 Story
2014
A really fun year and the beginning of our island adventures. Much of this year
was spent setting up and getting used to this place. A couple of typhoons within
a week of each other slammed into the island damaging the house and wreaked
havoc on the farms. Caught some nice fish, and visited a couple of beautiful
beaches, along with some incredible caves. We saw a rocket launch, went to a fun
fish festival and celebrated our first Hannukah on the island. |
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STORY
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SEPTEMBER 2014
Beginning Adventures
The beginning of our island adventures. Much of this month was spent setting up
and getting used to this place. |
STORY
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OCTOBER 2014
Typhoon Month
Definitely call this typhoon month. A couple of typhoons within a week of each
other slammed into the island damaging the house and wreaked havoc on the farms. |
STORY
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NOVEMBER 2014
Beach Trips
A nice change. Warmer temperatures, some nice fish, and visits to a couple of
beautiful beaches, along with some incredible caves. |
STORY
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DECEMBER 2014
Hanging Out
A really fun month. We saw a rocket launch, went to a fun fish festival and
celebrated our first Hannukah on the island. |
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Where
are we going?
Really not sure where but the two choices at present are
Kobe, Japan and Tanegashima, Japan. We simply need to decide
on being in a big cosmopolitan city or on a resort island.
Both place provide benefits to our family.
Tanegashima, Japan -
1st Choice
Akiko and I both work from home now and can reside anywhere
in Japan. Why not move to a nice warm place with fishing and
beautiful beaches, not to mention the largest space center
and rocket launch area in Japan. Plenty of things for our
four year old son Shai to learn. Tanegashima is a small
island located off the coast of Kyushu, one of the four main
islands of Japan. This place is known for the space center
and beautiful beaches not to mention the subtropical
climate. The warm temperatures throughout the year would
allow us to explore nature and do many fun activities. This
is actually our first choice for now until we find out a lot
more information.
Kobe, Japan - 2nd Choice
This is without a doubt one of the nicest cities in Japan.
Kobe is very cosmopolitan with plenty of things to do. Many
foreigners are living there and many international couples
like us. |
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2014 -
Possible
Facebook Posts
The farm plan for Autumn 2014 basically did not happen for a variety of reasons.
I totally underestimated the strength of the winds of Tanegashima when I began
farming on this island. Actually I brought a San Diego, California farming
mentality to this island and soon found out it does not work. I made farm beds
and put the seeds directly into the soil as opposed to setting out
seedlings....this worked in California. A couple of typhoons and an Autumn of
strong winds later, I watched the struggling vegetables get blown over and they
eventually withered away.
A Lesson Learned
I was pretty adamant about not using fertilizer. After a few frustrating weeks I
gave in and bought a bag of all purpose fertilizer and put a little bit into the
farm. This proved to be mostly ineffective....an example of too little too late.
A LESSON LEARNED
I finished much of the sowing for the Autumn 2014 farm on September 17. Perfect
timing....or maybe not. A few weeks later Tanegashima was hit with a couple of
mega typhoons within a week of each other. This pretty much wiped out everything
with the exception of the garlic, which had not sprouted yet, and the negi,
which were already established.
Try Again
I picked up after these storms and decided to try again. And on October 16 the
sowing began. Although things seemed to be going good, the lack of fertilizer,
and the strong winds of November and December wreaked havoc on the little
seedlings. This was really a disappointment. This was not a total loss though.
We picked some of the very small radishes and daikon, along with a few of the
salad leaves which all proved to be pretty tasty. |
Farming information probably from 2014-2015
A few turnips were harvested and were pretty good actually.
The cherry tomatoes went crazy. We enjoyed at least 1500 of these little gems
until a beetle began eating the leaves and vines.
Another success story. Tons of medium tomatoes were produced before the vines
were infested with some type of beetle resembling a ladybug.
A few large tomatoes were produced but most split due to excessive rain.
Actually only a few kaboucha were produced this year. The vines were doing
pretty good until the island was hit with a three week long monsoon season. The
leaves and the kaboucha turned brown and began to fall off.
No spinach. A couple of typhoons and subsequent strong winds and rain wiped out
the spinach for this year.
The edamame were doing great and then, for some reason, the leaves began turning
brown and the edamame pods began drying up.
The scallions sown from seeds did not produce due to a couple of typhoons and
strong seasonal winds and rain. The scallions shown in the picture were actually
growing from bulbs which the neighbors were nice enough to provide.
Although this is a white radish (diakon), this veggie is grown primarily for the
leaves. The first season a couple of typhoons wiped out most of these but this
year they are producing.
White radishes, AKA daikon in Japan, are definitely a cool season favorite. I
put in a few different kinds during the first year on the island. They were
completely wiped out compliments of a couple of typhoons. They were sown again
and a few radishes of each kind were harvested.
Um pretty sure this is basically a vitamin radish....Japanese pronunciation
being bitamin. These were among my favorite since half is green as opposed to
the typically all white radish usually seen in Japan. The taste was really good
and I plan to put these in again if I can find the seeds online.
These radishes were very easy to grow and withstood the strong seasonal winds on
the island. The radishes were basically bug resistant with few damaged leaves.
This vegetable was originally sown on 9/17/2014. Typhoon Phanfone hit
Tanegashima on 10/5/2014, and then on 10/12/2014 typhoon Vongfong slammed into
the island. These typhoons effectively wiped out the farm including these
radishes. They were sown again on 10/16/2014. Subsequent strong winds during the
months of November and December of 2014 reduced the amount of radishes
harvested. The radishes were harvested on 12/10/2014.
American round thing. A grand total of three different varieties were attempted
and none were successful thanks to the climate and a brown beetle infestation.
Really not much to say except try again next year.
Too hot to handle pretty much describes the jalapeno peppers grown this year. A
ton were harvested and stored and almost not were used. lol. A few of the
jalapeno peppers ready for harvest. These things were incredibly hot. They
certainly look pretty harmless....yeah right. These guys turned out to be so hot
they were basically unused the entire season. What a waste. Now bags of these
peppers are sitting on ice in the storage unit. These burned during preparation,
on the way in, and on the way out. Mistake: Hey guys be sure not to pee after
handling these peppers unless you want to know what "great balls of fire" really
means.
Another farming success story. I produced plenty of these peppers, albeit they
turned out not to be hot at all. Still Green. The chili peppers made it through,
and actually adjusted quite well to this climate. They got off to a slow
beginning but then really produced towards the end of the season. For some
reason the chili peppers took a long time to turn red. In fact, most of the
peppers harvested looked exactly like these, still green, and not even a little
bit hot. Towards the end of the season they did turn a bright red but were still
not hot at all. Storage Ready. A ton of peppers were harvested the first season,
most of which were stored for the cooler months. I decided not to blanch these
and even months later they were still good quality, especially when used in
strong tasting dishes like curry rice.
Bell Pepper Green. This vegetable was sown on 1/31/2015 in pots kept in an
interior room of the house.
Bell Pepper Colored. This vegetable was sown on 1/31/2015 in pots kept in an
interior room of the house.
More strong winds and rain and another disappointment. Mistake: I did not give
enough support to the pea vines while they were still seedlings. The vines
became really spindly and weak. This year they are doing a bit better but still
not going to produce much.
