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| Trust me! It is still there! |
The Volcano We Never Saw:
The plan for Mt. Aso was six months in the making. The reality? A very expensive game of "Hide and Seek" where the mountain won.
The Great Aso Fog-Off:
We set off from Kumamoto, braving the route toward the volcano despite the gloomy forecast. About 20km in, we heard the park was closed due to fog. Change of plans: Beppu bound! But wait—during an egg-sando break at 7-11, the restrictions lifted. We turned the car around, full of hope and caffeine.
Ten minutes into the ascent on Route 111, hope turned into "holy cow." Visibility dropped to 5 meters. Pat was laser-focused on the orange center line—it was literally the only thing between us and the abyss. Thirty nerve-racking minutes later, we reached the Visitor Center, only to find all trails closed.
So, we did the next best thing: we paid 500¥ for parking and sat in the theater to watch a video of how beautiful the mountain looks on a clear day.
The Trudge to Beppu:
Driving back down was even spookier as the clouds swallowed the road. We barely breathed until we reached the Aso roadside station, which was packed with fellow "volcano refugees" buying bentos to soothe their souls. We found a tiny gem of a restaurant near the station for a sumptuous teishoku—the first win of the day!
The rest of the drive on Route 57 was a "glacial" trudge through the rain, punctuated only by an unnecessary (but delicious) baked sweet potato snack. By the time we hit the coastal Route 10, we were ready to hit the sack.
A Solstice Surprise:
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| Best chance of eating the monster sushi at Owadazushi, go with prior reservation |
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| The chunkiest sashimi/sushi ever |
Then, the day pulled a 180. We checked into our top-floor room in Beppu—massive, sea-facing, and gorgeous. After some retail therapy at You Me Mall, we hit Owadazushi for the most incredible sushi of the trip. The bill was a shocker in the best way: just 6,600¥ for award-winning chirashi, sushi, and beers!
Just as we thought the day was done, Beppu erupted. At 8:00 PM, a 30-minute fireworks display lit up the winter solstice sky right in front of us. It was the perfect Christmas consolation prize for the mountain that stood us up.
Thought of the Day:
In Japan, if the mountain won’t show you its face, the city will usually buy you a drink and put on a light show to make up for it.