Round The World and other travels
A frequent flyer's collection of trip diaries
This is: Japan 2018
Fukuoka farewell
Once again, we took breakfast in the Canal City branch of Starbucks, the truth dawning on us with a sense of cold reality that we'd already had our last full day on the island of Kyushu. Later this afternoon, we would be flying back to Narita together and Monday would bring our separate journeys back to Europe. As our joint flight back to Narita wasn't until mid-afternoon, however, we had time for a final, short bout of sightseeing. Our target this morning was the Gion district, so this foray would serve the additional purpose of allowing us to double-check the route to the subway, bearing in mind that we would have luggage in tow when we did it for real.
Our first stop, less than ten minutes'
walk from the Grand Hyatt, was Kushida Shrine (left), dedicated to the
Shinto deities Amaterasu and Susanoo. The shrine,
thought to date from the 8th century, seemed to be almost a
compulsory stop for tourist coaches. A short distance away, and
presenting quite a contrast, was the (Buddhist) Tochoji Temple
(right). It
dates from AD806 and features the largest wooden Buddha statue in
Japan.
As we felt that we were ahead of schedule at
this point, we
decided to add in the Shofukuji Zen Temple (left), again just a short walk
away. Dating from 1195, it is the oldest Zen temple in Japan. It
also seemed noticeably quieter than the other two sites - perhaps it
was a less convenient stop for all those tourist coaches.
It proved to be an enjoyable and interesting morning, and certainly preferable to lounging around the hotel room until time to take the first step in the journey home. But somewhat shockingly - because time really does seem to pass quickly when you're enjoying yourself! - that is the stage that we had now reached. This afternoon, we would position back to Narita and on Monday we would begin our separate intercontinental legs: Bruce to Brussels, then on to Bristol the following day, and myself to London via Helsinki, then on to Edinburgh on Tuesday. One thing we were absolutely agreed upon was that this latest visit to Japan had been immensely enjoyable, and once again confirmed the country as a highly desirable and fascinating destination.
