This time we visited Niigata Prefecture on the North/West side of Japan.
The adventure started on 18 July late in the afternoon. I met Emi on the train platform in Yokosuka and we headed to Yokohama where we transferred to a second train bound for Nagatsuta station. We met our good friends and travel partners Yuko-san and Yamato-kun there and we went to their house for the night. Early the next morning (4:45am) we departed their house in Yamato-kun's car and drove to the Takasaka service area on the Kan-etsu toll road. At the Takasaka SA we met Yuko-san's sister Hiroko-san and we all had breakfast. After breakfast Emi and I moved to Hiroko-san's car and the 5 of us (in two cars) headed for Niigata.
Our first stop in Niigata: Welcome to the Nagaoka Hanabi Museum. It was a long drive to get here. We arrived about 10:00am and unfortunately the Museum didn't open until 11:00am! No problem, we made a quick change of plan and we drove to Yahiko Jinja Shrine!
That's Yamato-kun on the right side of the picture.
And, there's Emi on the right side of this picture.
There are trees everywhere.
While we were there workers were busy building a temporary structure. Probably to be used in an upcoming festival. In the picture it looks like they're trying to pull it down but in reality they were just pulling it a little bit to make the frame straight so the carpenters could install the next piece.
Shrines have such a peaceful atmosphere.
People write prayers on small wood boards and hang them here.
The stone walkways are wet from some previous rain.
A statue of rice bales. BTW, Niigata prefecture is famous for their rice.
It's time for lunch so we walk to the small town adjacent to the shine area.
A nice couple with a baby are having their picture taken in front of the main entrance to the shrine.
After a short walk around town we picked a restaurant and had lunch.
After lunch we went back to the shrine grounds to get to the parking area. We were lucky, it started to rain just after we arrived at our cars.
After departing the shrine we drove to Murakami city to do some shopping for food and drinks! We'd be spending the next 2 nights at Asahi-midori-no-sato Honwakan. It's located on the premises of Asahi Midori-no-Sato Roadside Station (where a restaurant and hot spring facility are available). We stayed at this cottage style accommodation that included a kitchen, rooms complete with hot spring bath, dinning room with all the stuff needed to cook and eat, washing machine, TV, and most importantly... air conditioning! We had a great party the first night!
I took this picture of our duplex unit the next morning; it was a beautiful morning!
One more thing: WiFi was available but it was so difficult to figure out we had to get one of the staff members come to our room to show us how to connect.
Part 2 is coming soon!
Thanks for stopping by!
Mike
Bonus shots!
