Tag: cave

Exploring one of Japan’s Most Rural Prefectures: Yamaguchi

Motonosumi Shrine in Northern Yamaguchi along the Sea of Japan.

After an eventful day in Fukuoka paying my respects to the frog gods and eating delicious food, I decided to take the bullet train to Yamaguchi the next morning because it was one of the few prefectures I had yet to explore in Japan. Yamaguchi is most famous for Akiyoshido Cave, which is the largest limestone cave in Japan. It is also famous for its blowfish and has delicious seafood you can try.

Other points of interest include Hagi, the old castle town, Beppu Benten Pond, and various bridges and shrines. Though renowned for its scenery, Yamaguchi does not have the best public transport. I would recommend seeing all of the prefectures in Kyushu before coming here because there is much more to do and the beaches and onsen are of much higher quality. That being said, Yamaguchi does have some interesting points that I will be highlighting in this article, and I am grateful I had the opportunity to finally see it!

Getting to Yamaguchi from Fukuoka

From Hakata Station, traveling to Shin Yamaguchi Station on the Tokaido-Sanyo Shinkansen takes around 35 mins and costs 6000 yen. From Shin Yamaguchi Station, you can take a bus or local train to various locations but I would recommend renting a car or taxi to get your time’s worth out of this prefecture.

Yamaguchi also has an airport (Yamaguchi Ube Airport) but it is cheaper to fly to Fukuoka and take the bullet train to reach the station. Once again, I would definitely recommend spending at least a day in Fukuoka and other parts of Kyushu because the atmosphere is better.

When I arrived at Shin Yamaguchi Station, I was actually surprised at how modern it was. I was expecting it to be an extremely rural station and pretty empty, but it had signs that clearly marked the area and I saw a decent number of people commuting here. The most disappointing part was that almost all the shops in the station were closed minus 7-Eleven and a tiny udon shop by the waiting room. I really wanted to try more of the local food but ended up settling for convenience store options because I was on a tight schedule.

I went to the tourist information center a grabbed a map so I wouldn’t get lost. Fortunately there is a cheap bus that goes from Shin Yamaguchi Station to Akiyoshido Cave so it is the best place to explore first. The workers at the information center also informed me that there are a number of taxis you can take from the caves to other locations in Yamaguchi, so that saved me the trouble of trying to call or book one in advance. Though I was initially expecting this to be a challenging day, fortunately everything I wanted to see was accessible even though I did not have a car.

Akiyoshido Cave

Akiyoshido is the largest limestone cave in Japan that’s existence can be traced back to 300 million years ago. It is part of the Akiyoshidai Plateau Quasi-National Park that has a number of phenomenal hiking spots and places to see. Inside of the cave you will notice formations that resemble various parts of Japan such as the Thousand Rice Fields, the Goddess of Mercy, and the “Big Mushroom”. The accessible part of the cave for tourists spans about one mile, and when you exit you will walk through a fluorescent tunnel that takes you through the essence of time. I thought this cave was well laid out, but I recommend Miyakojima’s Pumpkin Cave and Okayama’s Rainbow Cave because they are more interesting to see. However, there are additional places you can explore at this national park if you keep hiking after the exit. I did not have the time or energy to see them all, but please reference the Akiyoshidai Website for more information.

Address: 3506-2 Shuhocho Akiyoshi, Mine, Yamaguchi 754-0511
Entrance Fee: 1200 yen

After exiting the cave, I cut a deal with a taxi driver to take me to the following locations for 20,000 yen. Though this was expensive, this was the most cost efficient way for me to see all of Yamaguchi in one day and I don’t regret it.

Beppu Benten Pond

Beppu Benten Pond is a strikingly clear blue pond near the limestone caves in the small town of Mine. On sunny days that pond appears crystal clear like glass, reminding me of Monet’s Pond that I saw in Gifu. There is a legend that drinking Beppu’s water will extend your lifespan for a year, but since it was raining I did not try it out! There are a number of trout that live in this pond so I decided to leave the magical life-extending water to them. What’s also amazing is this pond’s temperature stays at 14 degrees Celsius all year. On the day that I went, the sunlight made a heart-shaped shadow on the pond which I thought was very special! If you go to Akiyoshido then I would definitely recommend checking this out because it is extremely nearby.

