Japan Adventure

Japanese Garden Park near Hikari

Here we are at the park near Hikari along Hwy 188. A palm tree is blocking the sign, and I can't remember it's name. But the first time we came here (5/27/07) the hillside as you go in on the right side was covered with yellow flowers, and thousands of roses were in bloom. This park is famous for their ume (plum) trees covering the opposite hillside, but they were mostly gone today, although a few still had blossoms.

I like this cute wooden sign near the entrance.

Look at the cute owl made of wood.

And other cute little wood animals around it . . .

Cute tiny windmill on top of the sign.

Side view shows that it's a recycled plastic bottle with the sides cut down to form the blades - what a great green idea!

Mosiac tile inside the bathroom.

Outside a sign tells exactly where we are located, but I still don't know the name of this park!

Huge azaleas blooming in very small pots are just some of the plants for sale here.

Perfect cherry blossoms. Some have already blown off.

A few koi looking for a handout when I walk over to the edge.

But look what happens when this little boy begins to feed them . . .

Feeding frenzy!

This is the largest pond at the bottom, but the stream comes down from a hillside with many bridges, rock formations and waterfalls along the way. What a beautiful way to landscape a gradually sloping property!

Standing on a bridge looking down at a waterfall.

Oh look at the circular carvings on the rocks!

I was amazed at this lady's coat & she told me it was called a "Mama coat" - what a great idea!

Margie amidst plum blossoms.

Double blossoms in front of a large rock.

Tiny violets.

All different colors of blossoms.

Beautiful stone stairway going up a hillside.

Artistically-trained pine branch among the rocks.

I'm standing on one of the bridges looking down the stream. The sound of water falling over the rocks is melodious.

A family having a Sunday picnic.

Part of the upper pond & rock gardens.

This man had a camera with a huge lens set up on a tripod to take blossom photos.

Looking down the hill over a curved bridge, with a building & the Inland sea beyond.

Beautiful pink blossoms against a blue sky.

This map (from a previous trip) shows where we are.

As we're walking back down the hill toward our car, we see the lady with the "mama coat" & her two children.

Heading back toward Yanai we see a lone biker riding along the sea.

Arrows around a curve to help us stay on the correct side of the road? The sunshine makes the sea a beautiful color of blue.

Ah - we've arrived at our favorite Yanai restaurant - Eizan. This has become our regular stop after shopping at Hikari Market. Beautiful fresh flowers adorn the entrance.

Stan's picking out his fish - decisions, decisions! But he decides on the tai - red snapper today.

When you get to the bottom of the page, click "Older Posts" below right to continue . . .

I decided to try the lobster special.

Yikes! When it arrives, I realize the tail portion is cut up, but still raw. Lobster sashimi! And it's resting on a bed of shredded daikon radish.

And if you look at this one & back at the one before, you will see that the legs are still moving around. It kind of creeped me out because it was looking at me . . . so I ate it fast (it was delicious!). Then our waiter took it back to the kitchen to cook the front half.