East Meets ACE – Epilogue – Conclusion: Tokyo and the Return Home

On Monday, October 8, our epic, 19 day journey to the Land of the Rising Sun would come to a close, but not before one last chance for sightseeing in Tokyo. Since we were staying at the Ueno Terminal Hotel as an easy exit to the airport, we saved a few sights nearby for this day. We got an early start that morning at 8:00, checking out of the hotel and having them keep our luggage.

After a snack breakfast,

we took a quick subway ride

from Ueno Station

to Asakusa Station

to visit Senso-ji Temple.

This is the largest

Buddhist temple

in the city

dating back

to 645

and it has

a large layout.

We spent

about an hour

exploring

its buildings

and gardens.

It is quite

an impressive place.

Although most of it

was reconstructed

following bombings

in World War II,

the Asakusa Shrine built in 1649 survived the war.  

Next to

the temple complex

is Hanayashiki, the park we did not get to visit

as its one coaster, Roller Coaster (Togo, Steel Sit Down, 1953),

was closed due to construction at the park.

From the street we could see the coaster, the oldest operating coaster in Japan,

as well as get other shots of the park, which dates back to 1853 and became an amusement park in 1949.  

Around 9:30 the Nakimise-dori, a pedestrian street filled with little shops selling traditional Japanese wares, began to open.

We had saved this time to do our shopping for souvenirs,

and it was fun looking through all the various items and deciding how to spend the remaining yen we had.  

Next we took the subway from Asakusa Station, changing lines at Ueno Station to Akihabara Station

to visit the Akihabara Electronics District,

the main place to buy any type of electronic devise,

big or small, in Japan.

While I did not plan to buy anything,

it was interesting seeing store after store

filled with most any gadget

you could imagine.

As 11:30 approached, it was time to head by subway from Akihabara Station to Ueno Station.   We walked back to the Ueno Terminal Hotel to retrieve our luggage. At Ueno Station, we took the more expensive express train to Nakita Airport as I was becoming a little concerned about time to catch our flights. At the airport we each caught our respective flights, with Richard’s and my flight to Atlanta leaving around 4:30 Monday afternoon. While our flight to Japan had been in daylight the entire time, the sun set shortly after we took flight and it was dark most of the journey. We arrived in Atlanta around 4:00 Monday afternoon, about a half hour before we left! And yet the 11 hour time difference would take most of the next two weeks for me to overcome.  

It had been a fantastic trip, my first to Asia, and I was extremely impressed by the nation of Japan, its people, its beauty, its culture, its food. One of the most impressive things to me was their train system, its punctuality and its ease of use. I truly believe I could return to Japan and get anywhere I wanted to go by public transportation. I thoroughly enjoyed all of the sightseeing I did and the culture I experienced. The people were so friendly and everything was so clean. We could learn a lot from the Japanese people. Our whirlwind trip had taken us to 19 amusement parks, and we had ridden 67 coasters and many other rides. It was good to be home, but I can truly see myself going back to Japan someday, even perhaps before ACE plans another trip there.  

Thanks for reading!

East Meets ACE–Epilogue–Part 4: Beppu, Rakutenchi/別府ラクテンチ and Return to Tokyo

On Sunday, October 7 Richard, Vanessa and I began our day early in order to get in some sightseeing before our visit to our final park of the trip. After a quick walk to Beppu Station we caught a bus heading to the Boiling Hells. Beppu is known for its large number of hot springs under the city and the region around it, and a number of them with varying characteristics have been set up for tourist to visit.

First we came to Shiraike Jigoku

or White Pond Hell,

a plush, well landscaped garden

around a pond of grayish white water

with plumes of steam rising up from it.

Next up was Oniyama Jigoku

or Devil Mountain Hell.

This one was more of a wide open space around a pond with steam coming off of it.

Here they had a statue of the Devil,

and interestingly, an alligator farm, as the warm water is an ideal breeding ground for them.

