Kyushu

Train ticket on the Shinkansen Sakura 545 from Hiroshima to Hakata

It was about an hour train ride on the Shinkansen Sakura 545 from Hiroshima to Hakata.  Hakata is the name of the train station at Fukuoka, on Kyushu Island.  Kyushu is the third largest of four main islands of Japan.  The others are:  Honshu, Hokkaido and Shikoku.  I've been traveling mostly in Honshu and now I am crossing the Kanmon Straits into Kyushu.  I am spoiled by the beautiful and smooth train rides on the shinkansens (bullet trains).  My friend Takeshi flew to Fukuoka that morning and met me at the exit of the train station.  We walked about 15 minutes to pick up a small rental car and off we go to a local restaurant well-known for its traditional ramen noodles.

A plain bowl of ramen noodles for about 400 yens

Popular local ramen noodle shop in Fukuoka

Our first stop was Japan's longest and highest suspension bridge at Kokonoe in Oita Prefecture.

Japan's longest and highest suspension bridge

We next went to an area with many hot-springs.  One of which is nicknamed "Sea Hell" in Beppu, Oita Prefecture.

"Sea Hell" in Beppu, Oita

Following Beppu, we stopped at a big temple complex in Usa, also in Oita Prefecture.  This is a big complex but there were very few visitors there.  Maybe because it was raining lightly but the structures were excellent subjects for photography.

Temple Complex at Usa, Oita

Usa, Oita

Gourds at the Temple

On the first night we stayed at the Uraku Ryokan in Yufu.  This is a very popular area because of the abundance of hot springs, hence most ryokans have their own onsens (hot baths).

Uraku Ryokan at Yufu.  Takeshi is talking to the proprieties.

An elaborate dinner at the ryokan in our room.

A river in Yufu, near the ryokan where we stayed

On the 2nd day we drove to a Nabegataki Waterfall in the Kumamoto area.  We also visited the top of the Mt Aso Volcano, then the Kumamoto Castle.  This area was hard hit by an April 2016 earthquake.  You can see some of the damages on the side of the castle.

Nabegataki Waterfall

At the top of Mt Aso Volcano

Sign at top of Mt Aso Volcano

Damage to Kumamoto Castle in 2016 Earthquake

Cherry Blossom trees near Kumamoto Castle

After visiting the Kumamoto area, we took a long drive towards Nagasaki.  Our first stop was a mountain overlooking the city of Nagasaki.  It was getting dark and we, like many other tourists, were waiting for the city lights to come on as it gets darker.

The City of Nagasaki at dusk

After checking into the hotel in Nagasaki, we set out to look for dinner.  We found a restaurant that specializes in Teppayaki and Okomiyaki.  I haven't had this dish before so it was wonderful to try something different.  We sat at the counter and watched the chefs do their magic with this Japanese food specialty.  I also had some squid balls at the same restaurant.  It is the only dish I know so far that is a little greasy.  All the Japanese food I have tried are almost devoid of oil.  It is a healthy cuisine.

Nakamura Restaurant specializing in Teppayaki and Okonomiyaki

Chefs cooking "Japanese omelette"

A beautiful and delicious Okomiyaki

Smiling girl making "squid balls"

In the morning we headed out to Dejima, a section of Nagasaki that was settled by European settlers in the 16th and 17th centuries.  The Portuguese were the first to come, followed by the Dutch.  It started as an island but was later integrated into the city of Nagasaki.  You can read more about Dejima here.

The old town of Dejima was re-created with life-size model buildings

Some of the early settlers in Japan were traders from China.  Because of Nagasaki being a port and its close proximity to China, a Chinatown is located right in the middle of the city, covering several blocks.  You find many Chinese restaurants here.  The Japanese love a Chinese dish called champon, which resembles bowl of Chinese noodle soup, and sara udon, a dish that is a mix between chow-mien and chop-suey.

Sara Udon, a popular Chinese dish

One of the streets in Nagasaki's Chinatown

In the afternoon, we booked a cruise to the abandoned coal-mining island of Hashima.  It is also called Gunkanjima because its silhouette looks like a battleship.  This is a very popular tour, as evidenced by the number of people waiting to get on the ship.  Unfortunately, it was raining quite heavily.  The cruise company did not cancel the cruise even though it was obvious that the sea was too rough to land on the island.  It'd have to give a full refund to everyone.  Instead, the ship went to the island, tried to land but gave up.  I am glad they did because there were quite a few older people on the ship and with it bobbling up and down in the water, someone would definitely fall into the rough sea.  We were each given a very small 400 yen refund.  I did not take any pictures because of the rain but by clicking on the two websites above, you can see what the island looked like throughout its history.  Here is another excellent description of Hashima Island.

We drove back to Fukuoka and returned the rental car.  Takeshi heard about a very good Japanese restaurant near the train station where we'd take the train to the airport.  He ordered a dish of sashimi and raw horse meat.  This is the first time I've eaten horse meat.  It looks like beef.

A Large Assortment of sashimi

A dish of raw horse meat

We flew back to Tokyo from Fukuoka that evening.  It was a wonderful 3-day trip to Kyushu.  We covered so many places in 3 days.  We'd not have been able to go to many of these places without a car and Takeshi planning all the routes and details.  Thank you Takeshi!