Day 2 - Friday 30/09/05
Awoke around 6am and watched TV for a while. The other half was still sleeping, so I threw on some shoes (actually my only pair :wink: ), wrote a detailed note "back in 15 minutes or so" and went out for a bit. A sign in the elevator mentioned that breakfast was served from 7am – 9.30am. Also saw some trouser pressing machines near the elevators (free for guests on every floor) which was a nice touch. We still weren’t sure whether we’d stay at this hotel or look for somewhere bigger, and thought the breakfast would help us decide.
As I walked around the inner city I was surprised at the number of homeless. In Sapporo it’s rare to see these people, as possibly it’s too cold to bear. I thought about picking up some Starbucks but decided to be frugal, with breakfast time fast approaching. Returned to the hotel and had a shower (new & clean bathroom, good water supply and temperature, bidet toilet etc) and woke my sleeping beauty.
Today’s plan was ambitious, though simple. Several FTers had offered some great suggestions including daytrips to Aso volcano, Beppu hot-spring resort, Kumamoto Castle and Nagasaki. But we’d decided that we’d like to get more acquainted with Fukuoka itself, before sampling the other delights Kyushu offers. Thus public transportation day it became.
We sauntered down to breakfast probably around 8. Hotel breakfast spreads at International hotels in Japan (Westin, Marriot, Intercontinental, Hilton…) are usually solid but expensive. Japanese business hotels though are notorious for terrible morning offerings (would you like some seaweed with your pickles and nato… uurrgghhhhh). It was a self-service spread, and didn’t look too shabby. Had about 8 types of bread & pastries, homemade as evidenced by the waft from the kitchen. Some jams, salads, eggs, soup & yogurt. Simple but sufficient. The juice was fresh, the croissants delicious and the cappachino machine a godsend. And what was even better, they had bread hampers (featuring 5-6 assorted breads/ pastries) for guests to take free. I was starting to feel foolish for paying triple the price for hotels elsewhere.
Thought about using the free internet to check hotels & mail but instead gave my babe a peck on the cheek and suggested "let’s just stay here". Anyway I pondered, what mail can’t wait till tomorrow – a decision I later regretted
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We arrived at the information center around 9, wishing we’d paid more attention yesterday. It opened at 10. Not to be deterred, we took the escalators up to the bus center (also in Tenjin Fukuoka station – 5F?) and inquired about a bus pass (subway passes are great but you don’t see much of a city when you’re underground). Sure enough they had a ripper of a deal – a one-day 1,000yen pass for two (it’s 600yen for one). This would get us everywhere we wanted to go*, and seemed remarkable value.
*Also Fukuoka has a 100yen-bus loop within the inner city. You can travel to Nakasu, Kawabata, Gion, Hakata, Tenjin, Canal City etc and pay 100yen each time you hop on/ off.
Took a bus from in front of the station first to Bayside Place Hakata. This is home to the Hakata Port Tower, some restaurants and shops, a small museum and an indoor snowboarding park. Harbor cruises also leave from here. Walked inside to be greeted by an aquarium housing several species. A group of schoolchildren were sitting in front of the tank. I wonder if they were thinking the fish looked beautiful or delicious? As I approached, their attention shifted from the glass to me. Some even said hello, others just looked shocked. I guess they weren’t expecting to see a foreigner on this outing
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We checked out the cruise prices (500yen one-way to Uminonakamichi, lunchtime/ dinner cruises including food and alcohol from 3,000yen) and decided we were happy to stay on land. Walked upstairs one floor to the 1F/ 2F (depending where you live) and found a charming maritime museum (free). The museum taught me about Fukuoka’s sister ports (Auckland, Shanghai, Belgium somewhere & Oakland from memory) and had some interesting assorted knick-knacks. Also had a great little patio where you could sit in the sun, have a ciggie or drink and enjoy the view. We drifted over to the indoor snowboarding center yet again were early. I think it opens at 11. Also several people were busy opposite setting up an outdoor market. I guess it’s better to come here after 12. My g/f is scared of heights so we didn’t go up the Port Tower.
