DYA717 Japan H I S Tohoku Food & Flowers May 22, 2026

DYA717 Japan H_I_S Tohoku Food & Flowers May 22, 2026 [Aomori ReLabo Spa & Stay, Hakkouda Maru, Neputa Museum Wa Rasse, A-Factory, Hotel Groove Shinjuku] Day 9 – 6:30 a.m. breakfast at the Aomori ReLabo Spa & Stay. Google said today will be 48-63 degrees. 6:30 a.m. breakfast at the Aomori ReLabo Spa & Stay (hotel). First stop (optional) was a short walk to the Hakkouda Maru, a ship which was used to transport trains back & forth from Aomori to Hokkaido. Our guide was actually an engineer on that ship and he gave us an interesting tour telling us about the ship and about his experiences working on that ship. We walked through displays on various levels, ending up at the bottom engine room. Then we had to climb a jillion steps to get up to the entrance level. Along the way, I could feel the ship swaying a bit and got a little seasick. Another person I spoke to also had seasickness with a headache. Back in 1972 I went on a train from Sapporo to Hakodate where the train entered the Hakkouda Maru or one of the sister ships. We crossed the ocean and the train got off at Aomori. Next stop was a short walk over to the Wa Rasse, the neputa museum. Then a short walk over to the A-Factory, an omiyage place. Then the group got on the bus for a short ride to lunch at the Ajisai (Hydrangea) Restaurant. Then over to the Aomori Airport for a short plane ride to Haneda. We landed around 5 p.m., got on our tour bus, got caught in afterwork traffic so went directly to the Hana No Mai Restaurant. The restaurant’s theme was sumo. They even had a “real” scaled down version of a sumo ring built by actually sumo ring construction folks. We had a chunko nabe dish which sumo wrestlers eat a lot of to gain weight. We also had another all-you-can deal. Then we checked into the Hotel Groove Shinjuku. The hotel lobby is on the 18th floor. My room was on the 25th floor – beautiful view. Since tonight was a Friday night, the streets were jammed with young folks going out to have fun. Today I walked 4.3 miles – about 9200 steps. This video is a composite of misc photos I usually share with family and friends. Nothing fancy; you’re welcome to view it.