Japan Hour: Road Trip To Hokkaido (Part 1)
(Local line) There is still a lot to see in Japan. A spontaneous trip on a local line across Japan. Let's walk freely and aimlessly. We will surely find beautiful scenery and heart-warming encounters. From the first station to the last, we'll look for places that cannot be found in the guidebook.
The locals always know the best places. So all aboard on this trip of enquiry and discovery. This time, the journey takes place on the JR Tsugaru Line, running north-south on the Tsugaru Peninsula. From the train windows, you can see the magnificent Mutsu Bay, as well as the peaceful rural landscape. Let's get off the train at a station you've never been to and discover great places in Japan. What's right in front of us is Hokkaido.
Is there any place around here that you really like? Sorry? Through enquiring the locals, our duo finds Nebuta, Aomori's summer tradition. They experience traditional local performing arts and feast on the seafood of the Michinoku region. So good! -However... -Do you have rooms available? We're full.
(A crisis!) They find themselves in a crisis as they cannot find an accommodation. We have no place to stay. This has never happened in the history of this show. It's your fault that we had to take the bus both ways. We ship scallops.
-Wait! They're filming a TV show! -What's going on? What's happening? -It's so hot. -It's so hot! Filming this show is so hard! It turns out to be a hectic journey filled with incidents. -Here we go. -Here we go. They have nothing planned for the trip.
Yoo-hoo! A spontaneous two-day overnight journey. Let's start our spontaneous local line journey of enquiry and discovery. The journey begins in Aomori City, Aomori Prefecture.
This is where the first station of the Tsugaru Line is located. (Aomori Station) Aomori Station is quite big. Here are our travellers.
Sorry, but I'm on my day off. -That's not true. -Please don't film us. -No, this is work. -Really? -This is work? -Yes. -Good morning. -I had no idea.
This is Mr Taizo Sugimura, a former member of the House of Representatives. (Taizo Sugimura, 35 years old, from Hokkaido) And here is Ms Minami Tanaka, a former TBS newscaster who has co-starred with Mr Sugimura on a TV show before. What about the apple store? Sure. Let's enquire the locals.
Can I ask you something? -Is this an apple store? -Hello, excuse me. -Yes, this is an apple shop. -Great! -You have so many kinds of apples. -Yeah, so many.
There are more inside. -Would you like to try them? They're good. -I'd love to. Sorry for the trouble.
Thanks. -Can I eat it with the skin on? -Yes, you can. -Are you sure? Thank you. -It's good! The part between the skin and the fruit is highly nutritious. -It's so sweet. -Yes, it is.
-It depends on where they are from. -It's good. By the way, do you often take the Tsugaru Line? Tsugaru Line? -Sure, I take it sometimes. -You do? Do you know any nice spot along the Tsugaru Line? For example, is there any place you'd recommend near Aburakawa? Aburakawa is where Nogiwa Park is, right? -There's a park. -Is that so?
What's the park like? It's quite big. -It's big. -I see. I believe there is a swamp there. -A swamp? -A swamp? You can fish Japanese crucian carp. Japanese crucian carp? That sounds nice. -Nogiwa Park... -It's not that impressive.
-He said, "It's not that impressive." -Not that impressive, just like Mr Taizo. Did you hear that? That's actually perfect. -Not being impressive is perfect. -Thank you. -Thank you. -Thank you very much. We'll see you later. Now that they know where to get off, they head to Aomori Station.
-This... -I see it. It's this blue line. (Aomori Station) -There it is. -Yeah. -The next station is Aburakawa. -That's right. (Aomori, Aburakawa) Their first stop is Aburakawa Station, where Nogiwa Park is located. But they're concerned about something else.
We need to find an accommodation for tonight. Yes, I think we should do that early. -That makes me anxious. -It does?
Yes, it does. You'll be fine because you're with me. That makes me even more anxious.
Looking at the timetable, I assume that Minmaya is a large station. Kanita, before that, -is probably also big. -Why is that? Because express trains stop at this station. You're so smart. That's a smart way to look at it.
