Kagoshima

We went to Kagoshima in early November 2011.

We flew into Kansai, then slept a night in Osaka.  Next morning we caught the bullet train to Kogoshima.  This trip was a bit more than four hours long.

The population of Kagoshima is just above  600,000.

Across the water from out hotel, (in the other direction ) was the magnificent Sakura Jima active volcano.

We caught a ferry over to have a closer look, and there is a wee tourist bus that takes you to the park, with "A Portrait of a Shout" carved out of a 50 tonne volcano rock. Ha !  It looks to the top of the volcano.

This is as close as you get to a crater.

Jaggy left overs.

And, opening the hotel window curtains on the last day, we were thrilled to see a fresh mini eruption.

In Kagoshima there are large under cover shopping malls.  This one is near Tenmonkan. It is a great area to walk around the backstreets and find small, quaint, tasty restaurants.

The trams are a joy.  Remember, you enter from the middle, and pay the exact fare at the front as you exit.  There is a screen above the driver to show you how much your fare costs.  Just check the printed number on your ticket, and see the fare on this screen next to your number.  If you do not have the exact change, there is also a machine near the driver that changes small notes for you.

There are castle ruins to visit.

And beautiful gardens. Here we have a museum outside Senganen Garden. 

There is a wonderful Stone Bridge Memorial Park, where they have painstakingly moved seven old stone bridges. At one end of the park is a fascinating museum explaining the history of the bridges and the construction methodology used in the olden days.

Even old trees are respected.

CHIRAN

A bus travels from Kagoshima Central Railway Station to Chiran. It takes about an hour twenty to get there.

There are three reasons to travel to Chiran. The Peace Museum, The Samurai Gardens, and the tea shops (southern Kyushu grows some of the best green tea you can buy in Japan).

The Peace Museum is a sombre place.  Chiran was a base for the departure of Kamikaze pilots, and the museum displays rows upon rows of pictures of the men, mostly in their late teens and early twenties. Also on display are the pictures of the pilots farewelling their mates, and their pets.  There are copies of the last letters the young men wrote to their mothers.

There are seven stunning samurai home and gardens. Beautiful.

MIYAZAKI

Miyazaki is on the south eastern side of Kyushu.  The train trip takes two hours, and winds its way around Sakura Jima.

Miyazaki has large beautiful shrine grounds, an interesting science museum next to the railway station, a large interesting peace park, and a Haniwa Park filled with terra cotta figures.  

If you stand in front of this peace monument and clap your hands, you'll hear an echo.

There are hundreds and hundreds of the terra cotta figures.

OSAKA CASTLE POP IN

On the way back home, as the plane didn't depart till 9pm, we had a few extra hours to fill, so we decided to pop into Osaka Castle. Beautiful grounds too. (The train from Osaka to Kansai Airport only takes about an hour and runs about every half an hour)