Idyllic Itoshima.

Last weekend, Kohei and I took a mini road trip to Itoshima, a beachy area in Fukuoka prefecture. Despite having a few issues with the SATNAV (by that I mean “reaching our destination”, but in fact being in the middle of an empty field), we had the BEST day visiting all sorts of quaint locations along the way.

 

Bistro&Café TIME

There was some ominous fog when we arrived, so much so that it looked like a plotline to a Pirates of the Caribbean sequel; the paddle boarders venturing into the fog, only their board washing back to shore, and skeletons appearing from the waves. However, when the fog cleared it became a truly beautiful brunch spot. The café only serves two dishes of the day, one meat and one fish, which we both tried. I would completely recommend this place, especially for the fact it sold ginger ale which I’ve not had in the longest time, and the pork just melted in your mouth.

London Bus Café

My home away from home, although obviously London isn’t a patch on Scouseland. The last thing I expected to see along the coast of Japan was an actual bus, converted into a café, selling gelato. It provided super adorable photo opportunities though, and I’ve just made their authenticity go through the roof from having an actual British customer.

 

Café JASPER

Indoor palm trees, surfboards and trinkets galore. A little café on the ground floor of the owner’s house with the most refreshing homemade lemonade. I’ll definitely be going back to purchase on the quirky mugs decorating the place. They’re not for sale yet, but being the magpie I am, I’ve got my eye on a beautiful little iridescent one.

One of my favourite locations was not one of these places, despite them all being so wonderful. It was in fact a little beach where we just sat and watched the world go by. The bonus being the super picturesque swing between two palm trees for us to enjoy. The amount of stares Kohei and I get from Japanese girls is quite hilarious too. We do get sneaky pictures taken of us sometimes, but hey, I guess that’s just another gaijin problem I have to get used to.

Drip drip drop, little (by that I mean relentless) April showers.

My parents recently visited Japan for the first time, and I was able to join them for all but one part (Tokyo) of their whirlwind journey. We visited Kyoto, Nara, Hiroshima, Kumamoto, Fukuoka, Nagasaki and Miyazaki prefectures, all in the space of 9 days. Pretty impressive if you ask me.

The only place I hadn’t been to before was Hiroshima, and what a beautiful place. My parents had timed their visit to coincide with the cherry blossom, and once we arrived in Hiroshima, the sakura were in full bloom.  Hiroshima itself was somewhere I’ll definitely be returning to soon. It had such a relaxed vibe, and that, along with hundreds of people enjoying hanami (cherry blossom viewing) along the riverbanks, made it utterly beautiful despite the greyness.

Visiting the Atomic Bomb Museum was a solemn one, as you’d expect, however I’d recommend anyone to go to the museum in Nagasaki instead. While Hiroshima is still the more well-known of the two atomic bomb targets, that is seemingly its downfall, as I felt like I was being hurried through the museum without any time to reflect.

The day we took a trip to Miyajima was the only day we weren’t soaked. It’s somewhere I’ve wanted to go for a while to see the Great Torii gate of Itsukushima Shrine, and it didn’t disappoint. We also took the cable car to the top of the moutain, and the view was just stunning. Momiji manjyu is now one of my favourite local delicacies, and the fried version, age momiji, is something else.  

I also had the most hilarious food experience after going to a recommended ‘hole in the wall’ Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki restaurant. After explaining to the elderly woman working (doing everything alone might I add), that my mum wasn’t a particularly adventurous foodie, she proceeded to practically shove things in my mum’s mouth to prove it was okay and cook away at 100 mph.

Never did I see the day I’d be taking my parents to purikura, but we took some hilarious photos there. The one I chose in Hiroshima apparently gave my dad a sensory overload, much like the pachinko parlour I told my mum to just pop her head into.

My parents have vouched to return to Japan again, and I can only hope they decide to take things easier. Here’s me, over a week later, still catching up on sleep after Japanese-ing to within an inch of my life. 

All in all though, I’m happy they actually got to see what my life over here is like, especially after meeting Sheridan and Clare, and spending a few evenings in cute little Kumamoto. 

They got to meet Kohei too! Even if I did have to spend a day nursing him to recovery, I’ll give him credit where credit’s due… he attempted to keep up with my dad’s bourbon drinking, not a feat many would take on. 

So here's to next time, when their new found love for Kumamon and fancy Japanese toilets will have hopefully blossomed even more. またね！