. Are they going to let us actually see anything? Are we going to film anything? How's this going to be? Who knows. But they ended up showing us everything. So we just walk down the assembly line. They bring the frame in and then just right away they start adding every station. It's like you'd imagine an assembly line to be. They just add more stuff, add more stuff, add more stuff. And as you get further down the assembly line, it's just slowly inching along as you get down to the end finish excavator.

[Mike]

It was super impressive to see how fast they were moving. Like even the guys putting in bolts were going like to me, that hand eye coordination just doing that was impressive. This guy's turning, burning 10, 15 bolts with one drill in the bottom of an excavator. It's just. It was really impressive.

[John]

But they were going fast. But it was very casual at the same time.

[Mike]

Yeah, it was like another day in the office for them.

[John]

They weren't like sweating bullets doing it. They were just doing what they do.

[Mike]

It was, it was, it was incredibly impressive. And they all seemed very proud of their work too. Like nobody, nobody was having a bad time. Like you see back here. I've seen people in factory jobs, they just. They look miserable. I just don't like their life.

[John]

Yeah.

[Mike]

Over there, they looked super, super, super happy to be there. Yeah, they're really cool.

[John]

They're very excited to have us to show off what they do because they're so proud of what they do. Which was.

[Mike]

I would be too.

[John]

Yeah.

[Mike]

With what the. With the way their factory looked and the way they were getting those machines out and how quick they were doing it. I would be super impressed.

[John]

Yeah.

[Mike]

And super proud.

[Chris]

My favorite part was the demonstration. Demonstration where you just started spinning.

[John]

Oh yeah.

[Chris]

And like throwing the, throwing the boom around.

[John]

Yeah. They brought a brand new machine out for us and they're like, so what do you want and we were like, I don't know. I don't know. Tell him to move the machine around. So he just starts. Yeah.

[Chris]

Just cranks the stick and starts spinning.

[Mike]

Just.

[John]

Just ripping it. And. And it was. He was like, the whole factory was covered in steel. So the whole floor inside the factory, outside the factory, everything was steel. So there was no dirt or anything. It wasn't like, there's a pile of dirt to test the machine on. They do that elsewhere. So he was just spinning around? Pretty much, yeah.

[Mike]

He's doing some fake buckets here and there, but.

[John]

Yeah.

[Mike]

Then you hopped in there.

[John]

Yeah, they. Like I said they. They didn't really tell us no for anything.

[Mike]

No. I had. I had a guy, because I was breaking off from the group a little bit more because that's what we do, you know, I just did a B roll off to the side when you guys are doing your A cam stuff. And so I had a guy that was behind me. And it was the same kind of feeling as, like, other projects we've been to. To where, like, a person's standing behind you. But it wasn't like, like, oh, he's watching me like a hawk. It was more like, he's just making sure I'm safe. Which was. That was really nice. Really, really nice to have.

[John]

Which I have much more patience for in that kind of setting. Cause it's like, yeah, I.

[Mike]

We're in a factory.

[John]

We're out of our way, outside of my element here.

[Mike]

So we're used to job sites and mines, stuff flying.

[Chris]

There's stuff going around on cranes. There's.

[John]

Yep.

[Chris]

Oh, yeah, that. And can't forget about the crane music.

[John]

Yep. Every crane had a different song.

[Chris]

It was like an ice cream truck song.

[John]

Yep. But. But some of them were like classical music, and then others were pop songs. I mean, they were all very different.

[Mike]

Yeah, it was. I feel like it was. Whoever had that kind of vibe.

[John]

Yeah.

[Mike]

In that station picked the music because it was like. It would be like a random, like, Katy Perry song. And then two to three stations down, it'd be some classical, some, like, Bach or something like that.

[John]

Yeah. Or then, like, next one would be some kids song.

[Mike]

Yeah, it was really weird.

[John]

Mary Had a Little Lamb, and they were all.

[Mike]

They all had tunes.

[John]

But I like that.

[Mike]

Yeah, I like it a lot, too.

[John]

A factor. You'd think it'd be just so serious. But then you hear, like, all these little jingles everywhere when the cranes are moving on.

[Mike]

The safety posters, the cartoons, safety.

