On the way back from getting our van serviced, we stopped by this park in Hakone. We have been there several times in the fall, but we have never been there during the spring or summer. We weren’t disappointed - there was a variety of wild flowers to be seen.
Since it was almost two weeks since my last session, I was looking forward to getting back into the water. The wave forecast wasn’t so promising, but it was fun to catch a few waves. Here are a few snapshots:
It was a Wednesday morning. Not too people were there because the waves were small as the forecast had predicted. I actually counted 10 cars and 12 surfers - the majority of them being longboarders. It was interesting to see one shirtless shortboarder who just happened to be the best surfer at the beach. The waves were OK but as the wind picked up, the quality of the waves worsened. It was a short but fun session.
Last Monday night, there was some sort of fireworks show. We don’t know who or why it was held. It was kind of pathetic actually. They launched one every two minutes or so. Here are a couple of grainy pictures taken from the walkway in front of our front door.
Since it was a nice day and we didn’t want to spend much money, we decided to go cycling today. We had brunch at nice little bakery / cafe and then cycled out to Konouzan-Toshogu Shrine. It is located on a small mountain / hill overlooking the ocean. There is a very long winding staircase with 1159 stairs! Here’s a picture from the top.
Unfortunately, it’s a little difficult to distinguish between the water and the sky. Between the ocean and the buildings is the road I drive along to work. The cycling road is between the road and the ocean.
Here are some pictures around the shrine:
Here’s a picture of a tree that people stick coins into the bark for good luck. I’m sure there is a story behind this, but I don’t know it. (Don’t worry - I didn’t waste any of my precious coins on this).
It was a cloudy day, so the visibility wasn’t so good. I hope to return during the winter and take some better pictures.
Until September, I will not be going to Shizunami. Why? During official beach season (July and August), parking is not free - it is 1,000 yen ($10) per day. Since I am frugal (ie. cheapskate), I will be going to another point - Yoshida. It’s not near as big or as nice, but it will do. The tetrapods are an eyesore, but they help make some surfable waves. Unfortunately, the surfers tend to clump together. Here are a couple of pictures from this morning’s session. (Yes, it’s a Monday and I am working today - my first class is at 10:40 so I have enough time to get a quick session in before work. 
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The top picture was taken at around 6:30 and the bottom picture was taken at around 8:00. If you are wondering why the second picture is blurry, it is because it was raining cats and dogs!
Looking forward to the next session on Wednesday!
Like a regular Wednesday morning, I got up at around 5:30 am and tried to leave the house quickly. I knew that it was going to be a good day when I noticed that I could see Mt. Fuji. I haven’t seen it for quite some time, so I quickly took this photo.
I knew that the waves probably wouldn’t be very good, but at least it wasn’t raining!
When I arrived at the beach at 6:30, I saw 8 people surfing, 1 surfer carrying a surfboard and 1 smoker / wave watcher. It was a pretty typical weekday at Kashima.
The waves were not amazing, but at least they were surfable - a refreshing change from the past few sessions.
If you look closely, actually not that closely, you can see quite a few fishing boats. I don’t know if it was my imagination or not, but I swear I could smell diesel fumes!
I forgot to mention it in my post about June 18th so I will mention it now. Last week we saw a solitary jellyfish. One jellyfish isn’t much to worry about but I certainly don’t want to experience my first jellyfish sting. When it happens, I’m sure I will be posting of a badly swollen arm or leg!
Here’s a picture showing the lack of progress on the beach houses at Shizunami.
Although the wave forecast wasn’t particularly promising, I was hoping that this week’s session would be better than the last several outings. This was my 7th morning of surfing at Kashima (seventh consecutive Wednesday to be precise), so I was hoping that it would be a lucky day…
After an exciting but unrewarding morning of surfing the remnants of Typhoon #5 last week, I was looking forward to a regular day at the surf office. As to be expected of rainy season, it was cloudy and drizzly. When I arrived at the beach, here is what I saw…
It was a beautiful day today so I finally got around to fixing the flat tire on my mountain bike. After my morning class, I decided to check out more of the cycling road along the ocean during my 3-hour lunch break.
It was about 11 am, so I didn’t expect much activity, but I was pleasantly surprised…
On the Victoria Day weekend, I toured the HMCS Ottawa. She is a Canadian frigate based in Esquimalt, British Columbia. She is now touring around Asia and the South Pacific on a 6-month voyage. She is over 130 meters long and the top speed is around 50 km/h (30 knots). She carries a crew of 225 people - 205 are men and 20 are women. Here is a picture of her at sea. (Obviously, I did not take this picture).