I thought that maybe there are nice inns around Kanita Station. -I think so too. -That's my guess. Our duo decides to find an accommodation near Kanita Station. Ms Tanaka is very organised.
-Would you buy one for me? -Sure. Thank you very much. All Mr Taizo does is wait. This is great. It's my first time taking the Tsugaru Line. Is Ms Tanaka actually a train enthusiast? I think we should hurry, Mr Taizo. What? What? No way.
This place is bigger than I expected. This is a hectic way to start the journey. Let's hope it goes well. The train is already here. -Is that the train? -Yes.
The local train bound for Kanita Station is leaving now. -It's leaving now! -It's leaving now. We need to press the button. What? -Let's go in. -It's so cute. It's pink. Hello.
Look at this. The Tsugaru Line, which opened in 1951, runs through Kanita and is locally known as the "Gani Line." They have two types of vehicles. (Kiha 40 series diesel train, 701 series electric train) Sorry to bother you. Sorry for the commotion. -You need to press the button to open. -That's right.
-Hi there. -Impressive. Sorry for the trouble. Do you know Nogiwa Park? Yes, I do. Is it a nice place? -It's a quiet place. -Yeah, it's quiet, but... It's not that impressive. -Everyone is saying the same thing. -You can still go.
The train is leaving Aomori Station now. Here we go. Great. -The weather is nice today. -Yeah. (10:38 am) Their journey on the JR Tsugaru Line begins now. (Aomori Prefecture, JR Tsugaru Line) The JR Tsugaru Line runs north-south through the eastern part of the Tsugaru Peninsula in Aomori Prefecture. The line runs along Mutsu Bay, and there are 18 stations in total.
It's a scenic local line with a route distance of 55.8 kilometres. (18 stations in total, 55.8 kilometres long) Their goal is to enquire local residents and make an original guidebook with 10 entries. They only have a timetable and a map to help them. I like trains and I wanted to take Hayabusa.
It took longer, but I took Hayabusa (Shinkansen) to get here instead of an airplane. Really? In Morioka, they separate connected train cars. Some train cars go towards Akita and others go towards Aomori. I wanted to see that. That's why I took the train.
I had no idea Ms Tanaka was such a huge fan of trains. It's been about four minutes since the train left the station. Impressive.
There are so many trains that I've never seen before. I assume these are trains that are no longer in use. This is Aomori Train Centre. Decommissioned trains can also be found here. Do you get excited about trains like these? Yes.
You really like trains, don't you? -Mr Taizo, we need to... -Yes? We need to keep an eye out for nice places seen outside the windows, -Okay, sorry. -or we won't find anything. Got it. Sorry. -This station has a great atmosphere. -We've arrived. (Aburakawa Station) Seven minutes after leaving Aomori, the train arrives at Aburakawa Station, the neighbouring station. Here, they want to visit Nogiwa Park recommended by the lady at the apple store.
Do we press the button to get off too? Okay. -That's right. -We almost missed our stop. (10:45 am) Thank you! Thank you! It's so cute.
It's nice, isn't it? -We're in Aburakawa. -Aburakawa. We've arrived. -Our first station. -I've got a good feeling about this. -Really? -Yes.
-What? -There's no automatic ticket gate? No, there isn't. -This is quite rare these days. -That's right. Is it like this for most of Tsugaru Line? -Yes. -Is that so? Thank you very much. -About the next train... -Wait a minute!
-What? -What? -Is this the timetable? -No way! Is this the timetable? Really? -Did we just take the 10:45 am train? -Yes. We took the 10:45 am train, so the next one is at 1:26 pm. -There are no trains at 11 or noon? -No. Seriously? This isn't good. The Tsugaru Line trains generally run every two or three hours. If they miss the train, they'll be in trouble.
What do you think? Well... -We're in Aburakawa. -You know what? What? What do you think? -It's an open area. -An open area?
First, we need to find people. -That's right. -What about that person? Sure.
Hello. -Do you live in this area? -Yes. -I'd like to ask you something. -Sure.
