Japan Week 3 – Roadtrip Diaries

Konnichiwa from Tokyo

Our time in Japan is almost over. We’ve traveled about 4,000 kilometers, and we’re presently in Tokyo. We can’t belive how fast 3 weeks are over. Have fun reading!

Arigato Gozaimasu

Alicia & Marco

Exploring Beppu and Mount Aso

On Tuesday, we stopped in Beppu at some hot terminal pools described with wonderful red water. As we arrived, tourist buses came and supported loads of tourists. The cube was very long, and we were surprised by the many Western tourists around this area. We grabbed a ramen in Bapu and made new plans.

We decided to visit Mount Aso in the Kuju Aso National Park. Our plan was to find a place to stay on the highest active volcano in Japan. We found a nice sleeping spot on the volcano and headed for the crater on Wednesday morning. After seeing the crater and the steam coming out of it from right next to it, we saw a little wooden walk, and we decided to go for it. It ended up in a 2-hour walk, a whole round around the crater with the best views from higher peaks down to the crater. We only saw two other hikers, maybe 1 1/2 hours into the walk. As we returned in the car, it was around 10:00 in the morning, and the first tourist buses arrived. We were very lucky to have this volcano on our whole round around it, almost to our own.

Fukuoka: From Street Food to Bento Boxes

Following our enjoyable hike on Mount Arthur volcano, we were eager to return to city life. We promptly booked a hotel in Fukuoka and made our way there. Our primary objective was to dine at Sometai, which is a collection of small food stands along the street where locals sell their delicious cuisine. Upon arriving in Fukuoka during lunchtime, we indulged in some local cuisine. As the day turned into night, the food stands opened up. We explored the Canal River area, stopping at some Yatai along the way. Eventually, we settled into a cozy Yati and savored some Yaki Ramen – a well-known Fukuoka specialty where the ramen is served without soup and heated on a pan.

On Thursday morning in Fukuoka, while passing by the road, we noticed small stands appearing around 11:00. Japanese workers from the nearby buildings lined up at these stands to buy something. We were curious and approached the stands to find out that they were selling Bento boxes. Bento boxes are small lunch boxes that people often carry while going to work or on long journeys like a Shinkansen ride. We decided to try out the food from two stands, one run by a young lady and the other by an elderly married couple. The food from the elderly couple’s stand was hot and delicious – a pleasant surprise from such a little box.

Coastal Shrine Exploration

Later that day, we drove out from Fukuoka to the North to explore some Shinto shrines right beside the sea. We saw one with 976 and headed to see a beautiful bridge over the harbor, where Marco bought his Haku pinmen. On Thursday night, we found a nice little spot right beside the sea. It was raining a lot that night, so we hit the road that day. We looked up and saw the weather was good on Saturday, and we were around the mountain Rookie Region. We wanted to hike the mountain twice, so we hit the road and went for it.

Chilling Hike to the Summit of Mount Tsurugi

It was a freezing night at the trailhead of the Thoroughly Sun, and as we started our hike, we saw on the thermometer it was five degrees Celsius, a little frosty. We continued the hike, and on the top, another thermometer told us we had 1 degree Celsius. We went inside the Wanderers Hut to have a nice little coffee provided by Toshimi, who is running the Hut on the hill, followed by a hot, delicious miso soup. We were ready for the cold again.

Savoring the Delights of Sakura Beef in Hyogo Prefecture

While traveling further north, we passed by Kobe but didn’t want to deal with city traffic. So, when Marco expressed his desire to have some beef, we headed to a quaint restaurant in the Hyogo Prefecture, known for raising famous Kobe cattle. The restaurant was amazing! Even though they didn’t have Kobe beef, they served Wagyu beef from another breed called Sakura beef. Upon entering, the personnel greeted us warmly and showed us to our private room with a grill inside the table. We were given the meat to grill ourselves, which made the experience all the more enjoyable. The beef was delicious, and we had an excellent time.