[John]

Anime characters. Yeah, I like that.

[Chris]

Everything Is anime over there.

[John]

Everything's. Everything's anime.

[Chris]

Everything has a mascot. Everything's.

[John]

Oh, yeah. Like, every advertisement on every bus, train, people's shirts. Like, everything.

[Mike]

People just. Cause they, like, dress up. They cosplay.

[John]

Yeah, yeah. Just random people dressed up walking down the street.

[Mike]

Yeah. They got cat ears on and a mini skirt. You're like, what? What are you doing? But it's normal for them.

[John]

Yeah.

[Mike]

Dressing as an anime character.

[John]

Yeah. I feel like when we first got there, some guy walked out of the elevator, like, way or costume way, dressed up.

[Chris]

Oh, yeah.

[John]

I was like, what the fuck? Where's he going?

[Mike]

Do you remember the guy at the Tokyo Sky Tower? He was singing. He had a Mad Hatter costume.

[John]

Yeah.

[Mike]

Yeah. He was literally dressed as a Mad Hatter.

[John]

Yes.

[Chris]

Wasn't he a tour guide?

[Mike]

Yeah, he was a tour guide dressed as a Mad Hatter.

[John]

Why don't we get that tour guide? Oh, yeah.

[Chris]

That would have been fantastic.

[John]

Yeah, it was good. And then we saw. Yeah. Main machines get assembled, then they go to testing, then they put the boom stick bucket on, and then they go get shipped.

[Chris]

Yep.

[John]

And even we asked to go see some other stuff, and they were like, yeah, let's go. And they walked us through paint inspection and where they put the Hitachi sticker on and where they put boom and stick on.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[John]

Like, there wasn't really anything. They're like, no, we can do that.

[Mike]

Yeah.

[Chris]

No.

[John]

And had they said anything, I'd be like, all right. Yeah, I get it. It's. I'm in your house. You tell me what's cool and what's not cool.

[Mike]

Yeah. I feel like we've had that before where it's like, we've gone somewhere, and they're like, oh, don't shoot this. Don't shoot this. Don't shoot this. And it's, like, awesome. We're cool with that.

[John]

Yeah.

[Mike]

But then when we go to a place like that where it's like, just look for these things and just have at it. Oh, it made. It made the experience incredible because you're just sitting there, just. I feel like I learned a lot more just being on the. On the floor in general.

[John]

Yeah. I. Well. And even the guys we were with, they're like, yeah. The last time we were here, we couldn't get off the little path because every factory has, like, a green. Typically like a green painted path or like, some lines that you have to stay within.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[John]

And it's like, all right, you can't go off this path. And it's pretty you can kind of see what's going on, but it's pretty far away. Like you're not walking on the assembly line. You're pretty far off the line. So you can see it over a bunch of stuff, but you're not really seeing the action. But then walking up and standing on the line and standing there and being with the guys. Totally different experience.

[Mike]

It's crazy.

[John]

I was a little afraid because I've been to factories where it's like, you've got to follow the prescribed tour. You've got a tour guide, you've got the headsets.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[John]

You can't go outside of the lines.

[Chris]

Or you're on like a little.

[Mike]

That's what I thought was.

[John]

You're on a cart. You can't. You can't take pictures of that. Nope, we can't show that. Can we show this how we're not sure which. Again, I understand it's manufacturing, but they were just as accommodating as possible.

[Mike]

Yeah. I was kind of shocked at that.

[John]

And most everybody's good with language, but we had a translator as well for the three days, which was also very helpful.

[Mike]

If we didn't, we might have been a little screwed. And in a certain situation is. I'm glad we. We had a translator.

[John]

It would have been a little trickier.

[Mike]

Yeah.

[John]

Yeah. So that was the first factory. Then second day we went to the big factory. The mining machines.

[Chris]

Yep. In the port.

[John]

And the big excavators in the port. So it was right on the water, which was very cool. We interviewed two of the guys that worked at the factory that run the factory.

[Chris]

Yep.

[John]

Which was where I needed the translator because it was a translated interview. Yeah.

[Chris]

Speak a lick of English.

[John]

Well, they kind of did.

[Mike]

They understood certain phrases.

