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I have to say that for me the best spot in Kyushu is Nagasaki. Nagasaki has such a beautiful location being by the water so by night you can see the twinkle of the lights on the sea. It is hard to imagine the severity of the Atomic Bomb on this city as it is green, locals are friendly, and there is a lot of European culture. If you can only get to one of the Peace parks I do think Nagasaki’s the better one as it is smaller, well laid out and humbling.  City is also famous for Castella cake, similar to our Maderia cake, fantastic for an afternoon tea break.

All photos courtesy of JNTO

 All in all I strongly recommend making your way down to Kyushu if you have time as it is a vastly culturally diverse island with many sites and food to tryJ 

If you would like more information about any of these areas, the Juuhachi Kippu or tours offered in Kyushu, do not hesitate to contact your friendly Travel Japan consultants.

 2 great tours we offer are:

`Nagasaki & Imari Pottery’ 5 days visiting Fukuoka, Imari and Nagasaki from $2388.00 per person
`Mt Aso and Kagoshima’ 5 days visiting Fukuoka, Kumamoto, Kagoshima from $2735.00 per person

After a night in Fukuoka we made our way to Beppu. Beppu is a famous onsen (hot spring) town where we heard that the mud onsen is something not to be missed. Travelling around Kyushu is not as easy as Honshu due the less frequent trains and lack of English but it is still a great destination.

The mud hot spring we got into was actually MIXED (both males and females in one area) and outdoor. For 3 girls this was all very daunting and new. The etiquette is to take of the modesty towel before entering but I have to say that we broke this in the mixed onsen as we got in with our towels on and then unveiled Great experience and the thick/warm mud felt amazing. Definitely recommend getting past the embarrassment to try this out.

The other thing to do while in Beppu is visit the `8 Hells’ which are 8 different types of hot springs, no swimming allowed and are all different colours and style. One even has crocodiles! They all have their own mascots as well which is fun for a photo op. Generally they are only to look at but some have a small foot hot spring that you can enjoy while eating eggs boiled in the hot waters.

FUNNY TALES….. 

Beef upon beef….

Took a great trip down to Beppu, famous onsen city located on the East coast of Kyushu, to experience a mud onsen! Arrived late in the afternoon and after checking into our hotel we headed out for dinner. We came across a small yakiniku restaurant which had a table so in we went. It was a challenge to order as the menu was in kanji and none of us could speak Japanese. Through the dictionary and pointing at the table’s food next to us we finally ordered and looked forward to some beef! As the plates of beef came out the hunger grew and looked amazing. Plate after plate came out and we all started to panic. We had enough beef on the table to feed 10 people and there were only 4 of us!! As we couldn’t send it back and explain the situation we called our friends to come and help us eat it. I did not want to see the bill…..

Finally we did our best and requested the bill. Total 28,000 yen, about $400.00!!

Note to all travelers: Learning the basics of Japanese language is essential when going to a rural area

Day Two – Shiretoko 5 Lakes, Furepe Waterfall and Akanko

Just a short drive from Utoro you will find yourself in the Shiretoko `5 Lakes’ district. All 5 are impressive in their own subtle way but the one thing they all share is their high reflective quality of the water. One may mistake the reflection for the real thing!

It’s an easy walk from one to another, with walks taking as long as 2 hours. From time to time these walks are closed due to sightings of Brown Bears. The best way to avoid a meeting a bear is to hang a big brass bell of your backpack as this is meant to be a deterrent. So don’t be alarmed if you are walking anywhere in the Shiretoko area and hear faint bells in the distance, it’s a safety measure!

From here I traveled to Furepe Waterfall, about 15 minutes drive away. I really felt like I wasn’t in Japan anymore. Guess that my image was always of a busy and concrete country but in Hokkaido is the complete opposite.

It’s another easy drive from here down to Akan where I stayed one night in a traditional ryokan. One thing that you can notice as soon as you step out of the car, is a strong sulphur smell.  It’s amazing actually just how quickly you get accustomed to it! `Me-Akan’ is an active volcano located just outside Akan city which emits a bright yellow sulphur gas.

One of the most famous things about Akan is that in AkanLake you can find what is called `Marimo’ which is perfectly formed balls of moss at the bottom of the lake. They are no small either, more like the size of a fit ball. Souvenir shops that everything from key rings to ear wax pickers with this figure.

Whilst walking around in in Akan I came across this little monkey in the shop front. He is tied up but seems to be a point of interest in this town.

Whilst in Hokkaido I found it fascinating to spend some time looking around an Ainu Kotan `AinuVillage’.

It is located just on the outskirts of Akan. `Ainu’ is the name of the native Japanese people, who mainly live in Northern parts of Japan. When walking through the village I was met by extremely friendly people more than willing to explain a bit about their culture

The owl is the protector of the village and therefore being a very sacred animal. While the village sleeps they are watching over it for predators and able to alert when danger is approaching. The most amazing craft that I saw in this village were the statues of Ainu people that had been hand carved out of tree trunks. The attention to details is astonishing and I had to do a double take to check if they were in fact alive! I’m sure you can understand with these images!

This is just a taste of what adventures are to be had if you can make it to the Eastern side of Hokkaido. It is a very accessible area which is a perfect opportunity to tap into this culturally rich and lusciously green island!

Thanks for taking this journey with me. Look out for my next blog coming soon!!!

Sakura

One of the best trips I have to say in my time in Japan was getting up to the Northern area of Hokkaido, around Memambetsu, and then driving to the edge of Shiretoko National Park then back down through Akan to Kushiro. I definitely recommend driving as the public transport is very limited. The island is easy to drive around too, well sign posted with an abundance of wide straight roads.

I drive along the coastline from Memambetsu to Abashiri and Shari before arriving at Utoro. Utoro is located at the bottom of ShiretokoNational Park. I stayed at great ryokan ` Kitakobushi’, which had a lavender onsen, massive buffet and spacious rooms with picturesque views of the ocean.

Out my window was a fishery which caught thousands of salmon each morning. Boat after boat docked, unloaded the hordes then sailed back out. This area is especially famous for crab so I was very excited to hit the buffet and see the crab legs piled up for eating!!!

Endless goodness!!!

I think one thing that I will always remember about this ryokan was when we checked out. One of the staff waited for us to get in our car and as we drove off, she bowed and stayed at a 90 degree angle until we were out of sight! Customer service is second to none in this country.

Hokkaido is being increasingly popular for its flower fields. If you are able to make it to Furano in Spring, you will be touched by vast fields of mauve for as far as the eye can see. They even have lavender goods, ranging from more common products like perfumes and pouches for your drawers to the more unusual like ICECREAM!!

Whilst driving between Abashiri and Utoro, I just stumbled across this beautiful and immaculately placed flower field.

Even though Niseko in Hokkaido is probably the most famous city to visit in Winter to ski for Aussie’s, areas like Furano, Rusutsu and Shiretoko are fast becoming Spring and Summer destinations perfect for the families, independent travelers or groups.

During Summer in Japan (June to October in Australia) we offer a great 4 Day Trip of Eastern Hokkaido, so please contact us at Travel Japan for further detail!

This is just the beginning for this trip of mine so please keep an eye out for the second part `Day Two’ as I continue my way along the coast than inland!!

Sakura