Onwards from Sakurajima: I took the train from Kagoshima to Kumamoto and spent the evening in town. Historically, that’s an interesting combination because of Saigo Takamori. He was an important figure in the Meiji Restoration, during which Japan restored contact with the rest of the world and consolidated government power under the emperor as a…
Tag: Travel Japan
Active volcano!
The next morning it was raining and I was hung over, so I borrowed an umbrella, bought some coffee from the vending machine, and went back to bed for a few hours. After that, I went to the train station and rented a bike. JR have managed to make renting bikes more complicated than renting…
Beware the Orange Lanterns
On my last night in Kagoshima, I decided to try imo-jochu, a local specialty. I walked out of the place I was staying and went about half a block to the first orange lantern. Orange lanterns can mean many things in Japan but usually they mean an izakaya, which is a traditional Japanese pub. There…
Kaimon
I climbed Kaimon Dake. It was a far more strenuous climb than Kibune and Kurama, but worth it for the views and the simple joy of climbing. There is a small shrine at the top of the mountain. I think the spirit enshrined there is an alcoholic. Instead of the usual coin box, there were…
Ibusuki
There’s only one reason for most people to go to Ibusuki: the sandbath – the only natural one in the world. There’s a section of sand along the beach that’s heated by volcanic steam. You can get buried in the hot sand and lie there for as long as you like. It feels about how…
Yamayaki at Nara
I found out that there was a fire festival on Saturday in Nara – an ancient capital of Japan close to Kyoto and Osaka. I decided to go to Nara for the day, then head to Osaka at night as originally planned. Nara is strange. According to local legend, the god Sento rode to Nara…
Kyoto!
I just arrived in Kyoto. I took the Nozomi – the fastest kind of shinkansen – which took just over 2 hours from Shinagawa station. I’ll be here for at least the next 4 days… My last few days in Tokyo were interesting. It was nice to be able to explore the city a bit…