Japan 2022 Day 3

Day 3: Lake Akan

Robyn asked for us to share our onsen experience….here’s all you are going to see

And yes, we did dog paddle around with towel on our heads!

Before the big reveal about what we did today, here’s some sights and sounds of Akan ( figuratively speaking)

an interesting label for a garbage bin
Note the two green balls on the telegraph pole…more on that later
One of the local deer decided ……..
….. he needed to get to the shops before they closed
The Ainu totem poles outside our rooms
The same poles are lit at night
The view from our room
Look at the magnificent juxtaposition, courtesy of Phil
Some of the local architecture
A hot springs footbath just in case you need one when shopping
How do you like my skirt?

Onto the activities we did today……

At the centre of the Ainu indigenous festival are green balls called ”marimo”. They are a unique and rare species of algae which only form under certain very special ecological conditions. Churui Bay on Lake Akan is the only place in the world where these marimos grow and develop into large spherical balls up to 30 cm in diametre. The bay’s gentle waves help the marimo develop the perfect spherical form, while the lake bed’s saline springwater and the sunlight that filters through the clear lake surface ensure the algae can thrive.

The festival involves the delivery of these green balls ( its not absolutely clear what happens to them but we think they are returned to the Observation centre where they are being preserved for posterity).

Today we took a ferry ride to the Observation centre on Churui island to see these famous green balls.

It was pretty cold on the ferry

In the afternoon we took a stroll through the Akan forest, visited a museum (with a huge brown bear called Daisuke who lived his life in front of the tourist info centre and became the centre’s symbol) and ended up at a shinto shrine.

In the evening we went to see some traditional Ainu dance but cant show you pictures as we werent allowed to take any.

Have forgotten to tell you about the covid protocols here for dining. First, you have to wear a mask wherever you go….even in the dining room. When you go to the buffet, you must have a mask and plastic gloves on. You take the gloves and mask off while you’re eating, but when you return to the buffet for seconds or thirds ( or in James’ case, tenths), you have to put masks and gloves back on.

Slipping the gloves on when first entering the dining room is simple as there is a machine to help you

Watch Phil’s hand slip nimbly into the glove

And as you can imagine, the buffet has some extraordinary items. Here’s Phil trying to pierce a green tofu ball ( yes, part of the green ball theme for this blog)

Once pierced the covering looks like a condom!

awaywiththebirds

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