Lenette's Pa and Ma in Nagasaki
11 Oct 2006
Yes, the old folks made the trip to Japan to visit us. We are, of course, very proud to be able to show them how we live in Japan. There is a lot to see in Nagasaki and surrounding area. Nagasaki is also easy to travel by yourself. There is a street car which brings you to the most important parts of town. There is also a tourist bus and for 100 yen, it takes you around all the touristy parts of town.
We went to the Peace Park and the center of town, with the famous spectacles bridge and of course China Town.
On the way to Sasebo, where we unfortunately arrived too late to take a boat trip, we visited Huis ten Bosch. A piece of Holland in Kyushu, with a beautiful view of windmills and traditional houses.
Near Sasebo we had a beautiful view over the water with many small islands. This is where part of the movie The Last Samurai was made.
For us Dutch, coming from a flat country, is a scenery with mountains and vulcanoes very interesting. So we visited Unzen, where the last volcano erupted in the 90’s. You can still see how the lava went from the vulcano to the water.
The Kunch festival is held every year in October. This year we had tickets to view the festival from the bleachers. This means that you rent a small square which fits four Japanese people. Since us foreigners are not so delicately build, we shared one square with three of us.
The dance- and music groups first perform at the Suwa Shrine, this starts at 7am. After that they roam the town and give their performances at different locations. The advantage of being at the Suwa Shrine is that you have a better view.
Of course we enjoyed the typical Japanese food. Their first experience with sushi went well. They even went back by themselves to have a sushi lunch, so that meant they liked it. In Unzen we enjoyed a dish where you grill your own soba (Japanese noodle) on a hot stone. A dinner at an izakaya gives a lot of choices of both Japanese and western food.
It is not typical Japanese but a lot of fun: a bbq at the beach. That is something we will not experience in Holland.... in October. The beach is a 30min drive from our appartment. The bbq is ready, you only need to bring your own gridiron, coals and meat.
Our visit to Yanagawa took us back in time. On a boat we were transported through the small canals. We didn’t understand a bit about the information given by the rower, but did enjoy his songs.
Carlos showed us how difficult is it to make kanji characters with brush and ink, but the results were not bad. A traditional experience at the end of their Japanese adventure.
We went to the Peace Park and the center of town, with the famous spectacles bridge and of course China Town.
On the way to Sasebo, where we unfortunately arrived too late to take a boat trip, we visited Huis ten Bosch. A piece of Holland in Kyushu, with a beautiful view of windmills and traditional houses.
Near Sasebo we had a beautiful view over the water with many small islands. This is where part of the movie The Last Samurai was made.
For us Dutch, coming from a flat country, is a scenery with mountains and vulcanoes very interesting. So we visited Unzen, where the last volcano erupted in the 90’s. You can still see how the lava went from the vulcano to the water.
The Kunch festival is held every year in October. This year we had tickets to view the festival from the bleachers. This means that you rent a small square which fits four Japanese people. Since us foreigners are not so delicately build, we shared one square with three of us.
The dance- and music groups first perform at the Suwa Shrine, this starts at 7am. After that they roam the town and give their performances at different locations. The advantage of being at the Suwa Shrine is that you have a better view.
Of course we enjoyed the typical Japanese food. Their first experience with sushi went well. They even went back by themselves to have a sushi lunch, so that meant they liked it. In Unzen we enjoyed a dish where you grill your own soba (Japanese noodle) on a hot stone. A dinner at an izakaya gives a lot of choices of both Japanese and western food.
It is not typical Japanese but a lot of fun: a bbq at the beach. That is something we will not experience in Holland.... in October. The beach is a 30min drive from our appartment. The bbq is ready, you only need to bring your own gridiron, coals and meat.
Our visit to Yanagawa took us back in time. On a boat we were transported through the small canals. We didn’t understand a bit about the information given by the rower, but did enjoy his songs.
Carlos showed us how difficult is it to make kanji characters with brush and ink, but the results were not bad. A traditional experience at the end of their Japanese adventure.