Japanese family

This weekend I experienced a modern Japanese home, home cooking and a day in the park with the family. This was a break through and felt like I had finally been accepted as trustworthy to be let, although temporarily, into the herd and see behind the scenes of the Japanese facade. The home Mo and I were invited to was a new house in suburban Oita. Like most houses in Japan there was a tiny garden (2mx2m) but a few potted plants met you on the driveway. The Japanese are indoor people because the price of land is so high. The house was a simple double storey. Inside it was neat with carefully chosen framed pictures on the wall of place visited, family or interests. The furniture was wooden but very pale in colour, possibly a vineer. It was fairly open plan in the living areas which was nice. The kitchen had a heated drying cupboard for washed crockery which I thought was a great idea in an environment where space is so limited. For supper we had fried shrimp and scallop (tempura) that one can dip in a tarte sauce. There was beef, raw (sashimi), too. The pick of the lot for me was a tasty rice and vegetable dish topped with strips of omelette. Finally, there was green melon for dessert. We were also given a sweet plum wine.

The following day I joined two families for a braai/barbeque in a local park. It was an amazing sight driving to this park renowned for its proximity to the river, trees and relative quiet. The car park was chocker-block and the park was teeming with people in search of Sunday peace! People fishing (in water ankle deep!), paddling, sitting in the shade, barbequing and playing games. There wasn't much space and we had to lever our group into a spot. Oh, the joys of city life! It was a good occasion to relax with these families learn about them and play with the kids. The trials of the second World War were described to me. Most cities with air bases were bombed regularly, including Oita. People lived in awful conditions hoping that Japan would win the war. Of course, this was totally unrealistic and the Government of Japan (undefeated until then) had grossly under-estimated the might of the US military. But nobody in Japan expected that the US would use nuclear technology considering Japan was being consistently bombed, the population was in anguish and Japanese forces were dispersed and diminished. So why two A-bombs?

It was a cruel act. Japan will never be the same. On surrender, Japan was occupied for 10 years by the US and still has some 50000 US troops stationed in Japan (this presence continues to be a source of contention). Japan is still highly regulated by US policy.

Yakushima Island, Southern Japan

Yakushima is located about 100km south of Kyushu island (where we live) in southern Japan. The reason we decided to visit Yakushima is because of its infamous mountains and ancient trees and, importantly for us, it is not built up. So a 6 hour train ride and over-night ferry (travel in Japan is slow but reliable) brought us to the gateway of this World Natural Heritage Site.

We hiked the island from north, Miyanoura port, to south east, Anbo port. It took two days and we camped overnight amongst the ancient cedar trees, some 7000 years old.



Mochomu-dake...a steep ascent will provide views of Onoaida and southern parts of the island.

Wet bears from the south....

The second day at about 1900m (the highest peak in Southern Japan) it poured and blew us soaking wet. The paths became waterfalls but luckily the sun returned which is unusual for this area as it receives the highest rainfall in Japan.

A roadside stop: A family invited us to join in in their gardening break


The waterfalls are clean and beautiful.


The views are some of the best in Japan as they are not obscured by pollution (just rain-bearing cloud!).


Beach onsen at Hirauchi.


Sugi (Cedar) stump: Most of the cedars were cut for logging but many have regrown.


We left the industria for a worthwhile island in southern Japan. It is a World Natural Heritage Site and is a good stop for any hiker, swimmer or nature lover.

The blog below provides maps, accommodation, travel and hiking information on the island
http://yakumonkey.blogspot.com/2007/06/accommodation.html

A great place to stay is with Rainer and Naoko at Jerry's Mandala Guesthouse on the Onoaida beach cliffs.