Rokugo (Misato of the Senboku district)

A lack of foresight on both our parts meant we had no route mapped out to get to Odate from Onikobe... the sea, the mountains, the plains... We ended up going via Rokugo - a town that technically no longer exists since it has merged with the town of Senhata and the village of Sennan to form the generically named Misato-cho. (There are three Misato railway stations in Japan and a Misato-chuo - none of which is in Akita...)

I hadn't heard of it, but it's a pretty city that seems atypically historical for the area. It's famed (locally at least) for its springs but also seems to have a considerable number of temples and shrines. It was very hot and I couldn't persuade Hiro to be enthusiastic about a town walk to cover all the temples and springs that were listed, but we did take a look at some. One day I will need to go back with a 50cc scooter and do it at "my pace...."   I left the town brochure at Hiro's parents' place and my details of the town history are a bit sketchy.

Despite the heat there were so many beautiful flowers.

Akita and its wild children -
an amazing rarity... a human being with barefeet on the streets...

Hiro couldn't be persuaded to visit all the dots...

The springs

The temples

There was a lot of foliage in the town.

 

A ricketty shrine that has seen better days - the posts either side of the tori are
not supposed to be on a slant.

A close up

One of the springs - spring really meant pond to my intepretation.

There seemed to be a number of beautifully maintained public parks

The town is surrouned by rice fields. With highly regarded water and abundant rice fields,
it's no surprise that it is also  a sake producing area.
http://www.osake.or.jp/english/senboku.html 

A pond

Even the coke machine needs some shade...

Rice and the mountains

A pond on the outskirts

A pond

http://www.rokugo-mizu.net/shisetsu.htm  (Japanese)
http://www.town.misato.akita.jp/madoguchi/soumu/hishokoho/English/place-to-go.asp
http://www.city.semboku.akita.jp/en/index.html  (Semboku city guide)

Obon - the way up - from Tokyo to Onikobe

We joined the mad Obon rush out of Tokyo on the busiest day of the mass exodus.  Usually the thought of joining the throngs is more than either of our patience can put up with.   After experiencing the throngs this year,  I can see why we usually take our summer holidays later... It took almost 9 hours to reach Onikoube - our destination for day 1,  less than 400km from Tokyo.   It's a bit clearer here  - https://maps.google.com.au/?ie=UTF8&hl=en 

From Tokyo to the north of Tochigi is three laned dual carraige way.
The traffic crawled, there was some relief at being on a bike and being able to go through the traffic.

Plenty slow enough to be taking pictures.

Massive line ups to enter rest areas

Yama yuri - mountain lilies in Onikobe

Onikobe

Onikobe is a ski resort - it was expensive, but the food was great,
and more importantly they actually had space available when I booked
two days prior to going...

North of Onikobe

Going through a tunnel on the road between Miyagi and Akita....
Many many tunnels.

False eyelashes at Abab

I'm on my way back from Akita, the day before we went up, I popped in to Abab in Okachimachi on my way home. Mental note made that if I need false eyelashes, this will be my destination

A fish restaurant in Koenji

Dried fish hanging out the front of the restaurant.

Yesterday wandering the streets of Koenji with a classmate I came across what was unmistakably a restaurant specializing in fish.  According to Hiro the one on the left looks like a hirame, the one on the right a suzuki (sea bass) and he was less committal on the middle fish.  Fish are a bit like planes and cars to me - I can tell a tri plane from a biplane but that's about the extent of it... I still confuse Honda and Hyundai's Hs...

Ghoulish... a lamp made out of fish skin... though in
reality it's no different from a leather lounge..
There's something about light shining through part of a
carcase that I find disconcerting ...