Monthly Archive for August, 2006

Summer Road Trip 3

Day 5

It was fortunate we stayed in a guesthouse at Shimoda. That night the typhoon arrived. We were safe and dry but our washing that Yoko had so kindly done and hung out to dry wasn’t quite so lucky.

When we woke in the morning it was pouring. We had planned to check out some of the historical sites of Shimoda. U.S Naval Captain Matthew Perry visited in his ‘black ship’ in 1853. His visit led to the opening of Japan to the west. (More about that here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matthew_Per…(naval_officer )

The rain was far too heavy to consider sightseeing so we opted to visit the local aquarium. It turned out to be quite a good decision. Most of the exhibits were undercover so we avoided getting too wet. We watched a dolphin show complete with ‘dolphin surfing’ where the trainers rode standing up on the dolphins’ backs. We also saw some sea lions, penguins, sharks, stingrays and a vast array of fish. Reni seemed to really enjoy it. He was happy just to watch the fish swimming around.

From Shimoda, we headed north up the centre of the Izu Peninsula towards our next destination, the Mt Fuji area. It was quite a spectacular drive through some rugged mountain terrain. Along the way we stopped at Joren Waterfall, one of the top 100 falls in Japan. We also bought a number of wasabi (that spicy green stuff you put in soy sauce for sushi) products here too, a specialty of the area .

The drive proceeded smoothly until we came into Numazu city at the top of the peninsula. We got caught in a huge traffic jam from which there was no escape. As we slowly crawled towards our hotel, natural urges began to take over. Eventually we had no option but to stop and rush into the nearest shop to use a toilet. Fortunately the shop happened to be Baskin & Robbins, so we enjoyed an ice cream each while we waited for the traffic to ease a little.

The hotel was only a short distance up the road. It was amazingly cheap and comfortable. It cost us less to stay here with breakfast included than it did to stay without meals at the guesthouse the previous night.

Day 6

Our final day and the finale of our trip. We set aside this day especially for Reni. He had been such a good traveler, he deserved a reward.

The weather reports did not look promising. More rain from the typhoon was forecast. When we set off from the hotel it was overcast but wasn’t raining. Our destination was the Fuji-kyu Highland amusement park and more specifically, inside, Thomas Land.

Unfortunately we weren’t able to see Mt Fuji on the drive to the park. The weather forecast had obviously put many people off coming as the place was pretty deserted arrived. We entered and walked through to the Thomas The Tank Engine attractions in no time.

We spent the day looking at Thomas and his friends and riding on them too. Of course there was a train ride and a number of other merry-go-round type rides. Reni was in his element and had a great time.

The weather was quite pleasant the whole day. It hardly rained at all and was cooler than usual too. At one point it even cleared enough for us to see Fuji-san. On the way out we ventured to a wild roller-coaster ride. I was keen to give it a try but gave up when we found out there was almost a 2-hour waiting period to get on it.

We headed back to Numazu and got some sushi for dinner, Shizuoka being renown for its seafood. Unfortunately the restaurant we chose was nothing special and overpriced. It didn’t matter though, it put fuel in my engine for the long drive back to Kyoto.

Summer Road Trip

August is summer holidays here in Japan. For the last few years I have taken a road trip during this time in our Mitsubishi Delica van. Last year and the year before was to Miyazaki on neighbouring Kyushu island. This year we went northeast instead, first to Aichi and then to Shizuoka prefectures.

Day 1

After a brief stopover in Kyoto to say hi to Yoko’s folks we headed to an area known as Irago on the Atsumi Peninsula. This exposed coastline is a popular surfing destination. When we arrived a professional contest was meant to be in progress except there were no waves.

I went for a quick paddle just to cool off. After, while I was getting changed some competitors passed by. I recognized one of them, Michael Campbell, a once highly ranked surfer currently making a comeback. I nodded (bowed) at him (a sure sign I’ve been here too long) and he said “Konnichiwa” to Yoko.

Day 2

We camped on a nearby beach that night. The next morning we woke up early in order to see the sunrise. It wasn’t quite as spectacular as our guidebook had led us to believe but it was impressive nonetheless.

Reni was a bit difficult following breakfast, refusing to get changed. (We have had a problem with this for quite some time now.) A tantrum ensued but eventually we got him into a clean nappy and clothes and went to a nearby beach.

It was crowded with surfers, many of them beginners. I struggled to avoid hitting two guys that were floundering in the white water on my first wave. A nearby surfer probably thought I didn’t have much of a clue either because he blatantly dropped in on me. (He caught the wave after I was already riding it- a big no-no!) When I caught up with him he grinned meekly at me and apologized profusely. I must have looked pretty angry I guess. Anyway, the waves had picked up from the previous day so it was much more fun.

After the beach we headed up the coast out of Aichi and into Shizuoka. We stopped at Lake Hamana(ko) for lunch. We had some local specialties – eel with rice and small clams in soup. Both were very tasty. Following lunch we hiked up the hill to a temple and then continued walking through the surrounding forest. Along the way we stopped to enjoy some views of the lake before returning to the car.