Hotel Banshouro Sasebo

Last time I have written was when we just arrived in Hiroshima. In Hiroshima we visited the Miyajumi island where the floating temple is except that when we arrived it was low tide and the temple was not floating but we could actually quite comfortably walk to it. But such a nice island with some wild deer and if I came again would definitely be nice to stay on the island for a night. We also visited the Hiroshima A-bomb memorial park which was quite sad ...

... in Sasebo, and that we are due to check out of this hotel in 9 hours time (it is now 1:50am on Tuesday morning), and catch the train to Himeji, where we have another hotel booking. DAMMIT! It is going to be difficult to stay in 2 cities at the same time!!! So I gather up my receipts and my original booking for 3 nights and trekked downstairs to reception, to try to rectify this whole mess. The guy on the desk ...

... school. We were very kindly looked after, especially Charlotte and Angela, as they were given drinks and biscuits, and offered lunch, which we declined as we had eaten not long before going up to the school. Veronica's home room teacher (on the left in the group photo) amazingly was still working at the school, and she also joined us for more catching up. Then, another one of the teachers came in and introduced herself, and remembered Veronica, but ...

Spur of the moment decision to go on the Sasebo bus tour this morning, which includes a guided tour around the city on a coach, followed by a tour of the Naval museum, a cruise on the Pearl Queen around the 99 islands, a trip through the Sasebo aquarium and then up to an observatory before heading back to the station. So we leave the hotel at 9:15am, and powerwalk down to the Sasebo train station and bus terminal in an attempt to join the bus tour ...

Started out the day by heading down to the Toyoko Inn foyer to try their Japanese style breakfast. Rice balls, with your choice of bonito fish flakes on the outside, or with hunks of seaweed throughout the ball, with miso soup on the side, and coffee. Needless to say Veronica had the breakfast, while Charlotte, Angela and I sat and waited for her to finish. I still cant seem to desire rice coated in dried fish flakes, with a side of hot salty bean paste soup for ...

... ohne Hollaender (manch einer mag das als Vorteil sehen:-) Die Japaner haben den hoechsten Turm Hollands nachgebaut, ein Schloss nachgebaut und sehr schoene Tulpen. Gouda gibt es natuerlich auch, merkwuerdigerweise aber auch Baumkuchen als ostdeutsche Spezialitaet... Gruss Ralf

Interestingly, Nagasaki was not the intended target for the second atomic bomb. Fortunately for Kokura it was a cloudy day, unfortunately for Nagasaki it was clear. Heiwa-koen is the name of the Peace Park here. The fountain is meant to look like the wings of a dove, symbolizing peace. The park is near the epicenter and ...

I have been having problems with my lover back the last couple of days, I think it all the walking and carrying my back pack. I told the lady, who rents out the rooms, about it yesterday when I came home. She suggested that I got a massage as that would surely help, I couldn't see any harm in that so she called a masseuse, that d house calls. Now calm down boys, I know what you are thinking ...

... is their whaling industry, so he was very relieved when I answered his question about eating whales, that I had tried whale in Norway. He then asked if I had ever had whale sushi, which of course I never have. Just like the guy in Osaka he promptly ordered me two pieces of whale tongue and two of whale liver. These are things that aren't even on the menu, and could only be ordered because he was a regular customer. The look and consistency ...

I forgot to tell you about our taxi trip home yesterday. We didn't finish our meal till 10:45, which meant that we couldn't walk home and make curfew. As we got to the tram stop the tram just left, leaving us only one option, to take a cap. The taxi driver obviously didn't know where the hostel was, so we showed him one of our tourist maps, with street names in English and Japanese, and pointed out the location ...