04x02 - Japan with Ryan Hurst

[bunniefuu]

Japan

a bastion of some the world's
most long-standing

ancient traditions,

home to shrines and temples that
have survived through millennia.

But here also exists a collision
between old world and new,

and on this journey into Japan,

hopefully the only
collision I'll see.

Aah!

Alright, hit it!

Here we go!

Yeah, baby.

That was crazy!

Japan holds a special place
in my life.

At , I followed my mom
to Chiba.

It was my first time
living in another country,

and even for a kid
who spent his youth on the move,

I might as well have been
in a different universe.

I soon found myself
taking the train to Tokyo,

drawn in by its fast pace.

Whoo!

I fell in
with some local street kids

and soon felt right at home
under the city's neon glow.

Hello.
Konnichiwa.

Japan led me to London,
then to Spain.

Well, you know the rest,

but Tokyo, with its blending
and borrowing of cultures,

it's where my desire
to travel began.

Yum.
What are these, little pastries?

Yeah?
Can I try one?

Yeah.
Yeah. Is that alright?

Yes.
And it's custard?

This is so good.

Oh, yeah.
This is me.

That's... Hello Kitty.

Yeah, of course.

Yeah.
Yeah!

Good to see you, man.
Good to see you.

Yeah.
Nice, nice.

How are you?
Good, man, been doing good.

Ryan Hurst may play
one of "The Walking Dead's"

newest villains, the towering
zombie-face-wearing Beta,

but off-screen,
he's a gentle giant.

You might also recognize him
from one of my favorite shows,

"Sons of Anarchy."

Dude, it was degrees here
yesterday and sunny.

I brought the rain.
You brought the rain with you.

I brought the rain.
It's good to see you, man.

Good to see you, man.

Let's get some seafood
or something.

Alright.
Let's do it.

Ryan was headed back to LA
after a pilgrimage in India,

so I invited him
to pull a layover

and join me on this adventure.

So, tell me, you just came back
from India, is that right?

Yeah, yeah, from Amritsar,
right near the Pakistani border.

Oh, wow. Really?
Yeah, yeah.

Changed my whole life. Yeah.
Amritsar is like this...

Sort of the Mecca for Sikhs.

Wow, and so you've been
practicing Sikhism for a while?

I'm Sikh-ish.
I'm Sikh...

Yeah.
You're Sikh-ing.

I'm Sikh-ing.

Well, that's what, you know,
in... in Sikhism, that means...

It means student.
It means discipline.

Wow.
You're a very interesting dude.

Okay.
You have this.

You've got
the "Sons of Anarchy,"

"Walking Dead" crazy characters.

Okay.
Yeah.

Do you like being on
"The Walking Dead"?

Are you enjoying it?
I love it, dude.

I love being on the show.
Yeah, man.

Again, I say, it's really wild
seeing you like this...

Yeah... and then seeing you
at work wearing a dead face.

Yeah.
It... It's much...

It's all the same effect.

- Thanks.
- Tomato.

Oh, thank you.

Okay. Let's go.
Let's do this.

This one on this one?

Alright.

There's a lot of props
with this meal.

Yeah.

Now that I've brought
you here, Ryan...

I know, right?

Is that an oyster?

Oyster and scallop.

You cut the poop off?
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Oh, that's...

Are you sure you don't want any?

Oh, sorry.

Um, so you've never
been to Japan before?

Never been to Japan before,
but you lived here.

I did, yeah.
When I was, like, ,

my mom married a geochemist
for an oil company.

When you first got here,
when you were,

like, a kid, like, what did...

What did you like about it?
I don't know.

It, just...
It was very fascinating.

You know, I mean,
you know, Manhattan looks like

Provo, Utah compared to Tokyo.

It was just a whole
brand-new world out here.

Mm.
I love... I love Japan.

My wife and I have wanted
to come here for years,

planned trips
three or four times,

and either, like, I got a job,
or, um, just something.

And so when you were like,
"Want to come to Japan?"

I was like,
"Do I want to come to Japan?!"

Yeah, yeah.
You jumped right on it, yeah.

I'm going to change out of this
because I can't...

I can't put a helmet on.
You don't need a giant helmet?

