Kyushu Archives - めちゃくちゃMechakucha

A sunny day & a window seat

I don’t like not knowing where I am. That’s why I like the window seat. And on sunny days like this, there’s an extra bonus in that all the familiar landmarks are easy to spot.

Mt Aso – vulcanism & tourism combo

Where else in the world would there be a tourist ropeway leading up to a pungeant, steaming, and very live, volcanic crater? At least there are concrete emergency shelters installed for the rare occasion when the volcano goes bang.

Along the Yamanami Highway

The Yamanami Highway is a tourist road in Oita that runs between near Yufuin towards Kurokawa Onsen and Aso. It crosses over a plateau that appears not very Japanese in character – it’s wide and open.

Panoramas along the Yamanami Highway

This is the Kuju Kogen (Kuju Highlands) in Oita Prefecture, which I visited during Golden Week recently. Both panoramas are taken along the “Yamanami Highway”, a scenic route across the mountains between Yufuin and Kurokawa Onsen.

Yufuin

Yufuin is a charming onsen resort town in Oita Prefecture, inland from Beppu. It is full of ryokan with hot springs, and is situated under a towering mountain called Yufu-dake. The spring flowers were still out – it was a nice town to walk around before heading back to the ryokan for a big meal… Continue reading Yufuin

Mojiko panoramas

Here are some panoramic photos of “Retro” Mojiko.

Koinobori

Children’s Day (5th May) is one of the public holidays that falls within Golden Week, a string of holidays that create a golden week off work. Colourful carp streamers (koi nobori) are visible all over the country.

Retro Mojiko

“Retro” Mojiko is a port town on the northern tip of Kyushu full of art-deco and historic buildings that were built when the city was an important early trading port. Now the town centre is kept in a period theme, to attract tourists, thriving on stories of Albert Einstein’s visit and sales of bananas.