An Encounter: A Bike, The Japanese Police and I

Before coming to Japan, I rarely made mistakes and never got into trouble, though my mother might tell you otherwise. But since coming here, I’ve definitely made a few whilst out exploring. The first notable one involves myself, a bike and the police.

Now, this happened during my first year living in Japan, when I was living in Sapporo. However, I didn’t live in the city centre. I actually lived in the outskirts of the city, in an area known as Shin-Sapporo. It was about 20 minutes by the subway from Shin-Sapporo to Odori station, which is right in the center of the city. There is also a bike path, beginning at the Sapporo Convention Center and ending in Kitahiroshima, a neighboring town.

Buying a Bike

I had an American friend who was moving back to his country and so I was able to buy his bike from him. The only catch was, he lived near Odori. Generally, in Japan you can’t take your bicycle on a train unless it has some kind of special cover. So that meant my only non-expensive option was to ride the bike all the way from Odori to Shin-Sapporo. At that time, I had no way of knowing exactly how long the bicycle ride would take, but Google said if I were to walk there, it would take about two hours. So, I guessed it would take about an hour by bicycle.

My days off at that time were very busy with Japanese classes and seeing friends, so I’d agreed to pick up the bike in the afternoon. The idea was to ride home before it got dark. I’d just gotten the bike and begun riding when I received a phone call. It was from a family member I hadn’t spoken to in ages, so I parked my bike and chatted with them. I had a fantastic chat, but as we had so much to talk about, by the time the call ended, the sun had already started to set.

The First Problem

With that, I set my Google Maps to direct me to the Sapporo Convention Center, where I knew the bike path began. To get there, you have to cross Toyohira River and pass through the next area, known as Bus Center Mae. Crossing the river was no problem, and the ride was fairly pleasant. Being the city, despite it being night-time, everywhere was well lit with a mix of building lights and streetlights. I reached the Bus Center Mae area successfully, but as I was riding about, following the directions given, I started to notice roads and buildings that were too familiar. A sense of deja-vu hit me, and I stopped. It was at that moment, I discovered that Google Maps was no longer working, and I’d been riding around in literal circles.

Why hadn’t I noticed this sooner? Well, I happen to be one of those people who are a tad directionally challenged. I know my left and right hands, and I understand the compass directions, in theory. But I can’t for the life of me figure out which way is which. Because of this, I’m usually completely dependent on a navigational app such as Maps or Google Maps. Obviously, these aren’t always perfect and even when they are, I often still lose my way. Never ask me for directions. (I’m still so sorry to that one Japanese lady who asked me for directions once, I really tried my best…but once the train departed I realized I’d sent you in the complete opposite direction you’d asked for.)

Thankfully, most road signs in Hokkaido have English and Japanese. I was able to find a sign and at last and I finally found the Sapporo Convention Center, where I was to begin the real part of the bike ride home. Then I messaged my mother telling her I’d found the bike track…she thought I’d made it home by that time. Whoops.

The Second Problem

I began my cycle along the bike track, which I’d anticipated would be flat. However, due to the bike track going over and under roads to avoid crossings, it was not as smooth as I’d imagined. About halfway, I started having the idea that my bike tyre was a bit flat. Earlier that day I had bought a mini tyre pump, anticipating that the tyres would need some extra air at some point. I’m sure you have some idea of what happened next, and I am fully with you saying ‘ Josey, don’t do it! Don’t touch the tyres!’.

But what did I do? I stopped, got out my brand new mini tyre pump and attempted to pump the tyres up. At night, in the dark but for a single streetlight. It sounds stupid, and it was. Very stupid. I’d never be able to do such a thing back in Australia, but Japan is much safer in respect to women’s safety at night. Still not a good idea and I don’t recommend doing what I did. One thing I hadn’t considered was that the tyre valves here are different to the ones in Australia. And I couldn’t figure it out. In trying to do so, not only did I not pump the tyres up, but I managed to empty the air out of the front tyre completely. It was now completely flat. No chance of riding on that.

In Australia, I know you can get air from service stations. I left the bike track and walked my bike to the nearest one. Unfortunately, it was closed. I’ve since learnt that most service stations (or gas stations for any of my American and Japanese friends) close at 8 pm. I was about halfway home and I was very tired at this point. I thought that if I were to walk from there, it would still take me about an hour to reach home. So rather than walk, I tried other locations searching for a new pump. I tried a drugstore and a convenience store. So many people ride bikes here so I thought surely one of those stores would have something. They both had nothing. I had wasted a lot of time and I was about to give up. I considered leaving my bike at the nearest train station and taking the train home, with plans to retrieve it the next day.

I Was Saved

The thought of having to deal with this mess the next day really wasn’t appealing though, and so I googled once more. An interesting answer to my problem came up. I read an article saying the local police box, known as a Koban 交番, would be able to help me with my flat tyre dilemma. This was going to be my last attempt before just taking the train home.

I made my way to the nearest one on the map and slowly approached it. I stopped briefly before going closer to use Google Translate to figure out what I needed to say in Japanese. As I got closer to the police box, my heart dropped as I saw about eight policemen gathered inside, clearly having a meeting. I’m a very non-confrontational person and I don’t like interrupting people, so my nerves really started spiking. I was about a meter from the door when I was spotted, and everyone immediately jumped up and clustered at the doorway to assist me. Using the simple (and probably partially incorrect) Japanese I’d just searched up, I told them I had a flat tyre and asked if they had a bike pump. Two policemen went to look for one in the back room and I was gestured to sit down by another. Whilst they searched, one officer spoke a small bit of English and chatted to me, the usual ‘where are you from?’ questions. The two Officers searching were successful, and they beckoned me to follow them outside to my bike. I was fully expecting to only borrow the bike pump from them. So I was very surprised when they both began working together to pump the tyre up. They then also proceeded to pump the back tyre as well. I thanked everyone profusely and left, delighted, relieved and my heart full of the kindness I’d been shown.

I got back on my bike, overjoyed that I could ride it again, and started the rest of the way home. I got home safely and much quicker than expected. Turns out, my tired brain had thought it was a whole hour later than it actually was (part of my…desperation, was due to this perceived time factor).

So that is the story of my first and only encounter with the police, who fortunately saved me from my own stupid mistakes that evening. I’d love to tell you that that bike and I had no further issues in the future, but that’s a story for another day! I hope you enjoyed reading this. Have you ever had a positive encounter with the police such as this? Feel free to share your story in the comments!