Who am I

My name is Dirk Bischof. I have always dreamt of going to Japan since I first read about Samurais, Shoguns, Ninjas, Tea Ceremony and the culture of Japan itself at the age of 16. My general interests are cycling (you might have guessed), snowboarding, martial arts, chess and being around people who live inspiring lives whereby inspiring others to do the same.

I was born in Germany and I came to London to study and to work in another country. Through Embrace Cooperation I did a 3-months work placement project in 2001, which made me see the opportunities in the UK. In Germany I was unemployed after my apprenticeship in metal engineering and not sure really what to do with my life. I had the option of working in my fathers metal engineering company but I really did not want to do this as I had absolutely no interest in workin with machinery and metall (especially after 3 1/2 years of apprenticeship).

After the placement in London at Cricklewood Homeless Concern and having lived in the UK for 3 months I decided to move here. Since then I helped to organise placements for others coming through Embrace as project coordinator. In 2004, Embrace was set-up to be a not-for-profit, limited company and I was ‘made’ managing director, a big challenge but also a big opportunity. In the meantime I was able to do my degrees in Business Studies and Social Anthropology which I would not be able to do in Germany as the system there is too rigid and doesn’t allow for as much freedom to work and study at the same time.

Everything has evolved since then, Embrace now hosts and sends over 150 young adults per year for national/ international work placements and cultural exchanges and we do various projects within the Media, Environment and Social Enterprise. I am passionate to support others who, like me, were unemployed, face challenges in their life, don’t know what to do with it or who just need some inspiration and guidance to discover their LifeDreams – those dreams which will lead to long-term happiness and which will create a better world for the self and other people. Our current projects involve setting up our charitable arm in Ethiopia together with our colleagues and friends over there. Ethiopia really is a magical country and I have been fortunate to visit it in 2008 where we met with many local charitable organisations to plan our strategy with. Its also always a pleasure to meet our director Eskender Kassa (picture right) to have insightful debates about the meaning of life and how to make this life worth living for everyone we encounter.

Now, at 29 years old, one of my greatest LifeDreams will finally become reality. As a person who likes to make the best of every opportunity, I would like to connect this LifeDream with another one which is very close to my heart: Supporting young adults to plan and realise their professional LifeDreams. How does all this fit in with my journey to Japan you might ask? Well, with your financial support Embrace will start a fund, which supports young adults to realise their LifeDreams in a meaningful way. This is my other big LifeDream: to support young adults with their business ideas and projects. A lot of people that are with Embrace have great ideas and I would like to support them to plan and implement their business ideas as these are their LifeDreams.

Japan & My Route

Japan (日本 Nihon or Nippon), is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south. The characters which make up Japan's name mean "sun-origin", which is why Japan is sometimes identified as the "Land of the Rising Sun".

Japan comprises over 3,000 islands making it an archipelago. The four largest islands are Honshū, Hokkaidō, Kyūshū and Shikoku, together accounting for 97% of Japan's land area. Most of the islands are mountainous, many volcanic; for example, Japan’s highest peak, Mount Fuji, is a volcano. Japan has the world's tenth largest population, with about 128 million people. The Greater Tokyo Area, which includes the de facto capital city of Tokyo and several surrounding prefectures, is the largest metropolitan area in the world, with over 30 million residents. Japan's population is estimated at around 127.3 million. For the most part, Japanese society is linguistically and culturally homogeneous with small populations of foreign workers, Zainichi Koreans, Zainichi Chinese, Filipinos, Japanese Brazilians and others. The most dominant native ethnic group is the Yamato people; the primary minority groups include the indigenous Ainu and Ryukyuan, as well as social minority groups like the burakumin. Japan has one of the highest life expectancy rates in the world, at 81.25 years of age as of 2006. The Japanese population is rapidly aging, the effect of a post-war baby boom followed by a decrease in births in the latter part of the twentieth century. In 2004, about 19.5% of the population was over the age of 65.

Japanese culture has evolved greatly over the years, from the country's original Jōmon culture to its contemporary culture, which combines influences from Asia, Europe and North America. Traditional Japanese arts include crafts (ikebana, origami, ukiyo-e, dolls, lacquerware, pottery), performances (bunraku, dance, kabuki, noh, rakugo), traditions (games, tea ceremony, Budō, architecture, gardens, swords) and cuisine. The fusion of traditional woodblock printing and Western art led to the creation of manga, a typically Japanese comic book format that is now popular within and outside Japan.[109] Manga-influenced animation for television and film is called anime. Japanese-made video game consoles have prospered since the 1980s.

Route
I am planning on starting out in Narita Airport (A) and from there go to Noda (B) on the first day (some 50miles). I will stay for a few days to meet friends and do some martial arts training for a few days. From there I will continue my journey to The Sea of Japan (G). My journey will then lead me south along the coast and then inwards towards Gujo (H) and then back through the mountains towards Noda (B). This is the route as I envisage it and as I planned it. The total length of the route is between 800 – 1200 miles and it will depend on my map-reading skills and of course on where the journey will take me. I aim to stick to the route as it will lead me through the mountains of Japan, along its coasts and also through remote villages along the way. I try to avoid industrial areas such as the east coast or big cities where possible.

Biking & Camping

Why biking? It's a green and enjoyable mode of transport, which allows for close encounters with the environment and people. It is also my favourite leisure time activity, which I enjoy alone and with friends going places and enjoying what the British countryside has to offer. So far I have never done such an extended bike trip and I have never camped for such an extended period of time. The longest outdoor experience was in 1999 when a friend and I went to Scotland to camp rough for 3 weeks. This was a tremendous experience and we had such great fun travelling independently, getting food from the fields, trees & bushes, supermarkets…But this was done using a car which was a very comfortable way to travel as we could take as much stuff we needed to be comfortable.

This journey is different. I need to be very specific and only take the most necessary items. It will require me to stay within me luggage restrictions on my bike, around 60 – 70 litres (30 – 40kg). Within these limits I need to take equipment to keep me safe from the sometimes hostile environments of the Japanese mountains (at around 3000m), functional clothing, bike equipment, foodstuffs, and gifts (small they may be but essential for travelling in Japan).

Training for the journey

This journey has required me to prepare for it and to get fit. Overall I am doing a lot of sports (usually 3 times a week) plus some cycling. To prepare for the 6 weeks my bike buddies and I went to Brighton a couple of times (see the video) and we will go to Cambridge/ Oxford again on the 25th April This is important to get fit and to also test the bike and make final adjustments. Preparation is everything!

London - Brighton
Here is a little video of one of our last rips with my cycle buddies Jorrin & Martin. Its incredibly hard to actually hold the camera still whilst cycling....We've done these trips now a couple of times and the 60 miles do get easier...



Here is also another little video we did last year, more exciting as it was professionally edited and commented on by Deuan German (www.maroontown.co.uk), another good friend and cycle buddy! Check it out on YouTube:

The Bike

Focus Arriba 2009

A lightweight road frame with fast wheels built for speed and stability, flat handlebars and a more upright geometry to give you excellent visibility in traffic, triple chainset to get you up and down hills and powerful v-brakes to stop. The Arriba is perfect for commuting, shopping or getting out and enjoying the country roads. This is going to be the touring machine which I will use to do and complete my challenge. It was fitted with a rear rack to hold my bags, a set of bar ends for more comfort, a different saddle, lights and mud guards.

Top Features of the Focus Arriba
* Aluminium 6061 speed trekking frame
* Shimano Sora Rear Mech
* Shimano V-Brakes
* Concept SL Saddle
* Schwalbe Speed Cruiser Tyres
* Weight: 11.1 kgs