3 days in Fukuoka – Yutoku Inari Shrine, Karato Fish Market ep.4
And we’re back. We just arrived in Fukuoka from Kumamoto to spend the first of nine total days there. I visited once in 2023 and totally fell in love with the city and the food. Our first stop is the Ramen Stadium located on the fifth floor inside the Canal City Mall. This location is popular as it houses several ramen restaurants, all popularizing the tonkatu style of ramen. I ended up having two bowls of tonkatu ramen from two different restaurants along with these local bite-sized dumplings. Tonkatu ramen is known for its rich and creamy broth. So, if that’s not your cup of tea, then Tonkatu ramen might not be for you. Be aware though, all the shops here are cash only and do not accept credit card. [Music] Christmas is taken very seriously here in Fukuoka with multiple Christmas markets open throughout the city. The one I visited was at the main station, Hakata station. The market opens in the first week of November and last until Christmas. There are multiple markets scattered throughout the city and there are limited edition mugs that you can collect from each location. In addition, there are many individually run shops and displays where you can walk around and buy things from. Overall, I think it was a very cool experience. [Music] late at McDonald’s. The next day, I headed to Karatau Fish Market, which was located close to Kokura. I took a train from Hakata and switched to a local train there. From there, you take a short 10-minute ferry to the fish market. [Music] From Kokura station, you can take a local train to Mojiko station, which is where the Mojiko ferry terminal is located. [Music] [Music] This is a popular fish market in Kyushu where vendors make nigiris and sushimi and they are displayed for your purchase. The local specialty is a fugu or puffer fish sushimi. [Music] I believe the market is only open from Fridays to Sundays, but you’ll have to double check the local schedule. This was on a Saturday and it was very busy due to a lot of tourists, but the atmosphere was excellent. [Music] In addition to sashimi and nigiri, there’s also deep fried specialties such as tempura and various seafood bowls. [Music] There are other attractions near the fish market which you can explore, but I decided to head back to Kokura. I took some shots around Mo station due to its unique design and there aren’t many train stations in Japan that look like this. Built into Kokura station is the local Montreal. A cool site. The next stop is station number two, Hadori. Please get off here for Umachi. As it was a bit humid and looking to rain, I spent the rest of the day exploring the city center of Kokura before heading back to Fukoka to spend the night. I stopped by another ramen shop that was famous for its Hakata tonkatu ramen, Hakata. The thickness of the broth combined with the pork and the chewiness of the noodles made this one of the best bowls of ramen I’ve ever had. On my third day here, I took a train to a shrine known as Utoku Inari Shrine, located in the city of Kashima, found in Saga Prefecture. There are multiple ways to get to this shrine. One of the most popular and easiest ways is from Hakata station and you take the limited express Kazasagi to Heizen Kashima Station. From there, it’s a short 10-minute bus ride to Yutoku Chinjamay. However, the Kazasagi only runs once every 3 hours, and the earliest one is at 7:55 a.m., which is the one I caught. [Music] This wasn’t the bus that I caught, but it looks like all the buses servicing the station are EVs. Super cool. [Music] So cute. [Music] Once you get off the bus, it’s a short 10-minute walk throughout a small village towards the shrine. Since I got there so early, most of the shops were actually closed. However, it was nice being able to enjoy it in the peace and quiet. Getting to the shrine early really adds to the experience as it is just you and the shrine keepers. However, shortly after this, a tour bus rolled up. Yogo Inari Shrine is considered one of Japan’s top three shrines dedicated to Inari alongside obviously the most popular Fushimi Inari shrine found in Kyoto. Oh my god. Once you enter past the main gates, there is a small traditional Japanese garden with ponds and walking trails at the base of the hill. I spent some time hiking through the trails found behind the shrine, but I decided to call it quits after staring at the steps to heaven. It was very steep. It was very peaceful on the trails and it wasn’t very long before I came across the popular red Tory gates. After exploring for a bit, I decided to head back to the main train station. I didn’t have anything else planned for the day, so I decided to head to Nagasaki. As I had a JRQ shoe pass, there was no need to purchase tickets. Off to Nagasaki. cuz we can. Limited Express bound for Hakata. We will be stopping at Kohoku, Saga, Shintosu, Tossu, Boots, Kanichi, and Hakata. Cars number four through number six are for passengers without reservations. Please do not smoke on this train. Thank you. While waiting for my train at one of the rural train stations, I ran into a very popular sightseeing or cruise train, the 36 plus 3. Oh my god, this is the seven stars. It’s the seven stars, right? [Music] Please, please. [Music] I will always enjoy heading to Nagasaki due to the newer Shinkansen and the yellow seats specific to this train. As the Shinkansen route to Nagasaki was built very recently, the stations and the trains are very new and modern and very comfortable. Once I got to Nagasaki, I spent some time exploring the station and surrounding areas. This was also my second time here, so I just really wanted to take it easy and just walk around. For lunch, I found a restaurant in the station and ordered a katudon and udon combo set. Two of my favorite dishes. Dessert was the popular fluffy pancakes served with authentic Canadian maple syrup. Back in Fukuoka, I headed straight to my now favorite ramen shop, Hakata Iikosha, for another glorious bowl of tonkat ramen. [Music] There is a very popular area in Hakata station where there are 10 plus ramen shops serving ramen of all styles. And that wraps up my first four days in Fukuoka. Keep an eye out for my next video, whenever that may be, as I’ll be heading to the annual sumo tournament held in Fukuoka, as well as Daifu, another popular tourist destination in the area. I will leave you with some more sites from the station. Thanks for watching. [Music] I’m ready. [Music]
We’re back with the first 4 days spent in Fukuoka, exploring Yutoku Inari Shrine and Karato Fish Market!
00:00 start
00:14 Ramen Stadium
01:50 Karato Fish Market
03:59 Mojiko Station
05:21 Hakata Ikkousha
05:41 Yutoku Inari Shrine
09:10 Nagasaki
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