Alright. Cool.

Thank you so much.

- Thank you. Thank you.
- That was delicious.

We're riding motorcycles
in Japan, dude.

How rad is this?
I know, right?

I love it.

So when was the last time
that you were here?

Last time I was here
was with Andy Lincoln.

We did a whole press junket.
Right.

The best part is, we get on live
television, and Andy goes,

"How do I say thank you
for having me in my country?"

And I go Uh-huh.

And he stands up, and he goes,

and, like, a room full
of reporters were like, "What?"

And I said, "You asked them
where the toilet was

on live television," right?

And you just see him,
just, like, "Ugh."

Tokyo is a sprawling city.

With its neighborhoods
and nearly , train stations,

you can lose yourself
in its enormity.

For the next days,
I'll show Ryan around the city,

and we're going to meet up
with one of my oldest

partners in crime.

Then we'll hit the road,

fueling up on some
local flavors in Hakone

before finishing
our -kilometer ride

into the foothills
of Mount Fuji.

It's where a spring tradition
is in full bloom...

The annual
Cherry Blossom Festival

on the shores
of Lake Kawaguchiko.

Love these cherry blossoms, man.

Yeah, so pretty.
My God.

Yeah, we caught
the tail end of them.

But now, a quick ride over

to the business district
of Shinagawa

for a visit
to the video game studio

Kojima Productions, birthplace
of the new science fiction epic

"Death Stranding,"
starring yours truly.

So Hideo Kojima,
who is designing the game,

like, people geek out
on this guy.

Yeah.

Yeah, I remember going to
the E awards with him.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

And he walked down the steps,
and he goes, "I'm back,"

and , screaming adult males
with tears in their eyes,

you know, like, "Ahh!"

And I'm like,
"Who is this guy?"

You know what I mean?

I've been working closely
with the game's creator,

and was cast as the main
character, Sam Porter.

Come meet Hideo.
Alright, dude.

You're going...
You're going to love Hideo.

But this is my first chance
to see the studio

and thank the staff.

Hi.
- Hi.

Hi. Good to see you.
Good to see you.

What a cool spot.
This is Ryan.

- Hi.
- Hi.

Hey, how are you, man?

- Hello. Nice to meet you.
- Hello, Ryan.

Beta, yes, right.

Ahh!

Right.

One of the prodigies
of modern gaming, Hideo Kojima,

created the "Metal Gear Solid"
series.

It's not every day
I meet an artist

whose vision is
as profound as Hideo's,

and from our
very first conversation,

I knew I had to be
a part of whatever it was

he was making next.

- You ready? You ready?
- Yes.

Am I going to, like, Star Trek?
Am I going...

- Yeah.
- Yeah.

We're going to open right now.

Whoa.
Oh, my God.

This is amazing.

Oh, my God.
Wow.

What?!
It's just like my apartment.

Very Stanley Kubrick.

Hi.

Oh, wow.

Hi.
Thank you, guys.

Hi.
Nice to meet you.

Yeah, yeah, nice to meet you.

Hi.
What an entrance.

Thank you guys so much.

Thanks, yeah, yeah!

Thank you for that
warm introduction.

Yeah, and for working so hard
on this game,

and I've... Please forgive me

for having to look
at my face for this long.

I had such a great experience
working on this video game.

I've never done anything
like this, so it's a first.

Yeah.
Thank you.

- So this is Hideo's room.
- Wow. This is so cool.

This is the first time
that we met.

He got an autograph.

Yeah, "Let's make stuff."
That's right.

Comic Con.
Comic Con.

Yeah, San Diego.

There's so much stuff
to play with in here.

You see all these things.
They're all dedicated to him.

All these top artists
in movies and music.

Yeah, yeah.

They all love him,
geniuses recognizing geniuses.

There you go.

It's pretty awesome, and then
somehow, I got in there.

I don't know how that works.

Hideo wants to show you
the ride part

where we put in
the ride element in there,

so we'll put some shades on.

Yep.

And the users can kind of do
what they want, you know.

So good.

- Open world
-This is an open-world game

where you try to connect
from east to west by delivering

and connecting
the cities together,

so here's the ride bike.

Yeah, the ride bike!

