Wabi-Sabi Sole

Finding Beauty with Imperfection

Author: wabisabisole Page 18 of 54

Kujukushima

By

On November 23, 2017

In Japan, Kujukushima, Ramen, Sasebo

Thanksgiving afternoon Dave and I went to visit Kujukushima. Kujukushima is a small resort area about 10 minutes from Sasebo Naval Base. We caught a taxi from the base and ¥1500 later, we arrived in the resort area.

Kujukushima means 99 islands. The best way to view the islands is via a short sightseeing boat tour. Our timing was amazing. We walked up to the boat launch at 11:56 and were able to purchase two tickets for the 12:00 tour. Off we went on the Pearl Queen!

The boat tour of the islands was beautiful albeit chilly. Very chilly. The islands and surrounding water was so lovely.

We stayed topside as long as possible. The wind was whipping. Check out our attempts at a selfie!! Don’t you love my flock of seagulls hair! Haha

Finally we found a wind break and we could snap one really quickly!

Along the tour, we saw many oyster fields. We also learned the buoys are for growing pearls in the oysters. We found it interesting how neatly organized all the buoys were arranged. And we were lucky enough to see an oyster boat heading back to shore.

A little over half way through our 50 minute cruise, I was too chilly to stay topside any longer. We went below deck. I found the Captain’s coat and tried it on for size. I was hoping it would help me warmup faster. Please to meet you, Captain Julia-San.

After our boat tour, we were ready for lunch. A warm lunch. Ramen sounded perfect. We found a ramen restaurant overlooking the harbor.

The ramen had a fish broth. Oishi des. We both ranked this in our top five ramen and I gave it the best broth award.

In the surrounding park was an oyster festival. Considering the breeze and chilly weather, there were so many people!

Groups gathered around small grill pits and enjoyed their oysters. Unfortunately, we were so full from our ramen we had no room for oysters. Plus, did I mention we were chilly?

It was a nice afternoon in the park and on the water. We took a taxi back to Sasebo Base. We realized how close we were to the base. We could have walked! Oh, well. Next time!

Thank you for sharing. Ok, subject change.

I just want to pause for a second and say Happy Thanksgiving. I’m very grateful for all of my readers both near and far. I enjoy sharing our adventures out and about in Japan with you. I appreciate all your love and support for us and my blogging over the past 12+ months. Please know we spent the day talking and thinking about our friends and family. We miss you and love you. We are truly grateful for your love and support. Please enjoy a very Happy Thanksgiving!

Delicious Dinner

By

On November 22, 2017

In Food, Japan, Sasebo

Wednesday evening, Dave and I had dinner with part of the Sasebo SRF workforce. We meet at a restaurant near the base. Our reservation was for two hours of dining. During this time, we had a set menu and open bar. We started our meal with a salad.

The second dish was a cooked vegetable medley prepared on the hot grill top in our table. Each of the prepared dishes served four people.

The server prepared our food while we watched. He spread the vegetables in a circle before pouring an Italian sauce into the center.

The final ingredient was cheese sprinkled on top. The dish was a little runny and not suitable for eating with chopsticks, instead we had a cut little shovel!

My only complaint about this dish was the amount of corn. I had a pile of whole kernel corn left on plate!

The next dish was my favorite. It started as a large piece of meat with garlic on the side m. We were instructed by our chef to “no touch”!

After a few minutes, our chef placed the garlic on top of the meat and a slab of butter.

When the meat was cooked to his satisfaction, he sliced it before searing it.

He seared it by spraying sauce and lighting it on fire!

While we were waiting for the steak to be finished cooking, we enjoyed paella.

The final dish was okonomiyaki. We had a similar dish when we went to visit Miyajima Island. There’s a lot going on in this dish. Cabbage, egg, bacon, and sauce!

The food was very good. Needless to say, no one was hungry by the end!

Fortunately, Dave and I had a some what long walk home to help us digest the meal. Along the way, we enjoyed a few Christmas lights! It was a great night with a great group of SRF Sasebo employees.

PS. I’m happy to report my WordPress App is working well again!

Japanese Onsen

By

On November 22, 2017

In Japan, Takeoonsen, Train

WordPress is being difficult today. I’ve corrected stupid typos over and over. I’ve closed the app, restarted my phone, and retyped the post three times. Uncle. This one won’t be perfect. It will have its own wabi-sabi.

The pictures won’t load with the narrative correctly. So, I’ll front load the narrative and back load the pictures. You’re all smart. You will figure it out. In the mean time, I’m hoping to figure the glitch with my WordPress app! Stat!