We heard that there is a famous park called Nogiwa Park. Yes, it's near here. -Go that way. -That way?
Turn right and go straight for... -How many kilometres? -It's kilometres away? -It's kilometres away? -Yes. -Go that way and turn right? -Right. What's on this side? That side is called Nishitazawa, and there's nothing much to see.
What's the speciality of Aburakawa? -Maybe Prince Shotoku is buried here? -Some place nearby? There's a Nebuta (float) workshop. -Where is it? -Where is it? Please wait. Nice. I wonder if they have any Nebuta right now. -What? -Please wait. Nebuta is Aomori's famous summer festival.
Our duo waits for a while. My guess is... They have a Nebuta, but they can't take it out. It's a small Nebuta. Really? They have one inside a building, but they can't take it out.
Can we take a look at it? You can still look, but it's facing the opposite side now. -Facing the opposite side? -I see. Let's go to Nogiwa Park. -We'll see you later. -Okay.
-Thank you very much. -Sorry I couldn't help. -No problem at all. -We'll let you know what we thought. We'll stop by on the way back.
He told us that they have a Nebuta. But what does that mean? Maybe they store it somewhere? Let's enquire about it later if we have time. Sure. Though they're curious about Nebuta, they first head to Nogiwa Park. I'm excited. I wonder what's there at Nogiwa Park.
They've been walking for 30 minutes now. I don't see anything that looks like a park. They should be arriving soon. This is it.
-No way. -No? -No way. -This must be it. -No way. There's no sign that says so. -No? -No? Not this? -No.
This won't work? Look! Suddenly... -That looks like a park. -It suddenly appeared. They ended up walking for 40 minutes to get to Nogiwa Park. -Our first entry. -Nogiwa Park.
-We found our first entry. -We're here. Not yet. We need to look around the park first. -We need to look around? -Yes, we do. -Really? You're so serious! -Of course.
This looks nice. I see a lake. (Nogiwa Park) Our duo was told that there was a swamp, but it's actually a lake. It's pretty! -It really is pretty. -It's pretty.
-Right? -Great. I love these yellow flowers. This is a nice place. I like it.
Nogiwa Park has an area roughly seven times the size of Tokyo Dome. In the centre, there is a lake built for agricultural use. How do we register our first entry? We'll take a photo. Let's quickly take the photo.
-Quickly. -Mr Taizo, please act like you've found a great spot. -Do I have to do that? -You don't have to, but... Isn't that what you want to do? -Yes, I guess so. -Right?
-So... -Let's take a great photo. We're not here to take a photo, but we're here to enjoy visiting nice places. We just take photos as a formality. Taking photos is not the purpose of our trip. I see. I see.
With that, our duo walks around the park. I see someone fishing. -Excuse me. -Yes?
Did you catch any fish today? No, I haven't gotten much today. Not much. -Look. -Is that a carp fish? You're not here to catch carp, are you? Well... There are many carp fish around.
They're right under his feet. I think you've got a fish! Look! -Perfect timing. -Incredible! Incredible! Yes! You've caught a fish.
Congratulations! I just saw a fish getting caught. -Good luck! -Thank you. Wait a minute.
Should we go that way? They've been walking around the park for 40 minutes now. -Shall we go up? -Let's do that. It's higher than I thought.
This is fun! Wow, what an amazing view! On the journey of enquiry and discovery on the JR Tsugaru Line, our duo gets off at Aburakawa Station and goes to Nogiwa Park. What's at the far end of the extensive park grounds? It's higher than I thought. This is fun! Impressive! Wow, what an amazing view! I like it a lot! Lake Nogiwa is a calm lake often visited by waterbirds. Lotus flowers are in full bloom in summer. I almost left just after looking at the entrance. Aren't you glad we walked around? Yes, I'm glad we did.
The first entry in the guidebook, Nogiwa Park, a perfect place to relax by the water. That was good exercise. Definitely.
(31 minutes to the 1:26 pm train) We're back to the station. Why don't we ask the man we met by the station again? Let's do that. Sir? Our duo visits the house of the old man who told them about Nebuta.
