Kyushu II : Sakurajima

The most striking thing about Kagoshima is not the town itself. It's the active volcano looming over it from across the bay, Sakurajima. Formerly an island, auntil lava flows connected it to the east side of the bay, Sakurajima is the most obvious place to go visit, so we did.

It started off a bit cloudy.

Looking back across to Kagoshima: not as good as the view from Kagoshima.

You can soak your feet in warn volcano water. (Ingrid says this photo is like some 1st generation instagram post but I would not know.)

The cloud started to lift and the sun came out.

The small hut you can see is as close as you are allowed to get to the summit. It's way too dangerous with constant eruptions of hot poisonous gases from within the volcano.

The island's lamp posts are decorated with its twin symbols: the volcano and ...

... the giant radish! Sakurajima radish is about twice the size of an adult human's head. They are chonky.

The island is also known for one of the smallest breeds of oranges. Actually the english word "Satsuma" is the name the local area around Kagoshima.

The local oranges are also available in ice cream form.

We mostly just pottered about and then got the boat back, being neither equipped for a serious hike, nor allowed to do one!