Japan - Kyushu & the volcano

We'll try this one in captions: on Honshu, the latter part of our visit was spent in the midst of this....

...and so we took this, across the west of Honshu and the entire length of Kyushu, until we reached Japan's southern tip....

...to the comparatively friendly, relaxed, small city of Kagoshima, where we spent a very enjoyable few days and nights....

..... primarily to check out Sakurajima, a fifteen-minute ferry ride over the sound and almost entirely consisting of a stunning, active volcano, which re-shapes and re=landscapes the island and its surrounding area whenever it sees fit.....

.... which - according to the very quaint visitor's centre, sometimes kicked off like this - but only if you get lucky and the semi-permanent cloud-halo lifts during an eruption (the latter evident below, behind a newly-formed rock-scape)....

.... the natural hot-springs revived our shank's ponies impeccably, and lucky for us, the halo lifted and hot action followed....

.... which was no more evident than at the Lava Observatory, where our innocent amble ended in an intense shower of burning ash (it's behind you, idiot!); back in Kagoshima the following morning, and conditions were perfect for watching activity from a slightly more comfortable distance....

.... and for the afternoon, we found ourselves a near-deserted urban beach, with clear, warm water and an unforgettably beautiful and dramatic backdrop....

..... quite a way to end our three weeks in Japan. Next Stop, Taiwan...

Japan - ladies' lunch, & Hyogo Prefectural Museum of Art

Among Julia's English students in Kobe are the lunch ladies - three very lovely locals who like to learn the language socially, through informal conversation, once a week at each other's places, over lunch. Luckily for us, they insisted we come along while we were in town.

And so to Masae's apartment, to meet our wonderful hostess, and the equally lovely Masako and Yurie. We were happy to oblige with the conversational English, but as it turned out, Julia's prediction that it would likely be far more fun than the fulfilling of an obligation was very much the case. Masae had laid on a delicious, mouth-watering vegetarian buffet banquet especilly for us (a true rarity in Japan), with additions from Masako and Yurie, and we ended spending several hours shooting the breeze with our new friends.

For us, it was also an invitation to experience an aspect of the 'real' Japan, and as always when one is allowed behind the curtain in a foreign culture, preconceptions and stereotypes are quickly eroded. A uniquely enjoyable afternoon.

Kobe's art gallery is small and something special, as we found out on one afternoon in our host city; unexpectedly attention-keeping and inspiring, with a perfect mix of the traditional and contemporary. Our favourite exhibits are pictured below, and more on Kenji Yanobe's brilliant Ferris Wheel project can be found here.

Japan - Maiko Beach, Kobe

Japan - Ise and our Shinto wedding blessing

The weather during our stay in Japan was often pretty extreme and unpredictable, and caused us to change our plans regularly; which was almost the case with our overnight visit to Ise, but at the last minute we decided to go for it. Despite a lot of rain, we were very glad we did, especially because we had a special appointment to keep.

Our dear friend and all-round saint Mayumi had, as a wedding present to us, booked us a night in a traditional Japanese Inn, followed by a marriage blessing ceremony at Japan's oldest and most sacred shrine; a beautiful gift and a very special experience for us. We arrived via train and eventually found our way to the Inn, and had a suitably peaceful evening there, punctuated by perhaps the best home-cooked food we've ever had.

The following morning, and after breakfast and goodbyes with our hosts, we walked the half hour to the shrines under dark skies (and much-needed umbrellas). After a good while wandering around and lapping up the beautiful, intricate traditional styles of the shrines and their grounds (all set against a backdrop of lush countryside), we were escorted into the inner sanctum in preparation for our ceremony.

We were led into the main hall, where for the following hour we treated to a bespoke ceremony of traditional dance, music, readings and blessings which was simultaneously very beautiful, humbling and special... Amaterasu (the sun goddess whose blessings were sought) must've heard us, as for the first time, the rains eased soon after the ceremony in time for us to visit the various other shrines in the grounds.

A really wonderful experience and an unforgettable day - all thanks to Mayumi (we love you!).