A couple of typhoons wiped out all the onions. They were sown again and
subsequently wiped out be strong seasonal winds and rain. Mistake: I decided to
begin from seeds as opposed to already established bulbs from the farming store.
The small seedlings could not handle the climate. I am using bulbs this year and
so far all is well.
I produced a lot of okra, in fact, more than we were able to use. I found myself
way behind on harvesting and ended up picking many okra which were too large and
tough to be eaten. Okra is without a doubt one of the strangest veggies you can
add to your farm or garden. These things seem to defy gravity as they grow
upwards towards the sky. Out of all the veggies in the farm, these were among
the easiest to grow. There were basically no problems until the very end of the
season when some type of moth or butterfly began laying eggs all over the leaves
which eventually produced an infestation of small, colorful caterpillars. These
little critters ate more leaves than you can possibly imagine. A lot of time was
spent hand picking these guys off the leaves. A few of the early okra from the
first Summer on the island. Interesting texture and taste and a definite
addition to the farm next year.
Japanese mustard spinach. Strong winds wiped out most of the leaves during the
first year on the island. The leaves which were able to be harvested were pretty
good. Reduced amount and lower quality compliments of some strong seasonal wind
and rain which inundated the farm.
Japanese mustard. This veggie is really good when boiled in a Japanese nabe pot.
Reduced amount and lower quality compliments of some strong seasonal wind and
rain which inundated the farm.
None of the lettuce did well the first year on the island. This year none is
being grown. Apparently the seeds were too old and none even sprouted. This is
what might be considered regular lettuce. These came out fairly good despite the
strong winds, although the leaves are a bit tattered.
WHAT A DISASTER. The plan was to make a "green wall" in the farm and produce a
few gourds for decoration around the house. This was not to be compliments of a
bug infestation. The gourds proved to be quite a disappointment. The vines
simply could not handle the typhoons, strong winds, and rain. I was trying to
grow them vertically but they were continually being battered and were unable to
produce really strong support vines. Then, about halfway through the season,
something, moths or butterflies, began laying eggs all over the leaves. The eggs
hatched into these green caterpillars that completely ravaged the vines and
leaves. These were simply too much work for no return. I am probably not going
to grow these again.
The harvested eggplant was really good but the amount was reduced due to a
couple of typhoons and an infestation of bugs. The eggplant did fairly well but
took a long time to produce. A couple of typhoons wiped out many of the eggplant
while the others were stripped of many of their leaves. Then they were infested
with some kind of ladybug looking insect which was eating the leaves and sucking
the energy out of the stems. This is what the eggplant looked like all washed
up. These were pretty firm and tasted great in a few different Japanese dishes.
The cucumbers worked out for the most part, although the production was limited
thanks to a couple of typhoons and an infestation of some kind of brown beetle
looking bugs which ended up devouring most of the leaves on the cucumber vines.
I grew my cucumbers on trellises made out of bamboo, which was used to form a
wind barrier on the north side of the farm. The bamboo was used for both
horizontal and vertical support. I then used jute to tie the cucumber vines to
the supports until they were able to hang on by themselves. The nice thing about
using jute is the strings are biodegradable. Especially in this humid climate,
the jute lasts for about 6 months and then is barely strong enough to hold
together. At the end of the Summer season the jute strings simply pull away with
the cucumber vines when they are removed. The entire load can then be tossed
into the compost pile. This trio was among the first to be harvested. The
cucumbers turned out pretty good, typhoons and bugs aside.
A fair amount of corn was produced but was loaded with small bugs. Corn growing
on the stalk and ready for harvest. A few ears of corn were cooked on the
barbecue and eaten off the cob. Due to the presence of many small bugs, most of
the corn was taken off the cobs, thoroughly washed and put in storage.
Another farming success story. The popcorn stalks were totally dried out before
the ears were picked. The local farmers kept asking if the corn was okay since
they though the stalks were regular sweet corn which would already be way past
picking at this point. Kinda funny. A bunch of nice looking ears of popcorn
drying out. Each cob produced about 350 individual pieces of porcorn.
This year was really a disappointment when a couple of typhoons decimated the
farms. Only a few pieces of cauliflower were harvested. Now a new year and so
far my cauliflower is hanging in there and trying to make it through the strong
seasonal winds. Yeah they look nice but this was basically it for last season.
Hey from this picture you would never know what a disaster the farms were last
season thanks to strong seasonal winds and a couple of typhoons. Note: Be sure
to "hill up" the cauliflower if your farm or garden is subject to strong winds.
Most of the seedlings were totally leveled last season. The good news is things
are going much better this year.
I converted a jungle adjacent to the upper farm using hand tools. This included
taking out a bunch of fairly sizable trees. The locals said this new farm would
not be usable for a few seasons due to the abundance of roots in the soil. Not
wanting to take no for an answer, I decided to go ahead and put in some veggies
anyway. Since the local farmers know a lot more, and since they might be right,
I decided to make the jungle farm into something fun. I was so impressed with
the rocket launches from the Tanegashima space center, that I decided to make
the farm into something of a space exploration theme. The space agencies of
America and Japan, NASA and JAXA respectively, were to make up the basic design
of the farm. Then off to the side was a rocket, which ended up looking very much
like a phallic symbol. lol. I decided to put in carrots, hoping that the greens
would from the letters. The soil in this farm has not been subject to chemical
fertilizers or pesticides, and thanks to years of composting jungle leaves and
materials, the soil turned out to be fantastic. The carrot greens grew very tall
and soon made the space agency letters unintelligible. The farm ended up
producing hundreds of carrots. This farm became very popular with the locals.
Many times people were taking pictures of the farm. What was supposed to be the
letters representing the NASA and JAXA space agencies, turned into a carpet of
green, as the carrot leaves quickly took over the square beds. The neighbors
kept saying to thin out the carrots in order to produce more. I kept insisting
the greens were forming letters and thinning would destroy the theme. This same
discussion went on and on for during the Summer. As a result of not thinning, a
ton of carrots were ready at the same time. What to do? The
solution....blanching and storage of hundreds of carrots for the cooler months.
These were a few of the early carrots harvested. The carrots harvested later
were much larger and many were split, possibly due to excessive rain. The flavor
of these carrots was excellent and even stayed tasty after blanching and months
of storage, especially when used in strong tasting dishes like curry rice. This
was actually the first time for me to blanch carrots. The whole process was a
bit time consuming but it was well worth the effort. These carrots were the
first edition to the new storage unit, along with tons of fish caught earlier in
the month.
WHAT A DISAPPOINTMENT. The only fruit trees growing in the farms is bananas. A
few cantaloupes (plural form?) would have made a nice addition to the dessert
table, but it was not to be, at least not this year. The climate on this island
had other ideas. The cantaloupe proved to be quite a disappointment. The vines
simply could not handle the typhoons, strong winds, and rain. I was trying to
grow them vertically but they were continually being battered and were unable to
produce really strong support vines. Too depressing to even take a picture. lol.
Chinese cabbage, AKA hakusai in Japan, is pretty much a staple food during the
cooler months. The typhoons pretty much wiped out everything but a couple of
huge Chinese cabbages made it through and were harvested. Thanks to favorable
conditions the Chinese cabbage is doing much better this year. This couple were
pretty huge, especially the hakusai in the foreground. These hakusai leaves came
out pretty good and were a nice addition to the nabe pot during those cool
season nights.
