Awaji Prince Hotel Sumoto

Recently I visited the Tajima region in Hyogo Prefecture to see Tajima cattle, the breeding cattle of Kobe beef.

After reading some articles from abroad on Kobe beef, I felt motivated to clear up the myth that surrounds this famous and revered meat from Japan.

Or, it just may be that I wanted to see the Tajima cattle…

It took me about two-and-a-half hours by train and bus to reach the Ota cattle ranch. The train I took is called the "Matsukaze" express ...

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We left Hojo very early to catch the train to Matsuyama to catch a bus to Sannomiya station in Kobe. The trip was beautiful, but uneventful. There were a couple a massive bridges which were quite impressive, including The Pearl Bridge, the world's longest suspension bridge. It was very large indeed.

Once in Kobe, we decided to check out an information centre and the lady helped us with a simple walking plan that included the ...

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... it was soooo nice i even had a piece with otoro (best bit of tuna) it just melted in the mouth! We are off to Beppu tomorrow for three days relaxing in a really luxurious Ryoken with onsen with 4 mixed baths and 2 single sex baths we cannot wait. We therefore wont be updating the final bit of the blog untill we are back home in sunny old England!

... for a family meal. The restaurant was pretty nice with a very loose Italian theme for the décor .We were seated in the back of the room which had been decked out to look like a wine cellar. The meal was good and it was nice to be all together. Weird Pesto seafood pizzas withstanding. The moment was not lost on Keiko's dad who got a ...

... you think. Just pastries with octopus parts inside. And it's not the tastiest thing I've ever eaten, either, but it beats out the tripe from the Hong Kong Train. ******* The Japanese are some of the most adorable people on the planet. In the train station on Wednesday, we entered the ticket office to buy a tourist day pass. On our walk to the counter (approximately 4 strides), we got a little Japanese speech from the ticket agent and at least 3 bows. Then, when we ...

... looked interesting. I asked if I could take pictures, and the shop keeper looked at me a little funny, but said it was alright. Thinking about it, these toys stores are pretty daunting. I've spent far too much money (I.E. some) on Gashapon (An onomatopeic interpretation of the sound the toy ...

... you wanted next door really. Trying to forget about him for the mean time we had another horrible, greasy Mcdonalds for dinner and headed back. Our weird next door neighbour must have come in and out the room 10 or more times in the next hour or 2, I'm sure he was harmless but it was unsettling to say the least. We were going to Universal Studios the next day so an early start and an early night followed.

... hosted by an effeminate Father Gargamel (not sure if I have the spelling right - any smurfs fans out there?) who was far more fascinating than the Abbey. Groan - I asked possibly the most stupid question in the history of the world there - Gargamel was explaining that Charles Darwin was buried in Westminster Abbey and that many people find that difficult to believe. My one and only question for the tour "Why would people find it hard to believe he is buried here?" I'm ...