Now begins the blog:

Even before I arrived in Japan, I was told about Japanese Onsen. Japanese Onsen is a hot spring bathing facility. The volcanic activity under the island creates naturally occurring hot springs. Many hotels have private onsen and are situated around an area with very active hot springs. Also, there are public onsen. I’ve been curious about Japanese Onsen, but because of my tattoo, I am not permitted to visit. Tattoos are not permitted at Japanese onsen because tattoos are associated with the Yukuza (Japanese gang members). It was by pure luck I learned about the private / hourly onsen in Takeo. The onsen I went to visit was Takeoonsen. It was about an hour train ride from Sasebo Station.

I caught the 10:14 local train from Sasebo Station. It took two trains to get to Takeoonsen Station. I must reiterate how I feel like a city girl visiting here after living in Yokosuka. These rickety old trains go clickety-clack!! Not to mention, they are only two car trains. The smallest one we see near us is six cars!

As I left the train station at Takeoonsen, there were no ticket machines to input my ticket. Instead, I handed my ticket to the ticket master. Now it makes sense why I can’t use my PASMO train card. They don’t have card readers. Again, feeling like a city girl!

Immediately leaving the train station I was greeted by signs for the Takeoonsen.

There were signs like these marking my way there. Speaking of onsen, have you ever noticed this emoji ♨️? It means onsen. Notice the top sign on the left.

Next two pictures – the front of the onsen and the history.

Narrative- when you enter the onsen, you are provided a menu to choose your onsen. I selected a private onsen and was told in Japanese and a quick game of charades to go around the corner.

The receptionist was so kind and helpful. We did our best to communicate despite the language barrier. I paid ¥3400 for an hour in a private onsen overlooking the forest.

The room included my own changing area, private toilet, and toilet shoes. Because Japan.

The onsen tub was immaculate. So clean. And the view! The doors open to not only enjoy the view, but to help cool down. I did love how my skin felt during and after my soak. The Sulfur from the hot spring really softens the skin. It’s amazing.

I thoroughly enjoyed my experience at the onsen. I thought an hour wouldn’t be enough. But, after 40 minutes, I was opening the doors and ready to chill before I got dressed. I’m not sure this experience is for everyone. I’m not sure Dave would even like it. One person I know would love soaking in a HOT bath, my sister in law, Juliana. She would be all over this!

I’m sorry this blog was so disjointed. I don’t know why WordPress is being so challenging. I’m hoping for easier blogging tomorrow!

Buddha & Brews

By

On November 21, 2017

In Asahi, Autumn, Beer, Fukuoka, Google Map, Japan, Temple, Train

The weather on Tuesday was beautiful. I decided to mix up my day trips and use the lovely day to explore Fukuoka. The Midori-Huis Ten Bosch Limited Express train makes the trip to Fukuoka from Sasebo in about two hours.

I arrived at the Sasebo train station with plenty of time to spare before catching the 8:06 train. I’m glad I did. I’ve learned in Japan that trains with special names require a special ticket at a special price. Such was the case with the Limited Express. I needed two tickets. One ticket for the train and one for Express Train! Yikes! And that is only one way! I needed to make the most of my day!

Once arriving at Hakata Station, I switched to the JR lines and took a local train to Nanzō-in Temple. I first learned about this Temple from my friend, Paula. She and her husband were stationed in Sasebo and went to visit the Temple. Her pictures were so cool, I knew I had to add this to my list. The Nanzō-in Temple is known for its large bronze Reclining Buddha statue said to be the largest bronze statue in the world.

The statue is about 134 feet long, 36 feet tall, and weighs 300 tons. It was spectacular. Better in fact than I anticipated. I thought I would stop by really quickly, snap some pictures and leave. Instead, I lingered and enjoyed the serenity and harmony I felt during my visit. The long cord from his hand is connected to the prayer area so visitors can “touch” Buddha as they pray. His feet are decorated with symbols to represent healing powers.

The statue is reclining because it represents Buddha at the moment of death or as he enters nirvana.

Besides my feeling of serenity, I also wasn’t expecting fall foliage to decorate the beautiful temple.

These two might be my favorite.

But, then there’s the one with the waterfall and bridge.

Like I said, I spent way more time here enjoying a sort of fall foliage meditation. I’m so glad I decided to visit today while the skies were clear.

