"Ashi-yu"

Recent days, we can often see "Ashi-yu"（足湯） in sight-seeing place, mainly "onsen" area. At "Ashi-yu", people can enjoy "onsen" by entering their foot in hot "onsen" water. Last Saturday, I had a little bit interesting experience on "Ashi-yu".

That day, my wife took part in an event held in the city of Miyawaka（宮若） as Jazzercize performer. So, I took her to this place with my daughter by my car. The event name was "Miyawaka-hurusato-matsuri"（宮若ふるさと祭）, and it took about one hour to get to this place from my home.

This "Ashi-yu" was a temporary equipment that I had never seen before. I thought that it was interesting and good. I could enjoy it with free.

There is an "onsen" named "Wakita-onsen"（脇田温泉） near this event area, so the "onsen" staff demonstrated "Ashi-yu" for advertisement by using "onsen" water.

"Toire-Senryu"

The best work at the fourth TOTO "Toire-Senryu"（トイレ川柳） competition was this one. "Kon-kon-kon Ton-ton-ton-ton Don-don-don!（コンコンコン　トントントントン　ドンドンドン！）"

Almost Japanese can imagine a situation in my poor cartoon from this "Senryu". Can you understand or feel it?

Miyajidake-shrine

Miyajidake-shrine

Yesterday, I climbed a mountain near Miyajidake-shrine（宮地嶽神社） with my wife, my daughter and my wife's colleagues. The mountain was not so high, so it took about one and a half hour to climb it and go back. The aim to climb it was a light exercise.

Miyajidake-shrine is a historical place where people pray thier success on their business. We can see many people in special time like New year's day, but this time there were not so many people. It is well-known for its big ornament named "Shime-nawa"（しめ縄）. It is made of a lot of rice straws.

I took several photos of the shrine and other places near it, you can enjoy them on the Internet.

"Momofuku"

I have learned that Elvis Costello named his latest album "Momofuku" in honor of a Japanese man "Momofuku Ando" through the VOA special English. He invented the world's first pre-cooked instant noodles.

I think that this fact is very interesting. And I am a little bit proud because I am same Japanese people.

cosmos season has come

Cosmos season has come.

Today, I rode my bike on a cycling road along with the Onga-gawa（遠賀川） river. This place has a lot of cosmos flowers in this season every year. I saw a lot of people to visit there to see them.

These cosmos are planted by many volunteers.

sightseeing with a Singaporean

nukisan,hirao-dai

Last Saturday and Sunday, I spent time with my Singaporean friend who has visited to Japan. I met with him last year's summer and rode bike with him. (Here is his blog about his travel with bike in Japan.)This was the second time of our meeting.

The first day, we had dinner at a Japanese restaurant named "Chi-ka-ei"（稚加栄） in Kokura（小倉）, Kitakyushu-city. It served a traditional Japanese dish named "Kaiseki-ryouri"（懐石料理）. It is formed of many small dishes. This time, he took his girl friend. She has worked as a cabin attendant at Singapore airline. She is very beautiful and charming. She is just "Asian-beauty", I think.

Next day, her girl friend left Kokura early morning to go to Tokyo by using Shinkansen. And I took him to a mountain area called "Hirao-dai"（平尾台） in the city of Kitakyushu.

It took about an hour to get to the top of "Nuki-san"（貫山） mountain. On the top of the mountain, winds were strong and it was a little bit cold. And it was cloudy, the condition for climbing a mountain was not good.

We had a simple lunch there. I boiled water and we ate cup-noodles.

It tooks about one hour to go back to the place where we parked my car from the top. And we entered into a cave that is the biggest in the area. I had experienced it about 40 years ago, so I did not remember it. Entering into the cave was a kind of exploration, and more interesting than I thought.

After going out of the cave, we had a short stop at a big souvenir shop, but it did not have good post cards that he was looking for.

After that, we returned to Kokura. We had about one hour until his departure time, so we ate "Rah-men"（ラーメン） at "藤王"(fuji-ou). It was "Syouyu-rah-men"（醤油ラーメン）, although Kyshu's represetative rah-men is "ton-kotsu"（豚骨）.

I saw him entering into the Shinkansen platform and said "Have a nice trip" to him. I hope he is satisfied with sightseeing with me.

P.S. On that day's evening, I ate moon cakes that was his present from Singapore to me. Moon cake is called "Geppei"（月餅） in Japan. I enjoyed it with my family very much.