Mum's visit

7th~15th April: Mum and my adventures. Mum decided to come to Japan again to visit me, but this time by herself. I was allowed 5 days off which was great, allowing us to do some traveling around. I hired a k-car for a week which was very convenient but without GPS we made a few adventurous side trips. Masa, a Japanese friend, came with me and I picked her up from the airport. We drove back to Yukuhashi and I walked with mum along Imagawa River. Because it was the cherry blossom season (hanabi) many families were having BBQs along the bank. In the first photo you can see my apricotty/red apartment building. The next morning I picked up the hire car and we drove the hilly way over to Dazaifu. You can see me with our lovely little k-car.
At Dazaifu we visited Tenmangu which is one of the famous temples in Japan. It was the first of several thousand shrines to be dedicated to Tenjin. It is a very significant shrine to the Shinto faith.


































Leading up to the shrine there are many shops. Mum was particularly amused by the Japanese-ation of the modern telephone box. I must admit it does fit in a lot better. In the shrine ground there was a man with a trained monkey. No sure I agree or not. I can't drink coffee but a hot chocolate this big would be awesome!














We then visited Kanzeonji Temple. It used to be one of the most important temples in Kyushu. It is still home to Japan's oldest temple bell. This temple only had a few visitors unlike Tenmangu. I think the only reason there were a few people was because there was an art club/class painting there. It was very peaceful.







After eating some delicious chikin karage (fried chicken) we decided to take the local roads all the way to Takachiho. This is quite a distance but mum said she would rather take her time and see things on the way, rather than miss everything because you have to travel fast on the express way. It did save us a lot of money too.












We arrived in Takachiho in time to go to a Kagura performance. It was very interesting. I had already visited Takachiho before but loved it and really wanted mum to visit there too. The Kagura performance was different so still interesting for me. The story the kagura performance told was very funny. Basically the two gods got together and got drunk!
The following day we went to see Takachiho Gorge. Last time I had visited it had been pouring rain so it was great to be able to take our time. The rock and lava formations still amaze me. In the pond with the numerous MASSIVE koi was a butterfly shark. It was my first time to see a freshwater shark. We actually went and asked the aquarium to make sure it actually was a shark!






















We then went to Takachiho Shrine and Ama no Iwato Shrine. At the shrine there are some very old (and large) trees. What?!? I am bonding with nature! There is a legend that the sun goddess hid at near the Ama no Iwato shrine in a cave after been bullied by her evil brother, and therefore the world was plunged into darkness. All different methods were used to lure her out but it wasn't until one of the gods did a dance so comical, that she came out to see what the noise/laughter was all about.
There are 6 statues of the gods around Takachiho and considering we had some free time we decided it was our mission to find them all. I can tell you its not easy. I took a picture of the map to guide us around. As you can see its not very detailed! Actually when we arrived back at the youth hostel for dinner, the owner was really surprised. I don't think anyone has done it before. We had help finding the 3rd one by a guy who walked in the Takachiho City Hall. He then interviewed us, and took our picture. I will be surprised if we didn't end up in the paper. The last two were close to impossible to find. We drove around for ages and were on our "ok, this is the last try", and we found them. I don't think I have ever been so excited to find a cement statue! I must admit that on the way we got to see many beautiful things. The views were stunning.

The next day we headed back towards Yukuhashi. We passed through Mt Aso area, but didn't visit Mt Aso as mum had seen it on her last trip. It was quite good as we happened to pick roads we hadn't driven on before. From Mt Aso to Yukuhashi we decided to take a road that looked good on the map, only to find out the reason people never take it. It looked like someone's driveway for majority of it. Hard driving but we got to see some very beautiful rivers and countryside areas. And there was absolutely no traffic!!! We came and had an enjoyable dinner with my karate sensei and his wife. We stayed at my house. Nice and cheap!

We drove down towards Beppu by the local roads and decided to drop into Usa Shrine. It had been recommended to me by Chris an Aussie ALT who used to live near there. He is the guy I traveled to China with. The shrine was beautiful and very well kept. As you can see it was an absolutely beautiful day too. The only thing that spoiled it was that there was a lady on her mobile phone who obviously decided that everyone wanted to know what she was talking about! We had lunch nearby. The Japanese ladies who ran the store were very nice and probably amazed that we would eat all the different kinds of Japanese pickles and things they gave to compliment the rice. I was actually impressed that mum ate them all. Even the gross looking one. Actually the gross looking one ended up being the tastiest!





































After lunch we headed to Beppu to see the 9 hells. I've only put the photos of the more interesting/photogenic ones!







They had some wildlife at a few of the hells. I am not sure if the sulfur would be very good for them though. That flamingo is actually real! No matter what they always look fake, maybe because of the rigidity. I didn't take a picture of the horny monkeys. And you think I am kidding! It was a bit gross. I do recommend that you eat the eggs that are boiled/steamed at the hells. Oishii!
That night after some getting lost in the hills in Beppu, I took mum to an onsen which has a view of Beppu. It was very beautiful. Because the youth hostel looked abandoned, we went in search of a hotel. We avoided the hotel which had R-rated stuff out the front, and stayed near the station. Mum was the one who noticed the things not me!

















































In the morning we caught the ferry to Yawatahama (Shikoku). It was expensive to put the car across on the ferry but it gave us so much freedom having the car there. From Yawatahama we drove to Kochi. We were following the river most of the time which was beautiful. We stayed at the Kochi Youth Hostel which was very nice and new. Definitely great for the price.

The next day we went to Katsura-hama, which is one of the most famous beaches in Japan. The 'sand' is more like pebbles than anything which was very interesting and fun for mum when she decided to take a photo. She ended up on her bum. Very funny! There is also a statue there of Sakamoto Ryoma, who was one of the most instrumental people to force Japan out of isolation and into modernisation. It was strange to get t the beach through as there was a huge military type fence to stop you going directly to the beach. Instead you had to go through the souvenir shops and past the aquarium.




















Afterwards we went to the Kochi Maniko Botanical Gardens. This place was so beautiful. It is situation on the top on a mountain and is landscaped really well. In the gardens there was a green house of which mum and I got lost in. There were so many things to look at. Everytime we turned around there was something we had missed that was amazing. From the gardens we had a fantastic panoramic view of Kochi. The rice paddies at this time were full of water as you can see.






We then went to Kochi Castle. Near the castle grounds there were many old men playing Shogi, a traditional game. They were very friendly and wanted to know all about us. I couldn't help myself and had to get a photo in the board!










After that We then drove to Kazura-bashi in Tokushima-ken. It is one of the last vine bridges remaining in Japan. I had heard about this bridge and was very excited about going there. It was spoiled a bit by a really rude man, but was still interesting. The road ran along the river again, and we were able to get some spectacular views. I think the replica in Shikokumura in Takamatsu, is really good. It's definitely a lot easier to get too that this one. (Metal cables are running through both, so its much of a muchness in my opinion.
It just so happened that the touch football tournament was on at the same time as mum's visit. And because I really wanted to play, mum okayed it. It was quite a novelty having mum there. Many people were confused but my team was happy to have a cheerleader mum. I had a great time playing touch. It had been a long time since playing it at Uni. Somehow we came 3rd, which was great. It's a pity that most of the team is returning home.












This is the famous Seto Ohashi . It the worlds longest two tiered bridge system. It connects Shikoku and Honshu. It was a long drive back to Yukuhashi but we made it. Amazingly I didn't get any speeding fines!