Shodoshima

Today we took the ferry to Shodoshoma. Its a large Island so we rented a car to get around. The Island is the setting for a famous Japanese book and film "Nijushi-no-Hitmoi" ("Twenty-Four Eyes"). The story starts with a young teacher in the 1930s meeting her year 1 students in a little school on the Island and follows their lives and troubles to World War II and just after. There is a small theme park dedicated to the book and film. Luckily Russ had made us all watch the film a few weeks ago in Australia so we all had a wonderful time walking through the exhibits including a little model school room and a dining room where you could order a "school lunch" (beef broth, bread roll, milk and fruit - surprisingly tasty and satisfying).
It was a wonderful morning but in return for this the travel gods dealt us a blow and when we left the park we found our rental car had a flat battery (we left the headlights on so not strictly the travel gods fault). A man from a nearby garage turned up very promptly and got us started for 3000 yen. As we had to keep the engine running for at least an hour we drove up to the highest point of the Island. Near to the top there was quite a bit of snow. There is a cable car ride at the top. We took a ride, it was very foggy which made it atmospheric but meant we could not see all that much. I am sure there is a spectacular view of the Island in warmer weather.
To our relief the car started without incident when we got back in, but a small miscalculation meant that Russell missed the ferry back with us to Uno Port and had to wait another two hours on the Island. The rest of us are snuggled in the lounge with a sake (me) and soft drinks (kids) writing in our journals and playing scrabble.Read more