Sing a song of Takahama

For Wednesday 5th October

We started off today back in the dining room, this time with a lovely breakfast of fish, rice, vegetables – and a few pieces of ham and a fried egg!


After we checked out, we dropped into the post office to send a post card.  I think this might have been the first time that the young lady behind the counter had ever seen a piece of mail addressed to Australia.  After conferring with an older colleague she established that it was 70 yen and then we were on our way.


We went back to the town of Fukue by circuiting the island.  The island is much more beautiful than we had realised.  The whole island consists of wooded hills and mountains, with the occasional small village along the coastal areas.

View on the road to Fukue

...and another view on the road to Fukue

Along the way we stopped off at two beautiful beaches.  The first one didn’t have anywhere to sit or any toilet facilities so we took some photos and then moved on to Takahama Beach, which has been listed as one of Japans most beautiful beaches.  It really was beautiful and had all the necessary facilities, so we settled in for a couple of hours of relaxation.  I went for a walk along the beach while John read a book on his Kindle.

Kate on Takahama Beach

Some guys in business clothes

We hope they aren't looking at 'improving' this gorgeous beach!

Some Japanese ladies arrived and sat at the next table.  One of them suddenly jumped up and started running towards the beach.  I thought she’d seen a big hairy spider or a bear or something else scary, but she looked up at the nearby hill and said ‘shika’ which is Japanese for deer.  Feeling reassured, we went to have a look too.  It was quite a large deer with antlers, so John said ‘Jingle Bells’ which the ladies seemed to understand.  (Well they laughed anyway).

A bus shelter!

Further along the way we visited a supermarket to buy something for lunch and we caused quite a sensation.  We had to wonder whether any Australians have ever been in this shop before.  The staff and customers were very discreet about their peeking at us, but they were obviously quite fascinated.

Loaded up with sushi, bun and fruit for me and a chinged bento box and bun for John, we sat by the sea and had a leisurely lunch.  We couldn’t eat it all, so saved a nashi pear and a bun for later.

Next stop was a big shopping mall on the outskirts of Fukue.  We discovered that there are some large shops including a convenience store.  They were just on the other side of town from where we’d been yesterday.  We had a good browse and then came out to discover that the crows had been pecking at the bags hanging from the ‘shopping hooks’ on our scooters.  They had spread the rubbish from our lunch around the car park and had eaten the bun and the nashi pear that were in the other bag.  A lesson learnt!  I hope they got a belly ache.

John attempting to appear wise in the Fukue Shopping Mall

We then found the hotel where we will be staying for the next two nights and met Mr Yamaguchi, the man who has been very helpful by making our Goto Islands bookings for us.  He is a very nice man and speaks English very well.  His wife does not speak English, but she is very friendly and is making us feel welcome.

View from our hotel window

We had a snooze and then a bath, followed by a lovely dinner.  Our room is HUGE and very nice.  We can see the harbour from our window, so we've been watching the activity from above.  John had a chat with Erin on Skype and Mr Yamaguchi came along and had a chat with her too!  The wonders of modern technology!

Across the sea to Goto Islands

For Tuesday October 4th

We had an early start today as we had a ferry to catch at 8.00am.  The very first thing we did was to take a ‘yoidome’ (seasickness pill).  We left the comfort of the Toyoko Inn to head for the unknown on the Goto Islands.  However it works out, I’m sure it will be a week to remember!

The ferry had an interesting method of loading - the pointy end lifted up to allow the ramp to fold out, then it was lowered back into place.  Never seen that before!!

The ‘seating’ areas on the ferry.

Many of the Japanese passengers headed straight for these areas, grabbed a blanket and pillow from a pile and promptly fell asleep.  John and I followed our usual safe course of sitting outside to ward off the evil sea sickness.

