Interview with Alex from The Grand PokéTour
Alex Laurence has kindly taken the time to talk to us about his incredible journey across the real-world equivalents of Kanto and Johto, sharing stories and photographs of his Grand PokéTour!
We are excited to share an interview with Alex Laurence, a Pokémon fan who has taken off on an adventure of his own to visit the real-world equivalents of each major location in the series and record it in his blog and on video for his YouTube channel! At the time of this interview, Alex has already completed his journey through Kanto and is currently in the middle of his Johto journey.
Thanks for joining us here at Johto Times! Can you please introduce yourself to our readers?
Alex:
Hi everyone. My name is Alex. I am 31 years old. I live in Japan with my family, and my newly wedded wife. However, I spent most of my life in the UK where I grew up. Around the year 2000, I first became familiar with Pokémon after a classmate gifted me a pencil with Marill printed on it, as a parting gift. My obsession with the franchise sprouted from this moment.
How did you come up with the idea of travelling through the real-world equivalent of Pokémon regions?
Alex:
12 years ago when I was still living in the UK, I came across an article from Bulbapedia that listed all the real-world analogs to the cities and towns in the Pokémon game-world. I was fascinated that these places actually existed in some shape or form. So I began to plot the locations on Google Earth, until all the regions were entirely mapped onto the real world.
I started day-dreaming about one day traveling across them, but I shrugged it off as a mere dream due to the challenges involved with traveling to such obscure parts of the world. Until I eventually moved to Japan in 2019 for work-related reasons. The dream suddenly became within reach.
The world of Pokémon is packed full of interesting towns, cities, parks, forests and many other memorable places. Can you please explain how you decide upon the locations you visit in person?
Alex:
So one thing I should state for readers who are interested in this topic is that real world mapping of Pokémon locations [is] mostly fan-theory, apart from a few exceptions (such as Vermillion City, New Bark Town, and Goldenrod City, all of which have been semi-officially confirmed through the 2023 World Championship announcement and Nintendo Space World prototype placeholder names). As such, for the vast majority of towns and cities, we are left to use our creative license to judge where the actual location might be. So the point I want to stress is that there are no right or wrong answers at all.
With this in mind, my judgement criteria is mostly based on “culture” over “geography”. The reason for this is [that] the Pokémon world map is drawn, pixel to pixel, on a 160x144 px display for an 8-bit Game Boy. Therefore, we end up with a compressed, jagged, blocky world rather than a smooth, rounded, detailed map. So as one can imagine, real world locations cannot be easily projected accurately onto the Game Boy map, which relies on straight lines for routes.
In addition to this, sometimes locations are just placed in the wrong area for game-design purposes. For example, Vermillion City, even though it was suggested in official capacity to be [inspired by] Yokohama, it is placed further east where Chiba City is. Vermillion City is the culture of Yokohama shifted to the geographic location of Chiba. Therefore, “culture” is always favored over “geography” in my decision making.
What has been your favourite place to visit on your journey so far and why?
Alex:
I would say Pallet Town (real world Shimoda City, Shizuoka Prefecture). It’s quite ironic that I ended my journey in Pallet Town, but it is quite fitting as it felt very much like “home-coming”. Pallet Town is a quite sleepy little hamlet in the Kanto region, which Pokémon creator Satoshi Tajiri modeled off his hometown Machida. However, due to rapid urbanization in the 80s, it did not seem realistic to link Pallet Town with Machida anymore. I like to believe that Shimoda was chosen as the model for Pallet Town instead for this reason.
However, even in 2023, Shimoda does not really resemble Pallet Town, being the bustling port town that it is. You have to travel into the suburbs until you can see something that begins to resemble sleepy Pallet Town. Nevertheless, I enjoyed this location the most because of its charm and its people. I met a family during my travel, [and] they asked me why I had travelled all the way down the Izu Peninsula. I told them this place is the home-town of Satoshi/Red in the first generation Pokémon games. They were awestruck and immediately treated me as a family member of their own. I really had a sense that this humble place is where one can easily feel at home, and begin a grand adventure.
In your blog, you mentioned that one of the rules of play you set yourself while travelling Kanto is that you couldn't explore caves and mountains, which would have represented locations such as Mt. Moon and the Indigo Plateau, because they're too dangerous without experience or expert supervision. Do you think there's a possibility of achieving this someday?
Alex:
Yes, that is right. I cite safety reasons, but also practically speaking, Viridian Forest, Mt. Moon, Dark Cave, Victory Road, Cerulean Cave, [and] Seafoam Islands are what is referred to as “dungeons” in RPG game design. They are a part of the game which forces the player to encounter great challenges in order to level up for the next portion of the game. Therefore, the location is designed with the game in mind (i.e. creating the best experience for the player), rather than emulating the real world location. I suppose what I am trying to say is that the “dungeons” simply do not exist as they do in game form.
I can climb Mt. Ashitaka, but is this really the same as navigating through Victory Road? I thought it was not worth it at the time. Having said that, I do not want to rule it out completely, but for now there are no plans to visit the “dungeons” of Kanto or Johto. On a side note: Sootopolis City (which is a completely fictional location [in the] Hoenn region) the underwater city that sits within a volcanic crater will pose a new and interesting challenge… Hoenn is based on Kyushu, Japan. But Sootopolis is inspired by Santorini, Greece. Let’s see what I discover when the time comes!
We are curious to know what you get up to during the time you’re not filming. How many opportunities do you get to explore your surroundings?
Alex:
When I am not traveling and filming, I like to make music and video games. One of my passions is capturing the fun that I had on this journey, and trying [to] develop a game around that experience. My dream is to meet Satoshi Tajiri someday and thank him for the profound impact [on] modern culture that Pokémon has created. But I try to balance these hobbies with getting out and traveling while I still can.
