Tuesday, April 27, 2010

All in One Saturday

That Saturday was awfully tiring yet fun. With officemates, Maki and Harumi, we went exploring Sakura City in Chiba prefecture.

Whenever I take the Keisei Limited Express train to and from Narita airport, the train normally passes by a scenic landscape with a huge windmill at the center before Sakura station proper. At first, I thought Sakura was not a city but just a plain countryside.
[De Liefde Windmill]

Out of my curiosity of the place, a month or so before, I asked my officemates whether they’ve been to that place to which they said never. [They’re both from Chiba so it came out as a surprise to me]. I told them that tulips probably grow there around Spring because I happened to see a friend’s photo of the tulips and that epic windmill, as background. I didn’t know that friend’s picture was taken there but I had a huge hunch that THAT was the place -– of course after some googling. [C’mon, windmills are not common here]. And I would later realize that I was indeed right.

After that, we went to Japanese Historical Museum. I’ve been to numerous museums (mostly, art) but THAT was the best museum I’ve ever visited here. It’s a total of 6 floors (3 floors underground) detailing Japanese civilization. It was quite interesting but it would have been better that they provide detailed English subs for foreigners -- like me.

Anyway, my eyes were just amazed by the exhibit. Me thinks THAT museum was underrated. I mean, it should be in brochures for tourists as highly recommended place to go but, I guess, its location is too far from Tokyo proper. We didn’t even get to cover the whole area due to its vastness and lack of time. [From the outside, it appears to be a three-storey building and with its location -- so secluded that one would think it as a research facility.]

Our day didn’t end there for while waiting for a non-existent bus [the last trip was 5pm, the same time the museum closes -- what?!] we got stranded at the waiting shed because it was raining ice-pellets [another first in my life].
Not for long did the ice-pellets turn to light rain, we decided to proceed to the next bus stop. Before we reached the nearest-yet-not-so-near bus stop, we were lucky to have hailed a bus. The driver was kind enough to get us in -– though a clear traffic rule violation – out of pity to our semi-drenched look. We call it a day after some Okonomiyaki and Monjayaki in Chiba city.

1 comment:

Nashe^ said...

Wow those are some pretty flowers.

I love me some okonomiyaki and takoyaki! Arghhh you made me want some now.