Chiyoshi Falls

We accidentally saw this beautiful Chiyoshi Falls when we were heading to Towada Ko (Lake) or Lake Towada last September 5. We saw a lot of tourist buses along the side of the road and out of curiosity I asked my husband to pull over just to check what was going on there. And to my surprise I saw this beautiful water falls and a lot of tourists were taking pictures of it. Those Japanese tourists were carrying humongous lenses and tripods and unfortunately I forgot to bring my tiny tripod LOL (good for me, it's so shameful to bring mine while I'm seeing huge lenses hehehe) . This falls is part of the Oirase Gorge Stream where the water comes from Lake Towada.


Lake Towada is approximately one hour and a half from Misawa Air Base. I would love to go back here in Oirase Gorge to see this falls and its surrounding during Fall season where the leaves turn to autumn colors. Hmmm, I forgot it's Fall now LOL. But maybe I should wait a couple of weeks to wait until the leaves are totally turn to red and orange colors.

Doctor Fish at Kenji World

Doctor Fish Booth


After I screamed, a lot of American guys were curious and tried the spa too LOL


Foot spa :-)


The wood bench is where you sit and watch the doctor fish eating your dead skin hehehe

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Doctor Fish


Inside the Kenji World, they have this doctor fish's booth where you have to pay 1000 yen for 10 minutes and have this foot spa treatment. You just wash your feet first before dipping them in the small pool, sit down and relax. Once you dip your feet, the doctor fish will go after your feet and eat your dead skin leaving your skin smooth and healthy :-)

My daughter and I tried this treatment, we had a discount, 2 people for 1400 yen (~$15). As soon as my feet landed in the pool those doctor fish were fast and they were after my feet and started sucking my skin, it felt weird so I screamed so loud! LOL. I really can't explain and can't describe the words on how the feeling was, but it's a fascinating experience when the fish were nibbling my skin. I thought I couldn't take it anymore but I also thought of the amount of money I paid for this so.....I just stayed there and tried not to see the fish sucking my skin. After 5 minutes or so, I overcame the weird feeling and was able to take pictures of these doctor fish :-)

My husband and my son tried that too, they liked it.

According to wikipedia:

Doctor fish is the name given to two species of fish: Garra rufa and Cyprinion macrostomus. Other nicknames include nibble fish, kangal fish, little dermatologists and doctorfishen; in non-medical contexts, Garra rufa is called the reddish log sucker. They live and breed in the outdoor pools of some Turkish spas, where they feed on the skin of patients with psoriasis. The fish are like combfishes in that they only consume the affected and dead areas of the skin, leaving the healthy skin to grow, with the outdoor location of the treatment bringing beneficial effects. The spas are not meant as a treatment option, only as a temporary cure for symptoms, and patients usually revisit the spas every few months. Some patients have experienced complete cure of psoriasis after repeated treatments, but due to the unpredictable nature of the disease, which is strongly influenced by endogenous factors, this may simply be regression towards the mean.
In 2006, doctor fish spa resorts opened in Hakone, Japan, and in Umag, Croatia, where the fish are used to clean the bathers at the spa. There are also spas in resorts in Hainan, China, as well as Belgium ^[1], The Netherlands^[1],South Korea, Singapore, Slovakia ^[2], Surat(INDIA), Indonesia and Malaysia In 2008, the first widely known doctor fish pedicure service was opened in the United States in Alexandria, Virginia and later in Woodbridge, Virginia. They are used to help treat patients suffering from various skin disorders, including psoriasis and eczema, since the fish will eat and remove any dead skin.

Kenji World

The chairs are for rent


Kenji World. wave pool







The second floor is the moving river

----------------------------------------------------------------------------


Kenji World

August 22, 2009- We went to Kenji World, it is an indoor water park located south of Misawa Air Base . The water park has the famous wave pool, 5 water slides, (3 for tubers with single and double tubes provided and 2 slides without tubes, one slide is enclosed and the other is open). There is a shallow water pool for kids too.

On the second floor is a wide moving river of water that passes through the tunnels, water falls and water fountains. You will need to bring your own tube here to enjoy swimming. Tubes are for rent for 2 hours or whole day.

There is also a hot spa, jacuzzi and restaurants inside the water park. The hot bath or onsen has a nominal fee if you opted to go there.

