Visiting Sogi no Taki or Sogi Falls on drive from Kagoshima to Kumamoto

9 November 2024

After spending more than half a day exploring the sights on Sakurajima and around Kagoshima Bay, we continued on our road trip northwards towards Kumamoto where we would stay for a night.

We stopped by Sogi Falls, also known as Sogi no Taki, as it is one of the largest and most beautiful waterfalls in Japan and it is also one of the most popular tourist spots in the northern part of Kagoshima Prefecture.

Sogi Falls.

Although it is geographically located between Kagoshima and Kumamoto, it is a bit out of the way. We had to take a “detour” off the expressway E3 linking the 2 cities and travel through the slower country roads and residential areas to get to it.

It was about 3.30 PM when we arrived at the large car park next to Sogi Falls Park (Google Maps location here). The park has an observation deck, shops, restaurants, a rest area and public toilets.

We went to nearest viewing platform that is elevated to get an overview of the falls. Although the autumn leaves had been delayed this year, the view of the waterfall was still spectacular. 

View of Sogi Falls from the elevated platform nearest to the car park.

There are well designed viewing platforms along the walking path next to the waterfall so we could get good close up views of the falls. We could hear and feel its power.

There seems to be a dam across the top of the falls

Good views of the falls from the walking path.

We could feel the roar and spray from the water cascading down. 

"Niagara of the Orient".

This waterfall is sometimes called the "Niagara of the Orient" for the overwhelming volume of water cascading down, and also because of the width. It has a width of 210 meters. To me who has seen the actual Niagara Falls, this waterfall did looked a little like Niagara but on a much smaller scale. But still very impressive and beautiful.

The waterfall has a 210 metres width and 12 metres maximum drop, making it one of the most spectacular waterfalls in Japan. 

The boardwalk offers various viewpoints to admire the falls.

    

Sogi Falls Park is a nice place for relaxation but we did not much time to linger. We still have more than 2 hours drive to Kumamoto and the sun sets early in November.

I had chosen to stay in the outskirt of Kumamoto instead of central Kumamoto. Our hotel for the night was the Hotel New Gaea Nishkumamoto Ekimae, located next to the Nishi-Kumamoto JR Station. Since we had no plans to see the sights in central Kumamoto the next day and hotels are generally expensive in the city center, this hotel was a good choice for us.

It was dark when we arrived at Nishi-Kumamoto. There are several restaurants located near the JR station and hotel. We had beef yakiniku for dinner at the Yakinikuchikurin Nishikumamototen.

Dinner at Yakinikuchikurin Nishikumamototen.

The young staff at the restaurant could not speak English but we could see that they were trying their best to communicate with us. The young man who served us knows a few words of basic English and we managed to order our dinner through him. To make things easier for everyone, we ordered the set instead of ala carte. Overall, a nice dinner before we checked into our hotel.

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One Piece Statues of Tony Tony Chopper and Monkey D. Luffy in Kumamoto

10 November 2024

Although Kumamoto city has many attractions like the Kumamoto Castle, Suizenji Jojuen Garden, Kumamon Square and shopping areas, we only included the statues of two One Piece characters in our itinerary. The statues of Tony Tony Chopper and Monkey D. Luffy are both located within the city. These statues are related to the ONE PIECE Kumamoto Reconstruction Project.

What is the ONE PIECE Kumamoto Reconstruction Project?

On April 14, 2016, Eiichiro Oda, a manga artist and creator of the series One Piece, donated ¥800,000,000 to help reconstruct his home city of Kumamoto after it was struck by two earthquakes. He also wrote supportive messages, and drew art for local products. In 2018, Kumamoto Prefecture awarded Mr. Oda the People’s Honor Award. After rebuilding Kumamoto, the governor Ikuo Kabashima announced that they would build statues of the Straw Hat Pirates to thank Eiichiro Oda for his help.

The statue of Monkey D. Luffy, the main character in One Piece, was installed at the Kumamoto Prefectural Promenade to symbolize Kumamoto’s post-disaster recovery. Subsequently, additional statues of the One Piece Pirates were installed all over Kumamoto Prefecture, including Chopper in front of the Kumamoto Zoo, Usopp in front of Aso Station, Franky in front of Takamori Station and many others. All in all, the statues of Monkey D, Luffy,  Sanji, Usopp, Tony Tony Chopper, Brook, Franky, Nami, Robin, Zoro, and Jinbe had been installed all over Kumamoto prefecture.

