First Night in the Car
Current location: Some random car park near Suzuka Circuit, hoping I don’t get told I can’t sleep here.
After writing the blog yesterday, I didn’t end up going to the theatre on the boat. Instead, I went back to my cabin and watched a couple of episodes of the German Too Hot To Handle on Netflix. Rogue, I know, but I’ve been practicing my German lately and, frankly, it’s much more entertaining than the American one.
This morning, I woke up with one goal: get to Suzuka. The ferry arrived in Nagoya at around 10, which gave me about an hour and a half to get there for the start of FP1. Also worth mentioning—it was a real relief being back on solid land. 36 hours on a car ferry is something I’d like to avoid doing again. I set off with the Fred Again Boiler Room set blaring, sun shining, windows down, and a big smile on my face. The drive took about an hour, but I stopped for a coffee and picked up some supplies for the day from a Lawson on the way. By the time I got to the circuit it was 11:30 and FP1 had already started. Parking was a nightmare, and after being turned away from three separate places, I simply abandoned the car in front of a shop near the circuit and walked over.
The circuit was packed with Japanese fans, most of them wearing some sort of homemade merchandise showing their dedication and loyalty to their preferred driver or team. I bought a cheap ticket, so my unreserved seating area was right down by Spoon Curve—although seating in general seems much more relaxed than Silverstone, with no one really checking tickets anywhere once you’re in. I’m not going to write about what happened in the sessions, as frankly there are much better reports available online from people who know what they’re talking about, and I missed half of FP1 anyway.
After FP2 was over, I FaceTimed my mum for 15 minutes while soaking up the last of the sun in the grandstand, then headed back to the car to get set up for the first night camping (well, sleeping) in it! I headed to the nearest DCM and picked up a camp chair and some paracord—the chair for the F1, and the paracord to create a net so I can hang my skis from the ceiling of the car, making a bit more room to sleep in. Then I walked across the car park to Sushiro for some (you guessed it) sushi for dinner.
I’d never been to a Sushiro before, and I have to say it’s not quite as organised as Hama. Rather than every plate you order from the tablet being delivered directly to you, you actually have to keep an eye out for your table number on the dish as it goes past. Not sure I’ve explained that very well, but it’s closer to a Yo! Sushi than a proper conveyor place.
I left Sushiro feeling nourished and ready for an onsen, which, after a quick look on Google Maps, I found just 15 minutes away (everything seems to be really close in Suzuka—I kind of like it). The place was called Hana-Shobu, and I can highly recommend it. It had probably eight baths, both indoors and outdoors, as well as a steam room and sauna. The sauna was one of the weirder ones I’ve been to: it had a huge vase of salt in the middle of the room, and people would periodically stand up, grab a handful, and rub it on themselves. I gave it a go—obviously—but couldn’t help feeling like I was seasoning myself like a steak. Needless to say, I’m now severely dehydrated, as all the water has been sucked out of me by the salt.
After that, I found a suitably quiet car park about a 15-minute walk from the circuit, where I’m now parked up and ready to sleep. Going for an 8 a.m. alarm and looking forward to FP3 and Quali tomorrow.
