After a looooong wait, we finally have a shinkansen line here in Kyushu. Service started the day after the Tohoku earthquake and subsequent tsunami and aftershocks. Those events put a big damper on the festivities, but the trains are running, and boy, are they nice. The above photo is at Kurume station where there are both smoking and non-smoking rooms while you wait for your train.

You’ll need to know if your train is a 6- or 8-car train, so you line up at the correct gate. It makes a difference because the trains will have a different place to stop depending on their length.

I had a reserved seat, which seemed like a good idea at the time, but, as you can see, the train I was on was not crowded. In fact I was the only one on my car. I could have saved some money by buying a non-reserved seat. You really need to know how busy a train will be at any particular time.

The seats are comfortable, and there is at least one 100V, 60Hz electrical power outlet for every two seats. The front seats at the bulkhead each have their own outlets.

I haven’t ridden the shinkansen in years, so I’m not sure about the power outlets in the other lines of the JR systems. I have to assume they also have power outlets available. I’m hoping to have more chances to ride the trains a write about those experiences.

[Editor's note: The above photos were shot with the best camera (is the one you have with you): my iPhone 4. I thought it did pretty well in both bright and dark conditions.]