A to Wa of Japan: Week 43

It’s time for A to Wa of Japan again! Last week’s post was about things beginning with  る (ru) and we looked at Ruriko-ji (瑠璃光寺). This week we are looking at things beginning with れ (re). A big thank you to those who joined in with suggestions this week:

Japan Australia suggested Rendai-ji (蓮台寺 / an onsen town in Shizuoka Prefecture), and renkon (レンコン / lotus root); zoomingjapan suggested Rent-a-Car (レンタカー / car rental, such as Toyota); and Paul suggested reiki (霊気 / spiritual healing and massage), and Rebun-to (礼文島 / Rebun Island, near Hokkaido).

It’s been another tough week for ideas! But in the end I decided to write about…

Rebun-to (礼文島)

A couple of weeks ago I wrote about Rishiri-to (利尻島), a small island right on the edge of Hokkaido, and today I’m writing about its neighbour, Rebun-to, which is also part of Hokkaido Prefecture.

Like Rishiri Island, Rebun Island is not somewhere many tourists tend to visit as it’s quite remote. It looks absolutely beautiful though!

Cape Sukai, Rebun Island © Yasufumi Nishi/© JNTO

Rebun island is about 50 kilometres off the northwestern tip of Hokkaido, and is about 80 square kilometres in size. It’s about 10 kilometres away from Rishiri island.

Much like Rishiri island, Rebun Island is a great place to go if you want to relax and get back to nature. It’s known for hiking trails and natural beauty, and is part of the Rishiri-Rebun-Sarobetsu National Park (利尻礼文サロベツ国立公園). The island is known for its alpine flowers, some of which are unique to the island and can’t be found anywhere else in the world. In fact, the official Rebun-to website calls Rebun island ‘flower island’. The flowers can be best enjoyed from around June to August, which is a good time to visit Hokkaido if you like nature and hiking.

The image above shows Cape Sukai, which is the best point from which to view the clear blue sea. Other sightseeing points include Momo-iwa or ‘Peach Rock’ which has an observation deck, and Neko-iwa, or ‘Cat Rock’. Apparently these rocks look a bit like a peach and a cat – can you see it?

Momo-iwa & Neko-iwa

(Image source)

There is also a rock called Jizo-iwa, which is said to resemble a Jizo (the guardian deity of children).

Jizo-iwa

(Image source)

So, there’s not a whole lot to do on Rebun Island, but sometimes it’s nice to just go somewhere to switch off and relax, and Rebun Island could certainly offer that opportunity! Have any of you been there?

View from Momo-iwa © Yasufumi Nishi/© JNTO

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Next week we’ll start with ろ (ro), so please leave a comment below suggesting a topic for things beginning with ろ. Topics can be anything, as long as they are connected to Japan – food, places, people, characters, whatever you want to hear about! Just remember that the words you suggest must be Japanese words.

I look forward to hearing your suggestions!  (*^_^)v

Also, there are only two more posts left in this series before I’ll be taking a little break and planning the 2014 series. I’ll still be blogging about other things (I’ve actually got lots to catch up on!), but if you enjoy giving your suggestions for A to Wa of Japan, please make sure to give me your ideas in the next two weeks!