Whirlwind Tour of Shizuoka Prefecture
On Saturday, we took a Navy-sponsored trip to Shizuoka Prefecture, which is located immediately south of Mt. Fuji and is known for it's production of green tea. Apparently, nearly 45% of the green tea in Japan comes from Shizuoka Prefecture. And we drank some. Free of charge.
The morning started for us at 4:00AM, with alarm clocks ringing in harmony on both sides of the bed. Nicki and I both set our alarms to make sure we got up on time. It worked. Shortly after, we woke Josh, ate a quick snack, grabbed our tickets and headed out towards base to catch our bus.
The Navy bus took us to Shinagawa Station, which is pretty much in the opposite direction that we were heading for the day, but for good reason. At Shinagawa, we hopped on the shinkansen (bullet train) and made our way to Shizuoka Prefecture. Our first stop from the train station (where we caught another bus)... Kakegawa Castle. The castle, like many in Japan, is a rebuilt version of the original, which was destroyed during an earthquake a while back. The castle was beautiful from the outside, but inside it was pretty much empty except for a few statues and items that date back a few hundred years. This isn't the first castle that I've visited here in Japan, but every time I see one I think to myself, "why don't the curators put stuff inside these things that reflect the furniture, clothing, and art of the historical era?". Such was my feeling at Kakegawa Castle, too.
After visiting the castle for just over an hour, we marched back to the bus and made our way to lunch... at a rest stop. Then we boarded the bus and made our way to a fish market. Why we went to the fish market after lunch, instead of during lunch, is beyond my understanding. But it was my first fish market in Japan and it just seemed like a tourist trap the way that it was set up. I'd really like to see tsukiji fish market in Tokyo one day, because I hear that it is one of the largest in the world and an amazing spectacle. But I did get some pretty fun shots at the touristy fish market, so I had no real complaints. Check out this fish head!!!
After about 45 minutes at the fish market, we got back on the bus and made our way to the local Sapporo Factory and Brewery, where we went on a tour of the factory and had about a half hour to enjoy "all you can drink" beer, compliments of Sapporo. I'm not a huge fan of Sapporo beer from a can, but I have to admit that having freshly brewed Sapporo straight from the mothership was a tasty treat.
When our 30 minutes of tasting were up, we boarded the bus yet again and started our way back home. We stopped for dinner at a different rest stop and got back to Yokosuka around 9:00PM. Josh was a trooper for most of the trip, but around bedtime he became quite vocal about "I not feel good", which in that instance was a Josh'ism for being tired.
The tour was fun, but it could have been spread out over the weekend, or we could have changed it to allow more time at each destination along the way. But hey, it was a chance to get out and see a new part of Japan, so it was worth it.
All of our pictures are up in the Gallery, dated 11/14/2006.
The morning started for us at 4:00AM, with alarm clocks ringing in harmony on both sides of the bed. Nicki and I both set our alarms to make sure we got up on time. It worked. Shortly after, we woke Josh, ate a quick snack, grabbed our tickets and headed out towards base to catch our bus.
The Navy bus took us to Shinagawa Station, which is pretty much in the opposite direction that we were heading for the day, but for good reason. At Shinagawa, we hopped on the shinkansen (bullet train) and made our way to Shizuoka Prefecture. Our first stop from the train station (where we caught another bus)... Kakegawa Castle. The castle, like many in Japan, is a rebuilt version of the original, which was destroyed during an earthquake a while back. The castle was beautiful from the outside, but inside it was pretty much empty except for a few statues and items that date back a few hundred years. This isn't the first castle that I've visited here in Japan, but every time I see one I think to myself, "why don't the curators put stuff inside these things that reflect the furniture, clothing, and art of the historical era?". Such was my feeling at Kakegawa Castle, too.
After visiting the castle for just over an hour, we marched back to the bus and made our way to lunch... at a rest stop. Then we boarded the bus and made our way to a fish market. Why we went to the fish market after lunch, instead of during lunch, is beyond my understanding. But it was my first fish market in Japan and it just seemed like a tourist trap the way that it was set up. I'd really like to see tsukiji fish market in Tokyo one day, because I hear that it is one of the largest in the world and an amazing spectacle. But I did get some pretty fun shots at the touristy fish market, so I had no real complaints. Check out this fish head!!!After about 45 minutes at the fish market, we got back on the bus and made our way to the local Sapporo Factory and Brewery, where we went on a tour of the factory and had about a half hour to enjoy "all you can drink" beer, compliments of Sapporo. I'm not a huge fan of Sapporo beer from a can, but I have to admit that having freshly brewed Sapporo straight from the mothership was a tasty treat.
When our 30 minutes of tasting were up, we boarded the bus yet again and started our way back home. We stopped for dinner at a different rest stop and got back to Yokosuka around 9:00PM. Josh was a trooper for most of the trip, but around bedtime he became quite vocal about "I not feel good", which in that instance was a Josh'ism for being tired.
The tour was fun, but it could have been spread out over the weekend, or we could have changed it to allow more time at each destination along the way. But hey, it was a chance to get out and see a new part of Japan, so it was worth it.
All of our pictures are up in the Gallery, dated 11/14/2006.
posted by Unknown | 8:59 PM
4 Comments:
I love the idea of "all you can drink" Sapporo! What an unearthly hour to start a trip (seems like a lot of the Navy sponsored trips do that) but it's great that you didn't have to drive and could see some sights via bus.
Loved the fish head!
Great pic of the fish head!!
WOW that Josh was such a tropper. Not that I am surprised, you have 1 really good kid there, but still a 3 yr old lasting that long...what a man. (what did you do, sneak him some beer? lol)
I didn't realize that about the castles (that they were empy). We keep trying ot get up to Odawara Castle, but every time we try to go something comes up.
Glad you guys got out and had a good family adventure.
Hi Nicki, Mike and Josh! I've been reading Japan Years every day for the past week. You guys have been an awesome reference and a really great help for me and my husband, who will be moving to Japan in 2008. We are one of those Navy couples! Reading about your journey has been amazing, I feel like I know you guys and I've learned so much about Japan through your experiances. Mike's photography is incredible, Nicki's meals always sound so yummy and that Josh is the most adorable little guy! You've inspired me to start my own blog about our life and I added you guys in my links. Thank you so much for sharing your story, I love reading it every day.
Rey, I wasn't so happy about our starting time, either. I think MWR must be like the boot camp of fun... so early it hurts!
Weinraubs, I'm not sure if all the castles are empty, but I guess I'm just more used to places like Montecello (sp?), where the inside is still fully decked out.
Jill, thank you for the kind words! We will have to take a look at your blog. You will definitely enjoy yourself here in Japan. It is a place like no other, filled with all kinds of wonderful frustrations and entertainment. We'll be around until Oct 2008, so let us know when you get here!
Mike
Post a Comment
<< Home