[John]

They understood. Yeah. When you're speaking a different language, it's a lot easier to understand than to speak. So they could. They could understand some stuff. Yeah. But then did that. And then first we saw the mining trucks, which is very cool.

[Chris]

Yeah, that's pretty sweet.

[John]

Hitachi bought Euclid. So they bought the big green trucks from back in the day, which are now Hitachi trucks. And they make. I mean, they're pretty big trucks. Up to 300 something ton trucks.

[Chris]

They're solid.

[John]

As big as. I mean, as big as most mining trucks get. Really?

[Mike]

Yeah.

[John]

Yeah. That was on one line which was pretty cool because it was a moving line. Yeah.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[John]

But it was a little different because it wasn't the floor moving. It was the little carts the machines were on. That's Right.

[Chris]

That's right.

[Mike]

It was weird because like at the start of where a haul truck starts in the Hitachi factory, it doesn't look like a haul truck at all.

[John]

Well, it's just a frame. Yeah, yeah.

[Mike]

It slowly progresses and the further you get down like you're two stations in like you get skip two parts in the line and it's immediately apparent that it's haul truck. And it's. It's fascinating how quick that comes together. It didn't click in my mind that we were filming haul trucks until we got two, two places down the line.

[John]

Well, it's interesting too, just the difference between the small machines and the much bigger machines. Because the bigger machines I feel like there's not as many components on a truck than an excavator. So there's more stuff happening on the excavator line. And because the trucks are so much bigger, they just have more space to work. So they can just I feel like put more stuff onto the truck.

[Mike]

At each station it looked like they were building Legos. When we first got in there, the first couple stations looked like they were just putting together Legos.

[John]

Well and that, that was one of the points of their manufacturing process was they're building a lot of this stuff away from the line and putting these little modules together and then they can just grab module and put it onto the truck. Bingo bango.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[John]

But it was pretty cool. Yeah. So they had stations and so it was like all right, maybe the truck frame. All right, we're getting to be a truck kinda. Okay. Yeah, this is definitely a truck. And then you get to finish truck. 100% mining truck.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[John]

And then the very end is a half built truck again because that's when they're taking it apart for shipping. Which I thought was.

[Chris]

Yeah, that was interesting. You'd think it'd just be like at the end is the full truck.

[John]

Yeah. But it was the second to last was the full truck. The last one was a half built truck again.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[Mike]

Because they had to run the fluids through it and stuff.

[John]

Well, they had to get rid of the. You have to.

[Mike]

I feel like, I feel like on the last station before they dismantled it, they ran the fluids through it and then drained them and then.

[John]

No. Well, on the last one when, when the last built one fluids test it and then I feel like they have to take fluids out again.

[Mike]

Yeah, yeah. That's in the. Yeah, you have to drain assembly I think.

[Chris]

So do they leave it up to the customer to put the fluids back in?

[John]

No, because they'll have a Hitachi. They'll have mechanics build the truck again on site and then test it before it actually goes into production. Because at the factory there's no tires on the trucks. There's no need for tires. You're not driving them.

[Chris]

Well, I guess they got the hubs.

[John]

Yeah, but. But yeah. No, no electric trucks. Electric drive. So they had the drive motors on the back. The back tires and then no bed.

[Chris]

Yeah, yeah.

[John]

Because that's typically built.

[Chris]

That's just one piece. Not actually one piece, but it'll be put on as one piece.

[John]

Yeah, put on was one piece. Either is arrived in three or four pieces.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[John]

Sometimes the tray is three with the. The rock guard as another. Or sometimes the rock guards built into the three sections. Yeah, but that's. The trays are typically built wherever the truck is going. If they're in Africa, they're typically manufactured in Africa, South America, Australia, etc.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[John]

So then the trucks from there they get broken down into pieces. Go to the port which we went to and then we went over to the mining excavator side of the factory.

[Chris]

That's pretty sweet. Got some cases to see. Some cool stuff over there.

[John]

Super cool. So the big machines, it's not an assembly line, they just build in place. So they start with a gigantic frame. The frames are huge on those mining excavators. And then they just build up putting the different Legos on.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[Mike]

And that. That felt more like a shop than a factory when they're.

