After yesterday’s late night, I have a bit of a lazy morning, my plans sadly change a little due to the rainy weather. I head out in the late morning to a tonkatsu shop called Tonkatsu Wakaba for lunch. What’s interesting about this tonkatsu is that it a paler shade of white than most normal tonkatsu. This is unique due to the low temperature cooking process. It results in a very tender and tasty meal!
Panstock Tenjin
It’s still raining after lunch so I decide to do a little shopping at one or two of the malls around the main train station. After a bit of window shopping I head back to the Tenjin area and scope out a very cool bakery and coffee shop called Panstock Tenjin. The day earlier I had clocked a really long line coming from this spot. But with the weather there isn’t a wait and I decide to visit. It’s a very cool bakery with tasty looking baked goods and a great coffee bar. I pick up a few items and an iced coffee and settle enjoy a relaxing afternoon people watching and taking it easy as the rain falls off and on.
Makino Udon
After a bit of time I head back to my hotel to freshen up before heading back out again in the evening. My goal this time is Makino Udon which is well regarded amongst locals. I order their signature udon and a side of fried rice. I enjoyed the meal, and it’s certainly satisfying after a cold and wet day. However, I didn’t find it extraordinary compared to other udon meals I’ve had in Japan.
Fukuoka at Night
After dinner, I decide to take a leisurely stroll back to my hotel through some of the main areas of central Fukuoka. It’s a beautiful city and walking along the water is something I enjoyed very much. Especially at night, there’s a cool atmosphere to the city. I’m really glad I chose to spend a few days here, it has a lot of charm! However, tomorrow I’ll be heading East towards Beppu via Yufuin. So I eventually make my way back to my hotel to do a little packing and preparation for the travel day ahead.
Yufu Train to Yufuin
In the morning I check out of my hotel and head towards the Fukuoka train station. I’ll be riding the Yufu Limited express to Yufuin. My original plan is to ride the Yufuin No Mori train which is a special scenic tourist train. However, due to its popularity, I couldn’t get tickets for it. As an alternative, I book the Yufu Limited express as the train will travel along the same track as the Yufuin No Mori except it just doesn’t have the fancy tourist cars. The ride takes a little over three hours and is indeed pretty scenic! I can only imagine what the experience would be like on the actual tourist train. But I’m still happy to take this route and soon I’m disembarking in Yufuin where I intend to spend most of my day before taking another train to Beppu.
Yufuin
Yufuin is a small onsen town that is has become very popular. There is generally one main street that is lined with all manner of shops and restaurants. The city is surrounded by mountains and is very picturesque. After leaving the train station, I start walking up the main street checking out all the different stores and food vendors. I start making a mental note of things that interest me.
At the end of the main street you arrive at Lake Kinrinko. It’s a beautiful lake and is said to mist in the morning to create a very lovely setting. However, by the time I arrive its simply a peaceful and pristine lake and I’m completely alright with that!
Snoopy Village
Even though its a cloudy morning, it is still very warm and muggy. So after a few hours of exploring, I’m starting to feel the effects of the heat. I happen upon Snoopy Village which is a snoopy themed restaurant. I’m not a massive peanuts fan. But I did pop in to have a cold drink and enjoy the air conditioning for a little while!
Yufuin Floral Village
After resting a little at the Snoopy restaurant, I head back out and stumble on the Yufuin Floral Village. This like a little town inside the town. There are these cute little huts that are almost hobbit like. There is even an area where they have some live animals for people to enjoy watching and petting. Honestly, it’s a little random but at the same time feels fitting for a small Japanese village!
Comico Art Museum
In contrast to the fantasy like floral village is the Comico Art Museum. The building is ultra modern and almost doesn’t seem like it belongs in Yufuin. Yet at the same time it’s so nicely integrated into the surrounding nature. Inside are pieces of art that are supposedly representative of the art and culture of comics novels and movies. It’s a really interesting space and it feels like a big departure from everything else I’ve seen in Yufuin so far.
On the second floor of the museum is a cafe and also a bit of an open air art exhibit. The exhibits are set with the surrounding mountains as a backdrop. The museum is also designed a way that also does a good job of hiding the rest of the town so it does feel like its just the art and nature!
Eating in Yufuin
After spending an hour or two exploring the museum, my thoughts turn to food. There are TONS of food options along the main street and I opt for two that caught my eye on my initial walkthrough. The first is this 200 yen croquette stand. There’s a huge line outside and when you get to the front you have a few choices for filling. I opted for the crab cream and the meat and potato filling. Both were extremely tasty! After devouring the croquettes, I pick up a bag of very tasty chicken karagge from Nakatsu Fried Chicken. The individual chicken pieces are massive and very flavourful and delicious!
After filling my belly I hop back on a local train enroute to Beppu. Upon arriving at Beppu station I hop into my first ever Japanese taxi ride to head to the ryokan where I’ll be staying for the next two nights.
Yunosato Hayama
One of the big reasons for my trip to Japan is to be able to spend some time travelling with friends. Here in Beppu I will be meeting up with an old travel friend Salmonella as well as new travel friends Chef, Touchpad and their family! We’ll all be staying at the ryokan Yunosato Hayama. Upon arriving, I bump into them in the hallway and we spend some time catching up and recounting our travels to get here. Eventually it’s time for dinner and we all head down to the hotel dining room for the hotel provided kaiseki dinner. It’s a beautifully prepared multi course meal with some very tasty looking dishes. In fact even the kids meals look very scrumptious as well! Over the next hour or two we spend our time enjoying the food, the company and simply catching up among friends!
After dinner, salmonella and I head to the bath to relax a little before turning in for the evening. Tomorrow all of us will head up the Beppu Ropeway and have plans to visit a cool resort!
I travelled to Yufuin & Beppu too! Both were fun places to visit. I especially loved Yufuin – left a lot of wonderful memories – such as experiencing their onsen. Their dinner was a special treat!