Fukuoka flash visit

We arrived in Fukuoka via a bullet train from Kyoto with zero expectations and had a bulk fun time.

Nestled on the northern coast of Kyushu, Fukuoka is Japan’s fifth largest city. It has a relaxed and very liveable vibe and we really enjoyed ambling through its chilled out but vibrant streets.

Our first priority after checking into our hotel was finding good coffee, with White Glass Coffee delivering an excellent latte, lemon and rosemary soda and a delicious BLT.

Though DD was very disappointed not to try FUK Coffee, which we discovered on our way to Canal Mall, a shopping centre featuring five storeys of retail with a canal running through its centre.

I went shopping while DD had a beer on the fifth floor (he’s a little dot in a window in the pic above).

Right in the midst of the busy streets next to Canal City lies Kushida-jinja Shrine. It is famous for the Yamakasa annual festival where enormous floats race through the streets, with one of the impressively massive ones on permanent display at the shrine.

We were also lucky enough to be in town for the Hakata Old Town Festival, which featured entertainment, pretty bamboo lights and a food and drink stall along one of the canals.

An enterprising business also offers canal boat rides on brightly coloured vessels, steered Venice-style through the city.

Afterwards we headed to Fukuoka’s famous open air food stands, called Yatai. Yatai can generally seat about seven or eight people and serve dishes including grilled chicken skewers (yakitori) and Hakata Ramen, a local noodle dish featuring thin ramen noodles in a pork bone based soup (tonkotsu).