Our ride on Saturday was very challenging -- very hilly and into a strong wind -- but full of great views of mountains and coastline. It consisted to two cycling parts separated by an hour-long ferry ride. There were interesting mountain shapes, most notably the volcano Mount Kaimon. Mount Kaimon, 300 feet high, looks like the way a young kid draws a mountain: straight sides rising up to a sharp point, jutting out of a plain with no adjacent mountains.
The endpoint of our ride was Tomiya Ryokan in the town of Chiran. During World War II, this ryokan was a restaurant that served final meals to kamikaze pilots before their suicide missions. Because of this, the town is the site of the Chiran Peace Museum for Kamikaze Pilots.
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| At a lookout point on the coast |
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| View from the lookout |
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| Cycling along the coast |
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| The ferry we took |
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| Approaching Mount Kaimon |
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| Tomiya Ryokan |
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| At the entrance to Tomiya Ryokan |
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| Mural outside Tomiya Ryokan, depicting kamikaze pilots flying by Mount Kaimon |
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Our chairless, bedless room in the ryokan
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| Breakfast in the ryokan: rice, soup, dried fish, raw egg, and assorted other items. A meal getting us ready to embark on our mission for the day. |