The first season on Tanegashima the cabbage I grew barely made it through the
strong northerly winds which blow almost constantly it seems from as early as
October to as late as March. No worries though, the next season turned out much
better thanks to a little thought and a few new techniques. After the fiasco of
the first shot at growing these, it was time to change a few things. The next
season I decided to sow the seeds directly in the farm and not in pots. I was
kind of late again thanks to a lot of time spent on changing the farm beds from
an offset square design to an inline square design....I digress. The seeds were
not sown until the middle of October, somewhat late for this subtropical
climate. It all worked out though thanks to a few new techniques and better
placement in the farm. I set out my cabbage seeds directly in the farm in 2
meter long rows with the seeds closely spaced. As the seedlings began to grow, I
moved them to a square bed measuring 2 meters x 2 meters with 4 rows,� running
north to south. Each cabbage seedling was placed only 25 cm away from each
other. This time the cabbage was grown in one of the middle beds, a few meters
away from the bamboo wall on the north side of the farm. This helped a lot to
reduce the effects of the wind. In addition, I think the soil was a little
better, maybe softer, if that makes any sense. I also began "hilling up" the
seedlings as they began to grow. Hilling up (not sure what the actual farming
term is for this) made a huge difference this time around. Hilling up is using
your hands, or a small tool, to delicately pull soil up and around a seedling to
give it support and protect it from the wind and rain. Cabbage seedlings are
very delicate and cannot handle strong winds. This year the cabbage seedlings
were hilled up all the way to the lower leaves. Now held in place, they were no
longer flopping around in the wind and were given a change to grow stronger. As
the saying goes, two heads are better than one, and this must also apply to
cabbage. I am not using any pesticides in my farms and this is the result,
totally chewed up outer leaves. The actual cabbage head were much better with
very few bugs. Mistake: This year we are actually eating outer leaves which look
like these. I think they call them Spring greens or something like that. Usually
the bugs which caused the damage to the leaves is not longer around when the
leaves are harvested. These cabbage leaves were perfectly okay to eat. Simply
brush off any suspect areas while in the farm and then give the leaves a good
washing before using.
A handful of tasty roots were produced but at a cost. The burdock took a long
time to be ready and harvesting the roots was very difficult. Not planning to
grow this again. The burdock produced huge leaves and actually looked pretty
nice, especially with lots of French marigolds planted in the foreground.
Mistake: Be sure to sow burdock on a fairly tall hill with soft soil for the
roots to grow. I was growing the burdock in a standard square bed with very
little elevation. Although the soil is pretty good on the island, the burdock
root grew in the the clay subsoil and was very difficult to harvest. This was
about all the burdock harvested this year. Actually there was much more but I
really did not want to go through the trouble of digging these roots out of the
clay subsoil. Actually I am not even sure if I am going to put this in next
year. The local grocery store sells burdock very cheap, and considering we
rarely eat this, it is probably not worth the effort.
Broccoli is one of my favorite veggies so it was quite a disappointment when a
couple of typhoons decimated the farms. All was not lost though and a few
delicious pieces were harvested. Now a new year and so far my broccoli is
hanging in there and trying to make it through the strong seasonal winds.
Um this is actually different broccoli than what is shown on the seed package
above. I received seedlings from a neighbor and these were the only broccoli
which made it through the typhoons. Yup this was pretty much it for the last
season. Try try again.
Hey from this picture you would never know what a disaster the farms were last
season thanks to strong seasonal winds and a couple of typhoons. Mistake: Be
sure to "hill up" the broccoli if your farm or garden is subject to strong
winds. Most of the seedlings were totally leveled last season. The good news is
things are going much better this year.
The bok choy during the first season turned out to be a disappointment. A couple
of typhoons and subsequent strong winds wiped out most of this veggie. The good
news is we were still able to harvest a few leaves. I am growing this again this
year and will post pictures and information if the bok choy is productive. A few
of the bok choy actually did quite well.
I really was not a fan of bitter melon at the beginning because it is so
um....bitter. Go figure, they turned out to be one of my favorite things grown
this year. Once you get used to bitterness, or, take steps to reduce it, this
veggie is great in many stir fry recipes. You can also make juice but the best
way to prepare them is Japanese style tempura. Another way to enjoy bitter melon
is to sprinkle it with pickling salts. I grew my bitter melon on trellises made
out of bamboo, which is growing all over the place. The bamboo was used for both
horizontal and vertical support. I then used jute to connect the horizontal
bamboo poles. The vertical lines of jute were spaced at about 25 cm apart. The
vines and leaves formed a beautiful "green wall" which gave us privacy on the
entire front of our house. The nice thing about using jute is the strings are
biodegradable. Especially in this humid climate, the jute lasts for about 6
months and then is barely strong enough to hold together. At the end of the
Summer season the jute strings simply pull away with the bitter melon vines when
they are removed. The entire load can then be tossed into the compost pile. This
works out great when the cool season veggies are planted since, with the
exception of peas, they do not require support. Then when Summer comes simply
put up some new jute for the new runner bean vines. Bitter melon vines are very
prolific. The vines will easily take over any support you use in a matter of
weeks. Each new vine should be tied, using jute or some other biodegradable
material, and guided in the direction you want. The bitter melon vines produced
a lot this year. I produced way more than we needed but we managed to eat pretty
much everything, mostly as tempura. I basically cut the bitter melon lengthwise
and used a spoon to scoop out the pith (the soft middle stuff holding the seed)
and the seeds. Then I chopped up the two halves in the food processor. The
chopped were pieces were sprinkled with a generous amount of salt and put aside
for a couple of hours. I rinsed off the salt and then, using my hands, I tried
to squeeze out as much juice as possible. The bitter melon was now ready for use
in a tempura recipe. Mistake: Be sure not to mix bitter melon vines with
anything else in your farm or garden. I made the mistake of putting in runner
beans and a couple of kinds of gourds with the bitter melon on the same trellis.
Although the total area of the trellis measured about 12 meters long and 2
meters high, the three kinds of veggies soon mixed together and became a total
mess.
My runner bean vines produced hundreds of good quality pods. The smaller pods
were very tender many of which could be eaten with those stringy things on the
side still attached. The more mature pods required the stringy things be removed
before eating. I grew my runner beans on trellises made out of bamboo poles
which were growing around the perimeter of the farm. The bamboo was used for
both horizontal and vertical support. I then used jute to connect the horizontal
bamboo poles. The vertical lines of jute were spaced at about 25 cm apart. The
runner bean vines were easily able to climb up the jute and the bamboo poles
provided support when the vines became heavy with leaves and pod. The nice thing
about using jute is the strings are biodegradable. Especially in this humid
climate, the jute lasts for about 6 months and then is barely strong enough to
hold together. At the end of the Summer season the jute strings simply pull away
with the runner bean vines when they are removed. The entire load can then be
tossed into the compost pile. This works out great when the cool season veggies
are planted since, with the exception of peas, they do not require support. Then
when Summer comes simply put up some new jute for the new runner bean vines. Be
aware that runner bean vines are determined to grow in an upwards direction and
then towards the south if a support is available. If you want to make a "green
wall", be sure to sow the vines at the north side of your trellis or other
support to allow them to naturally grow along the supports towards the south.
