From Kyoto to Shikoku takes around 3 hrs by train and, yes, the countryside, the cities, the views in general just make the hours pass by.
Shikoku is the smallest of the Islands that make up Japan. Thankfully, after the whole sensory overload of Tokyo and Osaka - the affluence is breathtaking but so, likewise, is a few streets away the poverty - I needed a smaller place to go. When we say small, we mean small! It’s around 140 miles long and as wide as 95 miles. As a comparison, Connecticut is around 2/3rds the size.
There’s yet more mountains and rivers and temples to see - Mount Ishizuchi (5,503 ft), Seto Inland Sea (separates the individual Islands) and there’s a thing, starting in August, for Buddhists called the 88 Temple Pilgrimage which is a 30-60 day pilgrimage undertaken on the Island..so you can gather there’s a lot of temples...respectively - and a lot of the grains, vegetables and fruit come from here.
Interestingly enough - again, fact fans - that this is the only island (the main ones, as detailed in my 1st report) - that has no volcanoes!
There’s still, like, over 3 million people that live here though.
Beautiful. We spend a couple of days here, sampling more noodles - Udon noodles are a big staple of their diet here - and taking in the Pacific Ocean and the like. The Inland Sea, as it’s called, is just lovely, looking back towards Okanawa.
Weather wise? We’re hitting around 4 degrees, but it really doesn’t feel that cold.
....and...Cherry Blossoms! Yay! Just starting up!
Onto Kyushu, which is the 3rd largest Island as part of Japan, with around 13 million people that work and reside here. Getting there takes around 6 hrs by train. You have to go via Honshu to get there. Not sure if there’s a flight path or anything. Trains, as you’ve gathered if you have read this little trip, have been quite the staple (Note. Read all parts of this semi-blog and I’ll give some recommendations, ok?) - there uber efficient and just really nice.
As it is, Kyushu is the most Southerly Island. It houses - yikes! - Japan’s most active volcano (Mount Aso - all 5,220 ft of her) - and, again, very agricultural as well as Silk production.
They are also one of the main producers of tobacco in the region.
Which does bring us onto smoking. I smoke, of course, and I found it very interesting that many areas in Japan have both indoor and outdoor smoking rules and regulations. Depending on area.
The age of smoking - that you can buy cigarettes - is 20 years old.
All very fascinating.
In Fukuoka, in one of their parks there’s a HUGE Godzilla Scarecrow Statue, made of straw! It’s bloody massive! We’re told it’s 10 metres high and 5.7 tonnes!
Lovely but...why ?!?
More walking, more fascinating places. 3 Days....then onto...
Amazing pictures. I especially like the first one, the Winter scene and of course, the cherry blossoms. If Japan was not that far, I would not mind going back again. Perhaps, after your next part, I might reconsider.
@bustyyylover Kyoto was, I think, my fav. Was the ex capitol city and, as such, large and grand. Lots of temples. Large but not as large and overwhelming as Tokyo was.
In terms of other aspects, just...everything! Hard to be specific, but as it's quite a unique country - for example, world music acts that we see as big are really miniscule in comparison to more homegrown artists. Lots of J-Pop - so lots of things that are very different but fascinating to me.
The people, the conversations, the food? That was my favourite things, alongside all the temples and the parks.