[Chris]

Did we figure out. Did we ever figure out which model that was?

[John]

The big one was a 5600.

[Mike]

Yeah.

[John]

Yeah. So there weren't any eight thousands going on in there, but yeah, they had a 5600 and then maybe like a 26, 2800. I forget what size it was, but around like 250 to 300 ton machines were the other ones.

[Mike]

The 5600 we saw in there, was that a front shovel that they were doing?

[John]

I don't know. They didn't say or. I didn't ask that.

[Mike]

I don't. I don't think. Yeah, I don't think it was easy to discern. So.

[John]

But no. And it's the same thing with the excavators. They build them up and then they tear them down again. Y for then shipping in pieces.

[Mike]

Yeah.

[Chris]

Yeah. Well they were. They were shipping them just without the booms, weren't they?

[John]

No, they. It's all like. Did you saw that? You filmed it at the port. They had all the different excavator pieces on those. Like those giant pallets.

[Mike]

Yeah.

[Chris]

Oh you're talking about. I'm thinking like 1200s.

[John]

No. Yeah. The mining excavators. Yeah, yeah. Big, big, big, big ones.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[John]

And then we saw the medium sized excavators. Medium to large.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[John]

Excavators. The 40ish to 120 ton machines.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[Mike]

Yeah. That was.

[Chris]

Those are on assembly line.

[John]

That was probably my favorite.

[Mike]

That was my favorite part of the factory for sure. And then like them firing up after and before they tracked them out. The smell of that and made my day. I was like this smells so good. Just brand new fresh diesel.

[John]

Yeah.

[Chris]

Yeah. Those are cool. Because. What was it? It was the. They would come to the end of the assembly line and then slide 90 degrees to the right and then they would bring the undercarriage over.

[John]

Yeah. So it was another moving assembly line.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[John]

So the whole floor was moving which is. It was kind of weird too. When you're walking around on it. It was moving really slow. But you could tell it was really slow. Yeah. You could definitely. You could still feel it was like oh this is not.

[Mike]

Yeah.

[John]

Staying in the same place. But the whole floor is moving. Like the whole factory is essentially going at one pace. They're building all kinds of different machines on the same line. So they're building. You know, one will be a 40 ton machine, the next one will be 120 ton machine. Which was pretty cool.

[Mike]

Yeah.

[John]

Similar to the smaller excavator factory. Just I think a little bit more spacious. Bigger components, bigger machines. Start with the frame at one end as it goes to the other.

[Chris]

Yep.

[John]

Engine, hydraulic system, pumps, tanks, cab, everything goes on. And then it's on. It's like it's moving on the line. But it's also on this little cart.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[John]

That they can then slide off the line. And then they slide it all the way over to the other part of the factory where they're building the undercarriages. And then they plop the house onto the undercarriage.

[Chris]

Yep. We got to see them lift the undercarriage with the crane which was very cool.

[Mike]

That was super cool.

[Chris]

Lift that thing up pretty high.

[John]

Yeah.

[Mike]

They had to bring it over another.

[Chris]

Lift that undercarriage probably like 20ft up in the air.

[John]

Yeah. Yeah. And it's. It's a lot of weight. I mean that's.

[Mike]

Yeah. That's no joke.

[John]

And that was not a huge. I think that was a 890-870-whatever size machine that is.

[Mike]

Looked like a 42, 45 ton machine.

[John]

No, I think it Was for the maybe, but it wasn't, it wasn't one of the biggest ones. I know they're, they're bigger ones that they're lifting in there and then they marry the two together. I think they call it docking. And then.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[John]

And then they just. I think what was my favorite about that, that factory was they then drove the machines out.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[John]

So we got to see some big machines quite literally drive out, walk, walk out of the factory. Which was I thought pretty damn cool.

[Mike]

Yeah, that was awesome. Take their first steps baby. Take their first steps.

[John]

Yeah. I've got a soft spot for 1200s too because that was the first big machine I ever got to shoot. The big. The first mining excavator I got to shoot was a 5600 and the first big excavator I got to shoot was a 1200.

[Mike]

I think I have your 50 year one of your first 5600 photos on my wall.