Can I take a picture
of the bike?

Can you turn the bike sideways?

Oh, yeah.
Thank you.

Yeah.
So look at this.

Here, in the private room,

this is like, "Let's have
fun with Norman" area.

The player is just
using a camera.

Uh-oh.
Oh, yeah.

So, like, some people might
just look

at your crotch
all the time, but...

And if you do that
a number of times,

oh, yeah, you're going
to get pissed off.

You're going to be so...

And we have Easter eggs
like this all around

in this private area.

Okay, but, again, where
did this idea come from?

He said,
"It's all in my mind."

When this project began,

I didn't really know
what I was signing up for,

but I knew I could put my trust
in Hideo's abstract vision

because the power
to surprise and captivate,

it's all part of his genius.

Thank you so much for having us.

You're the coolest. You're
the coolest. Thank you, man.

You must be going through some
crazy culture shock right now.

No, I'm good.

Is this dangerous?

No, you drive like
a normal human being.

This is so dangerous.

I'm so happy I'm here, bro.

Yeah! Thanks
for doing this, bro, yeah.

I will say, I've gone to
a lot of different countries.

My cellphone has never
worked better than here.

In Japan, technology is king.

It's not unusual to replace
your phone,

your TV,
even your car every year.

The result, high-tech trash
so prevalent it has a name,

the Gomi Pile.

But today, there's
an emerging subculture

dedicated to the appreciation
of the antiquated.

That's why we're in the quiet
suburb of Kohoku,

headed to a shop specializing

in restoring
rare and classic vehicles

to meet up with a guy
I clear my schedule

to see every time I'm in Tokyo.

Where are you taking us now?

Right here, bro.

Stop.

What's up, buddy?

Kun.
Come here.

Hey.

Kunichi Nomura, designer,

architect, writer,
radio host and magazine editor,

friend and muse to filmmakers

like Sofia Coppola
and Wes Anderson.

Kun is like an ambassador
to the city.

If you're looking to have
a good time, he's your man.

Looking to stay out
of trouble, well, not so much.

Me and Kun go way back.

Tell me.
Tell me.

Almost... almost, what, ,
years?

Yeah, something like that.

Right?
Yeah.

When you were young
and beautiful.

When I was...
We were both young and...

We were both young
and pretty back then.

That's my friend, Takuro.

He owns this.
- Hi, nice to meet you.

Oh, right on. I'm Norman.
Nice to meet you, man.

- Nice to meet you.
- I'm Ryan.

- Nice to meet you.
- Nice to meet you, too.

Oh, wow.
Have a look.

I know this car.

This is not the same one that
I gave you a ride last time.

Oh, this is new?

Because last time
was a five-window.

Oh, yeah, yeah.

This one is a three-window,
same year, .

Yeah, this is where you stick

your Tommy g*n out here
and below people away.

How do you know?

You don't see these anywhere.

Of course you do.

I don't see these
in America ever.

This is V- .

Wow.

What year is this?
' .

The engine is original, too,
so look how old it is.

Yeah, that's... that's crazy.

I love the old engine,
the sound and the smell.

Yeah, the sounds, yeah.

Are there emission standards for
cars like this in Japan or no?

No.

See, in America, you would have
to have an emissions test, like,

if you drove this,
like, every hours.

- Yeah.
- You know, it would be a nightmare.

Does it piss you off that
so many cars are plastic now?

Mm-hmm, yeah.
It does, right?

Yeah.
Yeah.

Old cars got so much character.

- I agree. I agree.
- Yeah.

They may be old and rusty,
but they're still running.

Yeah, this is badass.

Dude, thank you
for showing us around.

You're awesome.
Nice to meet you, man.

You too.

I close my eyes

I float away

I'm free

I'm free

How cool is Kun?
He's such a character.

Yeah, man, like half you,

half James Dean
in a Japanese man.

That car is so dope.
I mean, come on.

Look in... Look in your...
Look in your mirror.

I know.

I know, I was just thinking
that looking in the mirror.

I was like,
"That's pretty dope."

In Tokyo, there's a nostalgia
for vintage America,

a juxtaposition against

the city's technological
march forward.