I returned to the train station and caught he 12:02 train back to Hakata Station. I wanted to take the 15:32 Limited Express back to Sasebo so I could meet Dave for dinner. The 15:32 put me back at 17:24. So, I had about 3 hours to kill before my train. On my way to Fukuoka, I researched different options. Parks, foliage, “Fukuoka” ramen, and/or shopping were all viable options. As I was on the train after my visit to the Temple, I was ready for a beer. One divine search for zen leads to another. I searched “breweries” in Google Maps and the Asahi Brewery popped up. It was only one stop from Hakata – 4 minutes. Perfect. I arrived at the Brewery around 12:40.

The receptionist was so welcoming and asked if I had a reservation. No. Ok, then how about 1:00 tour? Hai! Arigatōgozaimas! She gave me a set of headphones so I could enjoy the tour in English.

The tour took an hour. It was really fun despite the language barrier. Oh, and did I mention – FREE! The hops were not edible but the barley in the canister was available for sampling.

A couple more pictures of the packaging process. Did you know the only place in North America that brews and packages Asahi is the Molson Coors Plant in Canada!

A couple pictures to help you understand the volume of beer brewed and packaged at this plant. This is where cans are filled with Asahi. It fills 1500 cans per minute.

This is a picture of the bottle filler. It only fills 600 bottles per minute.

After our tour, we were given the opportunity to sample Asahi beer. Asahi encourages consuming alcoholic beverages in moderation. Therefore, you only have three FREE samples to consume in 20 minutes with your bag of beer snacks. Moderation is the Wabi-Sabi of life. I think so.

Just in case you were wondering what it was like to be a blonde American traveling alone today, I felt like a rockstar. I railway staff helping me buys tickets, use my PASMO, and find my correct track. At the Brewery, the tour guide checked on me throughout the tour and sat me at my own table. It went above and beyond excellent customer service. My third sample and my fellow tour members.

I purchased some of the beer snacks for Dave as a little present. I would bring him beer, but there is an alcohol restriction on American service members stationed in Japan after a Marine killed a Japanese man in a drinking and driving accident Sunday morning in Okinawa. The incident is very sad, preventable, and unfortunate.

As the sun sets on my day trip and I reflect on how I spent my time, it was pretty perfect – for me. I didn’t see the amazing shopping mall or sample Fukuoka ramen. But, I was able to enjoy Buddha, fall foliage, and a beer (or three). My take away from this outing was – you can’t do everything, you can’t please everyone. So, do what you love and make sure you have fun doing it!

Plan Your Work

By

On November 20, 2017

In Japan, Sasebo, Sushi, Train, Travel

We arrived at the Naval Base in Sasebo Sunday afternoon. We were able to check into our room at NGIS. This might be the fanciest Navy room I have ever stayed in. Not only is it HUGE, there is a doormat, leather furniture, full size fridge, dining room, beautiful backyard, and a massage chair! Seriously!?!

The view out the back door.

The massage chair.

After checking in, we headed out to see the area outside the base. Dave has been to Sasebo for work several times. He took me to one of his favorite restaurants. They actually use a net to catch the fish in the tank for you and serve it on the sushi platter.

I’m not sure there is a fresher way to enjoy sushi.

I was a bit of chicken and ordered my favorite and safe sushi choice. Maguro (tuna) and rice bowl.

After dinner, we stopped at a few local watering holes and then headed back to the room. I used Monday morning to work out our plan for sightseeing during the week. I stopped by IACE travel and was able to obtain a plethora of information for things to do around the area. The travel agent was very knowledgeable about the area and helped me put together a week full of adventures.

One noticeable difference between Sasebo and Yokosuka is the train schedule. I realize now we are very spoiled living in Yokosuka. We have trains running every 8-10 minutes from our closest station. Here, trains run hourly most of the time. This makes it a little bit more challenging when planning an excursion. I was a little frustrated this afternoon because I missed the 12:43 train. The next one wasn’t going to arrive for an hour. This wouldn’t give me enough time to get there and back before my rendezvous with Dave for dinner. Grrr. So, plan B. I decided to use my time this afternoon to plan my work for the next couple days so I could work my plan and not end up in the same predicament. I picked up some lunch and returned back to base, timing how long it would take to go from NGIS to the train station (at a leisurely pace). I ate my lunch on our patio with this amazing view.

Then, I had a massage in the chair. Once my appetite was satiated and I was completely relaxed from my massage, I set to work on my plan. I wrote down a few notes and train schedules for my intended adventures over the next couple of days. Now that I’m squared away I’ll be ready to hit the ground running tomorrow! Adventures await!

