Lost in Translation: Japan's Countryside Kyushu island

Japan is one of my favorite destinations. I would love to live there for a while or at least to have time to travel around for a longer period of time.

First time we went to Japan it was last year for a stopover of 4 days in Tokyo. It was an awesome experience. 

Tokyo

This time we went to the countryside which was even better than our previous experience in Tokyo. We decided to come to Japan because we were in Busan and it is a short 30 minutes flight to Fukuoka, the main city in the island of Kyushu. We rented a car in the airport (you'll need an international drivers license) and Rui bravely drove us around (driving in the "wrong side" of the road can be very confusing and stressful but Rui is already used to driving everywhere).

A car gave us the flexibility to explore more places in a short period of time. It would be impossible to go to so many places in just 5 days. 

We booked our rental online with an international rent a car company. Beside the rental rate $70 per day, and pricey gas, there is another cost to have in mind, every 20 kms or so there was a toll... Sometimes to drive 100 kms we paid $40 in tolls! And I'm not exaggerating!
It was costly but it was worth every yen that we spent.

Our Ride

During this trip we could experience more the traditional Japanese lifestyle and beautiful landscapes.
One of the challenges was the language. People were very willing and kind but they barely (I'm already being generous) spoke English.

Tatami

Architecture and landscapes are also a must. Nature is simply mesmerizing.

Kumamoto Castle

You need to be open minded specially about food. Japanese food is much more than sushi. Rolls with mayo or avocado is something that you won't find there. 

Many times you won't understand the menu and no one would be able to explain it to you. This is also about adventure and free spirit. Yes, you'll end up eating something that you swore that you wouldn't ever eat... That's part of the charm and it's also a way to learn more about yourself. Travel is about that too. It's about finding yourself in an unique situation and needing to deal with it. 

If you are not OK with that maybe it is better to stay in the more touristic cities and avoid the rural off-beat path.

Yakitori

In Kumamoto we had dinner in one of those places where locals go after work to drink and eat yakitoris. No one there spoke English but Rui ended up learning from locals how to eat horse sashimi.

Certainly it was one of the best travel moments that we both had. And it was my husband's fault. It was his idea to go there and interact with locals... As always.

Traditional meal

After a short and unfortunate visit to Mt. Aso (too foggy, we couldn't go up), we stopped to have dinner in a traditional Japanese restaurant. Again, no English but we found our way to leave with full bellies and another great experience to tell about.

Ryokan

I'm already looking forward to going back to the land of the rising sun.