That explains Kun's latest
venture, the Breakfast Club,

a joint modeled after
the classic American diners

of the ' s which he opened

in the residential district
of Meguro.

Smells like pancakes.
We're stopping here.

I'm free

This place is cool.

It... It's all, like,
American breakfast food?

Yeah, like all-day breakfast.

So what made you think
about this place, to...

To make this place?

I always have a idea
of the Breakfast Club,

the name, so I was like,
"Okay. Let's...

Let's make
a breakfast club," right?

Yeah, breakfast club.
Right.

Yeah, after an all-nighter,

you have a breakfast club
meeting.

And I like the movie, too.
Yeah.

I love the movie.
You remember?

- Yeah.
- Oh, yeah.

Oh, thank you.

This is awesome.

Thank you.

Yeah, I can't even remember
when I met you first time.

I can't either.

I was trying
to put my finger on it.

If I remember,
we went to the bar,

and I had a really good time.

Probably.

We had fun.

There's such danger in
your voice when you say, "Fun."

We had...

Fun.
Fun.

That was when Mingus was like...

Little kid, yeah, and my cat
was, like, this big.

Like...
- Yeah, then I remember that,

"Oh, Kun,
I got a job in Georgia."

Like, I was like, "What?"

Yeah.

Then, like, a year later,
my friend told me that

"Kun, there's a really good
American drama started.

It's about zombie," so one day,

I went home early and watch it.

It's like...

"Norman."

"I know that weirdo."

Now I know why you're not
in Tokyo anymore.

Yeah.

It's pouring now.
I already can't see.

Hanging with Kun has allowed me
to experience

Tokyo like a local, but tonight,

I'm turning the tables
and taking him to a tourist trap

he'd probably never
be caught dead at.

Oh, this should be fun.

MariCAR, a video-game
inspired racing experience

through Tokyo's
adjacent neighborhoods

of Shibuya and Harajuku,

a futuristic Mecca of art
and fashion,

restaurants and nightlife
the Tokyo westerners see on TV.

This is it.

Look at this tiny little lane.

- Yeah, man.
- This is Mario Kart territory.

Here we go.

- Hi, guys.
- Hi.

- How are you?
- Hi.

- Hi.
- Welcome to MariCAR.

- Hey.
- Nice to meet you.

Nice to meet you.
Is this dangerous?

No, if you drive like
a normal human being,

that's totally safe.

- Oh. Bye.
- See you later, man.

These are our costumes, so you
can choose whatever you want.

Can I be a zebra?
Yes.

I'll be a zebra.

Yeah.
Here we go.

Is this... Is it all one size?

One size fit all.

- Oh. Yeah, right.
- Okay.

This is going to fit me?

I think so.

If you guys are having trouble.

I'm not...

Oh, you're an elephant.

Alright.
Let's party.

This is definitely a first.

Yeah, not what I had in mind.

"Let's go to Japan
to do 'Ride'."

This is not what...

Rolling down the road
as a zebra.

Excuse me, coming through.
Excuse me.

Excuse me, coming through.

There's a car.

Hello.

This is fricking...
Oh, hi, big bus.

Oh, my God.
Are we on acid right now?

What's happening?

This is so dangerous.

I don't care what anyone says.

This is super dangerous.

I don't want to die as a zebra.

Kun, you want to get in front?

Go for it.

Pass me.

Go, Kun.
Go, Kun.

Follow the squirrel!

Where are we right now,
what part of town?

This is still Shibuya.
Oh, it is? Okay.

Yes.

This street is pretty
well-known to local.

It's a beautiful spot
to see cherry blossom.

Oh, right here?

Yeah, because it's all cherry.

Yeah, this is...
This is fantastic.

It's almost gone
by this week, I think.

Oh, wow. This is the
end of cherry time.

Going off-roading.

Oh, hit that thing.

Kun, are these all love hotels
right here?

Yeah.
You want to go inside?

Yeah, let's take a little nap.

It's kind of dirty, dirty area,
all the hotels

and happy-ending massage.

Whoa.
Good to know.

Swank.

Swank.
Swank.

Kun, would you have ever
done this before?

No.

This is crazy.

It's actually quite a view.

Let's go straight to the bar.