Next was Kamado Jigoku,

or Cooking Pot Hell,

with blue ponds

next to small ponds of muddy orange water boiling up to resemble a cooking pot boiling.

From here we visited Umi Jigoku

(Sea Hell), the largest layout of any of the Jigokus we visited.

This plush landscaped garden surrounds a large pond of sea blue water with large amounts of steam rising up.

The pathways around the pond

provided many picturesque sights.

A couple of mascots entertained guests

and there is also a greenhouse, presumably fed by the hot springs. The final stop was Oniishi Bozu Jigoku

or Bald Monk Hell,

with a series of small ponds of milky gray water that bubble up to resemble a bald head.

In some ways this was the most impressive

of the ones we saw. Our ticket did not include Yama Jigoku or Mountain Hell, which is nearby, and as much as we wanted to visit two additional Jigokus which were about a mile and a half away, our limited time was insufficient to make it to Tatsumaki Jigoku or Tornado Hell, which has little tornadoes in the water or Lago de Sangue Jigoku or Blood Pond Hell, which has red water bubbling.

We took the bus back to Beppu Station and met up with David at Beppu Komenoi Hotel and checked out, asking them to keep our luggage.

Our final park of the trip was Rakutenchi in Beppu, Oita, Japan, just a mile down the street that our hotel was on, so we walked to it. The park is set at the top of a mountain and requires traveling by cable car to get to it. We soon found it was very crowded this holiday weekend, so we waited in a long line to gain access. Purchasing a ticket allows you a certain number of points for rides, so we had to decide how we would use those points and if any additional tickets would be needed. We were on a tight schedule that was already tighter from our long wait to get in. It is a small park but the views from the top of the mountain are worth the price of admission.  

Jet Coaster (Meisho Amusement Machines, Steel Sit Down, 1972)

The 6^th oldest operating coaster in Japan,

it doesn’t do a lot but has amazing views as you look at to Beppu and the Pacific Ocean.

It is certainly one of the most beautiful views on a coaster anywhere – 1 ride.

Cable Car – This funicular is the means of all guests getting to the park that is located at the top of the mountain. A Cat that meows and a Dog that barks are the two trains. We rode the Cat both up and down – 2 rides, both on Cat.

Jurassic Land – This indoor interactive car ride through a world of dinosaurs had a number of animatronic dinosaurs, including a section showing their extinction following the asteroid – 1 ride.

Flower Pervaded Car –

The only Double Ferris Wheel in Japan,

this was fun

and has amazing views

of Beppu,

the ocean

and mountains – 1 ride.

There are only a few rides here, but others we did not get to include: Exciting Maze; Cycle Monorail, which we really wanted to do for the views but decided not to due to time; Merry-Go-Round; and Astrofighter.

Other things of note are the Duck Race, in which real ducks race,

and the Suspension Bridge, which we walked across to get some great pictures of the spectacular view. There are six children’s rides.  

We were somewhat rushed at this park and it would have been nice to have had a bit longer, but it was well worth the visit to ride one of Japan’s oldest coasters and for the amazing views. After taking the cable car back down, we walked back to the hotel, retrieved our luggage and headed for Beppu Station.

We arrived in time for the train we intended to take, but not in time for a meal as we had planned. Our meals would be retrieved in 15 minutes or less between trains this day, and since venturing into unknown food items for me would take time I did not have, I would have to make it on junk food.

We took a train to Kokura Station, and changed trains to a bullet trainto Shin-Osaka Station. From there we took a bullet trainto Tokyo Station. It is possible to take a bullet train direct from Kokura to Tokyo without changing trains, but with the Japan Rail Pass, which is only available to tourists from outside Japan and must be purchased before you arrive, only certain trains were available to us. Thus a change of trains in Osaka cost us only a little time and saved us a lot of money.