Farewell to Nagasaki

As before, the yoidome proved to be unnecessary as the sea was as calm as could be.  We arrived on Fukue Island (Foo koo eh) earlier than scheduled and rode around to see what shops and facilities are available.  The result of our investigation was … “not very much”.  Not a 7-11, Lawsons or Daily Yamazaki convenience store to be seen!  We settled on a Mos Burger for lunch.

After lunch we headed off to Tamanoura, our first stop for the Goto adventure.  We saw some wonderful scenery along the way.  Although Goto means ‘five islands’, there are in fact a great number of islands in the chain, from Fukue (the biggest) to some tiny little dots that are just poking their dear little heads out of the sea.

We stopped off at Koura Beach, which would be an ideal place on a hot day.  It is in a very sheltered inlet, with beautifully clear water. 

Koura Beach

The only movement we saw in the water was a gentle lapping at the shore a few minutes after a boat had passed by.  Unfortunately the weather is just a little too cool for swimming, so the locals have been spared the sight of me in my bathers.

We then went to visit the Osezaki Lighthouse, which is the westernmost point of Japan.  We didn’t actually visit it as that would involve a long walk down a big hill (and back again) but we did take some photos from the nearby viewing area. 

Ozesaki Lighthouse

We then went to check into to our accommodation.  This is the place that refused us at first, but then relented when Mr Yamaguchi told the proprietor that I can speak Japanese, so I was feeling under a bit of pressure to perform.  Fortunately, I managed well enough to get checked in and to understand the basics of the conversation.  We got ourselves unpacked and settled in and then went for a walk around the village.  Tamanoura is a fishing village arranged around a harbour.  We had a bit of a stilted chat with a local and said ‘konbanwa’ (good evening) to a few others. 

Tamanoura waterfront

Boats everywhere!

The backstreets of Tamanoura

We are certainly being noticed!  Today might go down in history as ‘that day when the Australians came to visit’.

  

After our walk it was time for dinner.  We walked into the room and were treated to a feast for the eyes!  Being a fishing village, we expected fish for dinner, but we had just about every kind of seafood that ever swam in the sea or crawled on a rock.  Some of it was raw, which John was not brave enough to eat.  He also passed up the shellfish with little bits sticking out of them.  I decided to be brave and pulled on the little bit until the rest of the slithery creature popped out of the shell, dipped it in soy sauce, shut my eyes and thought of England, and ate it.  It was actually very nice, so I ate the other three of them!

Where to start??!!

We finished off the day with a soak in the bath, wandering around the establishment in our yukatas (light cotton kimono-type garments).  John’s already konked out on the futon and I’m watching the baseball.  A very Japanese experience all round!

Last day in Nagasaki

Another great day in Nagasaki (with aching legs again!).  We started the day with a tram trip to the Glover Gardens.

Some little folk we met along the way.

We weren't sure whether this was a child care centre, a hospital or an orphanage

but the little people looked like they were enjoying the ride!

Tree trimmer at work

Thomas Glover was a Scotsman who went to Nagasaki in 1859 after Japan was reopened to the West.  He married a Japanese woman and lived in Japan until he passed away in 1911, aged 73.  From the Glover Gardens brochure:  “Through shipbuilding, coal mining and the tea trade, Glover contributed greatly to the modernization of Japan.  He is known as the father of Japanese beer, and the Kirin Beer logo shares Glover’s famous moustache”. 

View of Nagasaki from Glover Gardens

The Glover Gardens consist of a number of rather grand Western style houses built on the side of a hill, with a wonderful view of Nagasaki, built to accommodate the western business men and merchants of the time.  There is an interesting elevator which takes visitors from the bottom of the hill up to the top.  Rather than a vertical elevator, this one climbs up the side of the hill.  We spent several hours exploring the buildings and learning about this part of Japanese history.

Thomas Glover's house

Pond in Glover Gardens

Puccini in Glover Gardens.  Now we know where Puccini kept his Italian marbles!

We then went to visit Meganebashi (Spectacles Bridge).  This stone bridge is apparently the oldest in Japan, having been built by a Chinese priest in 1634.  We went for a stroll along the riverside and found the right spot to take photos.