Otherwise you will spend a lot of time tying and redirecting the vines to go in
the opposite direction. The runner bean vines produced a ton of good quality
bean pods. I picked many of the pods when they were small to medium size, as
these proved to be more tender. The leaves grew very thick on the vines and at
the end of the season the pods became a bit more difficult to find. This meant
often picking pods that were pretty large and not nearly as soft. These more
mature pods needed to be cooked a bit longer but were delicious nonetheless.
Mistake: Be sure not to mix runner bean vines with anything else in your farm or
garden. I made the mistake of putting in bitter melon and a couple of kinds of
gourds with the runner beans on the same trellis. Although the total area of the
trellis measured about 12 meters long and 2 meters high, the three kinds of
veggies soon mixed together and became a total mess.
A handful of these were produced. All the others were wiped out due to strong
winds and rain. A few of the green beans were harvested and pretty good.
Mistake: I think the bean stalks were not supported well enough. The leaves
eventually withered and turned brown and the flowers began falling off. A lesson
learned. A few beans were harvested and tasted pretty good. |
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Information from files
Story Workspace - Our Island Adventure Begins
This section will be my workspace for the next couple of months as I transfer
our story from my personal site and add additional information and pictures. As
such this section will be a mess until all the stories and pictures are put on
individual pages. Please feel free to read this mostly unedited material or come
back again when this is all in a more readable format. This is our Tanegashima
story from the beginning. Enjoy.
Making Sure
May 2014 - Now May 2014 and everything seems to be set for our move to
Tanegashima. A slight problem though, we still need to find a place. In
addition, a little online trip around the island using Google street view turned
out to be pretty disappointing. The streets seem to be devoid of life,
especially human, and the buildings look vacant. Minamitane town, the place we
want to move to, looks like a scaled down version of an industrial city in
America with deserted streets and most places in a state of disrepair. Why in
the world are we moving to this place? Yeah the beaches, the space center,
fishing....but....maybe better to think again. Wait noooo....this means another
year in Nara those cold temperatures and yuk....playing in the yard next to the
house. Forget it, we are still going forward with this move.
Then I decided to make some friends from the island in Facebook and post about
our Tanegashima moving plans. The idea of moving to the island was met with
enthusiasm and a general "welcome to our island" attitude from my new friends.
Then I received an email from an old friend, Ely, who had spent a considerable
amount of time on the island as an English teacher. He basically wrote "Why the
fuck would you move to that place" and then went on to list the reasons why
moving to the island was a really bad plan.
I began desperately searching online for anything positive to reverse the now
sinking feeling we all had about our decision. Then I found many blogs from
people, many NASA employees, who came to the island either for work or play or
both. They all had nothing but glowing things to say about Tanegashima. This
little bit of inspiration was all we needed to once again set the moving wheels
in motion. Now all we needed was a place to stay.
Finding A Place
May 2014 - Finding a place to stay in Tanegashima, especially one which would
accept two dogs and a cat seemed close to impossible. Not like you can pick up
the paper, look in the classifieds, and choose from a hundred or so rental
properties. This is a small island, in Japan, with very small communities of
people who know every property and which are available. It seemed we would need
to go a different route. Then we found a property rental page on the Minamitane
town site, called Akiya Bank, which basically listed a few properties for rent,
albeit in "as is" condition.
Minamitane Town Official Site - Rental Properties - Town site page with a few
rental properties
Some properties looked acceptable, some were a complete mess even lacking
flooring. Some properties were located in town and others close to the coast.
Monthly rent ranged from about the U.S. equivalent of $400 per month to "let's
talk about it when you come to see the place" basically meaning you can move in
but do all the work yourself.
We finally found a place in the Nishino district of Minamitane town. This is a
brief list of the property specifics.
Rent is $350 per month - This is a really good price especially considering the
following:
House is completely furnished with all appliances. There is also a double bed, 8
guest futons, a dresser, tables, and chairs. The kitchen has everything we need
including dishes and other kitchen supplies.
Farms included - The rent includes 2 farms adjacent to the house totaling about
10,600 square feet or approximately .25 acres. There is also farm equipment
including a rototiller. The owner said with this much land it is very easy to do
subsistence farming. When he found out we like fishing he said there would be
little need to go shopping. He said other residents of the island with this much
land are choosing to grow the local variety of sweet potatoes and flowers and
making a lot of money selling these online.
Location Location Location - Yup the most important aspect of real estate. The
location of this place is fantastic.
House is a quarter mile (500 meters) from the coast of the China Sea and a
couple of fishing piers.
House is 4.0 miles from a regular neighborhood grocery store.
House is 7.0 miles from the Tanegashima Space Center.
House is 3.5 miles from Kadokura Cape, a park, and a beautiful ocean view spot.
Google Map - Minamitane - Map showing the location of the rental property.
Google Map - Minamitane - Map showing the location of the rental property in
satellite view.
Planning A Tanegashima Trip
May 2014 - With the logistics of moving to Tanegashima seemingly out of the way,
it was time to plan an inspection trip to the island. Wait a minute....a rocket
is scheduled to launch from the Tanegashima Space Center on May 24, 2014. Why
not plan our trip around this incredible event, assuming Akiko can get the time
off from work. Lots to think about. We definitely need new tires for the car.
Something will need to be done about the dogs and the cat. Hmmmm....better get
moving with the launch only a couple of weeks away.
Age Limit for Changing Tires?
May 10, 2014 - This might not seem post worthy, but considering the
circumstances, I thought otherwise. We definitely needed tires for the car,
especially considering the long journey ahead and all the stuff to be packed in
and on the car. We opted for a company owned by friends of friends of the
family. When we arrived at the tire store we were greeted by a somewhere around
eighty year old woman. Pretty typical in Japan for old people to work until
really old especially in a family owned business. They usually do some
administrative or bookkeeping type of work. Nope, not this woman. She got right
out there and began changing the tires on our car with her son who was probably
around 60 years old.
Doggies All Alone
May 12, 2014 - With the prospect of the dogs being alone for a full four days,
we needed to make a plan. I am really not good about asking favors of friends
and neighbors and needed to think of something to avoid depending on someone to
give them food, drink, and to pick up their poo.
Then I decided to build a quickie automatic dog feeder and to take off some of
the wood bordering the pond allowing them access to a large drinking supply.
Even with all this we came to our senses and realized that four days is much to
long for the dogs to be alone. We decided to find a dog sitter to come at least
once sometime during the middle of our trip.
Met Captain James T. Kirk
May 17, 2014 - We went to Osaka to meet with the owner of the Minamitane
property today to talk about the place and basically check each other out. He
really looked like William Shatner, AKA Captain James T. Kirk....well at least
the Japanese version.
Anyway he is a really nice guy, married with eight grandchildren. He wants to
move back to the island house but said he would miss his grandkids too much and
after many years he decided to rent the place. Anyway he is letting us stay in
the house during our vacation to see the rocket launch next week. He is going to
turn on the utilities for us and said we can begin moving our stuff in. Since
Akiko needs to work and there is no Internet at the island house, she will come
back early and I plan to stay there with Shai to wash everything, set up the
Internet, and build the dog run outside. This is an incredible opportunity for
us.