The locker rooms are pretty neat and cool. They give you a key chain w/ strap for your locker when you check in and you don't have to bring your purse or money to buy some food or even rent tubes, swimsuits or gears inside the water pool area. The keychain strap has a number on it that you use to buy stuff anywhere in the water park (coz you can not bring food too), you just pay your bills once you check out. You have to wear the strap around your wrist all the time to avoid losing it.

Shower rooms have complimentary shampoos, body soaps and hair dryers. There's also some q tips too if you want :-)

Driving from Misawa AB to Kenji World is approximately 2 hours to 2 1/2 hrs. Kids will really enjoy this. After Kenji World we went to Morioka Mall, this is where I enjoyed my trip most :-)

Liberty Park or Ichou Park

Statue of Liberty in Momoishi Village, this replica is located on the same latitude as the original statue in New York



Old Japanese people digging somethings, I think clams but not sure hehehe



Playground in Liberty Park or Ichou Park


Slide


Flower with no name LOL






Another view of Statue of Liberty in Shimoda taken last Dec 2008




----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ichou Park is in Momoishi Village in Oirase Town, Aomori, Japan. As the town shares same latitude as New York City (Lat.40' 40" N), the Statue of Liberty was put in the park and is the highest of all the Statue of Liberties in Japan. The size is 11.5 meters high, 1/4 of the original size in New York and is lighted up at night, adding a fantastic atmosphere.


This is my second post of Ichou Park which is commonly called by most of the US Military people here in Misawa as the Liberty Park. We once again visited this place last August 8, but that day it was gloomy and the sun did not really cooperate with us.

The last picture and second to the last were taken last December 2008.

I wasn't able to take another closer shots when we last visited the park due to the weather, there were lots of bugs and mosquitoes and for some reasons mosquitoes are more attracted to see my son :-) and when they bit him he will end up having big bumps on his face, eyelids and sometimes on his both ears. And unfortunately I did not bring off spray to repel those mosquitoes.

This park has playgrounds for kids, a slide, swings and see saws.

To get the directions, click this to see my old post.

Hachinohe Sansha Tansai (Festival)- part2

This is the second part of my batch of photos from the Hachinohe Festival which was held last August 1, 2009.

Hachinohe Sansha Taisai (Festival)- part1

One of the floats, the little drummers and the blue devil (sorry but I don't know the name of the float hehehe)



A blue float :-)

BFF (best friends forever hehehe)


The Geisha Float


The old man and the horse with no name

Kids with their flutes


The cute drummers


The teenagers with their custom made flip flops


Another float


These kids are pulling the rope (pretending they can pull the big float).....I don't think I'll let my son wear this kind of hat but they're so cute with these kids :-)


----------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Hachinohe Sansha Taisai- is a wide and main festival of the town. It is also considered as "Japan's Biggest Float Festival." Sansha means "three shrines" and Taisai means "festival": It is held by three shrines (jinja): Ogami Jinja, Shinra Jinja, and Shinmeigu.

Floats ran through the main streets of the city of Hachinohe, accompanied by people with drums, flutes and loud calls. Twenty seven different floats were used, and they were proudly constructed and decorated by the members of various organizations. The floats were also accompanied by men in samurai costumes on horseback, and Tiger Dancers. Some kids and adults were pulling the ropes to guide the floats on where to go.

We witnessed this event last August 1, 2009, sorry for this late post I was a bit busy lately.....busy with my farm.....farmtown on facebook hehehe LOL.

By the way, Hachinohe is a 30 minute drive from Misawa Air Base.

I will post more pictures from this festival on my next post.

Misawa Tanabata Festival- Part 3 (Street Food and Games)

Look at the outfits of those 2 girls :-) compared with the old guy on the left LOL




The machine on the left is where you get your ticket, and the prize are the stuffed animals/toys



These sodas are not real sodas they are floating devices :-) or floaty??? (whatever!) , you'll definitely get one of these when you buy a ticket for 500 yen, the grand prize is a huge stuffed animal; the machine ticket is the same as above


Catching gold fish, 500 yen with that little scoop




Catching toy balls



This is how they make tako yaki (tako means octopus)


I don't know the name of this food, but it looks like a hotdog with bones instead of sticks inside hehehe



hamburgers



choco bananas, bananas covered with chocolates



I don't know the name of this food, the toppings are pork



I bought two sticks of these chicken nori or barbecue (that's what I thought) actually they are chicken skins barbecue :-D, 200 yen each stick


friendly Japanese old man selling chicken skins


Misawa Tanabata Festival- this is the last post of the 3 series I posted for Tanabata Festival