"Can I take a picture right now, Kyohei?"

"No! You'll be arrested!"

Arrested? It's only a picture... But maybe, just maybe the reason you aren't supposed to take pictures on the final evening trains has something to do with the fact that they probably resemble something akin to holocaust style boxcar:: crammed so tight that one's ribs are constricted to the point of suffocation and motion is restricted entirely.

But, unlike 1940's German boxcars, these train cars are at least air conditioned, though perhaps they ride is only a bit less harrowing.

The train lines actually employ people in the evenings specifically for the purpose of shoving passengers onto the train. When it seems as though the little plastic and metal box has been filled to capacity, there is some white-glove clad people-mover waiting to push a few more pounds of flesh into the car. It's fine with me, really.

The ride, for many, is one of their worst experiences in Japan. I think, however, that floating along, sliding and leaning through each turn with 160 of your best friends (in one car--I counted) is actually quite a good time.

It's better than a half-packed car, where one still has to maintain balance so as not to bump into those next to him, and it's better than an empty car because all of the action keeps you awake.

Despite all that, I couldn't take a picture... though I'm not sure I would have been able to move my arms to operate the camera.