This site is no longer going to be updated. I have upgraded my site and the new location is:
http://worldgallivant.comA day by day account of where we were and some of the experiences we had.
- Nara
- Himeji & Banshu Ako
- Banshu Ako
- Banshu Ako & Osaka
- Hiroshima & Miyajima
- Miyajima & Beppu
- Beppu & Sakurajima
Nara, Japan Market |
Hiroshima, Japan A-Bomb Dome and Eternal Flame |
Miyajima Island Floating Torii |
Banshu Ako, Packs off to eat our 7-eleven cappuccino ice cream before walking the rest of the way to the camp ground |
Ohmoto Park, Miyajima Island |
By week two we were becoming overwhelmed by the big City, concrete, people everywhere, trains moving, and cramming into those trains and well.... Val was just exhausted and needed some down time. Information women at the train station called a campsite she knew of way out in the middle of nowhere... Banshu Ako. During our walk to this campground we found a 7-11 store where we bought ice cream, we stopped at a shaded picnic bench, and I had Ash take a photo, all I wanted was there! A bench, shade, ice cream and no pack, and better yet a nice view! We finally made it to this campground, where we stayed 3 days. This place had showers, laundry, picnic tables, vending machines, kitchen set up for all to use... even a TV where we watched sumo. They were very kind and lent us two bicycles to get groceries. After realizing many people were there to go clamming, we purchased a sack and dug in the sand at low tide with all the locals. I promptly got a slight burn, and many little tiny clams. The campground personnel took our clams, poured them into a plastic tub, then poured lukewarm water over them and placed them in the shade with a piece of cardboard over the top, and motioned with their mouths that the clams needed to spit the sand out. Ash was new to the entire process... but found her fair share of clams too. They then loaned us a frying pan to cook them up in! On our next trip to the market we purchased two boxes of ice cream and gave them to the staff to say thank you! (They close the campground on a Tuesday I think, and were becoming worried we would never leave... we did little but rest) Upon our departure they had made a little care package of food (one of the gifts included were Ritz crackers filled with lemon cream filling... quickly became a favorite) and then drove us back to the train station so we didn't have to ride the bus or walk.... so very kind. This couple and their staff hold a special place in our hearts!
Beppu Park, Beppu |
After such a great experience at Banshu Ako we wanted to take our chances in a Japanese Onsen. I knew that one place that we would be sure to find an onsen, Japanese bathhouse, was in Beppu. We picked out one that was relatively cheap and included about seven different types of baths, a sand bath, and a sauna. After a nice soak we headed to a computer café and then on to bed in our hammocks. It was pure luck that we were able to camp next to a grove of bamboo.
Dinosaur Park, Sakurajima |
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