Traveling Home - Wakkani

 I found another good set of pictures I forgot to post!  These are from my travel days.  Going back home is never as fun as going some place - but at least it didn't take 4 days.  Here are some fun pictures of the travel!

I need gum to fly . . . so I got this lovely breath shower gum . . . not bad really

The futon at the hostel was VERY thin - but it was a cute place

lots of cutesie animals

Nice facilities

Nice lounge with reasonably price beverages.

hairdryer and hairspray provided

they were big on the cutesie clocks

Lots of manga and games and puzzles - the puzzles did not require Japanese - yay!

A more classic clock design

HARRY POTTER - I really wanted to see it but we didn't have time :( we were waiting for the bus.  Yes the movie theater is above the bus station

Life size sully in the lobby!

Shopping street - complete with many many cranes

neat statue

neat dog van

delicious breakfast!

I did enjoy the Seico Mart - or cheap one stop food option.  I had a lovely last Japanese breakfast without fish!  The first time in a month - yay!  here you have a Maxim cafe, egg and ham rice, a small Luna vanilla yogurt (I got this based on a review by a blogger who's reviews I love over at Japanese Snack Reviews), and a Hokkaido printed dorayaki! If you see Hokkaido dorayaki - get it!  It is filled with mochi and red bean - fantastic! I may try to make Hokkaido Dorayaki.  In fact, I'm like 100% sure I will.  How hard can it be?  The Luna yogurt was also quite good - as indicated.  It really is a very small tub of yogurt though. 

Funadomari Festival!

Wrote this one in Japan and didn't manage to post it! Here it is!

The town of Funadomari had a city festival a few days back.  The elementary and middle school children of the town carried around two small portable shrines and then stoped and did some fun dances at a couple of key spots. The town is very small so this didn't take very long.  The end of the "parade" was at the sports centre and featured a yakisoba stall, a shaved ice stall, takoyaki, and yakitori.  I had the takoyaki (octopus balls) and some Blue Hawaii Shaved ice (blue slushy).  Both were good.

Getting ready to start

All dressed up in front of the shrine

The smaller shrine

Bigger kids = bigger shrine

Getting started

Waiting

They are singing enthusiastically

less enthusiastic with a heavier shrine

Dance break!

Pretty flexible

Second group has a more complicated dance

And a snazzy ending

This girl was particularly good

Kind of boring I guess

Cute little shrine!

All the dancers

yakatori

yakisoba

Goldfish!

 The entire festival was very fun.  Lots of cute kids, who seemed very pleased to see a bunch of foreigners show up to see them. In fact, we went to a second festival in Hamanaka and some of the kids from the first festival came up to tell us that we had seen them dance earlier that day.  They also showed up their frog.  Kids are kids.

This one was inside!

Another cute shrine

Win fun prizes!

Overall, it was a really great day.  I would recommend it!

Japanese Cemetery

One of the last things I did in Japan was go to the Cemetery.  I love cemeteries.  It is possible I have mentioned this in the past (See This).  I had some idea of the family style pattern I would find in the cemetery from my Jdramas, but I've never been to a Buddhist or Shinto cemetery (I don't know what this is, probably Buddhist).

The van as viewed through the shrine gates - you can see the ocean of course

it is a really pretty place

Nice new one

Another new one

awesome old one

Big awesome old one

mossy old one

a nice Buddha with this one

Another old one with a Buddha too

Nice association of stones

Very cool

It was a really lovely cemetery with a view of the sea situated on nice rolling hills near some large hills/small mountain. Just beautiful.  We also stopped at the marker for all the fisherman lost at sea, which I thought was particularly nice.  It is right on the edge of a cliff overlooking the sea. 

Perfect place.

Weird Japanese Food!

I've found some more weird Japanese food to review.  Today we have gum and chips.  Sounds like it would be normal right?  No.  First off the gum.  A nice offering by Recaldent and made by . . . Cadbury - yes Cadbury.

Not sure why it is smart . . . maybe the neat box makes it smart!

Make sure you toss out the wrapper . . . that is smart

The gum is grape flavored.  You can see from the wrapper that it is filled . . . filled with mint.  That is correct. Mint.  The minty flavor lasts just a bit and then the grape flavor sets in.  It is actually very present, though the flavor doesn't last particularly long.  It was strangely addicting.  Offering two. Pizza flavored chips (spicy!).

Calbee pizza potatoe chips!

Roast chicken?

Weird, but oddly appealing again.  The flavor is mainly of spice, tomatoes, and maybe a hint of cheese.  I'm not sure whats up with the chicken on the back. It did not taste of chicken.  They weren't too greasy which was nice.  Just a nice normal chip.  The spice wasn't too strong, but was noticeable. Yay!

Again - two good choices!