[John]

Really?

[Mike]

Yeah.

[John]

That's that capstone then.

[Mike]

Yeah.

[Chris]

It's a good machine.

[John]

It's a super solid machine.

[Chris]

Good looking machine.

[John]

I've only heard good things about 1200.

[Mike]

Yeah, I, I think, I think 1200.

[Chris]

Was my first big excavator at Turner.

[John]

Really?

[Chris]

Yeah.

[John]

Yeah.

[Chris]

They run a few of them with the Xmore bucket.

[John]

Yeah, yeah.

[Chris]

It was. First time I saw. Is that 120.120ton excavator? Yeah, it's the first time I saw 100ton more than 100ton excavator. I was like holy shit.

[John]

Yeah, pretty cool. So then we walked through. They also had a part of the factory that was like special orders. That's where they made the big demolition machines too. Which I want to see next time. Japanese demolition machines I think are the best in the world based on what I've seen.

[Mike]

Yeah. The, the machines that we even saw just like passing glances there were insane.

[John]

That giant one that wasn't painted, it was like 1800 size excavator. Triple boom.

[Chris]

Oh yeah. The one with a primer paint on it.

[Mike]

Yeah.

[John]

Monster machine.

[Mike]

It looks gnarly.

[John]

I connected with a guy out there. He doesn't speak English, I don't speak Japanese. But we've through Google Translate have communicated enough. And he just posts like Japanese demolition machines. He knows where every machine is. They're all custom painted.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[John]

And even one of them has like action figures on them. I need to show you guys.

[Mike]

I'm sure like Gundams.

[John]

No, it's. I don't know how to explain it but it's a bunch of different Random colors. And it's. Their paint scheme is super cool. Super cool.

[Chris]

It's awesome.

[Mike]

I thought. I thought one of the cooler machines we saw that we didn't even really come for was that the extendo boom that was working on that basement, Remember?

[John]

Oh yeah.

[Mike]

On the Skytree.

[John]

Yeah, they have a lot of those.

[Mike]

Yeah.

[John]

Those really cool telescoping boom to reach down into basements. Because Tokyo, it's so dense. Every building has a basement. And to dig the basement, they have to have that telescoping clamshell go down, grab the material, like watching paint dry. So then from there, saw the factory. Then we went to the port, which is where they had all the machines ready for export, which I thought was awesome. That was my first time at a port I've shot in a not kosher way, the Savannah port, so many times over because that's where a lot of machines are exported off the east coast in the US but this was first official sanctioned. Yeah, yeah. And they had a ton of machines out there.

[Chris]

Oh yeah.

[Mike]

Oh yeah. The. Not even just Hitachi, but the Hitachi machines were. The whole lineup they had was tons of Hitachi machines.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[John]

So they had all the smaller excavators. They had the bigger excavators on tracks out there. The loaders and then all the bigger machines they had basically on these gigantic pallets.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[John]

Like the trucks mining excavators. 120 ton 1200s on like gigantic pallets.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[John]

That would then just get loaded onto. Onto ships and shipped all over the world. Some of them I was looking at go like, are going to Georgia. And you could see the shipping labels.

[Chris]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I remember we even saw when we were in that crazy yard in the Middle east, some of the machines came from Georgia.

[John]

Yeah. All the, all the cat dozers because they're all manufactured in the States. Are assembled in the States.

[Mike]

It was pretty fun to shoot. The whole. Well, the factory in general was fun to shoot, but that port was really fun to shoot. They let us bring out the drones and whatnot. And yeah, we were able to get really. In really tight situations with those machines. And it was really, really fun, honestly.

[John]

Yeah, I only got yelled at when I climbed up on another manufacturer's machine to photograph the Hitachi.

[Mike]

So I was like, that'll happen.

[John]

I'm after the angles. Come on. But yeah, I got some. I reviewed my photos this weekend. I got some pretty sweet shots of the port.

[Mike]

Yeah, Port. It was really bright. But overall I think everything that we got was really cool.

[John]

Yeah. So that was both the official Hitachi days. Then the third day was going to see a customer. Yeah, Fujisako.

[Mike]

That was awesome.

[John]

A quarry.

