観光

This was a pretty dope weekend. My boy Lee came in from Colorado on his way around the world before his final destination in New Zealand. So it was fun to have some one to show around my neck of the woods and offer a different aspect than that of Tokyo.

So, for starters, we headed up Zao mountain to see the fall leaves and check out the huge crater at the top, which I still had not seen. But as we approached the summit it became so foggy I could hardly see 15 feet ahead. By the time we reached the spot we were attacked by a blistering wind and needless to say, could not even begin to see the crater from the view point. Oh well, maybe in the spring...

After recovering from the cold and disappointment, I made due with a postcard. We then headed down to the ski area of the mountain and went to the onsen I remembered from my last trip. There we relaxed in the hot sulfur water outside under the changing leaves. Japanese style relaxation gots it on lock down. Getting back to the car Lee pointed out I had misplaced my gas cap from the last fill up. Aw shit. So on the way back I swung into a suzuki dealer hoping to be able to purchase a new one. With what little Japanese I know about cars and their parts I was able to get my point across, but the didn't have any caps there. The manager then told me to wait there a bit, and he then personally drove to another dealer, got a cap, and brought it back fitting it into place free of charge. Sometimes its unbelievable how helpful people are here. So once more we were on our way. For dinner we stopped off at an okonomiyaki place and grubbed until we couldn't move.

Saturday was a big day. Got up and drove to Matsushima, one of the three famous sightseeing points in Japan. I had been there once, but by train, so I was pretty much driving blind. My directions consisted of about two roads and three turns, so I was hoping it would be as obvious as the directions led to to assume. We made it there without any problems and luckily ran across a free parking lot thanks to an accidental turn. We checked out the temple, and ate some oysters, matsushima is known for its oysters, and then walked out to one of the hundreds of islands that dot the cove.

After Matsushima it was off to Sendai, the largest city in the Tohoku region. Getting back was a bit more confusing and I quickly got lost in the city's grid. We drove around for about an hour until I found my bearings and then attempted to find a parking spot. Yet every place I went into the owner would quickly run out and yell my car was too tall to fit. What!? MY car is too big? My car is one of the smallest things on the road.... yet I guess its tall....
So eventually we found a place and it ended up being right near the restaurant we were going. I took Lee to the same restaurant I ate at on my last trip. A small little inconspicuous place tucked in the back streets along with all the hostess clubs. There we had grilled cow tongue, another specialty of the area, making it our full third meal of the day.

After that it was back home and out for drinks at the bar near my house. It was a full weekend but good to see those spots and eat some bomb food. Enjoy the pics and sorry for the long post, but.....
check the pics here