We Got Lucky
May 20, 2014 - We are going to be driving a couple of hours to Osaka to pick up
the key from the owner for the Minamitane house on Thursday. Then we will take
an overnight ferry, with the car, to Kagoshima. From there we will drive a
couple of hours and take another ferry to Tanegashima after like an eight hour
wait.
The problem was we were on a waiting list because there was no room on the ferry
and no guarantee we could get the car to the island with us on the same day.
This meant taking an expensive taxi to the house and then doing it all again
back up North to pick up the car the next day. Then Akiko got a phone call from
the ferry company saying there was a cancellation. Really happy to know we got
transportation the whole way now.
Dog Sitter
May 22, 2014 - We met with our very kind dog sitter, Ikuko. After going through
a list of what we wanted, she agreed to come and look in on the dogs a couple
days after we leave for the island.
The price was 3000 yen (about 30 bucks) and every reasonable. If any of you in
Nara are looking for a dog sitter then I highly recommend this woman. Going to
post her information soon.
Packing Complete
May 22, 2014 - Finished this crazy packing for the move to the island even
before we officially decided to rent the place in Minamitane. Yeah more of my
craziness but moving stuff in Japan is really expensive and this trip with the
car is already costing about a thousand bucks. Why not make the most of it and
pack up the car to the roof. The next trip, AKA the actual move to the island,
will include a lot of stuff and two dogs and a cat. Should be fun.
Riding on a Sunflower
May 22-23, 2014 - We arrived at Osaka port before 5 pm, plenty of time before
departure of the Sunflower Satsuma ferry. We sat in the parking lot waiting for
a boarding pass. Apparently Akiko spaced out and did not prepay for our tickets.
We went in to pay and when we came out all the cars were loaded already. We sat
in the car for about 30 minutes before they finally let us drive on, barely in
time before they shut the doors. Our little kei car was loaded next to these
huge trucks. Incidentally this ferry can hold up to 300 cars.
This was actually the first time for me to ride on something like this and when
I got to the reception desk, all I could think of was the old love boat TV show.
I was looking for Gomez and Gopher and Captain Piccard or whatever their names
were. We went out on the rear deck....for some reason there was no access to the
front....to watch the sunset.
I guess because of the strong wind and sea air, we all got pretty hungry. We
went to the buffet and purchased tickets at the vending machine, got a window
seat, and then stood in line waiting to get some grub. The food was pretty
average but all in all okay. We managed to catch the sunset through a window
just before it set. Then we purchased the ceremonial beer before heading up to
our group room which was supposed to accommodate something like 30 people. As it
turned out we were the only ones making it our huge private room. We set up our
stuff and then headed to the ofuro to get washed up and relax. Before returning
to the room it was required that we find another vending machine and buy more
beer. Yummy nodogoshi.
We all slept really good and work up in the morning to a beautiful sunny day
albeit very windy on deck. Then we headed back to the restaurant for a breakfast
buffet. As with the previous meal this was again pretty average but acceptable.
A bit of time on deck before arriving at Shibushi around 9 am.
Sakurajima Active Volcano
May 23, 2014 - The next part of our adventure took us on a couple hour drive
from Shibushi to Sakurajima to see the active volcano. Although active and
producing smoke and ash, we were pretty lucky with a little more activity than
usual on this day. As we drove closer the ash and smoke became much thicker. The
cars ahead of us kicked up the ash on the road creating a pretty think fog.
Probably not the best thing for the air filter.
Anyway the first place we went to was the Sakurajima Visitor Center. Although
small, this place is packed with information much of which is in English. From
there we began our tour of a few of the better "must see" places.
Spot number 1 was an outside foot bath fed by the numerous hot springs in the
area. We then walked along a trail which traversed a previous lava flow. The
topography was striking to say the least.
Next on the tour was dinosaur park. Although there were no dinosaurs in this
area millions of years ago, the presence of an active volcano and maybe a few
Flintstone reruns induced the local forces that be to make a little dinosaur
theme park.
Then onto another view spot to see the point which was covered with lava and
turned Sakurajima, which was previously an island, into a peninsula. We then
drove to what is arguably the best view and the closest point to Sakurajima.
From there we drove to the now ash and lava covered torii, or shrine entry gate.
This is the only thing to see at this spot but close and interesting enough to
be worth the few extra minutes.
Wikipedia - Sakurajima - Wikipedia site with general information about the
volcano.
Sakurajima Visitor Center - Official site of the free Sakurajima visitor center
and museum.
Sakurajima Visitor Center - Same site but this page has a list of places to see
and things to do. Planning to see 1, 2, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12.
Japan National Tourism Organization - Information about Kagoshima.
WikiTravel - More Kagoshima information.
Barely Made it and a POS
May 23, 2014 - After Sakurajima, which was really incredible, we drove to
Kagoshima to board the ferry Hibiscus. Thanks to a lot traffic it took way
longer than we thought and we made it with only about 15 minutes to spare before
departure. After a really fun day our trip turned a little sour. This ferry was
a piece of shit (POS), smelled really bad, and the only food on board was cup
noodles from a vending machine. This ferry is no doubt geared for transporting
freight with people boarding as a little extra income for the company.
Unfortunately this is the only game in town for getting the car to the island.
We decided to sit outside on the deck for a little while. Before leaving for the
island, the ferry belted out an obviously required and very loud sound from the
outside speakers. Totally scared the shit out of our four year old son.
There was at least the benefit of a beautiful sunset from the viewing deck which
was at least some compensation for the poor accommodations.
Driving to the New Crib
May 23, 2014 - We arrived at Nishinoomote at around 9:45 pm and then took the
one hour drive to the house. After traveling for about four hours on that
freight ferry all of us were tired and irritated. When we got to the area of the
house we realized the information we were given was wrong and we could not find
the place. Akiko needed to call the owner and finally we were able to find the
property. We were first greeted by a huge frog in the street. Then we entered
the driveway which was literally a jungle and then things got worse. We went
through the front door and found an unbelievable mess. The place was loaded with
junk and filthy. I was mega pissed and all of us decided to leave the car packed
with all of our stuff and possibly head back to Nara as soon as possible. We
decided to wait until the morning before totally freaking out and making the
wrong decision.
5....4....3....2....1....LIFTOFF
May 24, 2014 - Although still pissed off about the house from the night before,
we decided to throw it off at least for now and go for the other reason we came
to Tanegashima this month....to see the rocket launch.
For those of you who have never seen a rocket launch you might want to put that
on your list of things too see someday. Although it only lasts for a little over
a minute, this is a spectacular site to see. We were watching from a park high
up in the hills and could still see and feel the rumbling as the rocket fuel
ignited and propelled the rocket up through our atmosphere and out into space.
This was a really special thrill for Shai who at four years old got to see this
wonderful show of technology.
Downtown Minamitane and the House
May 24, 2014 - After the rocket launch we decided to drive to "downtown"
Minamitane to check out some of the places we will need once we move to the
island. Downtown basically consists of a couple of traffic lights, a grocery
store, a convenience store, a fuel station, and a bunch of small restaurants and
other businesses. The town is a 7.5 km and a 7 minute drive from the house.