I recently got married, and probably will end up having children in a few years, which will make traveling a lot harder. So I aim to get out at least twice or three times a month, and complete Johto by the summer and possibly Sinnoh by this winter. Hoenn is something that I need a year to plan due to the immense amount of “water” that surrounds the locations, as a famous reviewer once stated. I currently do not have any plans to visit the regions outside of Japan.
Unfortunately, we don’t live in a world where we can teach our Pokémon HM02 and fly between locations. Travel, accommodation, food and other supplies are a factor to consider for an adventure as great as this. How has that been for you?
Alex:
Planning the itinerary of [my] Kanto journey was one of the most challenging aspect[s] of this project. Mostly for the reasons you mention. Certainly, it is not cheap, nor is it easy to travel to some of these remote locations without some local knowledge, ability to speak Japanese, and time (for tourists, it is a lot more worthwhile to spend your time visiting Kyoto, Osaka, Mt. Fuji, and the other idyllic Japanese locations, than a field in the middle of nowhere just because the area represents a location in a game). This is possibly the reason why a lot of people planned to do a Pokémon Kanto journey before me, and either didn’t gain enough funding on Kickstarter (as with “Cycle Across Kanto” and “Journey Across Kanto”) or couldn’t visit all the locations (as with “p4Rachet” and “Lapient”). I got around this by chunking my journey.
I visited nearby places first, and places that were already on the way to places I was already visiting. Then for the more distant locations, I had to book a hotel overnight in order to film in the morning (to capture the best lighting). Unsurprisingly, weather played a major factor in deciding filming dates. I got clear blue skies on the cities where I travelled the furthest, so I count myself incredibly lucky. For people who also wish to travel across Kanto, please also consider the season (or time of the year). [Depending on when you want] to take the ferry to Izu-Oshima (Cinnabar Island), some routes will not be available (for example, typhoon season).
It sounds like you’ve been having quite an amazing adventure so far! You are obviously a huge fan of Pokémon, and we want to ask how you first got into the series, and learn why it means so much to you?
Alex:
Thank you! I have a couple of stories in my life which your readers may find interesting about my entry to the Pokémon series. As mentioned, I was introduced to Pokémon when my classmate gifted me a pencil with Marill printed on it. At the time, Gen 2 was not released in the UK, and so kids at the playground would incorrectly refer to Marill as “Pikablu”. It was a very curious time. I didn’t have the money to buy Pokémon cards immediately, so I used to draw the cards by hand on a piece of small paper, cut them out and create an entire deck. Eventually, I did end up with cards as presents during Christmas and birthdays.
But it wasn’t until I started playing Pokémon Red that I absolutely understood the allure behind the series. Despite the 8-bit graphics, and simple town and city designs, when I played the game, I could vividly imagine walking across winding paths, sprawling forests, and battling through Pokémon-infested caves in my mind. I know I was not alone in this, since almost every child in my school was drawn to the games. Many years later during my time at university, I founded the country’s first and only (at the time) Pokémon Society. It was so “bizarre” in the eyes of British society that a national newspaper (The Telegraph UK), published a piece ranking us within the top 10 “weirdest” student societies. I wore that claim as a badge of honor, and I still do to this day.
One thing I appreciated from your blog posts and videos was the opportunity to learn more about the places in Japan you visited, and about their history, such as in Shimoda, and how Captain Perry pressured Japan to open its borders after 300 years of isolation. How important was it to include these facts as part of your content?
Alex:
Thank you, I am really glad to hear that this part of the trip was also appreciated. These places have deep history and significance to Japanese culture, and by understanding the history behind them, it informs us of the deeper lore behind Pokemon. Of course, Pallet Town, based on Shimoda, was the town that birthed a new age for Japan. So we can view it as the place where something great began. Furthermore, Celadon City (based on real world Shinjuku), being a crime-ridden commercial district, is perfect for the location of Team Rocket’s hideout behind a gambling shop. By understanding the history of Shinjuku, our understanding of why Team Rocket hides here becomes deeper, and so does our enjoyment of the games.
At the time of interview, you are currently working your way through the real-world equivalent of the Johto region, and have previously completed your journey through Kanto. Which destinations do you intend to visit in the future?
Alex:
Yes, that is right. I am currently undertaking the gigantic task of travelling across Johto (which is much larger than the Kanto region!). Learning lessons from Kanto, I am chunking my adventure into sizeable trips. So far, I have visited New Bark Town, Cherrygrove City, Violet City, Blackthorn City, and Ecruteak City. I plan to visit Cianwood City, Goldenrod City, Whirl Islands, Azalea City, and Mahogany Town in the coming months. And I have a final surprise location! (It’s not Mt. Silver, as I already have that captured on camera in Viridian City, and even Fuschia City where it is surprisingly visible at ground level). Please look forward to that!
We are so glad you could answer our questions for us. Do you have any closing comments you would like to make to our readers?
Alex:
I want to firstly thank the Johto Times for having me here. It is truly an honor to be part of this celebration of what made our childhood special. If you have recently become a fan of the series, welcome too! And finally, Pokémon is about making connections. Whether it is with friends, family, animals, or even with nature. If you ever have the chance to travel to Japan and want to visit the real world locations, I hope my videos can help your travel be that much more enjoyable. Thank you very much, everyone. See you back in Johto!
A huge thanks to Alex for taking time out from his journey across the Johto region to speak with us! You can discover more from Alex, and his journeys by checking out his content below.
Alex’s blog on Medium
The Grand PokéTour on YouTube
Interview conducted on May 25th 2023
Interview published on August 3rd 2023