Address: 1578 Shuhocho Beppu, Mine, Yamaguchi 754-0603
Entrance Fee: Free

Motonosumi Shrine

From the pond, I had my taxi driver take me to Motonosumi Shrine which was all the way north next. This was about a 45 minute drive but was extremely worth it because the layout of this seaside shrine was gorgeous. Motonosumi Shrine is an Inari shrine which means it has fox deities and a large number of tori that lead to the offering box. Instead of being on the ground, the offering box is attached to one of the upper beams of the main tori making it extremely unique. It is said that good luck comes to whomever can toss their coins successfully into the box. I would recommend this shrine as the #1 sightseeing spot in Yamaguchi because there are not many others like it!

Address: 498 Yuyatsuo, Nagato, Yamaguchi 759-4712
Entrance Fee: Free

After fully exploring the shrine by the coast (it really only takes 25 mins to see), I had my taxi driver drop me off at Hagi Bus Center where I drank by myself and waited 2 hours for the Hello Kitty bus to pick me up and return me to Shin Yamaguchi Station so I could reach my next destination. Not complaining though, because I was riding in style! Do be mindful of the bus schedules here because buses are truly infrequent in this prefecture even when they connect to the major stations.

Other Recommendations

Other popular destinations in Yamaguchi include Tsunoshima Ohashi Bridge, which connects to a small island called Tsunoshima. If I had a rental car, I probably would had tried to go here, but the island is very rural and does not contain many points of interest outside of one of the oldest Western-styled lighthouses. Kintaikyo bridge near the airport is also very famous for its architecture, but since it was out of the way and I have already seen so many bridges in Japan I decided to skip it. I did not fully see the castle town but I did walk around Hagi while waiting for my Hello Kitty bus and it was interesting enough. Sadly it was raining else I would have taken more photos.

Most articles recommend staying 2 days in Yamaguchi to fully experience it, but I was able to see everything that I wanted in a single day trip. If you are doing a day trip like myself I would recommend choosing 3 spots that most interest you and sticking close to them. Though Yamaguchi is a place that I wouldn’t recommend to people because other rural prefectures like Gunma and Saga have far more to see, I was grateful for what I experience and was even more ecstatic to finally cross this place off my bucket list! When I was done sightseeing I returned to Shin Yamaguchi Station and rode the bullet train to Hiroshima Station because that is where my next adventure was about to begin.

In my next article, I will be exploring a small art island of Hiroshima and also re-visiting Kurashiki. The adventures truly never seem to end and I have been living life to the fullest this year. I cannot wait to see what other wonderful things are in store!

Scuba Diving and Exploring the Pumpkin Limestone Cave in Miyakojima

Halloween came early this year in Miyakojima.

After spending a pleasant first day on Miyakojima exploring local shrines, biking to Sunayama Beach, and stumbling across old ruins, it was time to get to the main event—scuba diving with turtles. And more importantly, trying out my underwater camera equipment that I bought for my GoPro Hero 7 last year. I had originally planned to scuba dive with turtles in Cebu last March but my trip to the Philippines got cancelled due to the pandemic. I still have the ticket and still plan on going after I get vaccinated, but I imagine it’s going to be quite a long time until I can safely enter. Luckily with its pristine coral beaches, Miyakojima is one of the best places to go scuba diving in Japan so I finally got the chance to go here!

This article will detail my scuba diving experience at Shigira Beach and Boraga Beach as recommended by my instructor.

Scuba Diving at Shigira Beach

Before coming to the island, I decided to reserve a tour package from Klook that included both scuba diving with turtles and exploring the pumpkin limestone cave. Though I brought some of my own scuba gear, I really wanted to go with a local who knew the island well so I could learn the most about it. The combined tour cost 13500 yen which is much more expensive than doing similar activities in Thailand of the Philippines, but for what I saw the price was worth it. My tour started at 9:30 at Shigira Beach which was just a 30 min taxi ride from my hotel. From there I met up with my instructor who took me to the best scuba spot based on the weather conditions. The tour was entirely in Japanese but fortunately easy for me to understand.

