We’re about to board Japan’s fastest bullet train from Tokyo to Osaka—and this was our very first Shinkansen experience. Our day starts at Tokyo Station with what (in hindsight) was 100% user error: we bought tickets online, tried a bunch of machines, got the “This QR code is not valid” message, talked to a few people… and then learned the simple answer. We could just scan our QR codes directly at the gate by touching it to the blue. Once we figured that out, it was smooth sailing (or… smooth railing). Onboard, we do a full seat tour: the 3-seat/2-seat layout, tray tables, hooks for bags, recline buttons, window shades, overhead luggage racks, and tons of legroom for our backpacks. We also thought it was so cool that after the train arrived and everyone got off, they cleaned it and physically turned all the seats around so we’d face forward. Caleb also gives a quick bathroom tour (super clean, minimal, everything you need). For the fun part, we downloaded speedometer apps to see how fast we were actually going. Our Nozomi train can hit 186 mph, and the highest we recorded was 179 mph—while Japan’s countryside rolled by at 300 km/h. We pulled into Osaka a few hours later and honestly… bullet trains are iconic for a reason.