Kumamoto: Home of a Castle & the Best Magic Show!

After our exciting night at the Navy Ball, I knew I wasn't going to feel up to work Friday morning, so instead I took the day off to sleep in! By 9:30 am on October 14th, Bryan and I were up and packed for a weekend getaway to one of the larger cities on Kyushu: Kumamoto!

Bryan did argue that 9 am wake-up calls do NOT count as a day of "sleeping in" but, that's what he gets for marrying an early riser!

We met up with Mike and Meg around 10:30 and hit the road for our four-hour drive to the city! Of course, we had to stop along the way for lunch, so we pulled off at a rest stop that was filled with street vendors and food stalls! With bags of karaage (car-ahh-gay), AKA Korean Fried Chicken, and Nikuman (knee-coo-ma), steamed pork buns, we were ready to continue our journey!

Kikuchi Gorge: 菊池渓谷

As we neared Kumamoto, we were ready to get out of the car and stretch our legs, so we stopped at Kikuchi Gorge for a 2-mile hike! As we parked and began our hike, Meg and Mike realized that they had visited this exact area a few months back! Both agreed that the cooler fall weather made this hike MUCH more enjoyable! During our hike, we enjoyed the peaceful sounds of rushing rivers until we found a nice area to take off our shoes and dip our toes in the freezing cold waters!

Eventually, we made our way to Kumamoto and checked into our hotel, Kumamoto Hotel Castle. While the room was a little dated, the view more than made up for it! Right outside our hotel window, we had the most beautiful view of Kumamoto Castle!

After taking a quick breather, we met back up with Meg and Stego for dinner at La Catrina Tacos & Beer for (you guessed it) tacos and beer! Obviously the food was so good I didn't bother with photos!

view out our hotel window!

Bryan found his favorite treat

Takachiho Gorge: 高千穂峡

Day two of our weekend adventure began bright and early with a breakfast stop at Starbucks for a pumpkin coffee and a bacon and spinach quiche. (I can tell you one thing, Japan KILLS the Starbucks bacon and spinach quiche! I could eat it every. single. day!)

We then jumped back in the car for a two-hour drive further south to Takachiho Gorge, a famous river canyon with waterfalls! After parking and walking half a mile to the gorge, we stumbled across a nagashi-somen restaurant! These restaurants boil noodles and then send them down bamboo shoots that are flowing with ice cold water! As the water flows, you have to catch the noodles with your chopsticks and dip it in the provided broth!

Talk about turning food into a game!

Check out this quick video of what nagashi-somen looks like in action!

Then it was time to actually experience the gorge. Now, I will tell you: people talked up the Takachiho Gorge. Like, it's on people's Japan bucket list, so of course we had to go! Anddddddd....we were quite disappointed. Don't get me wrong, it was pretty, but because of the typhoons that have been wreaking havoc on Kyushu, the rental boats were all closed. So while other people got to experience the gorge at sea level and marvel at its natural beauty, all we could do was look at the Gorge from the street and dream of what it must have been like below.

If the boats are closed, it's not worth the trip. At least that was our opinion! It sure was pretty though!

Gokase Winery: 五ヶ瀬ワイナリー

Feeling a little bummed about the boat closures, Meg was quick to look up a local Japanese winery for us to try on the way back to Kumamoto! Google Maps had us doubting the directions to Gokase Winery (see the first photo below) but eventually the trees cleared and opened up to the most beautiful sight of Mt. Aso, the volcano that erupted last October! (Yep, only 4 hours from our home in Sasebo is an active volcano!)

We entered the Gokase Winery Restaurant and admired the view while we sipped some pretty shitty wine. After living in California and experiencing all of its wonderful wineries, this was...tough. Imagine Nyquil and you have a close comparison!

As I looked up reviews on this place, we learned that this was considered "top of the line" Japanese wine... We also enjoyed a few chuckles as the reviews all advised us to bring along a "steering wheel keeper," AKA designated driver. While Bryan volunteered on the ride there, I will admit I was ready to swap places with him!

After sampling all the wines in their shop, we all agreed that Japan just needs to stick to their Sake and Sochu and leave the wineries to Italy, France, Spain, and Napa! But hey, we can officially say we tried Japanese wine!

Witch Craft Market: ウィッチ・クラフト・マーケット

As we continued our journey back to Kumamoto, we took one final pit stop on the outskirts of the city at WitchCraft Beer, where we were able to buy AMERICAN craft beer! Were they pricey? Yes. Was it worth it for a taste of home? 100% yes!

As we got back to the city, we were ready for a night out on the town! We started by visiting SLOPPY JOE'S, a bar inspired by an identical bar in New York called SLOPPY JOE, and then we followed it up with a hooka bar for Meg and Mike. While Bryan and I enjoyed a lemon sour, Mike and Meg enjoyed a watermelon mint hooka.

But the best bar was saved for last. Mike spotted Bask: Magic and Bar, so we enjoyed 2 hours of magic and laughter! Our bartender spoke very little English, and we are pretty sure we turned into the show towards the end, BUT we had a BALL! When we arrived, we were the only ones there, so we *attempted* to chat with our bartender until more people arrived for the show. With all-you-can-drink for 70 minutes, plus some pretty killer magic tricks, we were beyond happy with this bar choice!!!

Did the bartender make a dove magically appear? Yes. Did a small white bird try to fly down my shirt? Yes. Was Bryan turned into a rabbit? YES.

Best. Bar Ever.

If you don't believe me, watch these video clips! Keep in mind, we were a few drinks in, but the show was totally worth it! (Also, warning: I stopped filming before TWO of the magic tricks actually happened...I blame the lemon chu hais, ok!)

Kumamoto Castle: 熊本城

Sunday morning came early, but we checked out of our hotel, and dropped our bags at the car before climbing several steep hills up to Kumamoto Castle for our final tourist view of the weekend! The castle was cool, but the museum inside was only in Japanese, so we skipped a lot of it and just climbed to the top for the view of the city!

After the castle, it was time for the long drive home, of which I passed by taking a nice, long afternoon nap! Bryan and I agree that Kumamoto is a cool city, but it was definitely enjoyed more with friends! This knocks out our last big "must-visit" city on Kyushu! We are in the short rows of our Japan travel adventures!

'til next time!

Katie