The major bummer is that no turtles appeared, however. It might have been due to the gale advisory that swept Japan just a day before, but you would think with the lack of tourists that more wildlife would be around! Looking on the bright side, I did get to see a bunch of clown fish up close. And I also learned how to swim and use the correct settings on my camera to take quality photos. The reefs were absolutely beautiful and once again I felt like I was in the Little Mermaid World of Kingdom Hearts. Though I was a bit disappointed I didn’t get to see the turtles here, I vow to meet them once I can safely travel to Cebu!

Exploring the Pumpkin Limestone Cave

While researching destinations I wanted to travel to in Miyakojima, the pumpkin limestone cave was #1 on my list. As soon as I saw the pictures of it online I knew I needed to see it with my own eyes. I mean where else in the world can you see something like this? After a short break my instructor kindly drove me to Boraga Beach where the cave was located. This is just roughly 15 mins from Shigira Beach where the turtles apparently reside. I was surprised to find that the water was extremely shallow and rocky so we were given special boots to wear as to not hurt our feet. The entrance to the cave is about a 15 min walk over rocks, but the gorgeous blue shades of the water made it fun. Once you reach the entrance of the cave, there is a gap of emerald water that you can swim through to go inside. How cool is that?

I was unaware this is actually a religious place, so we were asked to pray before entering. Though I am not religious, I am honored to have received the pumpkin god’s blessings. The inside of the cave is extremely dark so we were given flashlights so we could see where we were going. You can see the beautiful pumpkin shape as soon as you enter the cave and it looked almost ethereal from where I was swimming. My instructor guided me to a ledge where I could start climbing to the top. Though parts were a bit slippery, it was overall easy to reach the highest point where water was dripping down from stalactites. My instructor told me to sit down underneath them so the cool water droplets would hit my skin, and it really did feel relaxing! The inside of the cave was warm so the mini shower was much appreciated. There was also mud here that you could smear on your face for smooth skin. I saw mud masks in the souvenir shops before and was happy that I had the chance to experience the real thing. The mud here really does make your skin look smoother after you wash it off!

It took us roughly 20 mins to fully explore the cave, but my instructor stopped to give me some pretty interesting lectures. Here is a video of me jumping off the highest ledge of the pumpkin cave taken by my instructor. The gap was extremely narrow and a bit scary so you can hear me scream! But rest assured, this is a safe tour and I was wearing a life jacket and helmet so everything was fine. Even if you’re afraid of heights, this really isn’t that bad:

Nature & Soba

In between going to the two beaches, my instructor dropped me off at a delicious soba place called Maruyoshi Shokudo. Not only were the noodles cheap here, but the staff was amazing. They made me a custom fish and veggie bowl since I’m pescatarian and I topped it with some light curry powder to give it the perfect zest. Miyako soba is extremely famous and after eating here I can see exactly why it is true. I also explored some gardens nearby and discovered some beautiful butterflies and flora. Nature is also impressive here because everything gets a lot of sunlight. It was so fun to see all of the wildlife up close!

Chasing Sunsets

The tour ended around 3pm and my instructor drove me back to my hotel so I had just enough time to shower off, grab some food, and start chasing sunsets! The first and last two pictures were taken at morning and night at Painagama Beach near my resort. The middle picture was taken at Shigira Beach right before I left. As I grabbed some shochu from the convenience store across the road, I was surprised to see that a number of locals were gathered around playing instruments, drinking, and watching the sunset on a Tuesday night. But this is just Okinawan culture plain and simple. Though I am addicted to the city due to the endless opportunities it offers, island life is truly the life for me. I love being on the beach because I feel the happiest there.

This was my last night in Miyakojima and I think it was extremely well spent! I have one last article of my Okinawa series to publish, then I will be spontaneously traveling to Kyushu at the end of this week to finish Golden Week with a bang. Thank you all for reading and supporting my dream!