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.