After experiencing consecutive rainy days during which we were practically confined to the hotel, the last day of our trip was sunny. So we got up really early to catch the sunrise, an apparently beautiful sunrise that can be seen from our room and the hotel lounge. But we dragged ourselves up and were met with a dreary sky with gray clouds and rain.
Disappointed, we went back to sleep for a while before starting our day early so as to make full use of our remaining time in Miyako.
Our first stop after breakfast was to sit the sapa boat, a small boat that can only take up to four people, to go around the coast and the caves. We were given prawn crackers to feed the birds, which surrounded us all the time.
A tori gate that can only be accessed by the use of a boat.
Our boat went into that cave.
When b crash ig waves came, it will into the rocks.
The water is emerald blue in color and super clear!
Our captain, and the boat we sat is on the left.
After the sapa boat ride, we headed to sit the tour cruise.
After the cruise, we got on a tour bus which would bring us for a half day tour before dropping us at the train station where we would take the shinkansen back to Tokyo. Our first stop with the tour bus was the Jodogahama Beach, which is probably the most famous attraction in Miyako, and also near our hotel.
Instead of sand, the beach is filled with rocks.
The water is really clear.
After the spending some time on the beach, we headed for lunch and then continued our journey on the bus to Ryusendo Cave.
The Ryusendo Cave is one of the Three Great Limestone Caves in Japan and is a national natural monument. The cave has deep underground lakes of fresh spring water and is really clear and is emerald green in color. The deepest underground lake in Japan (120m) and one of the most transparent lakes in the world can be found in the cave.
The transparency of the water is really impressive.
The temperature outside was 19.1 degrees and 14.9 degrees in the cave.
We found a guy fishing at the river just outside the cave.
After the trip to the cave, we were dropped off at Morioka Station where we would take the shinkansen back to Tokyo.
Sunset seen from the shinkansen.
It was a little scary. Half the sky was clear while the other half was filled with dark gray and low clouds. It felt a bit ominous as we travelled towards the dark clouds. Or maybe I was just dreading going back to work...
It was a good trip, minus the fact that it practically rained everyday and we were stuck in the hotel. But because of that, I got lots of rest. We were slacking away everyday, and it was a good break. I wonder where is my next stop...
Day 3 was the day that we had to change hotels so we got up in the morning, ate breakfast, checked out of Tarou Hotel and started on our way. It had been raining heavily the night before and on that day. So when we got to Tarou Station, the lady behind the counter told us that due to the heavy rains, the trains stopped and were delayed for an hour. With one hour and nothing to do, we looked for other options and found out that there was a bus that could bring us to our destination, although it will take a longer time. So we planned to board the bus when it came. But just before the bus came, the lady came out to tell us that the trains have started operation again and may come soon. So we got ourselves a ticket each and went up to the platform. The train eventually came from the other direction and the conductor told us that the train that we were waiting for was his train, and that he had to go right to the end, turn around and come back. Which meant that we had to wait for another half an hour. So with nothing to do, we started taking pictures on the platform.
A small shelter from the rain and winds.
The train finally came.
After we got off the train, we boarded a bus that would take us to our hotel, The Jodogahama Park Hotel. Finally, all wet, cold and hungry, we reached the hotel.
Our room facing the ocean.
Look at how dreary it was. It was just rain and clouds.
The hotel had a mini-bar fridge system that automatically calculates the price of each drink and charges it to your room when you pull the drink out.
We ate lunch in the hotel since there was no where we could go.
View from the restaurant.
Our dinner served in our room.
Cocktails.
Uni rice.
Tomato sorbert.
The staff made our bed after clearing our dishes. But they made our bed facing the wall. And being tv addicts, we shifted them to face the tv.
We didn't do anything that day because of the rain and strong winds. We practically just lazed around in our room the entire day. When we turned in for the night, we prayed for good weather the next day.
