He brought me along for a very scenic coastal ride which followed the coast of Genkai, or the Gen Sea. At first, it was rather difficult for me to keep up with a roadie using my fully loaded 40kg bike and battling strong coastal headwinds. But luckily, after awhile, Shinji realised that I was always like 100m behind him, so he started to slow down... hahaha...
Riding along the coast of GenkaiLunch was a ramen-like meal called Chanpon. The difference was that unlike ramen, Chanpon had lots of vegetables and meat piled on top. Forgot to take a picture of it though!
After lunch, Shinji brought me to Ashiya Village. This place is well-known for the production of iron tea kettles called Ashiyagama. Such kettles are then used in the traditional Japanese tea ceremony, Sado. Each kettle is unique and takes months to produce!
Ashiyagama and other tools used in Sado
After a very yummy and authentic cup of matcha that cost me 300yen, we continued our ride towards Shinji`s house in Mizumaki Town. He brought me along a nice cycling track by the river and various backroads to avoid the heavy traffic in Kitakyushu City.
Taking a short break at his house, we then continued on to Kurosaki Town where I was to stay for the night. Left my bike in the hotel, took a quick shower then went downstairs for dinner with Shinji.Dinner was Shinji's treat. He brought me to a very nice yakitori place in Kurosaki. His childhood friend, Yoshiyuki, who currently owns a dental clinic in Kurosaki joined us too. Apparently both of them grew up in Kurosaki and knew the town like the back of their hands! Dinner that night was great as we enjoyed very good yakitori with Japanese beer, and made interesting conversation with a mixture of English and Japanese. Good food, and even better company makes for a great evening!
Yoshiyuki-san on the left, Shinji-san in the middle and me on the right
1 comment:
You seem to like Japanese beer pretty much. *GRINx10* Glad to know you're fitting well into Japan culture and all! Must be very happy to interact with people who are consistently punctual. wahaha! I thought ramen also got meat (eg. pork slices) and some veggies (seasoned radish)? nmind... enjoy your food. everything sounds yummy. dun forget the pictures BEFORE you tuck in!
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