Taking the road home, the view was reminiscent of the view heading into La Jolla
on Ardath Road without the million dollar homes.
After a really fun morning we drove back to the house and the reality of our
situation. Now time to make a decision. Should we stay or should we go. The
house is a freaking mess. Tons of stuff along with rat shit and remnants of
spiders and cockroaches. In addition, the sink cabinet is rotted out, cannot
take a hot shower, the driveway and outside storage are a mess, and this is only
the tip of the shitberg.
We decided to stay as the benefits of this house, once worked on, along with the
two huge farms on both sides of the house, and the beauty of this island, far
outweigh the present difficulties.
Kadokura Cape, Portuguese, and Guns
May 24, 2014 - After we made the decision to stay we went out to enjoy the sites
and tried to forget about the house for awhile. We went to Kadokura Cape which
is a small park with sweeping panoramic views of the Pacific Ocean and the long
stretch of white sand beach from the cape to the Tanegashima Space Center. This
place is famous for a Portuguese wreck and the guns they brought which were the
first ever in Japan.
Tanegashima Sunset and the White Sand Beach
May 24, 2014 - Next we headed to the beach and fishing spot which is only a five
minute walk from our house. The sunset was beautiful and we could see Yakushima,
a neighboring island off in the distance.
We then drove 10 minutes to a lookout point with an incredible view of the white
sand beach and then to the Tanegashima Space Center to walk a little on the
beach and see the beautiful star filled night sky.
Tanegashima Space Center
May 25, 2014 - We decided to spend the morning at the Tanegashima Space Center.
What a fantastic place this is. The entire complex is situated on arguably one
of the nicest beaches in the world. The grounds surrounding the visitors center
is a wide expanse of green grass and open spaces. This is a perfect place for a
picnic or to play a little frisbee.
The visitors center is free and offers tons of exhibits and hands on stuff for
the kids. There is an incredible amount of information, much of which is in
English, explaining all aspects of the rocket launches from construction to lift
off.
White Sand Beach and Returning Home
May 25, 2014 - We drove down a road to a seaside park and found this incredible
place where a river meets the ocean. We had no idea at the time this would
become our favorite beach.
We also went to the local fishing store to introduce ourselves.
Afternoon arrived and with it the return of the wife to Nara. Yup she needed to
back to work with me and Shai staying on the island to finish work on the house
and get the Internet set up.
Work Begins
May 26, 2014 - Akiko worked on this house with me for a couple of hours before
returning home. Although it made a bit of a dent, the real work now begins. I
decided to focus on the entry and the rear bedroom which will be used to store
our stuff until we actually move in which should be sometime in August.
Certainly was happy to find out the huge metal storage drum was not filled with
anything and not attached to the wall. This quickly found a new home outside.
A Couple of Dudes Hitting the Town
May 26, 2014 - When the wife is away the dudes will play. Me and Shai headed
into town for the first time to do a little shopping and then to the onsen.
Yup this is the kind of garbage a couple of single guys eat when alone together
on an island with an unusable kitchen.
He was thrilled to be actually sitting in the front seat of the car. He was even
more thrilled to purchase the onsen tickets.
Kitchen Finished
May 27, 2014 - A bit of shit news today. The repair guy came to the house today
and said the boiler was not working. This means no hot showers for the duration
of this trip. The good news is we get to go to the onsen almost every day.
I was able to knock out the kitchen today which looks a heck of a lot better
than when we first came to this place albeit still not usuable.
Outside Today
May 28, 2014 - Yup today I worked on the outside perimeter of the house
including the driveway, laundry hanging area, and the rear walkway.
Unbelievable the amount of garbage hanging around outside and even more amazing
was the number and different kinds of bugs hanging around in this trash.
Today I was able to do laundry in this place.
Storage Shed
May 29, 2014 - The storage shed turned out to be one of the worst projects of
this place. Basically tons of garbage combined with huge bags of useless
fertilizer and other farm chemicals.
These bags pretty much turned into rocks from sitting such a long time without
being used. Planning to split these bags up and spread the stuff around the
perimeter of each farm. Probably the only way to get rid of this stuff.
Fishing Spot
May 30, 2014 - We decided to walk this morning to the fishing spot which is only
five minutes from the house.
Then we went there again in the afternoon at low tide to look for stuff on the
rock beach at low tide.
Then we went fishing on the pier for the first time but caught nothing.
First Catch
May 31, 2014 - Shai caught a fish for the first time today. Yup he was totally
thrilled.
Then we went for a drive to look at four fishing spots south of the house.
White Sand Beach
May 31, 2014 - We went once again to the white sand beach where we all went
before Akiko returned to Nara. This would turn out to easily be our favorite
place.
This beach runs all the way from Kadokura Cape to the Space Center and is really
wide with very soft and beautiful white sand. Although we call this point of the
beach, White Sand Beach, the actual name seems to be Maenohama Seaside Park. At
this point a river meets the ocean and especially at low tide provides a safe
place to play. Cannot wait to bring the doggies to this place.
Beautiful Sunset
May 31, 2014 - After the white sand beach we finished the day with a quick drive
to the close fishing spot to watch the sunset. You can see Yakushima off in the
distance.
Busy Day
June 1, 2014 - This morning we met the couple who are using our farms until we
move in at the end of the Summer. Nice couple probably close to 70 years old.
Then we drove up north and looked at four fishing spots close to the house.
We went shopping and drove around looking for a place for Akiko to work.
Then in the afternoon we went to the white sand beach and found a really nice
piece of bamboo and which we tied to the car rack and took home. We also found a
nice piece of driftwood.
A New Way
June 2, 2014 - We drove up to Shimama to look at the fishing spots up there
which the locals recommended as good for catching iwashi, saba, and aji.
Actually took only about ten minutes from the house.
Then we came home and found an easy way to walk to the rock beach close to the
house going past this beautiful property. Now can go to the fishing spot in
about four minutes walking. We caught a lot of crabs and came home.
Then we went to town to look for a work place for Akiko again.
Stormy Day
June 3, 2014 - Typhoon like winds today at the white sand beach made the surf
pretty crazy. Was actually blowing bits of sea foam up onto the beach. Gave Shai
a nice coiffeur.
Wedding Anniversary
June 4, 2014 - Spent our wedding anniversary away from each other for the first
time this year. Really sucked and I missed Akiko very much today although I
would not let her know this. lol.
Was not really motivated to do anything and decided to get all the vines our of
the flower bed next to the wall in front of the house.
Surfing the Internet
June 5, 2014 - Began the day with the discovery of a suzumebachi hive under the
outside laundry room patio. Oh no not again. This turned out to be an old an
abandoned hive though.
They said is was going to be impossible to get Internet at our house due to the
distance from the NTT station. Moral of the story....do not take no for an
answer. Since the Internet is very important to this family for our work, I told
Akiko to pay the set up fee and give it a shot. After setup it worked perfectly,
even for streaming videos, albeit too slow for Akiko to work.
Then in the afternoon we went to the white sand beach and our usually private
play spot was loaded with surfers again. A beautiful day.
Street Drains
June 6, 2014 - Decided to get a little more street credit with the neighbors and
work on the street drains which obviously were not touched for many years.
