A Kei Car Road Trip to Wakayama: Celebrating the Doctoral Defense

My final public defense had just ended. And the moment the hardest exam of the last five years closed, one plan had been waiting: a holiday. The three of us — me, my wife, and a close friend from Taiwan — decided to take the ¥160,000 car that had faithfully carried me around Tsukuba, and drive it to the farthest place it had ever been.

The Drive

Before setting off, I first brought the car to a mechanic for a simple safety check. It passed — and from that point I felt confident enough to take it far.

Our time was limited: only 3 days, 2 nights. So once the schedule was set, the destination was clear — Arida, Wakayama, by highway, with as little rest as possible along the way.

We left Tsukuba early in the morning. The route took us through several different prefectures — a drive that genuinely felt long, but also amazing. Our first meaningful stop was around a rest area in Mie, near Nagashima Resort. From there we continued to Osaka, where we stopped to eat takoyaki, before pushing on toward Arida.

We arrived at 松林 (Matsubayashi) — a traditional Japanese ryokan that wasn’t actually new to me. I had stayed there before, taking a short break from research for a brief internship there. Returning this time, not to escape research but to celebrate its completion, felt like closing a circle.

The Kei Car’s Distance Record

As of this writing (2026), Arida, Wakayama still holds the record as the farthest this car has ever driven. Behind it, two other destinations that also became part of this ¥160,000 kei car’s history: Fukushima, and Nikko.

The Ritual That Always Repeats: Hitachinaka

If the long-distance trip only happened once in this car’s life, there’s one place I’ve visited over and over: ひたち海浜公園 (Hitachi Seaside Park) in Hitachinaka. It’s a genuinely beautiful park — different flowers in every season make it feel like a new place each time I visit. I really recommend it.

A Small Car, a Big Journey

This ¥160,000 car was not a luxury car. It wasn’t even new. But it carried me — and the people I care about — hundreds of kilometers across Japan, to celebrate five years of hard work ending in one degree. Much like the degree itself: not achieved through expensive tools, but through the consistency of covering a long distance.