It's cool getting
to show an old friend

a new view of his hometown.

Thank you for that,
my fellow animals.

But now it's time
to ditch the go-karts...

It smells really good.
Hi, hey.

Hit a bar or three

and maybe turn the cameras off
for a little bit.

That's even better.

I spilt on the table.

Ah, it.

She knows me well.

Oh.!

Are you kidding me?

It's freezing out here.

I'm all right, actually,
sucking up as much cold as I can

before I have to be in a leather
jacket and a mask in Atlanta.

Dude, is it hot in that mask?

Yes.
I like it, though.

At the end of the day,
I like it.

Today, we begin
our journey to Mount Fuji,

but before leaving Tokyo,
we're swinging back through

Shibuya to meet with Kun and his
friend, Shinsuke Takizawa.

This guy, Shin, that we're going
to go visit right now,

he's literally friends
with everybody I know.

Yeah.

- Hey.
- I'm Norman.

Nice to meet you.
What a pleasure.

- Nice to meet you.
- What a pleasure.

What's up?

It's nice to meet you.
Everybody says...

- Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.
- The best things about you.

Yeah.
Yeah.

Shin is a revered figure
in the Tokyo underground.

His vintage label Neighborhood,
founded in ' ,

was at the forefront of Urahara,

The Japanese movement started
a few blocks away

in Harajuku combining aesthetics
of faraway culture

with the essence
of Tokyo's streets.

I like your shop.
- Oh, thank you.

Old bike stuff, the dogs.

He love dogs.
Yeah.

Oh, yeah?
Mm-hmm.

Yeah, same here.
Yep.

- Yeah.
- Seven-headed cobra.

Dude, I want to get...
I want to get one of those, bro.

Dude, such cool stuff.

Did you grow up right here
in this area?

Is that... Oh, no.

Oh, that's where you grew
up, over there? Yeah, yeah.

What's it like growing up
in Harajuku?

Very crazy, very strange.

It changed so much.

Did it?
Yeah.

To crazy.

- It's a party.
- Yeah, right.

What made Harajuku the town
where it became a party?

Oh, yeah.

So in front of the Yoyogi Park
is Harajuku.

People started to sell some
American clothes for GIs and...

- Oh. Oh.
- That was the reason.

There used to be many, like,
lunch place

or some small restaurant,

but now it's all gone,
like, become a store.

- Yeah. Yeah.
- Yeah.

There's a cultural
give and take,

an appreciation for foreign
style competing with a desire

to hold onto what makes
this place so special.

It's seeming I'm going to miss
as Kun and Shin

ride us out of town.

So where are we going right now?

Uh, the...

Kawasaki is suburb of Tokyo,
like,

, minutes' ride from here.

Okay, cool.
Let's go and check it out.

Shin, I like your bike,
cool bike.

Yeah.
Thank you.

I left the horse

In the dust so many miles ago ♪

Shin?
Yeah.

This is Hara... Harajuku.
Yeah.

Yeah.

And Yoyogi Park is right here.

Yeah.
I'm getting my bearings.

Playing a character in one
of the most anticipated games

in years, the importance
of gaming culture here in Japan

takes on a whole new meaning.

In the early ' s, the Japanese
made household names

out of brands like Nintendo,
Sega and Playstation,

and people of all ages
stood in insane lines

for the chance
to buy the latest releases.

I am the skull upon the hill ♪

What was your first,
like, gaming system?

Did you have any, like...
Like Atari, or...

No, I just...
I just got one when I had a son,

but I used to,
like, dump quarters

into a "Defender" machine
all the time.

And as we roll into
Kawasaki, we're going to

Anata no warehouse,
a five-story testament

to Japan's love affair
with science fiction...

- What?
- Video games and arcades.

- Whoa.
- After you.

Just in case anything
bad happens.

Oh, this is going to be fun.

-This is nuts.
Yeah, I know, right?

This is the craziest thing
I've ever seen.

Look at the bras
hanging up here.

It's big.
It goes on forever.

Yes.
It's, like, there's got to be

a red-light district
in here somewhere, right?

There.

"Ride."
Yes! That is "Ride."

How... How does this work.

What do you do?

- I won.
- Whoo!

