Day 5: The Ibusuki (Saraku) Sand Bath and the Chiran Peace Museum for Kamikaze Pilots (Oct 2015)

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Thursday, 22nd October 2015

After travelling about an hour on the iconic Ibusuki-no-Tamatebako train with a stopover at Kiire Station, I finally reached the seaside town of Ibusuki. I liked that we were given a warm welcome by the local people as soon as our train pulled into the platform. The train journey was eventful with the stewardess going around the cabin taking pictures for us.

From the station, I hopped onto a local bus which brought me straight to the gates of Saraku Sand Bath. This was the reason why I was here today - to experience the sensation of bathing under the heat of volcanic ash by the sea. As touristy as it sounds, this was a well-managed place where English signage was prevalent to orientate users around the place.

After changing to my bathrobe, I was directed to the outdoor area where I was allocated a spot on the ground to lie down. Next, the lady manning the station would come by and shovel the volcanic ash around my body leaving only my head exposed. Once I was completely covered with ash, the friendly staff would help take a picture of myself buried under the ground. After steaming for about 15 minutes, I could head back indoors to continue soaking in the Japanese bath before leaving the premises.

No visit to Japan would be complete without visiting one of their iconic World War II museums. Before coming to Japan, I did my research online and the only war museum at this part of the country would be the Chiran Peace Museum for Kamikaze Pilots. Getting to the museum was a bit tricky as it involved first taking the train from Ibusuki to Kiire Station (many departures). Once at the station, I had to take a 5 minutes walk to the bus stand (ask the train office for directions) and wait for one of the infrequent bus services to the museum. This took about another 30 minutes before a final 10 minutes walk to the museum.

The museum was a tribute to the many Kamikaze Pilots who sacrificed their lives to protect Japan from the Allies invasion towards the final moments of World War II. Throughout the museum were the pictures of young pilots and the final notes that they penned down to their families and country before embarking on their suicide mission. Also on display were the huge aircrafts as well as other personal uniforms and belongings of the pilots.

This was a sad, yet educational visit as I went though the exhibit details one by one. The adjoining Peace Park provided a nice break after my "heavy" museum visit. Probably, the only thing that visitors should be mindful is the infrequent bus services to the museum as I nearly missed my last bus back to the JR Station. So please be mindful of the schedule. Otherwise, this was a really enjoyable day excursion for me from Kagoshima.

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