Waiting for Our Flight

By

On November 19, 2017

In Japan, Sasebo, Travel

Dave and I are flying to Nagasaki airport. We will spend the week of Thanksgiving in Sasebo. Dave has to work a few days at the beginning of the week. While he is working, I’ll be exploring. He is taking a few days leave at the end of the week so we can explore the area together. I’m excited to visit another part of Japan. Sasebo is located towards the southern end of the country. We are the blue dot and will be flying to the red flag.

It is a short flight, only 1 hour and 45 minutes. One small cup of coffee will make it fly by.

I’m looking forward to sharing the week of adventures with you! I’m thankful for all you for reading and following wabisabisole. Your support means everything. Happy Thanksgiving week!

The Rest of the Story

By

On November 16, 2017

In Autumn, Hakone, Japan, Shrine

I know the suspense is killing you! Thank you for returning to read about the rest our our day in Hakone. I left off the story of our Hakone Fall Foliage adventures yesterday with us riding the Ropeway. The Ropeway ended at Togendai-ko, where we boarded the Hakone Sightseeing Cruise. The cruise ship is modeled after a pirate ship! It held a lot of people!!

The boat ride took about 40 minutes. We started out standing on the “poop” deck. The crisp autumn air on the water made us chilly and so we headed down below decks. We still had a nice view of the coast line as we sailed through Lake Ashi. Please notice all the clouds, they parted later at the perfect moment!

We exited the ship at the second landing, Motohakone-ko Pier. We wanted to visit the Hakone-jinja Shrine and the floating Torii. As we walked to the Shrine, we enjoyed more fall foliage.

We crossed a cute bridge along the route and stopped for a few pictures. The vermilion bridge with the leaves was truly brilliant!

The floating Torii was impressive. If only the lighting was more cooperative.

By this point it was past 2pm and we were getting hungry for lunch. Unfortunately, we realized most of the restaurants had closed for their lunch service and those that were open had very long lines. We decided to grab a quick lunch from the 7-11 and eat on the steps by the pier. The leaves continued to impress us as we made our way to our picnic spot.

As we sat on the steps enjoying our lunch and Mt. Fuji Pale Ale, the sky started to clear.

It was as though we were beckoning Mt. Fuji to appear magically before us. I guess Sake isn’t the only thing to appease the Gods.

I made one more offering. (Side note edit about the picture below. Katie just sent me a message with the realization that the picture on the label of our Hakone Pale Ale was our viewpoint during lunch! Please notice Mt. Fuji and the floating Torii on the label. No wonder the Gods smiled and cleared the clouds off of Mt. Fuji!)

And I was rewarded with clearing skies.

The last picture was my favorite of the day. Like I have said so many times before, I am so happy for each opportunity to see Mt. Fuji. My three favorite things in Japan are: (in no particular order unless I’m hungry)

Mt. Fuji

Shinkansen

Maguro (tuna sashimi)

After lunch, we worked our way to the bus terminal to catch the bus back to Hakone Yumoto Station. This was the most confusing part of the day. After lining up in three different bus lanes, we were finally directed to an express bus which dropped us off in about 30 minutes. The whole day proved to be pretty easy to navigate and the Freepass was key to smoothly go from one means of transportation to another. We could bypass the ticket counter each time, saving time and confusion. I arrived home shortly before 6pm. It was about 11 hours of exploring and fun!!

If you haven’t started planning the dates for your trip next year, I encourage you to consider November. The weather is cooler and the foliage is stunning. A day trip to Hakone can easily be added to any itinerary. The beauty is breathtaking. Also, if you visit in late spring, there could be an opportunity to view the Hakone hydrangeas. I look forward to my next trip to Hakone and the one we make together!

Hakone Fall Foliage

By

On November 15, 2017

In Autumn, Hakone, Japan, Mt. Fuji

On Wednesday, Katie and I decided to take a trip to Hakone. We left our houses at 7:00am and met at Zushi Station at 7:30am. From Zushi we took two more trains to finally arrive at Odawara Station. Here was the first part of our route.

Once we arrived in Odawara Station, we purchased a two day pass called the “Hakone Freepass”. For ¥4000 ($40.00), the Hakone Freepass would allow us to ride the Hakone Tozan Train, the Hakone Tozan Cable Car, the Hakone Ropeway, the Hakone Sightseeing Cruise, and the Hakone Tozan Bus. Basically, we made a HUGE loop around Hakone. Here is the map we used.

We started on the far right and worked our way counterclockwise around Hakone until arriving back at Odawara.