Since then, many One Piece fans have visited these statues to snap photos and also buy the "ONE PIECE" World Collectible figures of the Bronze Statues as souvenirs.

List of places with One Piece Statues and where to buy the collectable figures.

We had already seen the statues of Franky and Usopp earlier during our road trip.

Statue of Franky at Takamori Station.

Statue of Usopp at Asoi Station.

From our hotel located on Nishi-Kumamoto, we drove to the entrance of the Kumamoto City Zoo and Botanical Garden where the statue of Tony Tony Chopper was located.

Statue of Tony Tony Chopper

Tony Tony Chopper is a reindeer, so it was appropriate to place its statue in front of the zoo. Since it was a Sunday, we could see a stream of cars heading to the Kumamoto City Zoo and Botanical Garden. We parked at the zoo’s car park which charges 200 yen for weekend parking. Weekday parking is apparently free.

From the car park, we spotted the statue of Chopper in front of the zoo’s entrance.

Statue of Tony Tony Chopper in front of the Kumamoto zoo. The collectable figures are sold in the building behind the statue.

Chopper looked so cute. In fact, I named my brown Pomeranian Mix “Chopper” since he is so cute and lively too.

We went to zoo’s entrance gate hoping to buy the collectable figurines. As expected, the figures were all sold out. **

We bought the second series which was multi-coloured, instead of bronze.

Second series of the "ONE PIECE" World Collectible figure of Tony Tony Chopper.

 

** Good news for collectors : All types of "ONE PIECE" World Collectible Figure Kumamoto Reconstruction Project Bronze Statue Minifigures, which have been out of stock, will be back on sale from Saturday, January 25th.

Statue of Monkey D. Luffy

The statue of Monkey D. Luffy is located in a middle of a park, next to the Kumamoto Prefectural Office. We parked in a basement of a multi-story car park next to the park as directed by a road marshal. 

The park has rows of gingko trees with beautiful yellow autumn leaves.

When we arrived, there was people queuing to snap photos with Luffy, the straw hat pirate. The queue soon disappears, together with a tour bus that brought the group there.

Orderly queue in front of the statue for a photo.

We had ample time to pose and take photos with the statue. 

Created by Kumamoto native Eiichiro Oda, Monkey D. Luffy stands as a symbol of hope and resilience.

Eiichiro Oda’s hand print and signature at the foot of Monkey D. Luffy’s statue.

My hand is almost same size and shape as the anime artist’s!

There are two places that sell the Luffy collectable figure – Lawson in the Kumamto Prefecture Office and Hotel Kumamoto Terrsa. Both are within walking distance from the Luffy statue.

Since it was a weekend, the government office was closed. So we walked to the Hotel Kumamoto Terrsa.

Once again, we found that the bronze collectable figures were sold out. They had the second series of statues in colour that was quite nice so we bought that one.

The bronze collectable figurine (left) was sold out. We bought the new multi-coloured series of Luffy with Kumamon (the Kumamoto mascot).

Second series of the "ONE PIECE" World Collectible figure of Monkey D. Luffy with Kumamon.

The staff at the hotel was so friendly. He recommended that we take a souvenir photo at the hotel lobby with Kumamon (the Kumamoto mascot.

Souvenir photo at the lobby of Hotel Kumamoto Terrsa.

“Instagram” photo at the Hotel Kumamoto Terrsa with the Luffy figure in hand.

We returned to the park where we saw more One Piece fans snapping photos with this popular character. 

One Piece fans having a blast with the statue of Luffy.

My original plan after seeing the One Piece statues in Kumamoto city was to visit the Suizenji Jojuen Garden before driving to Yanagawa for lunch at Ganso Motoyoshiya.

Since it was already 10 AM, we decided we proceed straight to Yanagawa since it would take about an hour on the expressway to get there.

Yanagawa is dubbed 'the Venice of Kyushu', known for its many canals and steamed unagi. Unagi no Seiromushi is a dish where grilled aromatic eel is put in sweet and spicy sauce and steamed on top of rice. Ganso Motoyoshiya is a popular  restaurant serving the popular eel bento box rice and it is best to get to the restaurant before the lunch time crowds formed.

