11 Days in Chūgoku & Kyushu – Day 07 – Okayama – Korakuen

My planned itinerary before actual departure was to spend one day in Okayama, and another in Kurashiki. For the former, the places I’d be checking out would include the Korakuen Garden, Okayama Castle, Yumeji Art Museum, Ishizekicho, and Tenmaya Mall.

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11 Days in Chūgoku & Kyushu – Day 06 – Itsukushima

It was well that I placed the Mt. Misen ascent and descent as the first activity of my trip to Itsukushima. It started drizzling from noon time, and though it wasn’t full-blown rain, it would have made the trail that

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11 Days in Chūgoku & Kyushu – Day 06 – Itsukushima – Daishoin Trail

This is my first experience in mountain trekking, with an easy mountain to boot. And I’m only descending! There are three trails that go up and down Mt. Misen, each with different lengths and things to see along the way.

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11 Days in Chūgoku & Kyushu – Day 06 – Itsukushima – Mt. Misen Summit

The Ropeway to go up Mt. Misen on Miyajima Island actually consists of two lines: Momijidani Line that’s a Gondola lift system and with a ten minute ride up. The connecting line is Shishiiwa Line that uses an Aerial tramway

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11 Days in Chūgoku & Kyushu – Day 06 – Itsukushima – Momijidani Park

In my past trips, I routinely made it a matter of personal discipline to go through, select and process the pictures I take, and write posts commenting on my itinerary experiences each day.  A sort of real time account if

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11 Days in Chūgoku & Kyushu – Days 03 to 05 – Tokuyama

The work event that was the centerpiece of this trip supposedly takes place in Tokuyama – except that as far as official location names are concerned, there’s no such city called Tokuyama. The area is actually called Shūnan city, and

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11 Days in Chūgoku & Kyushu – Day 02 – Fukuoka – Sunset at Fukuoka Tower

The walking tour finished at the Hakata Traditional Craft Museum, after which I made my way back to Canal City for lunch @ Ichiran Ramen – on Miwako’s recommendation in fact. I’ve not heard of this Ramen chain before this.

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11 Days in Chūgoku & Kyushu – Day 02 – Fukuoka – Walking Tour – Kushida Shrine – Hakata Traditional Craft Center

Very close to the Hakata Machiya Folk Museum is Kushida Shrine. And again, I got lucky as there was a newly married couple at the Shrine who’d apparently just finished their rites, and were having their pictures taken. The tour

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11 Days in Chūgoku & Kyushu – Day 02 – Fukuoka – Walking Tour – Tōchō-ji – Hakata Machiya Folk Museum

Next stop was Tōchō-ji (temple), which boasts a 10.8m tall statue of Buddha, and a walking path beneath the statue that depicts the various parts of the afterlife according to the religion. Photos couldn’t be taken in the interior, so

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11 Days in Chūgoku & Kyushu – Day 02 – Fukuoka – Walking Tour – Jōten-ji

Truth to tell, I was a little apprehensive of the walking tour scheduled for Day 02 mid-morning onward – and specifically because the first day weather was so humid I wasn’t looking forward to another day perspiring buckets in the

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11 Days in Chūgoku & Kyushu – Day 01 – Fukuoka – Exploration

The city of Fukuoka is easily walkable, and I certainly did a good deal of it on the first day of the trip. By the time my legs had pretty much given up any more walking at about 6:30PM last

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11 Days in Chūgoku & Kyushu – Day 01 – Fukuoka – Rakusuien Garden

The other garden that also receives some praise online is Rakusuien Garden. The place is about a ten minute walk from Hakata Station. But as luck would have it, my place of stay – The Royal Park Fukuoka Hotel –

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