Our main objective was to use this trip as a reconnaissance trip to see what we would like to do with our families and future visitors. Also, we really wanted to see fall foliage. We accomplished both!

Here is our first Hakone train, the Hakone Tozan Train. It was crowded! I mean it’s Wednesday!! This train had several switchbacks as it went up the mountain! It was weird to go in one direction and then all the sudden go in reverse!

We made a brief stop in Gora before getting on the Hakone Tozan Cable Car. Already, we were leaf crazy!

We continued up the mountain from Gora on the Cable Car. It was not quite as crowded.

The Cable Car took us to Souzan. At Souzan, we took a moment to savor the view.

After a brief stop, we took the Hakone Ropeway to Owakudani. The views of foliage from the Ropeway were spectacular! Can you see the shadow of our Ropeway Car?

As we boarded the Ropeway, we were given damp towels to use in case the Sulfur smell was too strong.

As we came over the mountain on the Ropeway, the Sulfur mines were visible. The steam is being released from the Earth because of the thermal vents associated with the volcanic valley. Wow!!

After we exited the Ropeway, we had an opportunity to walk around and look at the Sulfur mines from above. The steam rising was so cool. The science teacher in me was completely geeking out. Poor, Katie. She was a sport to put up with my giddiness!

Here was a fun surprise that I wasn’t expecting. I had heard about the “famous black eggs” of Hakone, but I didn’t understand exactly what they were.

The eggs were sold for ¥500 for 5 eggs. I bought a sack of eggs for us to share.

From my research I learned, the eggs are boiled in hot sulfur springs. The Sulfur causes the egg shells to turn black. The black eggs are called Owakudani “Kuro-Tamago” by locals. Legend goes that eating the eggs will add 5-7 years to your life.

The eggs appear to be from out of this world, but they tasted like a normal hard boiled egg or tamago. I took a picture of my half eaten Kuro-tamago with the cute egg seat! Kawaii!

As we finished our egg snack, we couldn’t believe our eyes! For a brief moment, Mt. Fuji was visible!!

Our next leg of the journey was the second part of the Hakone Ropeway. We took the Ropeway down to Togendai-Lo where we would board the Hakone Sightseeing Cruise. The ride down the Ropeway was beautiful.

I hate to leave you hanging on the Ropeway… but, this post has potential to gone on and on. I’ll tell you the rest of the story tomorrow. Stay tuned for Hakone Fall Foliage Part Two tomorrow!

Japanese Kiwi

By

On November 14, 2017

In Fruit, Google Map, Japan

My English student, Manami, brought me Japanese Kiwi last weekend. The packaging is so cute! Kawaii! It just makes me want to be happy and eat kiwi.

These particular kiwi are from Fukuoka. Here is a screen shot of where Fukuoka Prefecture is located.

They needed a couple days to ripen. I ate one yesterday and it was delicious. This morning I cut up some for Dave for lunch. “Nothing says love like fresh cut fruit.” Especially, in Japan, because fruit can be very expensive!

Look how pretty the “star” is inside the kiwi! It’s red!

The other difference I noticed was the smooth skin. This species of kiwi doesn’t have the prickly hairs.

It was a very nice of Manami to bring us such a delicious present. I would describe these as tasting very similar to American Kiwi. Perhaps, a little bit sweeter.

Hiking Happiness

By

On November 12, 2017

In Hiking, Japan, Kamakura

Dave and I decided to set out for a hike on Sunday. It was such a glorious Autumn day. We decided to hike the Red Leaf Trail. 


We hiked parts of this last fall. Today, we had plenty of time and hiked about four miles of the trail. About half of the hike was new for us both. The day was so clear, we could see Yokohama in the distance. 


We were hoping to see a little more fall color. The forest was still pretty green. 


We passed through a spectacular Ginkgo grove. It was beautiful. So much yellow. 


The view from the top over Kamakura was worth the climb! 


We passed Kamakura Country Club as we hiked. The golf course also had quite the view. Check out the view at hole 4. 


I snapped a picture of the pompas grass. It’s so peaceful in the wind. 


We had such a fun day hiking our way around Kamakura. It’s hard to believe how close we were to the bustling city as we walked through the quiet woods. There were a lot of people out enjoying the day as well. We exchanged a lot of “Konnichiwas” as we hiked along. We passed this man and his dog shortly after exiting the trail. His dog is in his backpack!! 


We had such a great time today. Thanks for reading and I hope you have a Sunday Fun day as well! 

Page 18 of 54

Previous

Next

Powered by WordPress & Theme by Anders Norén