[Chris]

That was.

[Mike]

That was a highlight.

[John]

Yeah, that was one of the cooler. Yeah. Even, like, you guys were kind of getting set up in the. At the bus there. They're like, all right, you're gonna go in and meet the owner of the choreo. So I was like, all right, all right. And we go into the small conference room, but it has, like, enough space for maybe three people, maybe four people. And again, there's, like, 20 fucking people. I don't even know where all these people came from, but there's so many people. I have no idea who these people are. Yeah, no, like, everybody speaks Japanese. I don't speak Japanese, so I can't even ask them. Like, so what do you do around here? And then they're like, oh, no, no. We're gonna go to this other building. So we go to this other building. You walk in, you take your shoes off. Then you go into your office slippers. They all, like. There's, like, 30 pairs of office slippers sitting there. So you grab your pair of office slippers, you go up, and then it's just this, like, giant conference table. I sit down with all these guys, maybe 10 people around the table, and then there's, like, another 10 or 15 standing. So this. This room just full of people that I don't know who the. I don't know who the fuck's who. Fortunately, I have the translator with me, which she was amazing. And the quarry owner is across from me, and everybody. I feel like it's part of their culture, but I feel like it's, like this way in the United States, too. People, like. He's like the owner of the quarry. They think it's like. Like really big deal. And they're almost like, oh, man. He's like the owner of the quarry. Big deal. Like, this guy's different level on a pedestal. And then, like, the first thing he says, he just cracks a fucking joke. And I'm like, nice. Yes. Let's go. So then I sit there just joking with this guy through the translator for maybe, like, 15 minutes, which was a ton of fun. A ton of fun.

[Chris]

Yeah, I can imagine.

[Mike]

Yeah.

[John]

But it's super, super weird because it's like, you say the joke to the translator, and then she has to figure out how to translate it, because some of the stuff, it's not direct translation. And then she says it, and you're like, the whole Time. You're waiting for people to laugh, like, hoping the joke lands, and then five seconds later, the whole room starts to chuckle and you're like, nice, I did it.

[Mike]

Glad you guys understood that one.

[John]

Let's go.

[Mike]

Thankfully, it didn't get lost in the weeds.

[John]

No. So then we have our business meeting. We go out to the quarry. When they said Cory, I was like, okay, Cory. Yeah. I mean, we've been a bunch of quarries. It's like right on rocks. Pretty unique. He runs a 5600 excavator and what?

[Mike]

Yeah, ridiculous. Just ridiculous, dude. Especially in that quarry. Like there wasn't that big of a quarry.

[John]

It wasn't that big of a footprint. Yeah.

[Mike]

And then one of the biggest machines that Tachi makes.

[John]

Yeah.

[Mike]

There it was. Just ridiculous.

[John]

Biggest excavator in Japan.

[Mike]

And it was cool because you could tell he was like, the excavator wasn't there to do what it was doing the day we came, but he brought it out anyways to like, show us, like to show it off. And. Oh, they dirt.

[John]

Like, it was like the factories, they could not have been more accommodating. Like, usually, Usually it's like, all right, if we're going to go see a 5600, they'd be like, all right, fuck you guys. Just make it work. Like, we're not even going to think twice about you because we have numbers to hit.

[Mike]

Here's our bench. That's at a 45 degree climb.

[John]

If it's good, it's good. If it's not, it's not. Just deal with it.

[Mike]

There's dust, there's no water truck. You know, you guys, you can't use that footage.

[John]

Yeah. Whereas there, like, they parked the machine for us to walk around, for us to do the interview. We got to run up and down the machine. The operator followed us, which was very cool.

[Mike]

Yeah.

[John]

So we got a picture of the operator and then they were like, all right, do you want us to run the machine? And I was like, oh, you guys are waiting for us. Like, yeah, go run the machine. And then they fire it up and go to work.

[Mike]

Yeah.

[John]

They walk it down, walk it down.

[Mike]

It turns the corner. Do you think it's going to keep going? And then it stops at this one little spot and it's like not a spot you would think it would start digging at. It doesn't look like much of a face for a 5600, but it was pretty snug. Yeah. He just starts turning and burning.

[John]

Yeah.

