From Jakarta "Rapid Toyo Katsutadai Line", Sri Lanka "Japanese scenery at the end of the Showa period", 3 extremely dense ... No longer? "Asia station" that you will see twice involuntarily

Jakarta suburban trains run with passengers on the roof with the doors open. Since there is an overhead line, it is more worrisome to see if you accidentally get an electric shock (Jakarta Gambir Station)

Takuboku Ishikawa once wrote about Ueno Station, where long-distance trains from his hometown of Iwate arrive and depart, saying, "I'm going to listen to him in the crowd at the old-fashioned old-fashioned stop." The "crowd at the stop" was a space where Takuboku felt nostalgic. [For some reason, a familiar sight ...] See all the "Asia stations" that you see twice involuntarily. In turn, now it is required to avoid the so-called "three dense" (dense, close, closed). It is the most evasive existence such as "crowd of stops". Only about two years ago, when commuter trains in big cities or when returning home during the year-end and New Year holidays, there were three train stations and trains all over the country, and we took it for granted ( Or I had to put up with it) ... The sights of such railway stations have been seen in various ways overseas. In particular, passenger railroads in Asian countries often give top priority to "getting on a limited train" rather than smartness and comfort as in Europe and the United States. Not uncommon. In some cases, the "dense" style itself, which is not seen in modern Japan, makes us feel the vibrant exotic atmosphere peculiar to Asia and the nostalgia reminiscent of Showa Japan. Now that it is still difficult to go abroad casually, I looked back on the sight of the three dense stops in various parts of Asia that were seen "in front of Corona". When will the day come when we will be able to travel abroad freely and come into contact with these sights again?

(1) Jakarta Kota Station (@ Indonesia)

The Korona-ka has caused a sharp decline in foreign tourists in all countries, but Indonesia is probably one of the countries whose impact is particularly serious. The number of foreign tourists visiting Bali, a world-famous tourist attraction, was 6.2 million a year in 2019 before the Korona-ka, but in 2021 it is only 45 in the 10 months from January to October. It was a person.

In Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia, there are several railway terminals for each destination. Among them, Kota Station, a European-style terminal built during the Dutch rule, has the most "terminal station" atmosphere. There is no space in the vicinity that can be called a station square, and it is always crowded with motorcycle taxis and street vendors waiting for customers. Currently, there are few opportunities for tourists to actually use long-distance trains because there are few departures and arrivals, but Japanese tourists are looking at trains that arrive and depart even if they are not railroad enthusiasts. This is because many of the commuter trains that run near Jakarta are now reusing used Japanese trains. Japanese used trains are in good condition, and Indonesian railways have the same width as Japanese JR conventional lines and many private railways (1067 mm), so there are overlapping favorable conditions such as no need to replace bogies. Is a factor. Since 72 cars were transferred free of charge from Tokyo's Toei Mita Line in 2000, vehicles from companies such as JR, Tokyu, and Tokyo Metro have crossed the sea one after another and are living a second life on this southern island. Moreover, the destination display of Chinese characters such as "Shibuya" and "Rapid Toyo Katsutadai" used in Japan is posted as it is. The appearance of such trains appearing one after another at the old-fashioned European-style terminal station is a mysterious sight for Japanese travelers.