Hello? Yes? -Hello! -Sorry to bother you. I hear his voice. We were wondering if we could see something related to Nebuta. In the shed, there is a small Nebuta inside. Can we take a look at it? It's fine if we can only see the back.
The back... -Are you sure? -Yes. Great! Thank you very much.
Sorry for the trouble. It's a great opportunity to look at a Nebuta. We wanted to film it. Sorry for asking so much. This place looks great. What is this place? This is a shrine.
A shrine? Is that so? The Nebuta is on the shrine grounds. -It's inside here? -This thing? Yes, it's inside here. So this is the shed.
-Wow! Impressive! -Impressive! It can be taken out if I can find enough people. Our crew members offered to help. What? Keep it that way.
-Here we go. -All right. Slowly. What? -Stop? -Stop? Wow, this is incredible! Thank you very much, sir. -Thank you very much. -This is incredible!
This one is Benkei -and Yoshitsune on Gojo Bridge. -I see. This year's Nebuta features Benkei and Ushiwakamaru (Yoshitsune) meeting on Gojo Bridge. New Nebuta floats are made every year and dismantled after the festival.
There is documentation indicating that a Nebuta festival was held in Aburakawa in 1716. It is said to be the oldest recorded Nebuta festival. The second entry in the guidebook, Nebuta in Aburakawa, with 300 years of history.
-Thank you very much. -Thank you very much. I really appreciate it. -Thank you. -Thank you. -In Aburakawa, -That was very nice. -we unexpectedly found two entries. -That was great.
Our visit in Aburakawa was just perfect. That's true. Where are they going next? There is a river flowing in Okunai. Civilisation always flourished wherever rivers flowed. Are you dating back 4,000 years of human history? The history of mankind is much older than that, Mr Taizo.
Next, they'll head to Okunai Station, two stops away. Here it comes. There are only three train cars, which is adorable. (Please press the button to open the door) Hello. Hello.
(1:26 pm) -The scenery looks incredible. -Yeah. Rural landscape. It looks very peaceful. By the way, our duo hasn't had lunch yet.
Let's hope that they can find delicious food at the next station. We're arriving at Okunai soon. -What do you think? -I wonder. This is quite important for us, Mr Taizo.
We shouldn't really take our chance. -You're right. -What should we do? (Okunai Station) The Tsugaru Line has a fairly low number of trains. They need to be careful when choosing stations to get off to. -What should we do? -What do we do? What are you going to Okunai for? -I'm getting off there. -What will you do?
-I'm going home. -You're going home? Is there any place to eat around the station? -No. -No? There's a ramen shop.
-A ramen shop? -It's called Nippamaru. -Let's get off here. -Really? -Please watch your step. -Are you sure we should get off here? (1:33 pm) There's a place called Nippamaru.
-Sorry? -Nippamaru. They have good fried noodles. -Fried noodles? -Yes. Where is that? -Over there. -There? Thank you very much.
-Thank you very much. -Nippamaru. -Yes, it's Nippamaru. -Okay. It's called Nippamaru. This is where they collect the tickets. At unmanned stations, tickets are collected in boxes like this. Incredible.
This really is an unmanned station. (Aomori, Okunai, Minmaya) -When's the next train? -Let's see. We just took this train, so... It won't come for another two hours. (2 hours, 6 minutes to the 3:44 pm train) -Two hours? -Really? Not until 3:44 pm? It looks like it.
We should've gone farther. We've only advanced this much. Anyways, let's go to Nippamaru. -Let's go to Nippamaru. -Yes. Ms Tanaka. It's quite...
It's quite what? -It's quite a relaxing place. -That's right. That's all there is to this place. (JR Tsugaru Line) On the journey of enquiry and discovery on the JR Tsugaru Line, our duo gets off at Okunai Station and heads to a recommended ramen shop.
(2 hours, 3 minutes to the 3:44 pm train) Ms Tanaka. It's quite... It's quite what? -It's quite a relaxing place. -That's right. That's all there is to this place. They walk for three minutes from the station. It says "ramen and gyoza dumplings" over there. Is that it?
