Our last day on Kyushu and then an overnight ferry to Osaka

We are excited to have a week in Osaka, yet sad, that returning to Osaka means that we are in the final days of this tour. We love Osaka and know it well, plus we have good friends in Yoshi (who has a recumbent bike shop) and his wife. It is always a highlight to see them and catch up with their lives. Yoshi kindly stores our bike batteries and chargers when we go home.

The bakery associated with the Hotel is excellent.

For breakfast, we have a choice of entrees that are prepared for us plus there is a buffet. It is very good….the baking and the food kare made in house. This photo shows Barry’s breakfast from the buffet.

My entree was salmon sashimi… fresh and delicious.

The restaurant is on the second floor. The bakery has a wide selection of baked goods, soups, sandwiches etc.

From what we can see, this commitment to repurposing and updating older businesses here bodes well for the future of Kanoya.

Our hotel is hosting an art installation.

Love the humorous approach in promoting this product. Barry really likes them and reported back that the lemon candies havd a very strong flavour in the centre.

This butcher shop in the Michi is embracing the Christmas spirit.

Eating mandarins that are picked fresh from the tree will make it hard to adjust to imported mandarins when we go home.

In Japan, you will notice that mascots are an important part of the identity of a business, a brand of food, a shop, etc. The mascots for this Michi are on the two windows above the door.

A favourite lunch for us….fresh yummy sushi. The item on the left is Inari Sushi. It is a traditional sushi of rice tucked inside sweet and salty deep fried tofu pockets.

This painting in the Michi recognizes the bravery of the kamikaze pilots from WW2.

The mural on the Kibakawa District Recycling Centre is quite entertaining and humorous.

Our final stop before we get to the Ferry Terminal will be this Michi. We have visited this one before and will visit the Onsen to refresh ourselves after our ride today.

The word "dekotora" is a Japanese word, mixing the words "decoration" and "truck". Dekotora stands for the unique truck culture in Japan, where truck owners and drivers decorate their trucks to various levels of extremes.

Truck decorating began back in the 1960's to fight the salt and rust damage to trucks that were transporting fresh fish and other seafood products. Drivers started adding various stainless steel parts to their trucks to protect and extend the longevity of their trucks.

The rear of the dekotora trucks is the prime spot to display flamboyant paintings.

Front bumpers often house various decorative details that range from daytime running lights of all shapes and sizes to small decorative figurines and objects.

At the rest stop, there was a hotel and an Onsen.

The giant rhino beetles face off to do battle at the Osaki Michi-no-Eki rest stop

The ginkgo is a special tree and most impressive when its fall colours emerge.

A few weeks earlier we stopped here and made reservations for the overnight ferry to Osaka. The Sunflower ferry line is outstanding. On our first trip to Japan we took the same ferry from Osaka to Shibushi.

We seem to always line up with the motorcycles.

We booked a Superior cabin for the overnight voyage. These cookies were in our cabin when we arrived

The woman who worked at the onsen that we went to earlier in the day gave Mary Ellen this beautiful paper doll that she had made as a gift.

The dinner buffet on the ship is outstanding.

Oden is a type of food that is very popular in the fall and the winter. It is made up of processed fish cakes and balls, eggs, daikon and it is stewed in a light, soy flavoured daishi broth.

Salmon Sashimi and seared bonito.When we were in Kochi on Shikoku we had the most delicious seared bonito. In Kochi they use straw that is on fire to sear the fish.

Fresh fruit, cake and ice cream for dessert.

Today's ride: 35 km (22 miles)
Total: 1,340 km (832 miles)

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