The last installment in the epic story…Christophe; who’s been a dear friend since we both attended a Japanese language class in Osaka, paid us a visit on the 17th and 18th of July.
Christophe (and his lovely wife Carol) was one of the people who really helped us with our opening party last March; he brought his amazing photos, he hung them, he made like 6 quiches, he helped serve drinks and he took some amazing pics that will soon be turned into postcards we will sell at Sen.
Back on it….so…we arrived in Fukuoka unscathed. We stayed at our good friend’s, (Kenta) place-Khaosan Fukuoka. He also took us to an awesome Izakaya where we dined on sashimi, seafood, baked tuna and tons of Shochu-really was a blast. Khaosan Fukuoka is a really established and successful guesthouse also, so it’s good for us to learn a bit from a pro!!
So, these 2 guests come back from a trip to Ishizuchi mountain. We were a bit concerned because as you know, its the rainy season in Japan now and walking up western Japan’s highest mountain in the rain is no joke. I’m in the kitchen and I hear Nori making these strange noises, well, stranger than normal anyway. I get a “Matt….Matt” call, which sends me running to the reception. The Ishizuchi guests are back and are all smiles. I get a “guess what” followed by a showing of a beautiful ring and a story on how he popped the question. He surprised her about half-way up the mountain in a beautiful spot in a mountain lodge…who knew American men could be so romantic?!?
Near the end of my trip at Sen, we took the short trip to Kashima Island. It is only a short train ride from Matsuyama, and Matt and Nori had been meaning to check it out. While we had no expectations, it became one of the highlights of my time on Shikoku. A brief walk from the train is a ferry station serviced by a small boat topped with a fiberglass deer, introducing us to island’s claim to fame. We even saw an O-Henro disembarking as we waited for our turn to board the ferry.