Nippamaru? Look, we found Nippamaru. Oh, yeah. I'm not sure why this is called Nippamaru. They're open. Yes, it says so.
Mr Taizo, please go ask for permission to film. Can I do that? Please do. (Rule: Travellers ask for permission to film themselves) It's the first time Mr Taizo is asking for permission to film. Please show us what you can do.
Right now... What was the name of the show? -It's a journey of enquiry and discovery. -On a local line. Journey of enquiry and discovery on a local line.
-Can we film this place? -Sure. -Are you sure? Great. -They said okay. Yes! -Thank you. This place looks nice. -Hello. We are travelling on the Tsugaru Line. A lady who got off the train told us that the food here is good, so we decided to visit. Okay.
All right. -This is great! -Yeah, it is. -I'm so glad they are open. -Me too. At this place, it looks like you have "Nippa Day" on the 28th of each month. Why the number 28? Because the national road in front of us is called 280. I see.
-That's why. -That makes sense. I see. National Road 280 runs roughly parallel to the Tsugaru Line. The ramen shop is on the national road and is called Nippamaru.
What do you recommend? Our Chobozan ramen. What is that? -It was inspired by a local mountain. -Chobo... There is a local mountain? The person we talked to recommended us your fried noodles. -Yes, we have fried noodles. -Is that so? Why don't we get the fried noodles and the Chobozan ramen? Let's get gyoza dumplings too. -Yeah, we have that too. -That sounds good.
I'll get gyoza dumplings and soy sauce ramen. -Soy sauce ramen too? -Yes. Isn't that too much food? For the store's speciality, Chobozan ramen, thick, freshly made noodles are used, along with bean sprouts and sweet and spicy soup made with ground beef.
On the other hand, for their soy sauce ramen, thin, curly noodles are used and topped with bamboo shoots and homemade roast pork. -Here's the Chobozan ramen. -Here it is! -Great. -Here's the Chobozan. Here you go. Is this spicy? -It's sweet and spicy. -Chobozan ramen. -Here you go. -Thank you very much.
Great. Here's your gyoza. -Okay. -Here's the gyoza. They look great. -They look great! -Yeah, it does.
For the soy sauce ramen, we use thin, curly noodles, so they mix with the soup well. For the Chobozan, it's thick noodles because the soup is thick. Scallops and dried sardines from Mutsu Bay are used for their special soy sauce ramen soup. It's absolutely delicious.
Is it not spicy at all? It's a bit spicy. It's spicy miso ramen. Okay. I can see that yours has thin, curly noodles, and mine has thick noodles.
-Sir. -Yes? I like these chewy noodles. He's working on our fried noodles.
Okay. Here is the fried noodles, which is a secret menu. It's a secret menu? -It's not on our menu. -It's a secret menu? -Yeah, I don't see it written anywhere. -That's true.
Their fried noodles is a secret menu that only a few people know about. They boil ramen noodles, rinse them in water, and stir-fry them. I can really taste the sweetness of the cabbage. The two continue to eat at a very fast pace. -It's good, isn't it? -Yes.
It's addictive. The third entry in the guidebook, Ramen Shop Nippamaru. They have fantastic speciality food. -Do you have any recommendation? -After eating, they enquire the owner. -Mutsu Bay. -Mutsu Bay? -Right over there. -Really?
-What's at Mutsu Bay? -Scallops. Really? -They're sweet. -They're sweet? -They're big too. -Really? -They're very famous. -Is that so? Which station should we get off? Which station? I guess Gosawa? There is a beach. Shall we go to the beach? Why not? Gosawa Station, where the beach is located, is five stops away.
Since they still have time until the next train, they'll go to Mutsu Bay from here. -Thank you very much. -Thank you. Thank you very much.
Do we turn left and right to go to Mutsu Bay? I know how to get there, so I can show you the way. -Will it be okay for the restaurant? -It's fine. Really? They walk for a bit after leaving the restaurant. -It's over there. -Just over there. I see. Amazing.
