In Which We Are Nearly Finished

We're nearly finished with our Michi no Eki stamp collection [at time of writing], that is. Read on for more.

Friday, June 27
Chris and I left Miki at night and slept in the car at an expressway stop. The previous weekend, bad weather foiled our attempts to collect the last of the Wakayama stamps; we would not be stopped this time. It costs too much to do this.

Expressway stops rock. For breakfast, we had coffee and warm pastries baked fresh on-the-spot.

A new stamp rally is scheduled for Kansai.
The cartoon bears illustrate the many activities available at Michi no Ekis.

Here's what I do at Michi no Ekis: Stamp. Stamp. Stamp.

Clear water.

We ate 田舎うどん for lunch.

After a hard day of stamp collection, we indulged in Rinku AEON again, where we saw Hana Yori Dango. To save money on hotel costs, we bathed at an onsen (600 yen each) and slept in the car at an expressway stop. I'll miss onsen, with the calming, satisfying environment that comes with communal bathing in steaming hot water. For a small fee I had a refreshing shower and long soaks in a massage bath, high temperature pool, and private outdoor tub overlooking a large screen television. I later relaxed with Chris in the common area, cooling off with cold coffee milk from a glass bottle.

Sunday, June 29
We woke to torrential rain and another expressway breakfast.

The raw egg is to be mixed with shoyu into the hot rice. Yum.

Today, we would be exploring Shiga. On the itinerary is Hikone Castle, whose mascot, Hikonyan, I've become a big fan of.

This mochi is made with local grass.

This Michi no Eki, which sits at the edge of Lake Biwa, neighbors a bird-watching station--hence the avian design.

I bought Chris this shirt from Uniqlo. It's pretty cute.

Ohh yum. Plump, steaming takoyaki, just off the grill.

Not Hikone Castle.

We found Hikonyan in the castle museum, where eager-faced guests lined up in rows as the large, helmet-clad cat skipped from one end to the other; he shook hands, exchanged hugs, and oddly enough, rubbed people's heads. Squeals of "Kawaiiiiii!" echoed throughout the room.

Chris and The Cat.

He is ridiculously cute. Even though he has no tail.

Hikonyan's hat was modeled after the real thing. Obviously his version is friendly and not intimidating.

Hikonyan forest! Cute overload! My head a-splode.

Hikonyan is such a supermodel. Look at those poses.

It's Hikone Castle--Lego version!

Looks like an old man to me.

Though it made for messy weather, the cloud cover was beautiful.

Our final station. The last one left is Miki.

We had dinner at a Chinese restaurant in this shopping center.

My prize from the journey--a giant and deliciously meaty eggplant that I bought for 150 yen. Yes, Michi no Eki are wonderful.