Suginoi(Hana) Beppu

This charming village may be a highlight of the trip -　a touch of `old Japan` so elusive in the cities. Found another old ryokan where no one spoke English, but managed to get a room, and head straight to the onsen.

Decided to spend a second night -- in part to rest from ...

... just in the sense that tatamis sprawled throughout the whole house, sliding paper doors opened to a patio that surrounds the circumfrence of the house, and from almost anywhere one is given visual access to the sights of the well tended garden. The lighting fixtures and wood work of the architecture give one enough hints to know this was the residence of someone rich and powerful. (Open year-round 8:30am to 5pm. Entrance 320yen for adults. Info 0972-62-3399)

The final ...

... to people staying there and can serve as a good point for local activities. There is a special cycling path called "Maple Yaba Cycling Road" (about 40km long) that goes from Nakatsu station down to an area called Yamakuni. This path is especially scenic in the fall when the leaves are changing colors. Throughout the year it provides a fresh breath of nature lined by rice paddies, mountains and the river that connects to the ...

... fluently but follows unwritten rules within a particular country, but what exactly is meant by this? Throughout the globe there are many national differences that crop up about how a resume should be written and presented, so if you want yours to be taken seriously you need to take on board these unwritten rules. For example in Germany, folding your resume to fit in an envelope is out of the question. Instead you need to use an ...

... Lets go Johno?)

Overall

I ended up really liking Beppu. I relaxed somewhat. Although I did sleep in a lot I was happy with what I did get done. Would definatley return to Beppu again. Found a great Yakitori (chicken kebab) place (which I should say had the most beautiful girl I had ever seen in Japan working there, who was actually Chinese!!). Maybe why I ate there so much haha. There was a
large abundance of hostess bars and ...

... of Aso, so we took off to scale the tallest of the peaks in the region, Naka-dake. After about 1.5 hours we reached what was essentially the top, no mean feat given the gusty winds and the loose rocks underfoot. However, we made it up and the view was utterly amazing--this is probably what keeps those crazy climbers excited about hiking up ridiculously challenging mountains. The views were great and you felt like you were on top of the world. In reality the climb wasn't too ...

Sun Ming Ming is the tallest human being I have ever seen. The Chinese center is 236 cm (7 foot, 9 inches) tall. He is shy and soft-spoken and doesn't seem particularly interested in doing interviews with sports writers. But I've been happy to have my chance to chat with him twice in English this season. Still haven't written the "big ...

After lingering around Aso waiting for the train, I arrived at Beppu around 3pm. Hot spring bathing is the only thing to do here, there was no need to rush. Beppu is a spa town with hundreds of Onsen baths. The lp describes it as, "quaint yet crowded, traditional and modern." The hostel I'm staying at has its own onsen which is free for guests; I took a dip in that late afternoon just before I headed out for something to eat. For dinner I went to Toyotsune ...

Aujoud'hui j'ai parcourru les sources thermales de la region de beppu. Il y a les jingoku : source extrement chaude ou on ne peut pas ce baigner , mais on doit payer pour les prendres en photos. Un peu une anarque pour les touristes, mais c'est bizarre car au japon, la majorite des touristes sont des japonais. Puis les ofuro ou rotemburo, qui sont des bains interieurs ou exterieurs. Encore la, il faut payer de 100 yen a 2000 yen. Tout depend de la popularite et du ...

I was in a bit of a weird mood this morning. The best word I can use to describe how I felt is unfulfilled. I think it has to do with yesterday being such a long day, the journey from Nagasaki to Beppu, wearing me down. Also, because I was hunger I didn't feel like eating dinner, so I just walked around town for an hour or so, and not much happened. I think that after having been in great company the last many nights, having a lonely night yesterday was more difficult than I ...