-This looks great. -This feels nice. Is this Tsugaru Bay? Is this Tsugaru Bay? It's Mutsu Bay. -Mutsu Bay. -Hello.
-Hello. -Awesome! Where are you from? -We're from Tokyo. -You've come a long way. This is where ships come in. The owner of this place has just left. -Is that so? -Yeah. Impressive! -What? -It's the sea.
I see. Ships leave directly from here. -Do ships come in directly? -What? -She's over there. -Okay. Okunai in Aomori has clear water. In the morning, we ship scallops. -Wait! They're filming a TV show! -What's going on? What's happening? That was so sudden! She just realised that she was being filmed.
Really? Let's walk around the port. It's so pretty! Are these all scallop nets? All of these on both sides? -They are. -That's impressive. Scallops from Mutsu Bay are caught between April and June. They're having a big catch this year. Here at Okunai Port alone, up to 100 tonnes of scallops are caught a day. Scallops from this area are known to be tender, thick, and sweet.
Very nice. -Check out the view from up there. -Let's go up. -It's nice. -Is that so? -I love this. -This feels nice! It does. There's nobody around.
Take a look at this. -It's a small scallop. -So cute. I like it.
It's a cute scallop. Very nice. The fourth entry in the guidebook, Okunai Port in the summer, where scallop fishery is very popular. -Thank you. It was a very nice place. -The view was breathtaking.
Mutsu Bay is very nice. -Thank you. -Are you leaving? -Thank you very much. -Thank you very much. Thank you for everything.
Let's go to Gosawa, the recommended station. -Yeah, let's go. -Yeah. Our duo will now go to Gosawa Station, where the beach recommended by the owner of Nippamaru is located. (Aomori, Okunai, Gosawa) The train is arriving! Hurry! They'll be in trouble if they miss this train.
-It only has one train car. -One car? One car? It looks completely different. Hi there. Sorry for the trouble.
I want to go to the front. It ends here. I want to go to the front.
You want to be standing? I've always wanted to take the Tsugaru Line. -I don't believe you. -I mean it! I love looking at route maps.
I noticed that there was a train service in this area, and it turned out to be JR. I was surprised to find that JR has a line here too. -Is that so? -Yes. With that in mind...
She looks so serious. (3:44 pm) The train travels through green countryside where fresh breezes blow. It's beautiful.
Meanwhile, what is Mr Taizo doing? -I'm Taizo Sugimura. -Okay. I am a former member of the House of Representatives. A former member of the House of Representatives. We're looking for a place to stay tonight.
I was wondering if you know any nice place. I don't know. Unfortunately, this didn't lead to any information. -I see. -Thank you for your time. Thank you very much. All right.
Did you enjoy the view? I did. After a 25-minute train ride, our duo arrives at Gosawa Station. The recommended beach sounds like a great place.
(Gosawa Station) We're getting off here. (4:02 pm) Thank you very much. -It'll be 420 yen. -For two people, please. Let's check when the next train arrives. There's one at 4:50 pm.
-We have less than an hour. -Let's go. That's a nice train. "Mori Shoten"? There's a store. -Great. -There is a store! (Mori Shoten) Excuse me. Hello. Let's ask where the beach is.
-Are you going to the beach? -Yes. Let's see. I wonder how far it is.
-Okay. -One kilometre. -One kilometre? -One kilometre? Once you hit the road over there, go straight from there. -Okay. That way, right? -Thank you very much. On that side, there is a place called Yomogita Village Marche. Sorry? -Yomogita Village Marche. -Marche? -It's a local speciality store. -Local speciality store?
-Thank you very much. -Thank you very much. We'll be back. This is National Road 280.
This road goes on and on. It's quite a walk. It probably feels like a long walk because it's a straight road. They've been walking for 20 minutes now.
-Marche Yomogita! -Nice! -There it is! -There it is! -Marche! -I'm glad. Great! Marche Yomogita is a local speciality store by the beach. Our duo takes a path next to the store. -Wow, impressive. -It's a sandy beach.