Meganebashi (Spectacles Bridge)

Our next stop was the Tourist Office to find an English speaking person to ask where we could by the good quality oil that we want to use for John’s scooter to keep it in good running order.  The staff made several phone calls for us and found a place that was easily accessible by tram, so off we went again.  We felt better to have the oil on board as we’re off to Goto Islands at sparrow-fart tomorrow.

After that trek, we went to buy a gift for Mr Yamaguchi, the man on the Goto Islands who gave us so much help booking us in to accommodation.  We settled on a bottle of whisky as we’ll be able to fit it in somewhere without squashing it.

After a short rest in the hotel, we went back to the eating district to find dinner.  We somehow found ourselves wandering down a bit of a creepy alley, but of course we made it out again safely!  We eventually settled on the same place we ate last night as it was the best value of anything we saw.

We abandoned our plan to go up on the cable car for the night view of Nagasaki as we are pretty tired and we saw great views from the Glover Gardens today.  We’re very much looking forward to our time on the Goto Islands as we hope to lessen the pace and do some serious relaxing.

We are unsure of the Internet situation where we’re going, so don’t send out the search party.  We’re due in Sasebo on Wednesday 12th October, so you’ll hear from us then if not before.

Bye for now!

Rubbernecks in Nagasaki

Today we walked our legs off!  We started off with a visit to the Ferry Terminal and the Tourist Office to get information about our ferry trips over to Goto and back.  It’s much easier than we thought, as we don’t need to make bookings with the scooters.  Bookings are only required for cars, so we just turn up, buy a ticket and away we go!  We then bought a day pass for the tram (500 yen : $6.70) which gave us unlimited use of the trams for the day.

The port area in Nagasaki

We spied this snazzy scooter in a new 'scooter only' park near the station

Delivery man

Once that was all sorted we went (via a bakery) to the Atomic Bomb Museum.  Having been to Hiroshima last year, the shock wasn’t quite so bad, but it’s still very depressing to see the devastation and the human suffering.  We got a good view of Nagasaki from the viewing deck outside the museum.

View of Nagasaki from the Atomic Bomb Museum

The atomic bomb hypocentre

With very tired legs, we went via tram to Dejima which is an interesting historical part of Nagasaki.  Dejima is a very small artificial island which was Japan’s only ‘window to the West’ during the period of National Isolation.  It was originally built in order to enforce the ban on Christian prosetylizing by Portuguese missionaries in 1636.  When the Portuguese were banned from Japan, Dejima became a Dutch trading post and consequently the only source of Western knowledge and culture for 218 years.  The island is currently being restored – a major undertaking given that what was once an island in the sea has now been surrounded by reclaimed land, roads and structures.  Despite REALLY aching legs, we enjoyed our visit to this very interesting place.

Bridge in the garden at Dejima

Dejima

We then used our trusty tram passes to visit the Hamanomachi Shopping Arcade in the Kanko Dori area. We had been told that this was a good place to find nice places for dinner and we hit the jackpot in no time. We found a very nice underground restaurant which plastic sample food out the front and a huge picture menu inside. I think it might be the first time we’ve eaten with a knife and fork since landing in Japan.

We followed our dinner with a visit to a 100 yen store – all 5 floors of it! If we weren’t obliged to travel with minimal luggage, I’d have had a major shopping fest!

Is there anything that can't be found in a 100 yen store??

That was enough for one day (except for the obligatory ice cream, of course) so we went back to the hotel for washing, TV and resting our legs in preparation for more of a workout tomorrow.

It's a long way to Nagasaki, it's a long way to go!

Today is the second of the three family birthdays that we’ll miss while we’re in Japan – Happy Birthday Keith!!