Which one do you want to have?

- This looks fun.
- I want to find easy, easy one.

- Is this easy?
- This is.

I'm going to watch this guy.

Alright.
This is going to be great.

Watch him just kick ass at this.

Boom, boom, boom!

Go!

It may be a universal truth, but
in Japan, it's unmistakable...

Video games
are absolute escapism...

Wow, that's amazing.

Giving you the chance
to reshape your reality...

and become a hero
of your own universe.

No matter how beautifully simple
or immersive and complex,

gaming gives you,
at least for a moment,

a sense of control in an
otherwise unpredictable world.

Did my tongue make it?
Oh, yeah.

It's a fact that people of Japan

seem to understand
better than most,

but something any kid
with a few quarters

or yen in his pocket
can appreciate.

- Bye, Norman.
- Bye-bye.

Shin, it was a pleasure
meeting you.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Yeah.
Thank you.

I'm so happy I met you,
man. Yeah. Thank you.

You have to take me to Georgia.

Yeah, for sure.

I'd love to have you in Georgia.

- Alright.
- Yeah.

Come see both of us.
We're both there.

Yeah, man.

I'll call you in, like, an hour.

Uh, we're out in the country,
it looks like, or getting there.

Step outside the city, and the
specter of big tech melts away

replaced by architecture
and traditions drawn

from Japan's proud Edo period.

The -year era most imagine

when you think
of ancient Japanese society,

and now that I'm done
catching up with old friends,

it's time to show Ryan
a spiritual side of this place

that I know
he's going to appreciate.

Wow, look how violent
that ocean is, too.

Wow.
It's really weird.

Whenever I ride
next to the ocean,

I get really emotional,
really...

Yeah, you can feel it.

Leaving Kawasaki,
it's a -kilometer ride

along the coastline
of Sagami Bay

to the town of Hakone.

Where are we going?

Is this a tofu joint,
supposed to be amazing?

Yeah.

Hakone is
the destination for tofu,

and here,
the volcanic mineral water

gives this soy-based Japanese
cuisine its distinctive flavor,

all served
in a traditional style

that's less restaurant and more
like you've been invited

into someone's home for a meal.

You must be going through some
crazy culture shock right now.

No, I'm good.

You know, I thought that I was,

but I'm actually
feeling very at home.

Gorgeous, beautiful.

Yeah, this is beautiful here.

You're right.

Wow, listen to that river.

This is old-school.

Mm-hmm.

Hi.

Nice to meet you, hi. I'm
Norman. Nice to meet you.

Nice to meet you.
Thanks.

Ah, thank you.
Thank you, thank you.

Wow, this is really good.

Mm, the Japanese yam.

Yeah.
Oh, okay.

She's just coming at us.

Just

Yes, yes, into soy sauce.

Ow, that's hot.
Ow, ow.

Oh, it's a baby.

Am I doing this wrong?

Do I... What?
- Yes, do it with the ginger.

Like this, and this too?

Just a moment, butter melt.

Okay, let the butter melt.

Okay.
So now...

- Okay.
- Almost.

We're good.

I just broke this.
I broke all of it..

You're in so much trouble.

She's going to
come back with a paddle.

I think I spilt on the table.

- Yeah.
- Oh, it.

I... I...

You are.
You are a baby.

She knows me well.
You're a baby.

You know me well.

Yeah.
I spilled.

I couldn't help it.
It's really hot.

Our inner vegetarians happy,

we end day steeped
in another time

with a journey to Mount Fuji
on the horizon.

Here we go.

I definitely think they're
k*lling me off

on "Walking Dead."

- Ahh!
- Very, very danger!

Mommy!

I just love, like,
this yakitori stick.

Like, I feel like
Barbara Walters,

or like Geraldo Rivera.

You should have
a interview show.

We do.
It's right here.

- Yeah.
- Okay, so...

- Don't hold it up.
- No, no, no.

It'll be great.
Yeah.

Hey, wait.

Are you... Hey, are you...
Are you filming?

Yeah..

It's been so hard to keep
our cameramen

interested in our conversation.

You know what I mean?

He's down there.
He's up there.

He's, like, all over the place.
You know what?

