Japan Diaries 4: Weekend 40

Weekend 40: August 6-7, 2022

Day 278: August 6, 2022

Saturday - Hokuryu, Moseushi, Fukugawa, Chippubetsu

Driving to central Hokkaido

Today is the day that we have been looking forward to. After a week of work and anticipation, my family and I are finally going on our first drive out of town. I'm confident with this trip as I made the itinerary for this road trip and I know how safe Hokkaido is for motorists. 

It's officially our first out-of-town drive with Ruru

This road trip is extra special as it is the first time that my wife would drive for me on a long-distance, multi-day trip. We left our house in Rumoi at around 7:30AM after eating a heavy breakfast. The first stop in our itinerary for today is the town of Hokuryu.

Here are the places that we visited in Hokuryu:


Check out this dragon at Hokuryu Roadside Station




Team Nicerio visits Hokuryu Sunflower Village

Thousands of sunflowers bloom during Hokuryu Sunflower Festival


Matatsu Shrine main torii



Crossing the Hokuryu Bridge going to Moseushi

From Hokuryu, we drove to the second town in our itinerary which is Moseushi. 

Here are the places that we visited in Moseushi:




Yusui Park Urara

Team Nicerio visits Yusui Park Urara



After the refreshing onsen bath in Moseushi, we continued on to Fukagawa City. 

Ricefields of Fukagawa City

Here are the places that we visited in Fukagawa City:





Uomaru Fukagawa

Late lunch at Uomaru Fukagawa

🍚 Uomaru Fukagawa



Fukagawa City
I saw these unique stone sculptures on my way back to where my family parked the car.

Chippubetsu bell arch

Chippubetsu Centennial Memorial Tower

To wrap up our day, we drove to the last town in 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.

Belle Park Chippubetsu Camping Ground

Setting up our camp. This would be 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. 

Overall, it was a fulfilling first road trip we were able to visit Hokuryu, Moseushi, Fukugawa, and Chippubetsu. I was surprised at how skilled my wife is now in driving. 

Day 279: August 7, 2022

Sunday - Bonding with Teacher Kanda

It was a successful and relaxing camping experience at Belle Park Chippubetsu Camping Ground

Good morning everyone! It's a beautiful day today. Our first time camping at Belle Park Chippubetsu Camping Ground was a success. We would didn't stay long though as we have a very important commitment today with Teacher Kanda. 

We crossed the Chikushi Bridge on our way home

From Chippubetsu, we drove straight home so that we could rest, wash up, and prepare as Teacher Kanda would pick us up at 9:45AM. 

Road trip with Teacher Kanda

Miraie

We are excited to board and tour Miraie

When Teacher Kanda arrived, we headed to Rumoi Port to see and tour the sailing ship Miraie which is on a port visit in Rumoi City. It was open to the public from 10 AM to 12 NN.

Team Nicerio's Tour inside Miraie










Miraie's crew was very kind, accommodating, and friendly. We toured around the ship and we also had fun learning about the different parts of the ship. 

Saga Family Fishing Grounds

We tried carrying the Mokko and checked how heavy we could carry.


From the port, we drove to the Saga Family Fishing Grounds which is open only until next week. We were greeted and toured by the curator inside the historic building. 

Off to our next destination

La Pause

It was lunchtime when our museum tour ended so we drove to La Pause in Shiomicho, Rumoi City for lunch. The restaurant served Western and Italian food. I tried the Hamburg Set, Teacher Kanda, and Ella ordered the carbonara, while my wife had the pork ginger dish. 

Waiting for our lunch at La Pause

Here are our orders

We also tried the cheesecake and ice cream plate dessert. 

After lunch, Teacher Kanda drove us home and bid us farewell. Due to all our activities this weekend, we were all drained hence we decided to call it a day early ending our 40th weekend here in Japan. 

See you on our next adventure! ✌

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Location: Japan, 〒078-2511 Hokkaido, Uryu District, Hokuryu, Itaya, 板谷

Comments

  1. AnonymousNovember 14, 2023 at 10:41 AM

    The sunflower fields in Hokuryu is super beautiful.

    ReplyDelete
  2. MiraxNovember 18, 2023 at 1:45 AM

    Enjoyed your post immensely! Your ideas are thought-provoking. Keep the posts coming!

    ReplyDelete

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