The day after Blare Fest ended, I was in Kyoto and only planned to casually wander around Omihachiman.

I grew up around the water towns of Jiangnan, so scenes of arched bridges, flowing canals, white walls, and dark roof tiles have always felt familiar to me. That is exactly why I was curious about Japan's version of a "water town." How similar is Omihachiman's Hachiman-bori to the waterways of Suzhou or Wuzhen? Is Japan's style more delicate, or does Jiangnan still have the deeper charm?

When I left Kyoto Station, the sky was already clearing up. Under that brightening sky, I had no idea that Omi-Shiotsu, a small station in northern Lake Biwa surrounded by mountains on three sides, was getting heavy snow.

By the time I arrived, snowflakes were already drifting down. Even though I realized my water-town walk might not go smoothly, I still insisted on making the snowy round trip from the station to Hachiman-bori and back.

On the way back to the station, I was scrolling through Google Maps when an idea suddenly hit me. Since I was already by Lake Biwa, why not try a spontaneous omawari josha (long detour ride)? At the very least, circling the lake by train would keep me warm and let me enjoy the snowy scenery.

A Railfan's Spontaneous Experiment

The so-called omawari josha is based on the special rule in Article 157 of JR's Passenger Business Regulations for travel within "major metropolitan suburban sections." In short, it lets you take a much longer detour route while paying the fare of the shortest path between your starting and ending stations.

Core Rules of Omawari Josha

Strictly speaking, this trip did not fully match the definition of a true long-round trip. I used Suica in Apple Pay, so entering and exiting stations was just a simple tap, with no paper ticket to keep as a souvenir. More importantly, I did not plan the route in advance, and I did not form a perfect closed loop. Starting from Kyoto to Omihachiman, then looping back to Kyoto from there, it felt more like a "forced loop."

But spontaneity has never been about perfection, has it?

A Snowy Railway Adventure

When I boarded the Biwako Line train from Omihachiman to Maibara, I was still riding the excitement of this sudden travel idea. Then, as we approached Maibara, the train slowed down and even stopped twice along the way.

I checked my phone and saw delay notices everywhere due to snow. That meant every transfer afterward would be off schedule, and waiting times would be unpredictable.

As a result, I waited on the Maibara platform for more than 20 minutes before the next train slowly rolled in.

The Hokuriku Line stretch from Maibara to Omi-Shiotsu is not long, but the snow scenery became more and more dramatic. As the train passed Lake Yogo, I saw quite a few people building snowmen by the lakeside. At that point, I could basically tell the moment I got off would feel like stepping into a snow country, and I was about to pay the price for that view.

Omi-Shiotsu Station is a transfer point. From here, you can continue north on the Hokuriku Line toward places like Fukui and Kanazawa, or transfer to the Kosei Line and return toward Kyoto along the west side of Lake Biwa. Of course, you can also simply take the Hokuriku Line back the way you came.

The moment I stepped out of the train and looked at the station timetable, my heart sank.

The next Special Rapid toward Himeji was 50 minutes away.

On the Kosei Line, the Himeji-bound Special Rapid only comes once an hour. I had missed the previous one by just a little.

There was an open waiting area on the platform, but it was not enclosed, so cold wind came in from every side.

I found a seat. There was a cushion on it, apparently donated by some group, but it still felt icy the moment I sat down. The air temperature was -1C, but it felt like -9C, and the cold cut through the cushion straight into my body.

That was when I fully understood this station's geography: mountains on three sides and a lake on the fourth, a natural "cold-air collector." Kyoto's sunny weather had lowered my guard, and I never expected the northern edge of Lake Biwa to look like this.

Interestingly, I noticed an automatic hot-water spraying system working on the tracks, pouring warm water to prevent icing.

The good news: the Kosei Line train arrived on time. The bad news: the inside of the 223 series cars was not very warm.

One detail worth noting: in rural areas of Japan, train doors are not always automatic. At some stops, passengers need to press the button next to the door to open it. Realizing this only after someone behind you runs up and presses it for you is genuinely awkward.

The train ran along the west shore of Lake Biwa, the most beautiful stretch of the whole loop. Even in winter, even in snow, the shifting colors where the lake met the sky were breathtaking. I leaned back in my seat, feeling the warmth I had regained, replaying the day in my head.

Regrets

For this pseudo long-round trip, my Suica charge record was 680 yen from Kyoto to Omihachiman and another 680 yen from Omihachiman back to Kyoto, for a total of 1,360 yen.

A small regret: I had no paper ticket as a keepsake. That ritual feeling of "holding a ticket, tracing the route, and setting off" was replaced by a single tap sound on my phone.

More importantly, I did not complete a perfect closed loop. A strict long-round trip should start from one point, make a full circuit, and return to the exact same point. I went from Kyoto to Omihachiman, then looped back to Kyoto from Omihachiman. Geographically circular, yes, but ticket-wise just two separate trips.

Tips for Anyone Trying This Later

If you want to try a Lake Biwa long-round trip too, here are a few suggestions:

First, check timetables in advance. Especially for the Himeji-bound Special Rapid on the Kosei Line, service is not as frequent as you might think. Waiting an hour on a platform in bad weather is not an experience everyone will enjoy.

Second, buy paper tickets instead of using Suica.

Epilogue: A Complete Failure, In a Good Way

It was still only afternoon when I got back to Kyoto. But because of this spontaneous long-round trip, I had missed lunch and was absolutely starving.

Maybe that is the essence of travel. Plans never keep up with reality, but surprises often leave deeper memories. As for the wishes left unfinished, I can leave them for next time.

After all, life is not a checklist, and a journey does not need a perfect ending. Sometimes, a failed long-round trip is more memorable than a flawless success.