You know what's great
about this interview is that

with this Yakitori stake,

is if I don't like
your answer... Mm.

s*ab, s*ab, s*ab,
you know what I'm saying?

Nope.

Yo, this has been
Yaki Talky-Talk...

Yaki Talky-Talky.

With Ryan and Norman.

Peace out, Tokyo!

We woke up with plans
to visit Mount Fuji,

but the weather shut us down,

so with the bikes
out of commission,

we're out to make our own fun.

Is this dangerous,
what we're about to do?

I don't think so.

I'm feeling like this might be
a little dangey-dang.

Yeah!

Made famous worldwide
by the film "Tokyo Drift,"

drifting has been one of Japan's
favorite extreme sports

since the ' s.

Oh..

Are you kidding me?

It's since been elevated
to its own high-octane art form,

so we came to Fuji Speedway
for a crash course

with some Grand Prix
professionals.

Whoa, Nelly!

This looks crazy.

Yeah, dude.

It was nice knowing all of you.

Hi.

How are you?

Welcome to... to the speedway...

Oh, thank you. Yeah... to
experience the Japanese drift.

This looks really dangerous.

Yeah, right!
Very, very danger.

Very, very danger.

But it's good
with the weather today.

This is good weather for this?

- Yep.
- Really?

Oh.
Well, there you go.

So first, we drive,
and you guys next to seat.

Okay.

And next, you go through
the course and please try...

Okay.
Try to drift.

Try, try.
Yeah. Try, yeah.

Try is the operative word, yeah.

Okay.
Do you have a seat belt?

Seat belt.

What do I hold on to,
this little plastic thing?

Here we go.

I definitely think
they're k*lling me off

on "Walking Dead."

They must.
They're letting me do this.

Wa-pa-pa!
Ah!

Oh, okay.
I have my neck right here.

I'm going to throw up.

Oh, I love this.
I love this.

Ahh!

Mommy!

Where's the barf bag
in this case?

Oh!

You feel bad?
I feel a little sick.

Yeah, same here.
Oh, my God.

How do you guys do this
for a living?

Yes!
- Are you okay?

How are you?

I notice that you didn't hit
the brake, the emergency brake.

You don't need to because
it's so slick, right?

Yes, it's Japanese drift style.

Very cool.
Who's going to go first?

One, two, three.
Fire.

I'm going first.

- Start your engine.
- Start my engine. Alright.

- Whoa.
- Alright.

I'm standing way over here
just in case.

God.
Alright.

It'll probably take him a second

just to figure out the gears
on the left hand.

Yeah.

Okay, so steering the other way.

Yes.

Okay.

- There we go. There we go.
- Oh!

All the way to the right.
Yeah. Keep circle. Keep circle.

- Whoa!
- Oh, yes!

Good, good, good.
That's good?

Good, good.
That was good?

Yeah.
It's... It's nice turn.

Okay.
Yeah.

How was it?
- Oh, yeah.

- Yeah!
- It's hard.

It's hard.
- You were kicking ass out there.

- Nice one.
- I saw you spinning around.

Well, your turn.
Yeah, I'm going to try it.

I'm excited.
Go for it.

Go get them!
Go get them!

I'm going to drive it like
I stole it,

you know what I'm saying?

Oh.
Whoa, whoa, whoa.

I'm sorry if I break your car.

You seem like a really nice guy.

Hang on, bro.

Yeah, let's do the whole course.

Wha!

Oh, yeah!

Yeah!
Ooh!

And he's in the wall.

Oh-ho! I'm trying to tell where
the track starts and ends.

What? What?

Stop! Stop! Stop!

Stop!

My bad.
We need practice.

- We need practice.
- Oh.

I don't want to...
I don't want to die.

Come on.
I'm not going to k*ll you, bro.

Oh, come on, man.

You just got your teacher
to say, "I don't want to die."

I feel like something
is dragging

on the back of this car.
- I know.

As you pulled it in,
it was like,

ka-clank, clank, clank.

What'd you do?

We made it.
We're alive.

You smell the clutch.
It's just gone.

Yay!

I'm probably not about
to turn pro.

Come here. I apologize.
I didn't mean to scare you.

Sorry.