[Mike]

And those haul trucks were Running, so.

[John]

But the operator was doing a really nice job for how tight that was.

[Mike]

Oh yeah. He was chill as a cucumber too. Took his shoes off. He was operating with his toes. The dogs were out, leaned back.

[John]

Well, he had the excavator slides.

[Mike]

Yeah. He had the sandals.

[John]

Yeah. He had the little shoe bin. So you take your shoes off and then you get into your little excavator slides.

[Mike]

Yeah, I had to take off boots when I went in.

[John]

Yeah.

[Mike]

It was sick.

[John]

Yeah.

[Mike]

Yeah.

[John]

The cab was immaculate, spotless.

[Mike]

The cab was incredible. It was honestly perfect for filming too. Cause the way the seat was set up behind the operator, you could see everything. And the visibility in the cab is unlike any big. And I've been in a lot of big excavators now from our travels. That's most visibility I've seen in an excavator cab by far. So just sitting in that back seat.

[John]

You can see everything even compared to the 9,600.

[Mike]

Yeah.

[John]

Really?

[Mike]

I wouldn't even think it's close, honestly.

[John]

The 9600.

[Mike]

9600 has good visibility too. Big cab like. And I, I'm no shade to lee Bear. The 9600, that's a good cab. But the Hitachi cab is really good.

[John]

Yeah. So we, I mean for then two hours we just watched the machine work and load trucks.

[Mike]

Yeah.

[John]

Beautiful quarry. Like the, the plant was gorgeous. It was brand new.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[John]

Gorgeous operation.

[Chris]

Yeah. We were able to get camera shots like get pretty close up from above on the bench.

[John]

Oh yeah, yeah. We. That was the closest I've ever been to a 5600.

[Chris]

Like usually could have thrown a rock in the truck.

[John]

Yeah. Yeah. Don't even think about getting in close. But they were. Where do you want to be? And we had maybe 20 people watching us the entire time there too.

[Mike]

Yeah. And they were all. They were as happy as a clam to be there.

[John]

Yeah. They're just hanging out.

[Mike]

Like a lot of the marketing people that come with us. Sometimes they just don't. They don't understand it. They're just a marketing person. Yeah.

[John]

Don't really care.

[Mike]

Yeah. But when you see people that are really passionate about their job, it's like it shows like they're there to be there. You know, they were having fun.

[John]

What I thought was cool too was that all of the. I mean there were some pretty high level people that joined us that day from Hitachi and from the Japanese dealer. Like really high level. They all had suits on. But then they had like their vest and Hard hat and gumboots that they. That they put on. So they didn't wear their nice shoes out in the quarry. Yeah, but that was the first time I'd seen, like, a whole group of people wearing suits on a quarry. And it wasn't because it was like stodgy corporate America, because that probably happens here. And it's like, all right, fuck you guys. It was like, that's just how they are. Like, that's what they. That's what they wear to work. So of course they're going to be wearing the suit on the Cory as well.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[Mike]

Like, even our. Even our guy, Kobe, he from Hitachi. He was our, like, Hitachi guide.

[John]

Yeah.

[Mike]

He was wearing a suit every single. Every single place we went. Yeah, we went to dinner. It was like, he's. He's our age. As it was shocking. He was younger than us. He's wearing a shoot suit everywhere. I felt embarrassed.

[John]

I thought it was pretty cool. Yeah. I even. I even took a picture of the guys walking back to the car in their suits and gumboots with like a big mining truck in the background. Because it's just. Yeah, it's just. It just looked goofy.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[John]

But I really appreciated it.

[Chris]

Yeah, that was great.

[John]

And the quarry owner, nicest guy in the world. Super accommodating. I took some pretty cool pictures. I'm excited about.

[Mike]

He's calling you a middle schooler for.

[John]

Yeah, he said. He must have said 25 times how young I look. And he was 80 something.

[Mike]

He goes. At the end of it, he goes, you look like a middle schooler to me.

[John]

Yeah. But through the translator. Yeah, I heard.

[Mike]

I was in the bus when he said that, and I lost it. I was laughing. I was like, oh, my gosh, that's funny.

[John]

Took us to lunch after and.

