Going Slow

Hey look, SmallPaw, over here! Pssst, I'm over HERE!!

Since leaving Kyoto a week ago we've stopped in several places - Himeji, Kurashiki, Takuma, Matsuyama and now Fukuoka - but for some reason it never felt rushed. Probably because we spent 3 days in a house near Takuma in the middle of nowhere not doing much. Bliss.

The weather has been kind to us, as usual, so even though it's getting notably cooler and autumnal, our clothes are still holding up. Cross your fingers that we make it until the end of the month without having to buy jackets! :)

So first up, Himeji. Last time we were here, we enjoyed it so much that we decided to do a quick one-day stop again to see the castle without the scaffolding and have some more delicious ramen at Koba's.

When we were young and dynamic... And the castle was still undergoing major renovations.
Older, maybe a bit wiser, and the castle back to its original glory. Not much luck with our photographer though...

Then it was on to Kurashiki to see a canal. (No really, that's pretty much what the town is famous for. And denim in all its forms. Including denim burgers. We contented ourselves with a simple denim headband for SmallPaw.)

Good morning Kurashiki! What's happening?
Autumn at its finest.
Maybe the hats are a bit much...
There were droves of people standing on the bridges, waiting for the street lights to come on so they could take their iconic shot. Of course I had to get one too.

Then we went into seclusion - just in time for the US election, what a coincidence - to a small but lovely little house by the sea, far away from pretty much everything. (Although here in Japan you're never really that far from anything...)

Not much to do here but look at that view!

The view from Mount Shiude, just behind our house.

I'm bored. What are we doing now?
Drawing in the drive-way. And seeing how many pieces of chalk you can fit into the storm drain before the authorities notice.
Everybody loves brunch.
The water was actually quite warm. Or maybe it was just the wind that was so freezing cold.
Another gorgeous sunset. Yawn...

To ease ourselves back into civilization again after that we made a brief stop in Matsuyama to eat lots of mikan (citrus fruit) and see the oldest onsen bath in Japan. We didn't go in because the little paws are both a bit sick at the moment but we had a nice lunch near by. We also stumbled upon the county fair one night and had some great fried-chicken and a beer tornado.

This looked terrifyingly fun. We didn't let SmallPaw do it (obvoiusly) and she was devastated (obviously).
Testing the beds. Rigorously.

And now we're hitting the last leg of our Japan trip already! Only 10 more days and we're outta here. Time flies when you're having fun...