tokyo tohoku trip - day 3.
after a good night sleep, we woke up to really beautiful snow view at the resort, this snowy scene never gets old. and of course we enjoyed the onsen once again, it was just so so amazing. we had breakfast at the resort’s restaurant which is japanese buffet style, and they use many local ingredients as well. i love the variety and all the food is really fresh and taste so delicious, i ate quite a lot and was fully stuffed and satisfied.
played in the snow again for a bit because it’s a rare chance and i really enjoyed it. XD while waiting for the next bus, we also had coffee and coffee jelly soft serve and just chill at the lounge area which is relaxing and comfortable. the bus ride going back to town is lovely, there’s less snow in town of course, and we arrived at our next destination with really nice weather without any snowing.
sannai maruyama ruins 三内丸山遺跡 is a popular tourist attraction in aomori, and it looks beautiful with lots of history to learn, hence we decided to visit the place to just walk around. they do have free guided tours but the timing wasn’t very suitable so we just roam around ourselves which is totally fine too.
the place has a indoor section which plays movie (in japanese) and display some artifacts with description, but the outdoor section is the gem, and it’s just so beautiful. my friend visited this place many times but never once when it is covered in snow, and she love the view as well. the outdoor site has lots of buildings that you can get into, to see the actual site of the ruins and artifacts, and the structures are beautiful in its own way and great for photos. it was an awesome walk, definitely highly recommended.
we decided to go to ASPAM アスパム that is nearby aomori station for lunch, there’s a japanese restaurant with a great view of the bay area on the 10th floor - michinoku cuisine nishimura みちのく料理 西むら. we ordered their set meals which is mainly seafood. i had the baked hotate with egg, fish soup and hotate sashimi with rice and pickles. my friend ordered the kaisen don which has so much fresh seafood on rice. the food here is really good, seafood is fresh and taste is so appetizing, it was so satisfying, and the bonus is the great view outside the window which is calming.
after lunch, we head to aomori station as we need to take the local train to misawa station for our next hotel for the night - hoshino resorts aomoriya 星野リゾート 青森屋. this resort is one of many resorts under hoshino group of hotels, and this place has lots of unique activities you can do during your stay, besides food and onsen. the resort does pick us up from the station which is very convenient.
the resort area is quite beautiful with a lot of greens and flowers and trees. there’s an entire area filled with many things like shops, games, an izakaya, a performance show, and an apple juice tap, which taste really nice. the shop has lot of local souvenir variety, but it’s definitely slightly more pricey. we couldn’t catch the performance as all seats were already booked. but the nebuta float decorations are still beautiful to look at.
we took a short rest in our spacious hotel room before going to dinner. dinner was awesome, it’s buffet style and half of the food is cooked freshly at each stall, which is so good, the smell increase our appetites and everything truly taste good. i enjoyed so much of sashimi, grilled seafood, tempura, vegetables, and many other japanese dishes. for some reason, japanese buffet is very enjoyable and the variety just makes me happy. it was definitely a very satisfying meal, and i discovered i really liked apple tempura so much, didn’t expect that.
after a fulfilling dinner, we decided to take a walk outside the pond area, it’s litted with japanese style lanterns, there’s also a foot bath in the area, with a shrine in the middle of the pond with beautiful light up nebuta decorations. it was a very peaceful and relaxing walk, even if it is dark, but it just feel so comfortable with the beautiful night view, we also got to see stars in the sky, which is impossible in the city, that made me feel so good.
the night is not complete without a relaxing bath in the onsen, there’s an outdoor onsen in this resort, with a view of a nebuta float, how amazing is that. while the onsen was quite crowded, it still feels so good and comfortable as the onsen is quite spacious. the bath amenities is also very complete, so it’s super convenient. i love outdoor onsen so much because the bath is hot but the air is cooling, it’s super comfortable and relaxing and you get to stay in the hot spring so much longer. a relaxing hot spring is the perfect way to end the night for a good night sleep.
to be continued...
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