Golden Week Road Trip - Day 1

It's Golden Week! A series of public holidays that no one really remembers which holiday each day is :) I decided to take a road trip down south. Packed blankets and cushions in the car - the plan is to sleep in my car at night.

Everyone is on a road trip! The roads are packed with cars full of excited little children and adults happy to get a break. Despite the heavy traffic, no one is blasting his horn or desperately trying to switch lanes. There's definitely a happy holiday mood in the air. Check out this little stuffed toy hanging out of the window of the car that stopped next to me...so cute!

浦川原 Uragawara motorway rest stop

This motorway rest stop is tucked away in the mountains between Tokamachi and Joetsu.

There's a park and a playground next to the rest stop.

Plenty of sakura trees still in bloom here.

Lunch at 糸魚川 Itoigawa

Itoigawa is a small fishing port in the south of Niigata on the border between Niigata and Toyama. A value-for-money business lunch set (even though it's not a working day) at Restaurant Kurohime. Only 500+ yen! Includes fresh sashimi from the Japan Sea.

親不知ピアパーク Oyashirazu Pier Park

This is just a short distance from Itoigawa, just after crossing the border to Toyama. The view while driving along the coastal road was simply superb, so everyone took the opportunity to stop at this park to admire the scenery. The carpark was full!

Fine weather...perfect for a walk on the beach!

World's largest bronze statue of a turtle - 6m long and weighs 5 tonnes

高岡 Takaoka

Arrived at Takaoka - my destination for the day! There was a 獅子舞 Shishimai (lion dance) competition going on. The Japanese have adapted the Chinese lion dance into their own style. It is usually performed in spring and fall in the hope for a good harvest. The "lion" is usually composed of 2 or 3 people in Japan. This 5-man lion is quite special. The "lions" don't do any acrobatic stunts. The "lion" will dance around till the challenger in front manages to subdue it with the long stick he is carrying. Then the performance ends and the next team comes on.

I took 2 short videos of 2 separate teams:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b5RiUAaCCbw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLR11w49wSs

First time watching a movie in a cinema in Japan!

Watched Spiderman 3! Just released! That cinema had cheaper tickets for shows after 9pm - only 1,200-yen (S$16). Tickets usually cost 1,800-yen (S$25) each in most Japanese cinemas (no drinks or popcorn included). Had to ask the ticket office to make sure that I was in the screening that had an English-speaking Spiderman...Spiderman here speaks Japanese...and his Japanese is better than mine!