By this time it was after 10am so we headed back to the information center at Tenjin (10 minutes by bus). Here we fueled up on some local knowledge including the Ni****etsu Yanagawa canal pass. Strode off to Tenjin Starbucks and caught our 3rd bus for the day. We weren’t going far – only to the next Starbucks at Akasaka, but knew we’d need our legs later. Off at Akasaka Starbucks and had a coffee & wander around. I’m sure it’s not interesting for most tourists, but as we’re considering moving here next spring we wanted to have a look and get a feel of some areas. Back on a bus (we had a choice of numbers 1,2,3,5) and past Fukuoka Castle ruins & off again at Ohori Park. A beautiful huge parkland with a 2km path around the lake, it’s got some of those swan things you can hire and paddle. We thought we might eat some free hotel hamper bread but were sadly mistaken. First the pigeons came, then giant carp (some measuring over 70cms), then turtles & ducks and … you get the picture. We ate the sweet potato pastry but the rest was given away
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Back on another bus and past the Noh Theater, and off again at Nishijin. We planned to visit the Nishijin open market yet figured that time was running out. So we crossed the road and hopped on another bus heading towards Momochi. We passed a few consulates, Fukuoka Dome (home to baseball’s Fukuoka Softbank Hawks), and the JAL SeaHawk Hotel and Resort. Got off at Momochi Seaside Park and headed to the beach.
Heaps of giant jellyfish in the water so we headed to the protected & netted area. Took off the shoes and it was great to feel sand between my toes again. Dipped our feet in the water, had a snack and then crossed the road to the Fukuoka Tower & Observatory. An impressive structure (actually a magnificent glass building), but by this time the challenge to be tight on this trip (monetarily) was becoming addictive. We forgoed the 800yen odd admittance fee and simply walked through the foyer to the bus stop. Time was starting to become an issue yet we’d been lucky up to now with buses. We hadn’t had to wait more than 3 minutes all day and once again luck was on our side. 2 minutes later and we were on our way back to Tenjin.
It was now 1.55pm and the train was leaving at 2.05pm. We bought our Yanagawa canal pass (Ni****etsu) not knowing whether they represented good value (turned out they were). For 2,800yen (each) we got trains to Yanagawa, transfers to/ from the station to the canal company, canal trip, Dazaifu train sidetrips and peace of mind (Yanagawa canal cruise only = 1,500yen/ person). We were set.
On the train to Yanagawa, my SO stayed awake. I was
. Turns out, there was a huge god-like (buddha?) statue standing out in the middle of nowhere, which seemed very out of place. She brought that to my attention, and then drifted off to sleep. I suppose some of us have more energy than others :P .
We arrived at Yanagawa station at 2.50pm. I was surprised when we showed our tickets to the gate agent that they actually left their post and personally escorted us to the mini-bus stop destined for our goal. Impressive. But what was comical was the agent calling the driver who was sleeping; we could now see the bus. Failing to wake him by phone, she wandered over, tapped on the window and I guess she said something like "umm, time to work". He woke up, and we took the bus to the Ni****etsu* canal company office (about 3-4 minutes) arriving just before 3pm.
*Ni****etsu, literally meaning "west train" is a train company that also operates taxis, canal companies and god knows what else.
We were a little annoyed that the next tour started at 3.30pm. Nonetheless it gave us time for a breather. We were invited upstairs (above the canal company office) to tour their small museum. Nothing more than a couple of old tatami rooms really, that housed some old photographs and memorabilia.
