Pension Suzukakeno Sanpomichi Kitashiobara-mura

... hump in the top bar. Guess I know which arm to do more bicep curls on. My brother and I mistakenly brought another set of tickets (language barrier alert!) so we foolishly decided to subject ourselves to the Ninja Warrior torture again! I did just about the same the second time. My left arm failed me again on the ring maze! Overall it was a really fun experience. I guess you can say that I kind of survived a Japanese game show!

Aizu-Wakamatsu is one city among a few on a flat plain ringed by mountains, as is most of the towns in Japan. It's tourism is based on its samurai past--specifically, its role as one of the last stands in the Boshin civil war against the imperial forces of the Meiji restoration. As such, its attractions tend to be samurai related and are located on the edge of a pretty uninspiring city center, like a 'ring of interest'. And the maps from the tourism office are bloody confusing ...

... Jones' food hall but miles better. We had a great time making our selections and were gobsmacked how somethings were very reasonably priced, but then you saw things like a melon priced at $128! Anyway, we finally got to the park and had a brilliant time chatting to Paul's lovely colleagues, drinking wine, and eating yummy food whilst sitting in the shade on a cloudless 26 degree day and watching the kids play - great time out ...

... over $160 just for tolls and gas (costs less than in Europe, but far more than in the US) for the day. We had fun getting gas at a "typical" gas station, where the attendant runs out, shouting and directing you to the pump, and then when you're ready to leave, he stops traffic and directs you back out onto the road. Too funny! Sorry I didn't get any pictures. Aizu ...

... the parents lounging around the onsen (hot spring) just taking it all in and the kids running havoc it is v funny. On the way out I saw two young monkies fighting, I had to take a video of a monkey fight...... but as I got a little bit closer one of the monkies jumped on me and turned the camera off ........ I couldn't stop laughing. And then the snow started ....... we headed for Tokyo

... like a lot of fun, mostly because people were really taking to the positive messages. Just goes to show, despite all of our cultural differences, we are all just people learning how to cope with issues like cancer. It was a pretty quick train ride to the next city, Fukushima. Because it was so quick we had 1 hour before we needed to get the theater. I went on a search for a computer store, didn't find it, but I did find something else... a GIANT 6 ...

So we get to one of our first relaxing places from the outside bandai-atami doesnt look that nice, probably due to its heyday being 15 years ago! The hotel we stayed at was called Kirakuya Inn not much from the outside but once inside it was really nice, it has 2 public onsens for men and women with many different baths and a sauna, and two private baths on the top floor observing the mountains surounding bandai. It was really nice, Michelle`s bag broke (also her hair drier blew up, we ...

... that the body language to indicate that something is hot is to touch your earlobe. I brought up the MAJIDE comment again so Mutsuo-san called me an Osakan AHO (fool in Osaka-ben, but has a more offensive meaning in standard Japanese). Mitsu-san said that she was impressed that we were all eating everything that was given, so I talked about our UMEBOSHI experience and also mentioned that we had yet to try NATTO (fermented soy beans). Then they sprung the GAIJIN CHARENJI (gaijin ...

... bottom of the food chain). Also it impresses me to see cars that give you an extra wide berth, even when you're walking along the footpath. Nevermind that they could be driving into oncoming traffic. Oh and another thing. I completely suck when it comes to navigating. I lose my bearings at just about every corner. If it weren't for Mike we probably wouldn't have got to half the places we'd been to. Though on a couple of occasions, my navigationally challengedness has brushed off ...

... hostel bunkbeds we'd been expecting. Upon arriving, Mike thought to ask Yamaguchi-san to recommend a good sake from his shop. He recommended some Jun Mai Shu that had won an award for being the No.1 in the region. It was also made at his cousin's brewery. I'd say it was the best drink I'd had on the trip. It tasted a little sweet and had a thickness to it. We learnt that this was the pure stuff - rice that had been fermenting over 2 months. It turns out that a lot of the ...