Nice! This is wonderful, isn't it? -Yes, it is! -All right! (Tamamatsu Beach) She's filming her DVD now. Which song would you like? -Southern All Stars! -Okay! Please use a Southern All Stars song. Ms Tanaka, jump! -Jump? -Yes! The water looks so clear. Is that so? Look at this sandy beach! -It's fine sand. -Yeah.
This is a great beach. It is. Tamamatsu Beach stretches for approximately 200 metres along Mutsu Bay. It's a shallow beach with clear water and is popular with families. You know, on the inside, the two of us are not pure like this water.
But we're pretending to look like we're pure. -I'm glad we came here. -Me too. Yeah.
The fifth entry in the guidebook, Tamamatsu Beach, a beautiful sandy beach that purifies our soul. We still have time, right? It's 4:35 pm now, and the train is leaving at 4:50 pm. We won't make it.
I want to take the 4:50 pm train no matter what. Do you think we'll make it? We'll make it in time. Do your best.
It took them 20 minutes to walk to the beach from the station. If we can run at this pace for five minutes, we'll be fine. -Five minutes? -Yes. We really don't have time. Filming this show is so hard! This is not relaxing at all.
Maybe we'll make it. They've been running at full speed for seven minutes. I'm impressed. We made it.
We made it. (5 minutes to the 4:50 pm train) Shall we go to Kanita Station next? -Of course. -Okay. Let's find an accommodation.
(Aomori Prefecture) Next, our duo will go to Kanita Station, two stops away, where they think they can find accommodation. (4:50 pm) It's almost 5:00 pm. Let's hope that they can smoothly find accommodation.
Impressive! It's all sea. It's very pretty. The sea continues on forever. We're in a bay, so the waves are calm. That's true. (Mutsu Bay) It's pretty.
It really is. Our duo enjoys the sunset over Mutsu Bay on their train ride to Kanita Station. There are two platforms. You're right. Having two platforms is a big deal.
It's a station where express trains stop. There will surely be accommodation. (Kanita Station) (4:57 pm) We took the train from Gosawa Station. Two tickets, please. Gosawa? It'll be 190 yen. -Here's 620 yen back. -Thank you very much.
By the way, the next train is the last one they can take to advance from Kanita. Suddenly, we're in a big city. You're right. Hello. Where does this bus go? Is this a shuttle bus of an inn? No, it's not. This isn't a shuttle bus? Is this a fixed-route bus? -It's a fixed-route bus. -I see.
Is there any nice inn on the route of this bus? Furofushi Onsen. (Furofushi Onsen) Can we take this bus to the inn? The bus goes near the inn, but not all the way. How long will it take to walk from the bus stop to the inn? -About four to five minutes. -Can we? Sorry for the commotion.
They've got a great piece of information, so they quickly get on the bus. There's an inn called Nakamura Ryokan near here, by the river. -Nakamura Ryokan. -Nakamura Ryokan? Thank you. (5:05 pm) It sounds like there are some inns around Kanita Station, but the bus has left the station. The pink colour caught my attention.
-Here's Nakamura Ryokan. -The pink colour of this bus. Is that the only reason? I wanted to take this bus. This is Sasaki Ryokan. Ganryu's...
-This place? -This is Ganryu's house. It looks like they're having many guests. The bus continues to advance on the road by the sea. Isn't the view just breathtaking? You being so anxious is making me anxious too. Our duo was on the bus for 30 minutes.
What do you recommend about this place? About Furofushi Onsen? -The water temperature. -The water temperature? Okay. That's important. Bye. Thank you. (5:35 pm) Look at this place.
The inn is supposed to be four to five minutes away on foot. Wait, where is it? On the journey of enquiry and discovery on the JR Tsugaru Line, our duo visits Furofushi Onsen, 30 minutes away on bus from Kanita Station. Wait, where is it? -But... -I see it!
Yes! Furofushi. Please ask for permission to film. (Inn Furofushi) Good evening.
Do you have any rooms available? There's a problem with our hot spring baths. Is that so? Okay. Thank you very much. Let's go. What did they say? They said no. Their hot spring baths are... They're broken.
