Alone in Fukuoka

For the past three days I have been loose in the city alone. I have walked a minimum of 5 hours a day. I'd probably walk more if it didn't all of a sudden decide to start pouring whenever it feels like it. My feet have a few blisters on them because I only ever wear sandals; my fault. I took a Red Bull with me but remember what I said about trashcans being hard to find? I carried that damn can around for an hour before I could find the proper receptacle.

I felt like Lewis, or Clark (which ever one was better looking), out there exploring. I have been extremely lost quite a bit in the last few days but some how I always make it home. Since Fukuoka is the 5th largest city in Japan, there's no way I've been able to walk the whole area. Fukuoka is divided into separate districts. The district I am in is Seaside Momochi, and I now know my way around it like the back of my hand.

Each day I have taken a different route from the apartment. The first day I went left towards the beach. When I got to the beach, I took my time walking North until I got to the familiar Yahoo! Dome and stopped for lunch at the mall. The beach is not at all like what I am used to in California. Empty beach, no waves, and rough sand with grass growing out of it. The water is warm, but I'm not about to go in it because there is jellyfish.

I think this is the beach's lifeguard. Red bathing suit? Nope. Young, and in great physical shape? No way. Baywatch got it all wrong. Not even sure this guy was alive. I sat on a rock and watched him for five minutes. He never moved.

All the action in the area happens around the Yahoo! Dome. I guess because the JAL SeaHawk Resort Hotel is there along with the Hawk's Town mall. The Hard Rock Cafe is at the mall, which has become my embassy out here. English menu and food I can eat with ketchup and silverware.

The building on the right is the Yahoo! Dome and on the left is the JAL building. I went into the resort and got the the elevator and rode it to the top, nice view, but there is a better one - I'll write about that later.

Once I ventured off into the smaller parts of town, every street corner began to look the same which is why is was easy to always be getting lost. I past by three or four schools. A local high school team was attempting to practice football. I know they have adopted baseball and love it, but football doesn't look like it has a bright future for them. A ton of children ride their bikes and walk the streets alone. It was after a while of being lost that I wound up in the district of Nishijin. This place stunk of fish big time, mainly because there are little markets selling it everywhere.

On the right is one of those Pachinko places.

Pachinko is some kind of slot machine that I don't understand yet. You don't actually win money either. I walked inside and, like a punch in the face, the smell and the noise turned me right back around and out the door I came it. Imagine the noise and cig smell of a Vegas casino and multiply it by a thousand. Then take it to the 3rd power. In this particular area I found 3 American establishments: Baskin Robbins, McDonald's, and...

Afflac! Random, I know.

I'm not big on snapping pictures of myself, but I did it anyway. I know Mike Young is a pro at it, so much so that he needs to write a book on how to do it. I'd read it. That monstrosity behind me is the Fukuoka Tower, Japan's largest seaside building. More about my visit to that in the next entry.