355 F355 30th Anniversary Japan

Dear F355 brother and sisters,

I can remember Jeremy Clarkson’s review of the F355 very clearly. He praised the car in every single way (the steering, Jeremy?!) and, in a rare twist of journalistic fate he became so possessed by the machine he broke down and bought one.

“I just have to have one. I have to.” he pined.

I knew exactly how he felt.
I suspect that we all do.
I just had to have one and… so did you.

That very same feeling came across me five years ago. I am a moderator of the F355 Fan Club on Facebook and someone posted pictures of the 25th F355 Anniversary in Japan and I sat there mouth agape. The event fascinated me. Who are these people? Where in Japan is it held? With almost no social media presence the mystery fed upon itself, consuming me.

Japan takes me back to my childhood. I suspect that is why my desire to go was so powerful. Growing up with Nintendo and Playstation video game systems and Gundam Wing anime on TV, Japanese culture was in my everyday life. I even took Japanese in high school. Needless to say I have always wanted to go to Japan and a F355 event intersected at the most brilliant confluence of desire and urgency.

I just had to go. I just did!

There was a small problem. I had no idea how to reach anyone involved with this “club.”
They are not on Facebook. They are not on FerrariChat. They are not known in the western world.

I was conversing with the original poster of those 25th anniversary photos but we lost touch.
It took some luck in speaking with a friend who is Japanese and has a F355 who introduced me to the organizer, Mr. S. He was extremely kind and polite. I told him that I am a diehard Ferrari and F355 fan and I saw the anniversary pictures on the internet, and would you please, please, please, consider allowing me to attend the next event?
He replied “Of course, please come! But you should know that the event isn't guaranteed. If the weather is bad then we simply won't be doing the event.”

I suspect that for the average person, it would be a dealbreaker to go to the other side of the planet solely for an event that isn’t guaranteed. But for me, it just made it better- these people are very particular just like me so I totally understand. I knew I had to take the risk regardless. I just had to go!

And then COVID happened and Japan was sealed off to foreigners for years. My heart sank.

It took until 2023 for the Japanese government to relax and allow foreigners in again. As my luck would have it 2024 was the 30th Anniversary of our beloved machine. It must be fate. I snatched a plane ticket. Japan, here I come!

The Japanese are famously hospitable. The organizer very kindly paired me with someone who was fluent in English and we began to converse via email. I have a plain boring old red one. His is Blu Le Mans with dark blue interior. Oh man! Not only that, he wanted to show me around Tokyo before the event. He suggests visiting Sensoji Temple and going to see sumo wrestling. The temple looked so cool and it never occurred to me about going to the Basho. This guy just got even cooler and I haven't even met him yet.

I did have a bit of worry; the kind about never meeting your heroes. This entire event was hyped up in my mind to such a large degree and for so long that I was worried if it would ever meet let alone exceed them. Heck, it may not even take place as it could easily get rained out. With my luck I just know that’s what will happen. Would this ever be something worth waiting five years for?

I guess you'll have to find out more the next time I post!

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Yes, the flight was long.

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Somewhere... Over Alaska.

 

Nice I lived in Japan for 3 years. Must see pictures!

 

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I have arrived in Japan without incident. The flight was smooth with little turbulence. Upon arrival I navigated the airport and found the railway and bought my Passmo pass. I was apprehensive with the language barrier but everything melted away when I got on the train. The sun was in its golden hour basking everything in a warm glow. The countryside rolled by showing county homes with the typical Japanese roofs butting up against the forest. It was amazing.

After a very long flight it was a relief to get to my hostel in Asakusa. I was tired and hungry; something had to be done. I went for a walk and found a tonkatsu place down the street. Let me tell you it was sooooo good to have a decent meal again. And I get to eat all the Japanese food I want for two weeks!

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This place will treat you right

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Tender and hot. The way I like it.

I get the bill after I eat. With the exchange rate it was under $5 USD. And no tip!

I walked around my neighborhood. The first time I ever been to Japan. The first time ever in Tokyo. Its bustling, clean and, relaxed.

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Now its time to get rest as I have a big day tomorrow.

 

Thanks for sharing your trip with us

I can't wait to read the following!

 

Looking forward to your updates Paul. I plan to take my family to Japan in the near future so interested to read your reviews. While I’m a diehard all things 348 collector and owner, your trip has inspired me to make part of our time their Ferrari focused having just purchased two books published for the 1992-1996 348/355 Challenge series at Suzuka by Club Forza Ferrari Japan.