Once at Tokyo Station, we took the subway to Ueno Station and made our way to Ueno Terminal Hotel.   Having lived on junk food all day, I really wanted something with protein, so when we learned a McDonald’s was within walking distance of our hotel, David and I headed there. A Big Mac in Japan tastes like a Big Mac in the U.S. I usually try hard not to eat at U.S. chain restaurants in foreign countries, but this was the third time I did on this trip. But I had a lot of Japanese meals on this trip, and for someone who does not eat any uncooked meat in a land where sushi is king, I think I did pretty well.

Once back at the hotel it was time to get some rest before what would be an extremely long day the next day. But before our flights, we would have time for a little more sightseeing in Tokyo.  

Up Next: Tokyo & the Return Home

East Meets ACE – Epilogue – Part 3: Kijima Kogen / セントレジャー城島高原

On Saturday, October 6 after another good breakfast, we departed Hakata Green Hotel No. 1 for Hakata Station, catching a bullet train to Kokura Station, where wechanged trains to a regular train to Beppu. We arrived at Beppu Station later that morning and dropped off our luggage at the nearby Beppu Komenoi Hotel. This was another part of the trip where logistics were tricky due to difficulty in researching bus schedules online. At the tourist office we were able to purchase tickets for the park along with bus tickets and soon we were on our way. Fortunately for us the typhoon that was to hit this day had headed for South Korea instead and only left wind and a chance of rain in our forecast, but this was unfortunate for other ACE members who had headed to South Korea following East Meets ACE.

The only casualty to our plan was we had planned to take the Beppu Ropeway cable car to Mount Tsurumi for purported amazing views, but it was closed due to high winds, as we suspected.

After a short bus ride <img src=”

” alt=”” /> we arrived at Kijima Kogen in Beppu, Oita, Japan.

Operating since 1983 or earlier,

this park has the distinction of having one of the three remaining wood coasters in Japan and was the catalyst for our decision to visit Kyushu.

The wind was higher than normal, but it did not immediately impact the operations of any of the park’s rides.

Jupiter

(Intamin Amusement Rides/Curtis D. Summers, Wood-non prefab, 1992)

This is one long coaster at 5,249’, and it was featured briefly in the 1994 movie Godzilla vs. Space Godzilla.

Built of Douglas fir, it was Japan’s first wooden coaster. I had heard that it was running rough, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. It has a great and thrilling layout, not the least of which is a number of hills and elements that occur before it gets to the lift hill.

It has great speed and even in the axel seat was not that rough to me.

It was my favorite wood coaster of the trip even though I liked the other two

– 3 rides.

Super LS Coaster (Meisho Amusement Machines/Okamoto Co., Ltd., Looper, 1983) This was my first Meisho Loop and Corkscrew, and I found it to have much better transitions than the standard Arrow and Vekoma versions.

It is also neat that the coaster travels through the loop.

Not all in our group agreed, but I enjoyed this coaster – 1 ride.

Gold Rush (Unknown, Partially Enclosed Family, Unknown)

This family coaster is larger than I thought it would be

and is nicely themed and partially enclosed in a rock structure.

The trains are tight, but the biggest issue comes from the hills that feel far more triangular than they should be – 1 ride.

Roller Skater (Vekoma, Junior Coaster Family, 1997/2000)

Relocated from Tokiwa Park as Unknown, this gave the expected ride – 1 ride.

Dragon (Zamperla, Powered Family, 1997) Fun small ride – 1 ride.  

Pirates – This interactive ride had four person vehicles that rotated, allowing everyone a chance to shoot at the various targets. It was fun – 1 ride.

Ice World – This was perhaps the best of the Ice Houses as they had an extensive exhibit including statues of polar bears, penguins, a walrus and even a Viking ship – 1 walkthrough.

Forest Escape – This was part obstacle maze and part laser maze as you had to avoid walking through lasers – 1 walkthrough.

Experiential 3D SUPER360Theater – This 3D in 360 degrees about dinosaurs was good – 1 show.

Newton – This Intiman drop tower was good and had amazing views. It was a little unnerving due to the high winds from the typhoon – 1 ride.

