In order to get there from Shikoku, one takes a ferry from the city of Yawatahama. Since I had work that day, I decided to take the last ferry (20:30). Unfortunately, I live hours away from the city even by express trains - yes, I must transfer as well - and ended up catching a local train by mistake and ending up in Ozu around 21:30 with tears on my face and a dead battery in my cell phone.
No worries. On my last bar I managed to make some emergency calls and secure overnight lodgings in the city of Ozu, followed by a taxi ride to the train station, yet another train to Yawatahama, a three? hour ferry to Beppu and finally a walk into George's city from the port.
We stopped by the hotel were we would have free lodgings thanks to George's friend (the daughter of the owner) and took a walk around town complete with Korean BBQ and a SAND BATH! That's right, I went to an onsen that specializes in people lying down while being buried in hot sand for ten minutes. It was first built in 1879 and is Beppu's most famous hot spring. Supposedly it relieves tension in the muscles but all I did was wish I was dead.
Day 2, Otherwise known as Sunday, was spent exploring Takasakiyama Monkey Park and the adjacent aquarium. I have to say this monkey park was better than the one in Kyoto as THESE monkeys ruled the area and we were the ones being observed. There were no cages in which we went in to feed them. Instead, we were warned to not look them in the eye and played papparazzi stalkers in order to get that perfect shot:
and I came home on Monday.
The End.