 

I guess you landed at Narita and took a cramped 1~1.5 hour coach ride to the city … the last thing you need after a long redeye flight.

I’ve just come back from Tokyo. Used to be a regular visitor there, pre-Covid. Japan seems tired now. The world is catching up to it. It always seemed like stepping into the future… almost Blade Runner-esque.

Asakusa is in the shade of the Tokyo SkyTree… Don’t recommend it though, despite it being the 3rd (?) tallest building in the world. Tokyo Tower has much more character.

Just avoid the subways during (c)rush hour. If you’re using the train, just be aware there are 3 or more networks and some stations feature all of them. Just be sure to go to the right platform/use the right network guide.

 

5/17

Going to meet K (my translator and now good friend) for the first time today at 11am. We are going to go to Sensō-ji Temple and going to the Basho in the afternoon after lunch. The event is showing a 40% chance of rain and cloudy on Sunday. I hope the event happens.

I met K and his wife. They were very prompt at being at my hostel at exactly 11am. We first went to Sensō-ji temple. Instead of taking a taxi we walked so that we could have a better conversation. A far bigger place than I initially realized. There was a festival going on throughout the area that the temple was located and the place was packed.
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On the way to the temple.

It was ornate and very tall with detailed woodwork. We saw the God of Wind and the God of Thunder.
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We finally make it past all the people at the entrance to get in to the temple grounds.
Pictures and words to not do this place justice. The attention to detail was incredible.
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Next it is time for lunch. K (I am trying to keep their names private) and his wife takes me to my first conveyor belt sushi. After lunch we found ourselves with a little time to kill before the basho, they take me to the Tokyo Sky Tree to get a view of the city. Sadly they were completely full but we got as high as we could. We were still quite high and the view was brilliant. I hope we have weather like this for the event!
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The sprawling metropolis seems to go on and on, forever.

 

Love the Japalish menu wording… That restaurant’s equivalent to McDonald’s Big Mac is the “Full volume”

 

I can't wait to go back to Japan. The SkyTree was pretty cool! I did got to Tokyo Tower later on at the end of my trip.

 

5/17 (continued)
We made our way to the Basho and took a cab for that trip. I was surprised that the taxi driver- fully professional and always kept both hands on the wheel- drove a lot faster and more assertively than I expected. I was expecting him to drive like a grandmother but I suppose living in Tokyo, no matter how polite you are, you still have to deal with traffic like everyone else on the planet.

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The Sumo wrestling arena was modest in size compared to the massive stadiums here in America, but still large considering it is an actual arena. Actually I think its the perfect size.
I had no idea that we didn’t have chairs. Instead we sat on these ground level elevated platforms with metal bars along the four sides, denoting your “seat.” I really liked that. It made me think of how they would have done this tournament 100 years ago.

I also didn’t know that you could bring in outside food and alcohol- something that we never would do in America. This is a civilized country and it isn't out to take every nickel and dime from you.
I met K's friend who was also very nice. He has a Porsche Boxer (stick shift). We talked about where Japan’s fascination with America began which was after WW2.

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A challenger approaches.

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Life is good. Note the metal bars.

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The match is underway.

For a non-sports fan such as myself, I thoroughly enjoyed my time watching Sumo wrestling. It was adrenaline pumping watching the matches and a fascinating and unique part of the culture. I can't recommend it enough. If you go to Japan, you should do this.

 

Having said that, these days, a lot of regular buildings are taller than Tokyo Tower

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Social engineering at its finest …

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A sign for everything…

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His…. mine

 

After the Basho we went to an izakaya. K's friend and I enjoyed pig intestines. I loved it. The izakaya was the first one that I ever entered and it was really neat to take off your shoes and walk down this elevated platform and over to your table where you have to jump down to the booth.

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Don't knock it until you try it!

After it was time to part our ways for the night, as we have a big travel day tomorrow.
But I can't resist. I have to check out Tokyo just a little more.

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Tranquility.

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Vibrancy.

I figure, why not check out the temple at night?
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The lighting really shows how ornate it is.

After that, it's time for bed. We have a drive tomorrow!

 

I love being in Japan and being with the people of Japan.

And I think many of them are "totemo kireina na joseidesu" if you catch my drift ...

