Day 32 Bicycle Is A Magnet Of Happiness! Kind Kumamoto So Stunning

May 12 • Blog, Kyushu • 1237 Views • 4 Comments

Towards the smell of these sweet chestnut buns, I was cycling north to Kumamoto City from Yatsushiro. Skipping breakfast isn’t a clever thing to do when you’re cycling long distance, but I hadn’t eaten anything that morning. I was sucked into a michi no eki, literally a road station, where there was food and resting space.

Delicious and super soft daifuku mochi filled with sweet red beans were definitely tempting.

I had a sample of this mirin (sweet sake used in cooking) flavored dried fish after being grilled. It was a little bit sweet and had this delicious concentrated flavor of mackerel, which begged for a glass of cold beer. It was still 9:30am though.

There was a man of a chikuwa shop, frying all kinds of ground fish products right there. It smelled so good, and so I was looking to see what he was making. He saw me and my helmet on top, and asked if I was traveling on a bicycle. He told me he liked cycling too, and wanted to check out my bike.

He was so excited to see my pink bike, and wanted to get a photo with it.

After that, he showed me what was good for my breakfast on the menu inside. Kumamoto region is known for growing igusa plant, which is the material used to make those Japanese tatami mats. He recommended the igusa dumpling miso soup. I never knew that plant was edible. Apparently they make the edible kind which is full of fiber and health benefits.

This type of dumpling soup is called, Dagojiru, and I’ve eaten it many times as I grew up without the igusa mixed in the dumpling. It is very easy and quick to make too. The dumping is just a mixture of flower and water, and they are dropped in the hot miso soup to be cooked. I should make another cooking video with this recipe sometime when I have a kitchen. (I’ve made one cooking video with Nikujaga recipe before my cycling tour. Have a look )

When I came out after the breakfast, a nice surprise was waiting for me. The chikuwa man was frying these chigiri (smaller version of the ground fish chikuwa), but with ginger mixed with it. He had made the recipe himself, and wow, it smelled and tasted so amazing! Hot and fluffy with a hint of ginger, these little fish balls were a sweet delight. He had packed a bag full of these ginger chigiri for me to have on the road later.

As I got into the city of Kumamoto, I headed to Suizenji Park. It is a beautiful Japanese garden that I’d visited a few times when I was growing up. On the way there, a cyclist came out of nowhere and said hello to me while cycling. He was a Kumamoto local, just riding around on this Sunday, enjoying the spring sun. We cycled together for a while and I was guided towards the park. What a nice afternoon ride with a local!

It was a calm, quiet, beautiful Sunday in Kumamoto. Big, beautiful koi fish seemed happy too.

I was walking in the park, and Noh was being played by chance. It is a form of Japanese musical drama that you don’t get to see that often. It was a real treat to see this old tradition just by walking into this garden.

I came across this very old glass maker’s stand. At that very moment, I had a flash back to the time when I was in the 5th grade. My mother brought me here on an autum day for a Japanese tea ceremony, and she bought me a set of glass puppies & parents. I still have it at home too.

I told the old glass maker about it, and he said he’d been there for the last 50 years, and that he indeed remembered the set that I described to him. I was so happy to meet this glass artist again. I bought a necklace with one pink glass piece called, tonbo dama in the middle. He gave me a 100 yen coin, wishing me a safe trip and telling me to buy a juice or something with it. He was instantly like a grandfather.

As I was talking with him, a little girl came by with her parents. After a careful consideration, she asked her dad for a set of three puppies. Yes, puppies, of course. The polite girl thanked her dad when he said yes. I could not help smiling as I witnessed the almost exact replication of my childhood moment in Suizenji Park. I wondered if she’d come back here some years later and remember this moment just like I was.

After the park, I reached Kumamoto Castle, where people were enjoying the sakura and sun around the huge wall surrounding the castle.

I spotted some girls wearing kimono on this Sunday, so pretty and suited for this scenery full of flowers.

And of course…, I should end this post with something yummy. Here’s Kumamoto’s ramen, which had fried crunchy garlic chips on top.

What a beautiful day it was, what wonderful people I met in just one day, even when I was in motion on my bike. Cycling really is a magical tool that gets you to places, and lets you meet some amazing people and scenes out there.

Have you been on your bicycle lately? If not, maybe it’s time you brushed the dust off and taken it for a stroll around your neighborhood. You never know what you might find around the corner.

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