It was a glorious morning when we set off from the hotel the next day. We planned to visit a number of places and certainly had to start early.
Ibushuki City - Lake Ikeda
Ibusuki city was located at the southern most tip of Satsuma peninsula and at the entrance of Kagoshima bay. It was known for its range of flowers and greenery. We were hopeful to catch the beauty of the flower bed that resided along the shoreline of Lake Ikeda (the biggest lake in Kyushu), which was smacked right in the center of Ibusuki City. Together with Mt. Kaimon on its south side, it was known to be one of the most scenic spots of tourist zone.
After 1.5 hours drive, we finally arrived at the lake. A quick glance at the surrounding proved to be disappointing with no specific scenic feature to shout about. There wasnt any sign of beautiful flowers. Guess the timing was just not right. Since the lake was also famous for its giant eels, we made our way to the little museum and souvenir shop located near the lake. Didn't think much about the eels as I had to squint my eyes to search for them, who remained tired and motionless within the tanks that were covered by a layer of moss..
Without further delay, we decided to save our precious time and started heading out to Tosenkyo for the much awaited lunch of somen!
Tosenkyo （唐船峡）
Tosenkyo was really a a gorge situated at south west of the Lake Ikeda. It derived this name from a place called Tōsengasaka - where there were many Chinese ships anchored at a deep cove during the Edo Period from 1603-1868.
Tosenkyo was famous for its Nagashi Somen (flowing somen) during the summer. Previously, the somen would be placed in the bamboo of ice cold water and diners could pick the somen with their chopsticks and dipped them in tsuyu before eating. In 1962, people tried to find ways of tapping the clear stream in Tosenkyo and Inoue Hironori invented a round rotational style motorized machine to swirl the somen in ice cold water. This innovation was later put to massive implementation to help developed the town as the birthplace of the flowing noodles.
For the record, I have not really tried somen before and being the blurred person I am, I have always thought that somen was soba, the kind of noodles that I never really enjoyed. Naturally I was not as excited as WY when he first mentioned about the somen from Tosenkyo and the fact that it was the best in Japan.
Upon arrival, I was taken aback by the quiet beauty of the place - almost like the utopian rural village depicted by Akira Kurosawa's Dreams - a clear water stream flowing from the ravine that cooled the surrounding, a pond where the healthy and lively carps and sturgeons could be seen being reared naturally, a simple wooden watermill, a bridge and a colourful shrine that were built against the lush greenery to depict simplicity and tranquility.
Instantly, my fatigue from the drive and overbearing heat was gone and I was overcomed with the sheer joy and peace of the environement.
Our lunch was quite a unique experience. The set was completed with somen, grilled fish, sturgeon sashimi, miso soup with carp, teriyaki chicken and sushi. I was totally bowled over by the somen! The refreshing underground water sufficiently cooled the noodles very quickly before dipping into the freshly made tsuyu. Each mouthful of the noodles filled the palate with a light fragrance and each bite was deliciously exquisite! I never knew a simple dish as this could be so good!
The grilled fish was a delight and miso soup was flavourful with the sweetness of the carp. WY found the sashimi a little too crunchy for his liking though admittedly it was also very fresh.
Overall, I would give this lunch a superstar grade and I am already drooling again while penning this.....
Nagasaki Bana - 长崎鼻
After lunch, we headed for Nagasakibana - it was a cape at the southernmost end of the Satsuma Peninsula in the southern part of Kagoshima Prefecture. A white lighthouse was located at the tip of this cape while the other mountain Mt Kaimon stood on its western side.
Since it was a sunny day, we could enjoy seeing a clear picture of both the lighthouse and the panoramic view of Mt kaimon from afar. Equal interesting was the zoo/botanical garden nearby which we managed to explore a fair bit as well, capturing picturing of some of the interesting animals along the way.
Yamagawa Hot Sand Bath
Following the trekking at Nagasakibana, I was skeptical if I could take a hot sand bath considering I had been perspiring like mad. But it would be unthinkable to give it a miss since we were already nearby so off we went in search of the place.
The GPS played tricks on us and we were led on a wild goose chase trying to find the right venue. Finally, we managed to ask a a kind local (working at a nearby hot spring onsen :-p) who directed us to the right place.
The yutaka and a piece of tower were provided at an additional cost. We stripped everything off, wrapped ourselves in the yukuta before heading to the beach. The staff was very helpful and wrapped the towel around our head like a scarf before directing us to lie down. The hot volcanic sand was then piled on top of us bit by bit except for our head. Initially there was a little discomfort because of the weight and heat but slowly, I began to perspire and felt a slight pulsation that started from the base of my leg and slowly spread across the rest of my body.
It was really quite an enjoyable experience especially after we moved ourselves out of the sand bath after 15 minutes. The breeze from the sea was a welcoming relief and instantly I felt great, seemingly the impurities and toxin had been removed from my body!
After lingering for a short while at the beach enjoying the beautiful sea view, we went back to the bath and cleansed ourselves with the hot spring water. Finally, I took a quick dip into the onsen to end off the whole process. It was a great feeling after this as we both felt energised as we drove back to Kagoshima.
Dinner at Kagoshima
Dinner was quite good with WY finally got to eat his hotstone grill of the kurobuta and Kuroge Wagyu. I had a mixed hotpot with lots of local greens, scallops and kurobuta.
It was a hearty and satisfying meal after a long day of drive and exploration. With that, we were both dead beat and headed straight back to hotel for a good night's rest.
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