'Most Confusing' Award

The winner of the 'Most Confusing City' award has to go to Mito in Ibaraki!

Yesterday I had to attend a meeting in Mito and unfortunately public transport wasn't an option because neither the bus nor train timetables matched my meeting time. After thinking about it for a week or so, I decided to drive and carefully checked maps for the best route. I found that I only had to take one main road after exiting the highway, then turn right into the street where the meeting was being held.

Everything went okay until that final right turn. NO TURNING RIGHT! Oooh. Okay so go another block. OH NO!!! It was a trunk road with no exits and it lead in a big loop around to Kairakuen Park. It took almost 30 minutes to get back again!

Why? Well, Mito is an old city so the planning was good a few centuries ago. Now it is a maze of one way streets, narrow streets, bad drivers, weird directions and to make matters worse, construction! It only took 40 minutes on the highway from Tsukuba to Mito, but 30 minutes to find my way to the Mito International Association building! :(

Thank you so much to the nice hair stylist who came running outside when I parked in front of his salon. Actually, I must admit he probably ran outside because I just turned the wrong way down a one way street. But I only went 3 meters to park in front of the salon. Luckily he was kind and sent me in the right direction.

Am I going to drive to Mito ever again? NO I DON'T THINK SO!!!!!

Lunch was really yummy though! Despite it being very old, the sushi restaurant on the top floor of the old Keisei Department building had great rice topped with raw salmon.