Back downstairs we were bathing in the sun when an elderly woman with a parasol walked past. I could tell she was eyeballing me. Relaxed and up for a bit of banter I commented that it was a bit warm, wasn’t it. Seeing that I could speak Japanese, the floodgates opened and the questions came. Where am I from? How long am I here? Is it my first time to Yanagawa? What did I think? Was I doing the canal tour and how come I spoke Japanese? Turns out it was her 73rd birthday, and to mark the occasion she asked to have her photo taken with me
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It was now 3.30pm and time for the 1-hour tour to start. I bought a beer (300yen, you could drink, smoke and eat on the gondola) and boarded the rickety old boat. There were 4 of us and the driver in a craft that could accommodate about 30 I guess. We passed lots of interesting places (vague I know) with the driver singing a lot of the time. I just chilled out, didn’t really listen too much and enjoyed the time on the water. Got a great photo of a man straddling and pruning a 15-meter tree, giving it that uniquely Japanese look.
Pulled in at 4.30pm and immediately boarded our shuttle bus (the last of the day). About 10 minutes later, we arrived at the station and had 25 minutes to kill before the next train. We were feeling peckish by now and the infamous Yanagawa eel bento box beckoned. For my g/f that is, as I don’t eat eel. So she bought eel (from a restaurant opposite the station with take-away; not cheap though at about 1,600yen IIRC) and I got a sandwich from the convenience store on the next corner. We greedily filled our stomachs and nervously eyed our watches. Would we make Dazaifu in time?
It was about a 30-minute journey and we arrived at Dazaifu after changing trains once (can’t remember where, but there were clear announcements in English/ Japanese that this was the stop to change for Dazaifu). It was now 5.55 and nobody could tell us when the Shrine closed. You see it closes at sunset, but whose definition of sunset was used? We ran the 300 meters up the shop-cocooned-street and arrived at the shrine gate. It was open
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It was a wonderful time of the day to arrive. Too late for tour buses, the grounds were more or less empty bar some locals walking dogs and schoolkids on dates (my g/f explained that in the country there were few places one could go on a date without being seen/ detected by neighbors). The fading light danced on the old wooden structures, highlighting the intricacies of master craftsmen’s work. It was very special. We wandered around and saw the notice announcing the new museum was to open October 16th. Not to worry we thought; it’s another excuse to come back again :wink: .
After spending a good hour within the shrine grounds we left after darkness had fallen. It was good to see that the gates were still open with the guards interpreting sunset (and closure time) liberally. Arrived at the station at 7.02pm and boarded a train soon after. After changing trains once again, we arrived in Fukuoka around 7.30. We got off 1 stop before Tenjin at Yakuin station, as once again we wanted to sample the area. There were some cool alleys with romantic restaurants yet we wanted to shower before dinner.
Pulled out the trusty old bus-pass and took the 10-minute bus back to our hotel. It was great to sit down again knowing we’d accomplished everything we’d set for that day. We were
. At the hotel again & following our showers, we leafed through some magazines looking for dinner. Not wanting to walk far we decided on the VanBeeru bar (5F, Matsui Ichi-ban building), located opposite our subway station and about a 300 meter walk from the hotel. The bar advertised over 100 brands of beer and a happy hour (6pm-8pm) with Guinness reduced from 800 to 550yen. Well we’d be too late for happy hour though the whole Canadian lobsters for 1,800yen seemed tempting.
We arrived at VanBeeru around 9pm and looking at the menus we became dizzy. Not from the prices mind you, but physically dizzy. Because this bar had several mirror-ball lights that flickered lighting across the tables and walls. When trying to read something (like a menu), it felt like someone was spinning your chair. Drinks we thought, "we need drinks" and ordered a large Sapporo bottle (600yen) and shochu (350yen). We settled in and ordered some food (and more drinks) and chatted about the day’s highlights. We didn’t need a heavy meal but enjoyed lots of small-varied dishes. Stuff like assorted cheese plate, sausages and the like. It was ok but not great. Total for all drinks and food (about 5 large beers, 3 shochu, food) was 5,200yen (400yen table-charge included). Not bad but not great either. I wouldn’t come here again except perhaps for happy-hour Guinness early.
Once more it was just the right temperature as we headed towards our abode. Saw some drum-playing foreigners with flame throwing entertainers on the canal front on the way back too. After brushing my teeth I collapsed on the bed, trying to keep awake to watch some TV. I failed miserable and fell soundly asleep.