Sakura’s Stories from the `Land of the Rising Sun’ (4)
FUNNY TALES…..
Hitch-hiking
In most countries I would never think to hitch hike but Japan (in a rural area) I think can be a great form of transport. Had the day planned to see Mt Aso, volcano in Kumamoto Prefecture but be warned the transport in the this area is very few and far between hence we found ourselves in the freezing cold with nothing open with a 1 hour wait for the next bus to take us up. 3 young girls thought `Should be okay to hitch hike or at least try…’ At first hesitant to put the finger out soon came more easily. After only 10 minutes a lovely sedan pulled up and to our surprise and relief an elderly couple greeted us. We could speak enough to let them know where we wanted to go and they seemed more than happy to drive us there. As if this wasn’t good enough, from the front seat the `obaasan’, grandmother, proceeded to pass over hot chips, chocolates and Japanese sweets. After a short trip up the hill, a brief photo op and a smiley thanks, we waved them goodbye.
Ahhh…sweet memories!
