It rained the morning we left Nagasaki heading to Fukuoka. Along the way, we passed by another beautiful onsen town - Ureshino. Here's some lovely pics...
We stopped by Okawachiyama - village of the Secret Kilins (pottery)
Akira Kurosawa Memorial Satellite Studio
For lunch, we went to Joyfull Restaurant. Along our journey, we could see Joyfull Restaurants all over Kyushu. They serve both Japanese and western food such as steak.
We reached Fukuoka in the evening after a long day of driving. We stayed at Grand Hyatt which is within a huge shopping mall called Canal City. It is so huge, you could get lost in it.
We had dinner in this restaurant called Ichiran, which sells ramen. However, this is not your ordinary restaurant. First, you have to go to the vending machine and buy a ticket. Then, you go to an individual "cubicle", where you have your meal. At the cubicle, there is an small opening in front of you, covered by the curtain. Behind the opening is where the staff takes your ticket. On the table is a slip of paper, where you make your choices on the texture of the noodles you want, the amount of spring onions you want, whether you want chilli or pork fillet, etc... You then hand the slip of paper to the "waiter" through the opening. When the ramen is ready, the waiter then passes you your bowl of ramen through the opening. The curtain is then drawn up so that you can enjoy your meal in private. In the whole process, there is absolutely no eye contact with the waiter (You can't even see the waiter's face). It is very private, and it is ideal for anti-social people, or fugitives :D
Here's the cubicles...
When we were done with dinner, we went to see the beautiful Christmas display around Canal City.
Day 8 - Dazaifu
We bought the Nishitetsu train ticket package to tour Dazaifu. Here's the train.
Dazaifu has many historical sites including temples, shrines and Kyushu National Museum.
We first went to Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine.
Dazaifu Tenmangu Museum.
We had snack at Kasa-no-ya. The snack was included in the train ticket package. The biscuit is a local delight, with sweet bean paste which goes well with green tea.
Kanzeonji Temple.
Tenjin Underground Shopping Street. It is huge.
Back at Canal City, we went to the Ramen Stadium on the 5th floor. The stadium has a few ramen restaurants. Again, you have to choose the ramen from the vending machine and buy a ticket.
Some cute hippo plushies sitting outside a hippopotamus-themed restaurant and shop.
And that concludes our trip to Kyushu! It was truly an enjoyable trip!
All that food is making me hungry! The sweet bean paste biscuit looks like something I would like!
ReplyDeleteThe first few photos with the smoke in the background... are those fog?
Ting is right, my attention kept going back to the food pictures, and the ramen stadium - who would have thought of that?! For now, I can eat a big bowl of ramen now. These parts of Japan seem lovely.
ReplyDelete@Blur Ting:
ReplyDeleteIt was actually drizzling on that day, so the fog formed as it was cold...
For the bean paste biscuit, it was a delicacy in Dazaifu and there were many shops selling it. It is actually very sweet but goes well with the bitter green tea.
@The Real Mother Hen:
The ramen stadium houses many different ramen shops from various parts of Japan under one roof. We also have a similar concept in Plaza Singapura where various types of ramen shops are housed in the "Japanese Food Street".
Japan looks very nice. I would like to visit there one day.
ReplyDeleteMark you really look like your father!! small version.
It is such a great country dear, thanks for sharing your loveable moments.
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