20231017 AAAA Trip - Beppu, Japan - To Hell and back

2023 Alaska, Asia, Australia, Arabian Peninsula Trip 
Day 31/105 - Beppu, Japan - The Hells of Beppu

Upon arrival in Beppu, we were greeted by dancers and a dragon. The dragon terrorized passengers as they made their way to the waiting tour buses.

Our tour today was The Hells of Beppu.

The Hells, you say?  Yes, indeed.  One of the big tourist attractions here in Beppu are Hells - a series of hot springs, and by hot, I mean really hot.  How hot? 98-104 degrees.  Not bad, right?  Except we're talking Celcius.  In Fahrenheit, that is between 208 and 219.  Yikes!  Of course, all that comes with the bonus of steam and a lovely sulfur aroma.  Did I mention Hell?  To make it worse, back in the warrior days, they used some of the hotter springs to torture prisoners!  Double yikes! They do have more comfortable hot springs where the water temperature has been cooled to a more tolerable temperature and those are also a big tourist draw.

We visited four of the seven Hells, or Jigoku, here in Beppu.

Tatsumaki Jigoku (Tornado Hell)

This Hell features a boiling hot geyser, which erupts every 30-40 minutes for about 6-10 minutes. A stone plate above the geyser prevents it from reaching its full height. Our guide called ahead and confirmed when the next eruption would be so we hurryed there as our first stop.

105C - toasty

It was a pretty violent spray

Chinoike Jigoku (Pool of Blood Hell)

This Hell, informally known as Bloody Hell, is accessible from the same parking lot, so it was just a short walk to reach.  It is named for its color which resembles blood due to the iron oxide and magnesium oxide in the water.

The Hell theme is accented by demons

Tomato soup?

There were plenty of small waterfalls all over

They did sell an ointment made from the water

This stop also had a foot bath where you could soak your feet in a much more reasonable 104-degree (F) bath.

Arlona, water, so you know...

The gift shop had today's flavor - acidic lime

Our next stop also had access to two different Hells It was a short drive to our next stop.

You can see steam rising from natural vents all over - it is used for cooking and heating

Oniishibozu Jigoku (Monk's Head Hell)

This Hell, featuring thick, muddy water is named for the bubbles that resemble the shaved heads of monks.

A frigid 98C (208F)

Steam escapes all over

The symbols from top to bottom mean ogre, priest, heaven, hell

A stream flowed nearby - it's lukewarm at the top and cooler at the bottom of the flow

The bubble domes resemble a monk's shaven head

We were given a short break here and provided a local treat.  It was a pudding of sorts that was locally steamed using geothermal steam.

Google Translate provided the English version - Hell Steamed Pudding!

We walked to our final Hell of the day.

Umi Jigoku (Sea Hell or Ocean Hell)

This Hell is named for the azure blue of the water. As we left the cafeteria, we passed a shop selling bite-sized dumplings.  They were steaming them out back on this contraption, leveraging the steam from the springs.

The grounds leading to and surrounding the Hell were lovely. There was a Shinto shrine here as well.

More steam vents

Look at the size of this spider! (Arlona's finger is included for size reference)

The Sea Hell.

Natural jets were constantly blowing

Another geyser erupts constantly

There is a greenhouse here as well.

These lotus flower leaves are large enough to be able to support a 16-pound child

See the dragonfly?

The inside of the flower was filled with liquid

Along with the Sea Hell, another Bloody Pond Hell is at this location.

Back on board, when we went to open a can of Coke Zero, we noticed the opener felt different. It seems that the ship has finally exhausted its supply of US-sourced Coke Zero and we're dipping into Japanese-sourced cans.

As we prepared to sail, the port once again treated us to song and dance and waving friendly faces.  The Welcome to Beppu sign was gone and in its place, Always with you, "Beppu". 

As we sailed away, with the sun moving behind the hill, the venting steam became more visible, all over the city. 

As we said farewell to Beppu, it was time to start thinking about getting Arlona into her kimono as she planned to wear it tonight.  It turns out that she is already adept at getting it on and adjusted.  I had to lend a small hand tucking a single section of her sash.

We enjoyed a pre-dinner drink and caught what little sunset we had tonight.

Travel Consultant, Hâmed, is hosting a dinner tonight for some of the folks making the longer journey to Sydney or Auckland.  He has been hosting a series of these and tonight was our opportunity.  We enjoyed dinner at Chef's Table in the private room with six other guests sailing to Sydney or Aukland, along with Hâmed's brother, Hamid.  Hamid is onboard until Hong Kong as Hâmed's guest.

The menu this evening was La Route Des Indes.

Carrot and cardamon cream with orange and star anise foam

Spicy tuna tataki with Szechuan peppercorns, coriander & sesame oil, and pickled vegetables

Ginger and tarragon granité, infused with vodka and topped with lemon foam 

Beef tenderloin with four warm spices, vitelotte mousseline, mushrooms, jus

Apple délice facon tarte tatin, butterscotch calvados sauce

Everything was terrific and the dinner conversation was perfect.  It made for an enjoyable evening.

We were both still feeling a little tired and decided to catch tonight’s guest entertainer on the TV in our stateroom.

Tomorrow, we’ll be in Kagoshima, Japan.