Oct 8, 2009

My little trip to a small island in Tokyo

Hachijo Fuji and the small island
I and my boyfriend went to an island, Hachijojima, in Tokyo.
It's 300 kilometers south from Tokyo, so it's like an tropycal island.
So we imaged there is a blue sky, beautiful beach, tropycal plants, fresh fishes etc...
But one day before the trip, when I checked the weather of the island, I noticed it rains all the week. Then I checked the information of the island. It's rainy throughout the year!
So we went there with two umbrellas.

Snail
When our plane arrived the island, it rained a lot.
After we rented a car, we lost the way soon. Because of the rain, it was difficult to see the signs. We gave up to drive, and took lunch.
Lunch in a restaurant
Then, we went to our hotel to check in and took siesta for 2 hours (* v *). We woke up early for the air and were tired of the drive in the rain.

We got some maps and information at the airport, and also got this treasure map.
Treasure hunting game
It's a game for tourists, and if we win, we can get air tickets!
We checked them and went to drive. The weather got better.

Sea
At first, we went to the port and got these delicious food.
Free dishes for tourists
Fisherman's wives were serving them for tourists. I also could drink some spirits.

Then we went to a park to see "Kyon(Muntiacus reevesi)".
Muntiacus reevesi
They are small deers and from China. They are very friendly and cute.
By them, there was a beautiful crane dancing.
A kind of crane
She was dancing all the time while we were there.

In the night, we went a bar to take dinner. We ate fishes, Japanese pickles and so.
We were sitting in row in the very tiny bar. The bar was full with only 7 people.
We talked with an old man who went to the WW2. He seemed enjoying a lot and always saying, "I feel good today".
Dinner in Japanese style bar

The second day, it didn't rain at all. We were very lucky!
So we went to the mountain,
A farm in the mounten
and the sea.
Beautiful sea
Statues by the sea
The statues are by the sea.

We saw a goat by the road,
A goat
and while we were walking, we saw two weasels were playing.
a weasel
Then we went to a Sushi restaurant to take lunch.
Lunch in Sushi restaurant
This is traditional food in Hachijojima. I liked it a lot but it was not enough for me...
He got this one.
Lunch in Sushi restaurant
Each costs 15 dollars.

At last of the day, we went to a foot bath by the sea.
Uramigataki, A small fall
We relaxed a lot seeing the beautiful sea.
Ashiyu, footbath by the sea

We took the dinner in Minshuku(Japanese inn) and talked a lot with other guests and the host.
Dinner in Minshuku
The host talked a lot about the island and I drank a lot of the island's spirits.

The last day, it rained a lot. So we went only to the inside facilities.
Hachijo Odori
The host of the Minshuku told us that we could see the traditional dance so we went there. Their Kimono are of Kihachijo, their traditional silk textile. We also saw the process of textiles. It was very beautiful.

We also went to a museum which shows old lives of the island.
Old goods in the kitchen.
I found a beautiful hand stitched cotton Kimono there.
Old Kimono
From the neat stitches, we can see they took good care of it. I like to see such old things.

Haneda airport
At the evening, we arrived at the Haneda airport. We enjoyed these three days very much. Especially, I liked the conversations with people who lived there. They were very kind to us, and very friendly. I want to go back there when I have a chance again.

17 comments:

Daniela Mayumi Kodaira said...

Waoh! It really makes me want to go to Japan...all these beautifull landscapes and incredible food! Happily I'm preparing to myself now a little curry rice, otherwise, I would have to change the menu!
Thanks!

Tatkis said...

Your trip was very nice, and the photos are wonderful! Thank you for sharing them, it is like doing a small trip with you :)

Anonymous said...

Looks like it was a fun trip! I like that you take pictures of food - I love Japanese food and seeing such an abundance makes my mouth water, lol :) Maybe one day we will go to Japan ;)

fleur said...

Just a little word to let you know how much I like to visit your beautiful blog!!

Giraluna said...

I just felt in love with your blog!

Venus-Suburbia Soup said...

SO beautiful and inspiring as always. Thanks for sharing!

B said...

The picture of the island is so beautiful and the weather seems exactly like the one we are having here in the pacific northwest. Thanks for the pic.

Ayu@Sweetlilcraft said...

really beautiful place ^^

Annette Tait said...

what a wonderful trip! love the picture of the delicate snail. And I'm hungry after seeing all that yummy food.
The muntjac deer, weasel and goat are gorgeous - you are very lucky to see so many wonderful animals, particularly the weasels!

Unknown said...

Oooooooh, now I'm hungry. Mai, I want to move to Japan and live with you!!!

inkywu said...

Thank you for the wonderful post. I am so happy you and your boyfriend both enjoy your trip and his birthday . What beautiful pics.

Diario de crecer said...

I really like your blog. Thanks for sharing!

Faye said...

Thank u for taking us on your trip! Japan is beautiful and the photos of your meals are really making me hungry!!! Love your blog! You are listed as an "Inspiration" on my blog!

Jannette said...

What a lovely trip - and beautiful pictures! Am drooling over the food photos - if only I could just teleport some of it over somehow :-)..

someone. said...

My love for The Land of the Rising keeps growing and growing!
So much wonderful places and thing to gaze at.

Hopefully when I graduate I'll get to see 'em in person instead of photos!

Thanks for sharing *3*)/

Anonymous said...

I lovelovelove the picture of the cotton kimono with all the stitch lines. As I am in the process of learning how to make a kimono by hand, I am more and more impressed by the beauty of the things that seem so simple at the first glance....

Thank you for your wonderful blog!
Elke

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