 

x2, awesome, thank you

 

I took a picture of the same sign when I was there in 2007 :
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Haven’t quite figured out yet if they are encouraging or discouraging littering

 

5/18

Rain is looking more and more likely for the event tomorrow and I begin to worry that the event will be cancelled or at the very least a significant number of cars dropping out.

K-san picked me up in his F355. The blue contrast from the mostly white and grey concrete jungle gave me the most pleasing sensation in my eyeballs. No matter where or what color, the F355 thrills.

K-san trundles through the congested streets to where we go out on the highway. Highways that I know from Gran Tourismo! We cross the rainbow bridge. The roads are so smooth and the day was sunny- maybe even a little hot but I don’t even care because I like the heat.

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He first takes me to a small pull-off service center that was popular with the car guys before Daikoku. We saw a Maserati, and an early 90s Porsche among others. We don’t bother getting out as the real magic is Daikoku. The GPS estimates that Daikoku is only 20 min away however, that quickly is found out to be not the case because of traffic. We circle back around to go another way and eventually arrive.

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I first spotted a Hakosuka and a R34 Skyline which looks so right in Tokyo. We park behind a Subaru WRX STI piloted by an enthusiastic 22 year old, I-san, who loves Ferraris. The F355 really made his day and K-san has a nice conversation with him. Ferraris are the gateway to long lasting friendships.

As we are talking more and more cars begin to arrive and this is midday, on an off-day. There was an RX-7 that could have come straight from Gran Turismo. A few more Ferraris arrive. There was a 458 Spider with a carbon kit and an F12 Largo.
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How sweet is that Exige?

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(Cool) cars of all kinds.

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This was was certainly very cool.

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You don't see this every day, that's for sure.

 

It is an EXTREMELEY nice place. I wish I could live there.

It is my pleasure! I am doing this for us. For FChat. I don't know about you but nothing beats a good thread. Hopefully you and everyone else enjoys it.

HAHAHA that is so helpful.

 

One of the best Ferrari/355 places I visited when I was in Japan a decade ago was RS-Dino. Luckily they had a few 355’s in the showroom and their iconic yellow 355 challenge upstairs in the shop.

It is a bit out of the way from most attraction spots, but the journey was worth it for me. I was surprised to find their building in the middle of a residential street. Sort of a Ferrari oasis in the middle of nowhere.

 

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This thread reminds me of the time Xavior took Tom for a spin in the 355.

 

Eventually we leave and I-san follows us out to hear the music coming from K-san’s car. For years I have suspected that ITO made the best sounding exhaust. Now that I hear it in person I can confirm that it is. It’s not the loudest and that's ok to me. It's as loud as a Tubi and that's loud enough for most people. If you want loud then no one does it better than Capristo. Anyways, the ITO exhaust sounds amazing. It is similar to a TUBI but with a richer, more full sound. I think it is my favorite. We run into traffic again and we begin to worry about overheating (or at least I do) but the car doesn't bat an eye.

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It's about lunch time so its time to take a break.

We pull into a service plaza and it is like nothing I've seen before. Any rest stop I've seen in the states is one or two places above a sewer. Here it's ordering is automated at the push of a button and, the facilities are neat as a pin.

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It was served to me by a human and its contents delicious.
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Earlier in the day I made a casual remark about togue routes with someone. In an enormously thoughtful gesture, I-san picked up on this and must have mentioned this to K-san. This rest stop is where I believe I-san says this to K-san to take us on a togue route. It is “on the way” K-san says but it turns out he knew that it wasn’t but still wanted to take me anyway.

As we drive on the highway after rounding a corner… there it is. Mt. Fuji.
It is incredible in its majesty.
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We get stuck in traffic and I see a few R35 GTRs. They look so right in Japan.

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We take another break at another service plaza and Mt. Fuji just looms over us. We are almost to the togue road.
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Through towns we break the serenity with the crack of exhaust.

Eventually we reach the road. At first we drive a little spiritedly. K-san opens up the exhaust and not long after, we hit traffic. Sometimes you have to laugh. 10,000 miles away and we get stuck behind a Cadillac Escalade.

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The road snakes around corners and we keep going higher. It is a beautiful road and well maintained.

We get to a nature park and pull over for some pictures. Mt. Fuji is awe inspiring. Hearing the birds and the forest alive behind us was the perfect soundtrack in which to view it.

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A word about Blu Le Mans. I believe it to be the best color for the F355. It's a blue so deep you could go for a swim and it positively shimmers in the sun.

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