View from our hotel room

We started today with a bit of a language problem.  I was expecting breakfast to be served either in our room or on the ground floor.  Our room phone rang and a woman’s voice filled my ear with a lot of Japanese.  I picked up that she was saying the number ‘70’ but that didn’t make any sense, so I had to keep saying ‘Gomen, wakaranai’ (sorry, I don’t understand).  After a few more attempts, she came to our door and knocked.  She then showed us to Room 70 which is a hotel room overlooking the harbour, where she had set up our breakfast!

View from Room 70 - our breakfast room

Breakfast was Japanese style, with a bowl of rice, a bowl of miso soup, some thinly sliced vegetables, a pickled plum, soft tofu, fish, an egg in its shell and a cup of green tea.  John really doesn’t like miso soup and pickled plums, so he gave those a miss.  I cracked my egg to peel it – and discovered it was raw!  I assumed that the only possible thing to do with a raw egg was to put it in the soup.  That meant one more thing off the menu for John as he wasn’t going to have the soup anyway.  I was quite full by the end of it and John didn’t do too badly with rice, fish, vegetables and tea.  We never need to fear being hungry as there is a convenience store around every corner!

Breakfast Japanese style

We packed up and left to head for Tomioka, where we were planning to catch the ferry to Nagasaki.  It was a fabulous ride – sunny weather, just the right temperature and a view with the mountains on our left and the ocean on the right.

On the road to Tomioka (note the palm trees!)

Octopus hung out to dry

 We found the ferry terminal with no problems and were then informed that from 1st October the ferry doesn’t run.  I’ll just sit here for a minute while you read the date at the top of this blog.  […"reading the date" music…]   Hmmm!

Our only other option was to ride back some distance to a town called Oniike and catch the ferry to Kuchinotsu, so that’s just what we did.  When we arrived in Oniike, the ferry was just about to leave.  We dashed into the terminal building, bought two tickets and rode onto the ferry just in time.  It was a very pleasant trip over, even if it wasn’t going where we’d wanted to go.

Coming in to Kuchinotsu

From Kuchinotsu, we had a ride of about 70 kilometres in to Nagasaki.  It was a pleasant ride with more good views of the coast, but even with a few breaks (including for a nice convenience store salad for lunch) we arrived in Nagasaki with aching tail bones.

On the road to Nagasaki

The narrow coastal road - with nice views!

We didn't plan to be on this road - but it was a great ride

We checked in to the hotel and then went exploring the local area.  We’re not far from the station, so there’s quite a bit of activity going on.  We found a nice place for dinner then strolled back via the 7-11 for an ice cream.  We’re looking forward to doing the ‘tourists in Nagasaki’ things tomorrow.

Off to Matsushima

(For Friday 30th September)

We awoke to a grey and drizzly morning today.  After breakfast, we packed our bags and then sat in the foyer of the hotel waiting for a break in the rain.  After a while we decided that we’d better not sit there all day, so we set off during a lighter patch.  The drizzle continued on and off for most of our ride to Matsushima. 

A grey day on the way to Matsushima

Boats in the harbour - with a Pachinko Hall in the background!

A commonly seen Japanese car

(Great for fitting in small spaces)

Except for the rain, the ride was great, taking us through fruit and vegetable growing areas, with views of both the mountains and the sea, but due to the weather conditions, we couldn’t take in the sights as well as we would have otherwise.

We felt very "WEL COME" in Matsushima

The grey sky meant that we weren’t able to take any photos that would have done justice to the great views. 

Convenience stores are everywhere!

Our hotel (the red building)

We arrived too early to check into our hotel, so we wandered around the local ‘Youme’ store and then sat by the water’s edge watching the world go by until 4.00 o’clock.

A purse we found in the Youme store

The hotel is a traditional “tatami mat, sliding doors, futon on the floor” kind of place, quite run down, but with a very friendly and helpful lady manager.  She doesn’t speak of word of English – which is a good thing really because it makes me work a bit harder!  I’m finding that when I have to do it, the Japanese comes out of my mouth without as much trouble as I had thought.

