四国パート１

Saturday, August 11
We bought tickets to the annual よさこい祭り (Yosakoi Festival) in 高知県 (Kochi Prefecture) over a month ago, and the weekend had finally come for our Ultimate 四国ドライブ!

スタート！

Chris abusing a bunny at an expressway road stop.

We made our way south (or west if you prefer) to 広島県 (Hiroshima Prefecture), where we crossed short bridges several small islands before reaching 愛媛県 (Ehime Prefecture).

Behold! Ocean!

(The view at an otherwise unremarkable park.)

Upon entering Ehime, we aimed for the prefecture's most famous tourist spot: 道後温泉 (Dogo Onsen), Japan's oldest hot springs.

Chris and I paid 400円 each for the cheapest course--an hour-long dip in the bath. For slightly more (as recommended by the character Botchan in the Natsume Soseki novel of the same name), customers may receive services such as a yukata to wear inside, sweets, green tea, and freedom to lounge in the upstairs relaxation space. We required none of the extras, of course, and we simply parted ways to our separate bathing areas.

I'm still not incredibly comfortable being naked in front of others. The many elderly women bathers in the locker room, however, had no problem with displaying all of themselves to whoever might be looking. I shamefully hurried to the bath after shedding my clothes, but the ばあちゃん sprawled about the premises--on locker room benches, on the floor of the baths--in the nude. The bath facilities, though much acclaimed, were unimpressive. I'm sure that the more expensive bathing areas live up to the onsen's fame, but the section I visited (神の湯, Water of the Gods) was a simple pool of gushing hot water around which naked old women clustered. The steaming dip during the heat of the summer was a bit much for me, but my elderly bathing companions claimed that sweating in the onsen would keep me from sweating in the evening.

For lunch, we found curry meals at Cafe Galle, a simple cafe run by a cute family. As we ate, the owner's mother took a break with a bowl of カキ氷 topped with azuki.

Our next stop was 松山城 (Matsuyama Castle). Our hike up a steep mountain induced me to sweat through my entire dress. We eventually made our way to the top, though not before discovering that a ropeway at the opposite entrance carried visitors directly up. I had been wondering how the old folk, obese men, and bony women in high heels lingering at the castle base survived the climb.

I'm not the hugest fan of castles in Japan, believing that once I've seen one, I've seen them all. Meh. Each castle, however, has a fascinating history of construction--none of which I will discuss here because I just don't write that kind of blog. Well then. On to matters that I do write about.

Yummy.

I've always been partial to a softer, finely shaved ice (Waiola) over a harder, chunkier ice (Matsumoto), but in the sweltering heat, I'm understanding the appeal of crunch to my 氷.

The カキ氷 stand set out blocks of melting ice for customers to cool themselves down. (By rubbing their hand towels/faces on it?) The pigeons, however, seemed to get the best deal. (Sorry for the poor lighting. I was sitting at a bench enjoying my shave ice.)

From the castle, we drove to my requested stop, the 愛媛県立とべ動物園 (Ehime Prefectural Tobe Zoo). We entered only half an hour before closing, but I hurried through the park and encountered all kinds of animals.

ペンギン！

北極の熊
The star attraction in a plain and dirty living space.

This elephant's name is Taro.
His companion, Hanako, is on loan at another zoo.
Notice what a tiny cage for such a large elephant.

Indeed, elephant turd IS big.

As does anyone, I hate seeing animals trapped in small cages that look nothing like their natural environments. The Tobe Zoo--recommended to me by my school biology teacher--has its strong points, however. The ducks at the petting zoo appeared to be quite happy receiving a hose bath from a worker and a group of red-faced monkeys inhabit a large faux-mountain with flowing water and plenty to jump on. All the same . . .

From the zoo, we drove to 高知県 (Kochi Prefecture), where our hotel, Marine House, was located on an isolated peninsula southwest of Kochi City. We drove for what felt like hours down a dark and winding road before reaching our destination. Exiting the parking lot, I climbed atop a low wall and jumped toward what I thought was the road. I soon toppled onto the asphalt. It turned out that I had fallen into a roadside drainage ditch (known to us as "gaijin traps" since many foreigners, not knowing about them, get their car wheels stuck inside) and badly skinned my elbow, hand, and leg. Chris quickly pulled me up to avoid my getting hit by an oncoming car and hurried me inside. I was indeed the trapped gaijin.

Seeing the blood, the older women running the hotel came rushing forward--much like my grandma and her sisters would do--quickly cleaning up my sores and clucking that I should be careful as I bathed that night. Though we were late in checking-in, they fed us a delicious homecooked meal, after which we retreated upstairs. Our room was decorated ala the 1980s, as was everything else in the hotel, but it was spacious and clean. I took a painful sponge bath, avoiding my bandaged sores, and fell asleep before Chris.