[Mike]

And that was our. That was our first good course lunch.

[John]

It was. Well, yeah, because it was like, it's all fried buffet style. Yeah. And they just put it out on the table and you could eat what you wanted.

[Mike]

Yeah. Good old pork tonkotsu had a lot of that.

[John]

Yeah. Yeah. I demolished the shrimp. Just demolished the shrimp.

[Mike]

It was some good stuff.

[John]

So, yeah, I guess that's Japan in a nutshell. Anything else?

[Chris]

Shinjuku was pretty interesting.

[John]

Yeah.

[Mike]

Yeah. You don't want to talk about Shinjuku.

[John]

No. You just have to see it to believe it. What about the DVD store?

[Chris]

You can Google it.

[John]

Yeah. We went to a very cool DVD store with some, I would say, dynamic films.

[Mike]

I would say some of the most interesting films in the World.

[John]

Yeah, yeah. Dynamic, eclectic, fast paced.

[Mike]

The consumer base there was very dynamic and eclectic.

[John]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Some really exciting comic books, some pretty extraordinary literature.

[Chris]

Other than. Other than like those places, the. What were they called? Those like seven level stores.

[John]

I don't know what they were.

[Chris]

Yeah, Don Quixote.

[John]

Yeah, but there were. It wasn't just one brand, was it?

[Mike]

The store was Don Quixote. But it was like eight different stores in the store.

[John]

That was one we went to, but they had a bunch of different ones.

[Mike]

Well, the, the main ones that we were going up, up like escalators in those are all Don Quixotes.

[John]

Are they?

[Mike]

Yeah, they're all Don Quixote. They're just different stores inside the. So it's like a brand. I'm pretty sure this Networks. I'm not 100% positive, but it's like a brand that owns like the store and then every level is a different.

[John]

Store, but it seems like every half of the aisle is a different store.

[Mike]

Yeah, that's what it feels like.

[Chris]

It's like overstimulation too.

[John]

Yeah. It's like an antique mall. Like it's a big building with one brand within a bunch of different sellers within it, but way more condensed and with a million times more stuff and flashing lights and sounds.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[Mike]

And like everything from like a tourist shop to like an aggressive section.

[John]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. You can get some like both ends of the spectrum.

[Chris]

Like one aisle you're in CVS and then you turn the corner and then it's the adult store.

[John]

Well, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Like on one corner you can get like a really cool apple slicer.

[Mike]

Yeah, yeah.

[John]

Like next corner. Yeah.

[Mike]

You can get some peeler.

[John]

Some wild like nurse costumes.

[Chris]

Yeah. For you, DJ Max, check out wine and. Yeah, that was cool though. It was the. And yeah, Shinjuku, other than the other stuff was pretty cool. Like, it's just wild just how much is going on in such a small space.

[John]

Yeah.

[Chris]

So every square inch is either a business or.

[John]

Yeah. We got home after that night, I was like, I'm so fucking tired of people just walking into people.

[Mike]

It felt like you were in Disneyland. Yeah.

[John]

But it's like times five. It's like a game of Frogger at the same time.

[Mike]

Yeah.

[John]

You're just trying to avoid.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[Mike]

And everybody.

[John]

All the people. And then you're trying to get onto the right train and then you're trying to get out of the fucking train station. Which we didn't do very well.

[Chris]

Oh, yeah.

[John]

And then you're trying to dodge the guys trying to sell you things and people. Yeah.

[Chris]

Because we're like. We stick out like a sore thumb.

[John]

That was like a sore thumb. And that's like the touristy area. Come on down.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[Mike]

That one guy followed us. It was. That was ridiculous.

[John]

Yeah. But anyway, that was our Japan trip and we will have videos on it all out at some point.

[Chris]

Very good. It was a great time. Thanks.

[John]

Well, Tachi. Yeah, huge. Thanks to Hitachi. And with that, we will probably be back after Europe.

[Chris]

Yep. Balmain, Germany.

[John]

Palma. Germany, Netherlands. Maybe some Italy.

[Mike]

Italy today.

[John]

Yeah.

[Mike]

I got my bones excited. Yeah.

[John]

Stay tuned.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[John]

All right. See.