Then we went to the white sand beach as usual.
Rock Beach
June 7, 2014 - This morning we walked all the way to the end of the rock beach
close to the house. Really interesting geology in this spot.
We caught a bunch of different crabs.
Then in the afternoon we went back to the same place for some fishing and I
caught a fish.
New Buddies
June 8, 2014 - Finished up some farm work in the morning. Then received a lot of
sweet potatoes from one of the neighbors.
Shai played with his new buddies who live down the street. The older boy is
Kose, 5 years old, and the younger boy is Takeru, 3 years old. They played with
sand toys in the driveway and ran around in the street.
White Sand Beach
June 8, 2014 - We went once again to the white sand beach but this time we
walked all the way to the wall and walkway at the end of the beach.
Still wondering what this picture is of something built into the hill.
Work Place Found
June 9, 2014 - Went into town to look for a place for Akiko to work once again.
Akiko said there was nothing and the real estate agent said there was nothing.
Again, do not take no for an answer. Previous trips into town were to take
pictures and it was obvious there was tons of vacant buildings and rooms. There
must be at least a room.
I decided to begin knocking on doors and as it turns out the first place was a
Japanese style hotel with a very kind elderly owner. She said there were a few
rooms available. And they said it could not be done. hah.
Then in the afternoon we celebrated by going to the....you guessed it....the
white sand beach. Another beautiful day.
Rainy Day
June 10, 2014 - Basically was pouring rain today and we stayed home.
Work Place Confirmed
June 11, 2014 - Went back again to the Japanese hotel and talked with the owner
about the rooms. She showed a couple of them one of which was really nice. We
went back again in the afternoon to check the Internet speed. Turned out to be
good enough although we still plan to get our own connection. The owner gave
lots of desserts to Shai and even though we already ate lunch pretty much forced
us to stay and eat somen with her and a couple of family members.
Busy Day
June 12, 2014 - We went as usual to the white sand beach and saw incredible
waves today. There were a lot of surfers.
White San Beach Deja Vu
June 13, 2014 - Anyone counting the number of times white sand beach was
mentioned on this page. Hey when your little 4 year old is forced to spend a few
weeks away from his mommy really important to do what he wants every day.
Today was very different. There were almost no waves. Compared to the mega waves
the day before this was almost like a completely different beach.
Collecting Seashells
June 14, 2014 - Another day walking and collecting seashells at the white sand
beach. We are trying to categorize and learn about each type of shell now. This
is a really good science classroom.
Daddy Day
June 15, 2014 - Spent much of today at the white sand beach again. Today though
we walked all the way to the next river which was about a three mile roundtrip
adventure.
We found a lot of interesting geology. We also found a lot of velella washed up
on the beach. These are basically little jellyfish looking creatures.
Rock Beach Again
June 16, 2014 - We tried to go to the white sand beach but it was raining. Then
in the afternoon we went to the rock beach close to the house and collected
seashells.
Mega Storm
June 17, 2014 - We tried again to go to the white sand beach today but it was
raining. Towards the afternoon and especially at night there was torrential rain
and thunderstorms.
Waves and Caves
June 18, 2014 - Next day after an incredible storm and the waves were everything
you would expect. Apparently the surfers knew about it too since there were
many.
We went on our usual three mile roundtrip walk to the next river. Today we found
something cool, a cave. Definitely when we come back in a couple months it would
be really cool to explore this.
Getting Internet Installed Again
June 19, 2014 - Met the same NTT guy at Kiku Ryokan to install Internet to
enable wifey to work from the room. Then we went to the white sand beach for
awhile. Then in the afternoon back to the white sand beach again.
Waves Smashing Walkway
June 20, 2014 - Today at the white sand beach the waves were going over the
walkway wall. A picture of the refrigerator of single guys.
Wifey Returns
June 21, 2014 - Akiko came back to the island today to pick us up for our return
back to Nara. That night we went out to a really nice okonomiyaki restaurant in
town. At night the cousin came over and gave us something that looked like
turtle feet.
A Rainy Day
June 22, 2014 - Today it was raining and we headed into town and ate at the
restaurant owned by the cousin of the owner of the ryokan. IN the afternoon we
found a stray baby cat. Then we made our last trip to the white sand beach
before returning home again.
Going Home
June 23, 2014 - We made sure our stuff was securely packed away in the back
bedroom before locking up the house and heading the to ferry. We boarded the
Hibiscus, car and all, once again for the return trip back to Nara. This time we
came a bit more prepared with some decent food. Then I needed to drive like a
crazy man through the countryside on small farm roads at speeds exceeding 100 km
per hour in order to reach the next ferry in time. Certainly do not want to ever
do that again. Sure is a mystery why they do not schedule these things a bit
better. Anyway we made it with only a few minutes before the ferry was set to
leave.
This time is was the Sunflower Kirishima which would take us home. Was not much
of a sunset today but we all enjoyed the dinner buffet as usual.
Back Home Again
June 24, 2014 - We ate a breakfast buffet and then it was time to disembark the
ferry and head home. Driving home through the city of Osaka really sucked after
being on the island. The city was noisy, dirty, and filled with people all
rushing around like crazy. This really confirmed the decision to move to the
island. The city is simply not going to work for this family.
Upon returning home it was pretty evident the wifey and her brown thumb did very
little in the garden. The grapes were overgrown and not producing many grapes
and the vines over the dog run basically turned the yard into a jungle. In
addition, the yard adjacent to the house, AKA the local playground, was filled
with weeds and awaiting my return. Ahhhh....certainly is nice to be back in
Nara....NOT. lol.
Such A Waste
July 2014 - Japan is not a place where you will ever find a garage sale. In
fact, Japanese people are generally not okay with used stuff. This means all the
used stuff we were happy to receive when we moved to the Nara house now had no
place to go once we moved. To expensive to send furniture especially considering
most of it was old and very used. We called the recycle shops, yes a few do
exist in this country, and even they were not interested. They were willing to
pick the stuff up though....if we PAY THEM.
The option....BURN EVERYTHING. Yup this became the only choice.
Meeting Friends
July - August, 2014 - During these couple of months we tried to meet as many of
our friends as possible. We decided not to make a house party for a variety of
reasons, one of which is we were simply too tired.
Preparing For Work
August 19, 2014 - My online work will always be the main focus for me. Although
once we move to the island there are two other types of work waiting. I am going
to become a farmer and a fisherperson. Already been fishing since I was a kid
and no problem there. Farming on the other hand is much more problematic. In any
event, a trip to the local 100 yen store seemed in order. We purchased a ton of
sabiki for fishing and seeds for farming.
Dog Cage
August 24, 2014 - The dog cage was delivered and seemed perfect for, not only
our puppies, but also for our cat and five year old son. lol.
Always give your old futons away to a temple monk. We gave our used futons to a
temple monk and he gave us juice and a month supply of noodles....unnecessary
but gosh thanks.
The last supper, at least with the family in this house.
Packing The Car
August 29, 2014 - The time came to get the car ready for this crazy move to the
island. This would prove to be the most challenging packing job ever. The back
seat next to Shai was packed to the roof and tied to prevent the suitcases from
shifting. Then there still needed to be room for the dogs in the back. The cat
would be in the front seat with Akiko. Then, of course, the roof rack would be
loaded to the limit. Whoa barely enough room for Shai to sit. Hang in there.