But like they say, you got
to run before you can walk.

Thank you.
- Very, very danger.

- Very, very danger.
- Very, very danger.

Or maybe it's
the other way around.

Look at Fuji right here.
Oh, my God! Yo!

Yeah, that's
a sacred mountain, alright.

That's was a lot
of snow. It was beautiful.

Well, it sure did make
drifting more nauseating.

Today, Mount Fuji awaits,

and only one step remains
before we arrive...

Blessing our bikes
at Sengen Jinja,

a , -year-old shrine where
travelers ask for safe passage

before approaching the
once-active volcano, Mount Fuji.

I'm always so interested about,

like, the nature-based
sort of religions,

or, you know, Shintoism, like,
all the world's religions.

It's just so fascinating to me,
always been.

My friend Kun put us in touch
with a local biker

who's going to help
guide us through.

Nice to meet you.
Nice to meet you.

Ryan.
Nice to meet you, too.

Nice to meet you, too.

How long have you been
riding motorcycles?

years.
Wow.

years.

Does anyone else in your family
ride motorcycles?

Yeah, every children
and my husband ride a bike.

Everybody does.

Oh, wow.
Yeah, everybody.

Does Mount Fuji, like,
have a personality,

or is it just, like,
sort of a... just, like, God?

You know, Mount Fuji
was volcano,

and so there are
many Sengen Jinja,

and to pray about Mount Fuji.

So to calm it down,
people came and prayed to it?

- Yeah.
- That makes sense.

Wow.
This is amazing.

- Yeah.
- Hi.

Hi. Norman.
Hey, nice to meet you.

Nice to meet you.

Wow, these trees are huge.

- Wash my hands, and wash my mouth.
- Yeah. Thank you.

That's all.

So do people get their
motorcycles blessed a lot?

Akimoto: Yeah. You know,
bike has a spirit, too.

- Spirits, too?
- Yeah.

- Of the motorcycle.
- Like a human.

- Mm-hmm.
- Yes.

With our souls purified
and our bikes cleansed,

we're finally prepared to
partake in a sacred journey

that has brought Ryan
and countless others to Japan.

Does your bike feel blessed?

Little bit.
It's so pretty now.

The sun's out.
Yeah.

Really nice in here.
Oh, my God.

Look at Fuji right here.

Oh, my God!
Yo.

Wow.
That's Mount Fuji.

Yo!

Yeah.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Oh, man. Yeah, that's
a sacred mountain, alright.

Look at that thing.

When we first moved to Japan,
my mom dragged me

out here from the city,

so somewhere in her attic,
there's a Polaroid

of a -year-old Norman
standing on Mount Fuji

looking thoroughly bored,
but half a lifetime later,

it's hard not to see
this mountain

through a different lens

and appreciate this place
in the way I couldn't back then,

and what a great end
to this trip,

taking it all in beneath
cherry blossoms...

Japan's symbol of rebirth.

This is a magical corner
of the world right here.

Look at that, bro.

Wow.
Look at that, breathtaking.

Cherry blossoms
in the foreground.

Oh, this is pretty,
super peaceful.

Should we get a selfie, yeah?

Huh?
Get a selfie together?

Yeah, let's do it.

Okay.

It's only been a few days,
but I'm reminded of why

I fell in love with Japan
in the first place.

It's here I realize
that there's something

fulfilling about immersing
yourself in other worlds,

and that thrill of stepping
into another life

is what led me to travel
and years later to act.

Look at that, man.
Yeah.

I can see you living in Tokyo

and then having a house
out here,

you know, just to come out
for the cherry blossoms,

like a get out of town place,
you know?

Of course, man.
That's the spot right there.

And in Japan, the contrast
of culture

and its coalescence
of old and new

continues to draw me back.

Thank you so much.
Oh, it's my pleasure.

Thank you for doing it, man.

Was this what
you expected, or...

It blew me away to be here,
to ride along the coast.

Every little bit
was just morsels.

It's just beautiful.
Yeah.

Yeah.
What a trip.

What a spiritual
transformation, bro.

Yeah, for sure.
Good time.

That's why
when circumstance allows me

to acquaint a new friend
with this place,

it's an opportunity
I'll take time and time again.