Next post: Lunch at Ganso Motoyoshiya and a stroll along Yanagawa’s canals.

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Lunch at Ganso Motoyoshiya and a stroll along Yanagawa’s canals

10 November 2024

Yanagawa is a city in southern Fukuoka Prefecture that is dubbed 'the Venice of Kyushu'. It is known for its 930 kilometers of waterway which was originally built as irrigation channels using the water from the Chikogu River. Today, the canals serve as a peaceful and picturesque way to tour the city on a river boat, guided by the city's unique boatmen. Yanagawa is often visited by day trippers from Fukuoka and it made sense for us to stop by this city on our drive from Kumamoto to Fukuoka.

The city is also known for its eel or unagi production. In particular, a white-spotted eel found in the nutrient-rich boundary between rivers and the sea, was valued throughout the country in olden times.

“Unagi no Seiromushi” is a specialty dish of Yanagawa. This dish is prepared by covering a bed of rice with a special sauce and steaming it in a wooden steamer box known as a “seiro.” Separately, fillets of eel are charcoal-broiled and also covered in the special sauce. The fillets are then placed on the bed of rice, some finely sliced scrambled egg is added as a color and flavor accent, and the whole dish is steamed once more.

Although there are now several other restaurants offering this dish, Ganso Motoyoshiya is the restaurant that is credited with the creation of “Unagi no Seiromushi” in 1684. The secret recipe for the sauce and the techniques used in preparing the dish have been carefully passed down for the more than three hundred years since that time.

It is best to get to the popular restaurant before the lunch time crowds formed. The restaurant opens at 10.30 am daily, except Monday.

Leaving Kumamoto at 10 AM, we arrived at the restaurant about an hour later. There are limited parking spaces at the restaurant’s car park and we managed to get one of the two remaining spaces.

The restaurant is set in a traditional house that is more than 300 years old.

The entrance to the Ganso Motoyoshiya main store located in Yanagawa.

Our plan to come early paid off as there was no queue and we were seated immediately at a table with nice views of the garden.

Our table with views of the garden.

We were provided with menu in English. The Seiromushi with Kimo Soup set (¥4,800) includes charcoal-broiled fillets of eel placed on a bed of flavoured rice in a steamer, topped with finely sliced scrambled egg, and served with a light soup containing eel liver.

For an additional ¥400, we get an additional piece of charcoal-broiled fillet of eel placed inside the flavoured rice as an extra treat. Why not?

Our Toku-seiomushi with Kimo soup set for ¥5,200.

Charcoal-broiled fillets of eel placed on a bed of flavoured rice in a red lacquer steamer, topped with finely sliced scrambled egg. Additional piece of eel is buried in the rice.

Eel liver in the soup.

As we enjoyed eating our delicious lunch, we saw the seats in the restaurant got filled up to its capacity.  Overall, the delicious eel served in this historical restaurant is worth the price and trip to Yanagawa.

After lunch, we took a stroll around the town for a bit of sightseeing along the city’s historic canals. From Ganso, we walked to the nearest canals where we spotted some boats on our way to the restaurant.    

There are several boat operators offering canal cruises that lasted more than an hour. Personally, I think that the cruise takes too long, so we skipped the cruise. After a heavy lunch, it was good to burn some calories with a stroll along the canals.

Spot the bird that is here on sentry duty.    

  Some parts of the canals were lined with willow trees.

Couple of guys trying to catch their lunch along the canal. 

The heron was still there when we went back to the boats.

We walked down a stretch of canal next to residential buildings before heading back to the area where we saw the boat tour operators.  We were hoping to spot some boats on the canals and we were in luck, even though it was drizzling slightly.

We spotted a cruise boat going by. The gondola-like boat is propelled by the boatman using a long pole.

The passengers on this boat were provided with plastic rain coats and hats. 

The boat was going quite slowly and our walking pace was faster than the boat.

We went ahead of the cruise boat and arrived at the historic sluice gate of Yanagawa Castle’s moat. Although it was not obvious, this is the only water gate that connects the inside of Yanagawa Castle and the outside of the castle. It was used to protect the interior of the castle from flood.

