Over the sea to Kyushu

A slow start in our mountain top home, after a night of tremendous storms, insects dropping from the wooden rafters, thunder rolling over the valley, rain so hard it felt as if we were sleeping under a waterfall. The rain continued throughout the valleys, but it was just beautiful, huge walls of green forest, mountains and roaring rivers, coloured bridges, wisps of cloud, winding roads with the first damp orange leaves of autumn. We crossed a vine bridge - reinforced for tourists now, but famously used to escape from any pursuing enemies - drove many miles and reached the sunny port of Yawatahama - a delightful, modern ferry for three hours across the Pacific to Beppu in Kyushu, the southernmost of Japan's main islands...and an onsen..Read more