Motorcycle Enthusiasm in Japan

On Sunday, we were awakened by the sound of motorcycles passing by. The weather was perfect, and while sipping his coffee, Marco made a habit of checking out each motorcycle that went by. Some of them stopped right next to us, and Marco took the opportunity to get a closer look at some of the bikes. It was during this time that he met Toshimi, who spoke a little bit of English. Toshimi told us that there was a motorcycle meeting about 5 kilometers away from where we were. Since we had no other plans for the day, we decided to head over to the meeting. The location was really nice, and there were a lot of vintage and classic bikes on display. There was even an old Volkswagen van supplying coffee to everyone. We wandered through the rows of motorcycles and ran into Toshimi again, who was thrilled to see us again. After chatting for a bit, it was time to move on for us.

There were also a lot of funny Japanese cars like the daihatsu Mira on the parking lot and Toshimi the owner of the Mira was so spurprised that Marco liked his car so much he let him sit in for a picture. What a nice surprising stop this was! After the spontaneous visit to the motorcycle event, we continued our trip towards Obama, a small coastal town. We drove the coast north from here towards the Echizen region. We ended our Sunday with a lovely visit to a Onsen (520 JPY / 3€ per person), located by the coast with a beautiful view of the sunset. It was a great way to unwind and relax.

Katsuyama Castle, and a Mystical Forest Shrine

We began our Monday morning by visiting a Montbell shop located beside a Michinoku store. Montbell is a Japanese brand that specializes in outdoor clothing and equipment. We were able to find everything we needed for our upcoming hiking and camping trip. As we continued our drive, we spotted a castle-shaped structure on the horizon. Intrigued, we made a spontaneous decision to visit the katsuyama castle and learned about its history. The pictures depicted farmers being attacked by foreign armies, but the castle had successfully defended the country. Other country same story like in our Middle Ages. It was an interesting and informative visit. Right next to the castle, we saw a little narrow Rd. leading into the woods. It looked very Mystic, and we had no choice but to drive this road. We drove around one or two kilometers to the shrine in the woods. We couldn’t draw further, so we parked our car and walked the last bit to the shrines and temples in the middle of the forest. Walking along Mystic Rd towards the shrine in the forest, one can’t help but feel the friendly and peaceful environment. The soothing sounds of the forest transport you to a different time when samurais from the castle used to walk the same road to offer prayers at the shrines. It fills you with a sense of humility and reverence.

Road to Hakusan National Park

While on our way to Hakusan National Park, our minds wandered back to ancient times with samurais, temples, and forests. We stumbled upon a small, winding road through the mountains that was a perfect play of autumn colors and sunshine. Suddenly, we spotted a small sign with a monkey on it. Alicia suggested that there might be monkeys and as we turned the next corner, we saw a group of monkeys sitting in the trees beside a parking lot where a few cars had already stopped to photograph them. We joined in and watched the monkeys play and eat fruits from the trees. The sight of little monkeys haggling around was especially entertaining. They were quite clumsy, but it only added to the fun. We observed them for maybe 15 or 20 minutes. Coach arrived. He backed in front of the monkeys, a lady from the bus screamed and shouted to back in further, and a group of tourists came out of the bus. The monkeys saw this and the chief of them screamed a little, and then all the monkeys came down from the tree and went back into the hills. This was also our sign to move on.

Exploring the Kamikochi Region

On Tuesday, we visited Kamikochi, a place inaccessible by car. We parked our car near Hiraya Onsen and caught the first bus at 6:30 am to Kamikochi. We were lucky to have arrived early, as we hiked for three hours covering 12 km across the beautiful landscapes with almost no tourists around. However, while heading back to the bus stop, we noticed a large crowd of tourists that had arrived by then. We were happy to have started early. Since we had to return our car on Thursday, we took up the challenge of driving to Japan campus space and used Google Maps without toll roads. It suggested an eight-hour drive, perfect for our three-day plan. We started our journey in an All Suzuki car, and we were soon greeted by the winding mountain roads and beautiful autumn colors. As we turned a 180-degree curve, we were surprised to find some monkeys enjoying the warm sunshine and delousing each other on the road. Sorry for disturbing you little monkeys!

Japanese Shoping Mall Adventures

During our visit to Aeon Mall, we decided to explore the area and grab some food. We stumbled upon a great ramen and Gyoza spot. After finishing our meal, we stumbled upon the arcade and gaming section. The experience was amazing. Marco had a blast playing Mario Kart with his friend Toshimi and was fascinated with the Anpanman figures.