Yanagawa Castle moat sluice.

While we were at the water gate, we saw the canal boat approaching the gate, and making a turn to go through it.

We waited for them at a narrow part of the canal with a bridge overhead. I had read that on some cruise, the boatman became like a “ninja,” where they jump up onto bridges while allowing their boat with passengers to glide beneath. They then jump back down into the boat as it emerges from under the bridge on the other side.              

Boat passing beneath a low bridge at the sluice gate.                    

This boatman did not become a ninja. He ducked under the bridge like everyone else.

Boat emerging on the other side.

We spotted another boat behind the first boat. This was from another operator since the uniform of the boatman was different. Like the first boat, the passengers were all in good spirits despite the light rain. They smiled and waved to us cheerily when we waved to them. Some even took photos of us taking photos of them. So fun!

Second boat passing beneath the low bridge. No ninja action from the boatman. Maybe this bridge is not low enough.

Watching the 2 boats disappearing down the canals before heading back to our car.

The canals had plenty of history and there are information boards to read.

Walking back to our car through a quiet residential area.

Overall, we spent about 2 hours in Yanagawa, including lunch. From there, we drove to Fukuoka, our last destination in this amazing road trip around Kyushu.

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Evening in Canal City Hakata

10 November 2024

Fukuoka was the last destination of our 8 days road trip around Kyushu. We would be staying only one night before flying home next morning.

The city is loosely divided into two halves, Hakata and Tenjin, with the island of Nakasu in the middle. We chose to stay near the Hakata Station since it is the most convenient location to get to the airport and it is also one of Fukuoka's central districts. 

We drove into Fukuoka at slightly past 2 PM. We returned our rental car at the Toyota Rentacar shop next to the Hakata Station. Our hotel in Fukuoka is the Hotel Nikko Fukuoka, conveniently located within 5 minutes walk from the car rental shop and Hakata Station.

We spent the rest of the afternoon and evening at Canal City Hakata, about 15 minutes walk from our hotel. 

Canal City Hakata is a large shopping and entertainment complex, calling itself a "city within the city". Attractions include about 250 shops, cafes and restaurants, a theater, cinemas and a canal running through the complex.

The artificial canal runs right through the middle of the five floored entertainment complex, creating a lot of open space. At the center of the canal there is a fountain with water shows every 30 minutes from 10:00 until 22:00.    

Musical fountain show at Canal City Hakata.

The shops are open till about 9 PM 21:00 so we had time for some shopping and also dinner.  

The stores that caught our attention are the stores dedicated to Japanese popular culture, and especially official stores for Jump (One Piece, Naruto, Dragon Ball…), Studio Ghibli, Ultraman shop, Sanrio’s Hello Kitty etc.

Large Gundam figure outside the Gundam Base.

Especially interesting are the Gundam Base at Level 1 and the Namco Bandai store at B1 where there are lots of machine games and people playing the One Piece card game. 

One Piece figurines are not cheap.

Ultraman figurine.

Lifesize Robot in the Bandai store.

Sailor Moon figurines in the Bandai store.

In terms of the food, there were also a wide variety of restaurants, offering Japanese and international food.  We went to the "Ramen Stadium", located on the fifth floor. There are eight ramen shops with noodle dishes from across Japan, including the local specialty Hakata Ramen. For some unknown reason, we did not feel like eating ramen on this day and at this place. Instead we went back down to B1 to eat Japanese burgers at the Masajiro Burger. The burgers were surprising good and very reasonably priced too.

Also located at B1 is a store selling strawberry based sweets. Fukouka Prefecture is known for its "Amaou" strawberries, known for their large size and perfect balance of sweetness and acidity.

Nice strawberry dessert store at Canal City Hakata.

We tried the Amaou strawberry smoothie which was very refreshing and delicious. It was also interesting to see the staff making the dorayaki through the glass window. This popular dorayaki snack encases a delectable Amaou strawberry mousse within a soft, chewy exterior and cost 594 yen each!

We ended our shopping in Canal City with bags of Japanese sweets from a shop at the basement to bring home. These includes the Hakata Torimon, Menbei crackers and the cute, chick-shaped Hiyoko sweet.

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