Fukuoka You!

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Sunday in the Park with the Remaining Cherry Blossoms

On the way home front Beppu we passed the town of Usa, which made us laugh. According to the Lonely Planet, post-war manufacturing took off here because of the coveted label: "Made in USA".

Back in the Fuk, I returned to Maizuru Park to see if any Hanami revelries remained...

The cherry blossoms are nearly gone but the dogwoods are here! I was reminded of Portland...

Beppu!

From Yufuin we took a bus over the mountains to the coastal spa town of Beppu, known to be a bit more gaudy than peaceful Yufuin. There are spas all over town, as well as open "hell" pits steaming away amidst often tacky decorations. We skipped the hells that featured demon statues and live crocodiles, but checked out the "White Hell" and were surprised to find a pitiful piranha aquarium nearby.

This hell was our favorite, so lovely with spring flowers that it was more like heaven.

The azaleas were gorgeous...

We enjoyed some Beppu-style hard-boiled eggs...

I don't know what makes the hot springs look so different...

We stayed in a traditional Japanese ryokan and enjoyed an amazing multi-course meal, starting off with this amazing platter of sushi:

And these steamed treats, straight out of "hell":

After dinner, a soak in a fabulous hot spring (definitely heaven, not hell), and a few glasses of sake, we were thrilled to retire to our beautiful futons:

Sorry I couldn't take pictures of the onsen (spas), which were full of naked women (in the baths), and sweaty yukata-clad men and women in the unisex sand "bath". Definitely the highlight of the Beppu experience. I may return to Beppu next year for the spring festival, where in addition to enjoying the cherry blossoms you can watch them set the nearby mountain on fire. You read that right, they SET THE MOUNTAIN ON FIRE. Stay tuned till 2010...

Yufuin

Lori's friends from California came to visit, so we spent a blissful weekend in the spa towns of Yufuin and Beppu, a couple hours from Fukuoka. Traditional inns, quaint shops, spring-loving tourists, soaking pools, and rich food filled our days in Oita prefecture.

We walked around Yufuin on a sunny Saturday morning, exploring a traditional crafts center and endless tourist shops. I was most impressed with the fine liqueurs, not so much with the whale sashimi: