Visit to Kaori's part 2~

Sunday!
Sunday started in a flurry of waking up late and trying to leave on time. The house was very cold in the morning and the blankets were so nice and warm~ I wanted to stay under the warm blankets for a while longer. We all ate breakfast and packed in the car to start the adventure to Oita prefecture. Oita prefecture is the neighboring prefecture to the north of Miyazaki.

We started the four and a half hour adventure around 8am. We realized that we had gotten a little turned around when we passed a sign saying "Welcome to Kagoshima" the prefecture north of Oita prefecture. After looking at the maps for a bit we got back on track and made our way to the longest and highest suspension bridge in Japan. It was recently built so it was packed! As we walked across the bridge we could feel and see it sway with people walking on it. It was kinda scary, but the view was amazing. It was just past the fall colors but it was still spectacular. We ate ate one of the little restaurants near by then started on our way to the next sight seeing area.

Driving through the country side of Oita really reminded me of the mid west in America. It was full of rolling hills, surrounded by very large mountains. After taking some lovely pictures of the country side we made our way to a little tourist town near the bridge. It was full of people as well. And there were many large buses trying to navigate the small roads crowded with people. It was a cute place with lots of omiyage, souvenir, shops.

Once we broused a few shops we continued onto the next tourist location. We drove through an "African Safari" zoo. This was indeed interesting.... For one, half the animals in the zoo were not animals that belonged in the savanah. But it was fun and we got to see a lot of animals. I kinda felt sorry for them being cooped up, but they all had a lot of free ranged. We went at feeding time, and the black kites and ravens were all hovering around waiting for left overs.

Once we finished at the "African Safari", we made the long trek home. On the way I saw some real hot springs on the side of the road which we spewing steam and sulfer. It kinda stank but it was cool and you could see the sulfuric build up on the rocks. The funny thing is, is that this was in the middle of a town. We stopped at an izakaiya for dinner, kinda like a fancy Japanese bar, they are really popular and sell a lot of yummy food, and of course alcohol.

Sorry this entry is rushed, I am about to leave to get on a ferry to Osaka to meet Anthony :) I will edit it when I get back with more pictures and information about the trip~ I will also write about the adventures in Osaka :)

Bye bye for now!