While in Japan, we have learned to take weather predictions seriously. They are so accurate. Knowing that heavy rain was predicted for Friday (today) we made sure we would be positioned in Tsuruga before the rain started. We can’t imagine riding that route in the rain.
And yes, it rained…over 85 mm, just in the afternoon.
We are staying in this hotel, Hotel Granbinario. This brand new hotel is by the train station and very comfortable. They advertise that they have Slumberland mattresses (British) and that, as well as the low price due to it being newly opened, made our choice easy. Barry has really struggled with the hard..board like..mattresses in Japan and he was able to sleep comfortably here. On a bad day, we will inflate one of our Thermarest sleeping pads for him to get some comfort.
A lot of money is being invested in this area of Tsuruga. The new hotel, park, shopping area and covered walkways are part of the project.
Our hotel lacked a secure place to park our trikes out of the rain. They suggested the city parking across the street and it worked well. There is a multi layer car park and the main level has two sections, one for bikes (and there were 100’s of bikes) plus an area for motorcycles and our trikes. As well, staff are on site keeping an eye on things.
Where to start with this incredible bookstore. We have visited bookshops wherever we go, and this one eclipses all others. It offers 2 levels of shopping with built in sitting areas, large tables for meeting informally, work stations, a coffee area and a superb collection of books. It almost felt like a grand library with benefits.
We started in the deli and bakery area. Everything is freshly prepared in the kitchens in the store.Wow, the selection is awesome and they offer so many things in take home packaging. That will take care of dinner tonight.
We recall hearing in Canada that it is hard to source some single malts as the Japanese market supports a love for this products. This grocery store had an immense selection and the prices are unbelievable. Add 2 decimal points and you have the Canadian dollar amount: Laphroaig for $46.80!
Susan JamesYou are truly an opened minded eater. Not many non-Asians are willing to try this.(Not that there is anything wrong as it is all vegetarian.) Reply to this comment 10 months ago
So we had a rain day, relaxed..had a wander anround Tsuruga and made a firm plan. We have the choice of taking the ferry from Tsuruga to Totakamenai or Maizuru to Otura (Sapporo). We decided to take the ferry from Maizuru as we want to do a loop route on Hokkaido and we can’t resist the opportunity to see more of this area of Honshu. We’ll ride out to the ferry port in the morning to get our tickets and reserve a cabin for the Monday sailing, then we’ll start making our way west on our trikes over the next few days, enjoying the proximity to the Sea of Japan.
Having known nothing about Tsuruga, we have both enjoyed this seaside city. Looking forward to exploring Maizuru as well.