After we checked in, unpacked and relaxed for a while, we went back to Youme to buy a battery for my watch, then bravely wandered into a noodle shop with no English menu, no picture menu, no plastic sample dishes and no English speaking staff.  We still managed to have a fabulous meal and a congenial evening with more Japanese practice for me.

It rained for most of the evening so back at the hotel we watched TV and then went for a soak in the onsen on the fourth floor.  A lovely way to end the day!

Up another mountain

Today (John’s Mum’s birthday) started as another hot and humid day.  We went for a walk around an area recommended to us by Catherine.  It consists of several streets of quaint shops with a lovely ‘old Japan’ atmosphere as well as some interesting modern buildings and shops.

Even the shop dummies are polite!!

Never mind what the sign says

We then went over to the ‘Wakuwaku za: Historical Culture Experience Facility” which is a small museum showing some Japanese culture and history with a bit of fun thrown in.  There are kimonos to try on, films and diplays featuring aspects of Kumamoto, and – most intriguingly – a virtual goldfish pond.  When visitors step on the ‘pond’, ripples form and the fish swim away from the intruding feet.  I have no idea how this works, but it was fun to stomp around on it.  We had a good look around and had a bit of fun being silly tourists.

John-san

Travelling in style!

We were feeling a bit hot and bedraggled by then, so we went back to the hotel to freshen up and have a rest before heading out to meet Catherine for our afternoon scooter ride.  We went up into the mountains, stopping at a shrine along the way, then to the cave where Miyamoto Musashi wrote The book of five rings.  It was a great ride up the mountain, with some terrific views. 

Golden rice fields

 After visiting the cave and admiring the little statues dotted across the hillside, we sat and had a cup of tea from Catherine’s thermos.  A very pleasant afternoon – up until then!

Statue on the hillside

...and his well-dressed friend

Boys on the left, girls on the right!

When we got on the scooters to come back down the mountain, the rain began to fall and didn’t stop.  We had to take great care as it was a very windy road.  Fortunately there was not too much other traffic around and we made it back in one piece.  We were soaked through, so we took all of our wet clothes and put them through the washer and drier.

We phoned Catherine as she offered to help us with John’s scooter issue.  We’d been a bit concerned about the possibility of a breakdown, but she spoke to the mechanic who assured her that the scooter will make the distance and we don’t need to worry about it.  So we’ll continue as planned and keep our fingers crossed.  I’ve added the word “mechanic” and the phrase “something is wrong with the scooter” to my word bank just in case.

Next on the agenda was dinner.  We found a nice little restaurant in the mall.   This one had a machine for selecting meals.  Money goes in the slot, the correct button is pressed for the choice of dinner and the machine spits out the relevant tickets and change.  The staff then take the stub of the ticket to the kitchen and the meals are delivered, with a polite bow, in no time at all.

We were too early for our planned meeting with Catherine at Starbucks for coffee, so we had a browse around the Don Quijote store (a variety discount chain that can be found throughout Japan) and then went back to the hotel until it was time to go.  Catherine has booked us in to accommodation in Matsushima, so now all we have to do is find it.  Another challenge!  I had asked her earlier in the day how to say ‘insect repellant’ in Japanese, so she kindly bought some for me on her way to Starbucks, as well as some nice Japanese sweet treats for us to have along the way. 

Catherine and Kathryn

We said our last farewell to Catherine and thanked her for all her help and hospitality.  She made our stay in Kumamoto much easier and more interesting that it would otherwise have been.

Did we mention how safe it is in Japan?  John just discovered that his scooter keys were missing, so he went down to see if he’d left them in the scooter.  His scooter has been sitting outside the hotel for about six hours with the keys hanging out the seat lock on the side!  Would it still have been there if he’d done this in Australia.  I think not!!

We’re off to Matsushima in the morning, leaving behind such shops as Glass Wonder (bar), Beauty Snack, Rebirth (hairdresser), Happy Munchies, Bag Lady Wisely and Foot Stamp (hairdresser).

Maybe no internet now until Nagasaki (Saturday), so bye for now!