Moving Day
August 30, 2014 - The moving coming came on time, in fact, a little early. Good
thing because we were moving a lot more stuff then they planned for. Everything
was loaded with no problem though. And then we went on our last tour of the
house before leaving. With almost five years in this place, there certainly were
a lot of memories. Not to worry since the parental units are planning to move
into our place in a few months.
And then the traditional Japanese send off in the street. Neighbors and friends
came out to say so long for now. It was very touching and felt good to know that
when we return to our old house to visit these people would be there to hang out
and party.
Then we packed ourselves into our tiny little Suzuki Alto kei car and drove off
to the next phase of our island adventure.
Ready To Leave
August 30, 2014 - We drove to Osaka to again board the Sunflower Satsuma. Our
dogs and cat were ready for a little stretching after being packed in the car
for a couple of hours. This time we got a send off from Grandma and Geegee who
met us at the ferry port. It was a pretty emotional sendoff and then it was time
to get on board.
All Aboard
August 30, 2014 - Once we boarded the ferry, we needed to take the dogs and cat
to their luxury accommodations. Then we went up on deck and hung out a traveling
group of college students. They really like Shai, of course. We headed to the
dinner buffet which was really good this time. A waitress really spent a lot of
time with Shai, his first girlfriend on a ferry. lol. We opted to stay in the
family room again since it is much cheaper and last time we were the only ones
there. Not the case this time however. We would spend this night with a few
families including some kids around the same age as Shai. He really enjoyed
playing with them. Akiko spent the night talking with some of the ladies while I
continued to drink beer and watch TV. A very relaxing evening.
Return To Kagoshima
August 31, 2014 - We ate our usual breakfast buffet and then then picked up the
pets and drove off the ferry. On the way to the next ferry we went to a small
park to let the dogs do their business. Then we found a really nice beach in
Kagoshima where we were able to let them run without leashes. The least we could
do before they were back in cages on the next ferry. This beach was loaded with
pumice rocks. We were able to find a bit of space in the car and brought a few
to the island.
Return To Tanegashima
August 31, 2014 - We drove once again to the Hibiscus ferry and got on board. We
set the pets up in their cages and settled in for the three and a half hour
ride. We bought a bit of food for the trip. We arrived at Tanegashima late at
night and then made the hour drive to the house.
December 2014
December 3 - Hase Park Watching JAXA Hayabusa 2 Rocket Launch
December 3 - Maenohama Seaside Park Hanging Out Together
December 6 - Maenohama Seaside Park A Windy Day
December 7 - Fishing Minamitane West Coast Pier Number 6
December 10 - Farm Vegetable Picking
December 10 - Anno Imo Street Party
December 14 - Hanging Out With Friends Today
December 16 - Home First Jewish Hanukkah Holiday
December 16 - Home Hanukkah Lighting Menorah Candles
December 16 - Home Hanukkah Getting Presents
December 16 - Home Hanukkah Holiday Traditional Menu
December 18 - Home Purchased A New Oil Stove
December 18 - Maenohama Seaside Park And Beach
December 18 - Minamitane Fishing Pier Number 6 Rock Beach
December 20 - Minamitane Annual Fish Festival
December 20 - Minamitane Fish Festival Competition
December 20 - Minamitane Fish Festival Total
December 20 - Minamitane Town Japanese Style Jinanbou Restaurant
December 21 - Minamitane Exploring Adventure Homan Pond Hiking
December 21 - Minamitane Town Beach Hiking
November 2014
November 2 - Minamitane West Coast Pier Number 6 With Dogs
November 5 - Kitchen With Nice Fish
November 7 - Kitchen With Another Nice Fish
November 8 - Hanging Out With Friends Today
November 8 - Made A Nice Barbecue Outside
November 8 - Neighbor Barn Went To Visit Cows
November 12 - Watching Upper Farm
November 15 - Minamitane Town Local Vegetable Store
November 15 - Minamitane Town Unknown Location
November 20 - Playing With Goats Upper Upper Farm
November 20 - Purchased And Ate Flying Fish
November 22 - Nice Barbecue Outside
November 23 - Minamitane West Coast Pier Number 6 Fishing
November 24 - Minamitane West Coast Pier Number 6 Fishing
November 25 - Cutting Trees Upper Upper Farm
October 2014
October 2 - Seiyu Online Shopping Came Today
October 2 - Minamitane Town Demolishing House Adjacent Property
October 2 - Hanging Out With Friends Today
October 7 - Minamitane Town Garbage Collection Today
October 9 - Propane Fuel Setup Today
October 11 - Made New Gate For Dogs
October 18 - Made A Nice Barbecue Outside
October 18 - Minamitane East Coast Pier Number 3 Fishing
October 19 - Home Taking Bark Off Tree For Cat Scratching Post
October 19 - A Nice Barbecue Outside
October 22 - Minamitane Town Garbage Recycle Monthly Collection
October 23 - Minamitane Town Strange Farm Vehicle
October 29 - Home Getting A New Meter Installed Today
October 30 - Home Living Room Area Finished Now
September 2014
September 1 - Minamitane Town Daiwa Onsen
September 1 - Minamitane Town Japanese Style Jinanbou Restaurant
September 1 - Nakatane Town Somes Building Supply Store
September 1 - Cutting A Few Trees Today
September 1 - Maenohama Seaside Park Hanging Out Together
September 2 - Our Stuff Came Today
September 2 - Repairing Line Wind Blew Off
September 3 - Our Stuff Piled Up
September 3 - Cutting Tree Upper Farm
September 4 - Sunset Behind Yakushima From West Coast
September 5 - Nishinoomote City Shopping Today
September 5 - Minamitane Town Japanese Style Jinanbou Restaurant
September 5 - Maenohama Seaside Park Dogs Playing
September 6 - Parking A Car Anywhere
September 7 - Fishing Minamitane West Coast Pier Number 1
September 8 - Kiku Ryokan Begin Working And Eating Together
September 8 - Maenohama Seaside Park Hanging Out Together
September 8 - Fishing Minamitane West Coast Pier Number 6
September 10 - Maenohama Seaside Park Dogs Eating Bait
September 12 - Found A Mamushi Snake Upper Farm
September 12 - Nodogoshi Beer Sale And Stocking Up Refrigerator
September 13 - Minamitane Okonomiyaki Style Yasu Bei Restaurant
September 14 - Farm Making Beds
September 14 - Farm Putting Seeds
September 14 - Maenohama Seaside Park Collecting Driftwood
September 14 - Maenohama Seaside Park Hanging Out Together
September 14 - Maenohama Seaside Park Sliding Sand Mountain
September 14 - Minamitane West Coast Pier Number 6 Fishing
September 15 - Kiku Ryokan Begin Working New Chair
September 15 - Maenohama Seaside Park Dogs Making Friends
September 19 - Home First Friday Night Jewish Sabbath
September 24 - Home First Jewish Rosh Hashana Holiday
September 27 - Minamitane Town Local Vegetable Store
September 27 - Minamitane Japanese Style Jinanbou Restaurant
September 27 - Minamitane West Coast Pier Number 6 Rocks
September 30 - Met New Friends Today |
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