They don't have water coming out. -It's too bad. -Furofushi Onsen. What should we do? Instead of staying here, we should get back to Kanita Station, right? Shall we go back? Let's go back. -Isn't that the same driver? -That's right.
He's laughing. -Hello. -We went to the inn. What should we do? What should we do? We don't have a place to stay. It's past 6:00 in the evening. It appeared that there were some inns around Kanita Station. Please take us to Nakamura Ryokan.
Though there are bus stops, as long as it's along the bus route, this community bus drops people off at wherever they want to get off. -Okay. -Okay. Sorry for the trouble. Sorry for the inconvenience we caused. I see Nakamura Ryokan. Are you going to park right in front of it? Wow, so many construction cars.
Can we stay here? The car park is full. -Thank you very much. -Thank you. I hope to see you again. Me too. See you again.
What makes spontaneous trips so great are encounters like this. Let's go to Nakamura Ryokan. There are so many shoes of construction workers. (Nakamura Ryokan) Good evening.
Do you have rooms available? -We're fully booked. -You're fully booked today? A bullet train construction is underway, and inns are all booked because of that. -I see. -I see. -So construction workers are staying here. -That's right. Almost all of them. -I see. -They're staying here now. -We're sorry. -No problem. Sorry for the trouble.
Okay. We have no place to stay. This has never happened in the history of this show. Let's go enquire on that side.
At Sasaki's place? I wasn't expecting this. This is really bad. It's almost 7:00 in the evening. (3 minutes to the 6:59 pm train) The sunset looks beautiful. (Kanita River) Sasaki Ryokan is located right by the river. Let's ask.
Good evening. Excuse me. I know this is sudden, but do you happen to have two rooms available? We're full today. You're full today? -I understand. Thank you. -Thank you very much. Too bad. What will they do now?
There are no trains now. (Left Kanita Station at 6:59 pm) The last outbound train has already left, so they cannot advance any farther. Good evening.
-Are you a local resident? -Yes, I am. There aren't any inns around here besides Sasaki Ryokan and Nakamura Ryokan, right? No, there aren't. Those inns are full. There are no other inns, right? How far would we need to go back to find a hotel? Aomori Station. (Aomori Prefecture) Our duo gives up on staying by Kanita Station and decides to take the inbound train back to Aomori Station.
(Kanita, Aomori) Do you know any place with good food? Just beyond the Kanita River... Just beyond the Kanita River? Do you mean, where Sasaki Ryokan is? -Yes, right next to that. -Right next to that? It's called Maruhachi.
Maruhachi? I see. -Okay. -You can have a meal there. -I see. Thank you very much. -Thank you very much. -It's too bad. -Maruhachi.
Let's go back to Aomori Station. Let's check the timetable. There's an express train at 9:00 pm. (14 minutes to the 7:52 pm train, 1 hour, 22 minutes to the 9:00 pm train) There are two trains that go back to Aomori Station. There's a train at 7:52 pm and an express train at 9:00 pm.
What will they do? I feel like we should find an entry at Kanita Station. Should we go back? Sure. To behind Sasaki Ryokan? Yeah. Do you live in Kanita? They'll enquire people by the station a little bit more.
Around this area, do you know of any restaurant? There are no restaurants. No restaurants in this area. -No? -No.
No, nothing. -Sorry for the trouble and thank you. -Thank you very much. They end up going to Maruhachi, past the river. You're working too hard.
We already found five entries today. Why don't you go back to Aomori Station by yourself, then? You're being such a pain. It's your fault that we had to take the bus both ways. -That's true, but... -So please stop complaining. I wonder if the restaurant is open.
We don't know until we get there. I wonder if it'll be open. This isn't so bad. It's an experience we don't get to have very often. Let's hope that Maruhachi is open. It's getting dark.
(1 hour, 3 minutes to the 9:00 pm train) It's almost 8:00 in the evening. They walk for 12 minutes from the station and cross the Kanita River again. Subtitles: Iyuno-SDI Group
2022-04-23 10:35
