Day 278: August 6, 2022
Saturday - Hokuryu, Moseushi, Fukugawa, Chippubetsu
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| It's our first road trip with our car Ruru |
After a week of work and anticipation, my family and I are finally going on our first drive out of town. For this trip, I have prepared an itinerary that would bring us to three towns and one city. Aside from that this road trip is extra special as it is the first time that my wife would drive in a foreign land and also on a long-distance, multi-day trip.
We left our home in Rumoi City at around 7:30AM. The first stop in our itinerary for today is the town of Hokuryu. For me, Hokuryu is the highlight of today's trip as it is celebrating the Hokuryu Sunflower Festival. I read in the Hokkaido Shinbun yesterday, that there are about 2 million sunflowers in full bloom today at the Hokuryu Sunflower Village.
From Rumoi City, it took about 35 minutes to reach the town of Hokuryu. Our first stop for the day was the Hokuryu Roadside Station "Sunflower Hokuryu". I included the roadside stations in the itinerary as I was collecting the roadside station stamps for my diary and also for the stamp rally booklet.
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| We also enjoyed the tasty sunflower soft cream |
We then headed to the nearby Hokuryu Sunflower Village 🌻🌻🌻. True enough, there were thousands of sunflowers in the field that looked like a yellow sea. We stayed here for more than an hour so that we could feast our eyes on such beauty. We also explored the sunflower field to fully appreciate its beauty.
The last destination in Hokuryu is the Matatsu Shrine in the town proper. I included the town shrines in the itinerary as I have a belief that whenever I get to visit a new shrine, I can wish for something and it would come true, much like the belief of visiting a Catholic Church for the first time during the Holy Week. However, in an ironic twist, my daughter made a misstep on the shrine's stone steps and scraped her leg. Luckily, we had first aid in the car and were able to clean the wound and cover it.
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| We crossed the Hokuryu Bridge going to our next town. |
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| Moseushi Seicomart |
From Hokuryu, we drove to the second town on our itinerary which is Moseushi. The first place is none other than its Seicomart. We bought a wound-cleaning product for Ella and also some snacks to eat since it was almost lunchtime.
From Seicomart, we went to the Moseushi Town Folk Museum and ate our snacks in the parking lot. When we were all done, I headed to the reception of the government office beside the museum to ask them to open the museum for us.
Moseushi Town Folk Museum is not that big but it has a lot of interesting displays that showcase the history of Moseushi town.
After touring the museum, I went back to the office to thank the person in charge. My family and I then drove to the Moseushi Shrine to offer some prayers.
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| Exploring Moseushi |
We didn't stay long as we still had plenty of places to visit. Our next stop was Yusui Park Urara which is known for its water slide. Sadly, Ella isn't fit to swim because of her wound so she just contented herself playing in the playground.
We gave her an hour of "Ella Time". After which, we walked to the nearby Moseushi Onsen Peperu. Where my wife and I had our onsen time. It was a perfect way to relax and be refreshed for the next leg of our road trip.
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| We crossed the Moseushi Bridge to go to Fukagawa Roadside Station |
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| Fukagawa City rice fields |
From Moseushi we continued on to Fukagawa City. Our first stop in Fukugawa City is the Fukagawa Roadside Station "Riceland Fukagawa" for the roadside station stamp. We also checked out the different products sold at the roadside station. It was a pity that we just bought rice during our last grocery day as Fukugawa City is known for its high-quality rice.
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| Uomaru Fukagawa |
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| These are some of the sushi that we ordered |
Since the roadside station is outside the city center, it took us more than 10 minutes to drive to reach our next destination which is the Uomaru Fukagawa. it is a conveyor belt sushi restaurant which my wife had been constantly requesting since she got here in Japan. Because I'm a sucker for sushi, we spend quite some money in Uomaru Fukagawa. Regardless, it was worth it as the food was fresh and tasted amazing.
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| An interesting-looking stone sculpture |
After the meal, my wife and daughter went to 711 in front of the restaurant to buy something. I took this opportunity to walk to the nearby Fukagawa Shrine to offer a prayer and make a wish.
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| Off to Chippubetsu |
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| Chippubetsu bell arch |
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| Chippubetsu Centennial Memorial Tower |
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| Chippubetsu Roadside Station "Kane no Narumachi" |
To wrap up our day, we drove to the last town on our itinerary which is Chippubetsu. Sadly, we arrived a little after the Chippubetsu Roadside Station "Kane no Narumachi" and the Chippubetsu Centennial Memorial Tower closed for the day.
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| Chippubetsu Cubic Connection |
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| Camp pitched, and we are ready for our first camping experience. |
Regardless, our main objective in Chippubetsu was to set up camp at Belle Park Chippubetsu Camping Ground. We only paid 500 yen to set up camp on the camping grounds. The place was beautiful and we felt really safe. Just to share, it is also our first time camping as a family.
Well, that's it for today! See you on our next adventure! ✌
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I enjoyed reading your adventures. I'm excited to see where you and your family are going next.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much!
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