Water Shoot Poseidon 30 – While I usually skip shoot-the-chutes so as not to get drenched,

this one has a boat completely covered in glass, so we couldn’t resist. It was amazing when we hit the water and it made a huge splash over us, but we remained dry. There is an age limit of 60 – 1 ride.

Stork Sky Merry –

Somewhere I have seen an observation ride like this before themed as a stork, but I cannot remember where.

It gave amazing views

of the surrounding mountains

as it rotated – 1 ride.

Moon Parade – This gasoline powered monorail is user controlled and gave a good view of the Go-Karts and other parts of the park – 1 ride.

Merry-Go-Round – This carousel has some horses that are on poles as usual, while others are on half poles but still move up and down – 1 ride.

Ferris Wheel Sky Palette – This is a huge Ferris Wheel, but I am surprised they were operating it this day due to the high winds from the typhoon.

While I am sure it was safe,

it was quite unnerving as we slowly made our way to the top

with the wind whipping and rattling as much as it was – 1 ride.

Go-Kart – This was good and had an interesting course – 1 ride.  

We did not get to PlateauTrain; Age of Discovery Kijimaru; Pendulum of Da Vinci, a Flying Carpet; Wave Swinger; Sea Stone Barn, a Music Express; Tea Cup; Dragon Boat; and Birdman, a Sky Coaster. They have five children’s attractions.

The one defunct roller coaster in their history was Mini Coaster (Unknown, Steel Sit Down, ?-1999).   We had a good Japanese meal at the park. In spite of it being a Saturday of a holiday weekend (Health and Sports Day was Monday), it was not busy at all as the effects of the typhoon likely kept people away. We went back for another ride on Jupiter later in the afternoon, but it had closed.

I really enjoyed this park, among my favorites on the trip, and its wood coaster would be worth another visit someday.  

We took the bus back to Beppu Station and got checked into the Beppu Komenoi Hotel. Our plan for the evening was to find a nice place for dinner and possibly check out a little of Beppu, but David and Vanessa were extremely tired from the journey and day and opted to find some food at a convenience store. Richard and I ventured out to find a good restaurant and we found a little place that was truly a “hole in the wall” type place, but even with its limited menu, it probably was our most authentically Japanese meal of the trip. The food was good and I enjoyed my last Japanese meal of the trip.

We then walked to Beppu Station to find information on the bus we would need for our morning journey. Having found what we needed with help from a nice, British tourist, we stopped by a convenience store to get food for breakfast and headed back to the hotel to get some rest before an early morning.  

Up Next: Beppu, Rakutenchi & Return to Tokyo

East Meets ACE – Epilogue – Part 2: Greenland / グリーンランド and Fukuoka

On Friday, October 5 after a good Japanese inspired breakfast at the hotel, we ventured out to the first of three parks we would visit on Kyushu. This day would take some good logistics to make it work. From Hakata Train Station we took at train to Tosu Station, where we changed trains. This was a small open air train station. We then took a train to Aaro Station. Upon arriving we had to take a bus to our park, which was hard to find information about online. After a short wait our bus arrived and took us to Greenland in Arao, Kumamoto, Japan. As we rode on the bus it began to rain, and with another typhoon headed our way, we worried we might miss some coasters at the park.

Upon arriving they were quick to point out that a number of the rides did not operate in the rain, but we were here for better or worse, so we bought our tickets and walked in. The rain had stopped and we soon saw that coasters that had been closed were beginning to open. This park opened in 1966, and with nine coasters, is the largest park in Kyushu and one of the largest in Japan.

Gao (Meisho Amusement Machines, Steel Sit Down, 1998)

My most anticipated ride at this park, this 5,458’ long ride is themed to look a dinosaur.

When we arrived it was not running due to rain,

and it was the last of the major rides to open, but we got to ride it and it is a very good ride.

It gives a smooth ride with some forceful elements. Interestingly, it uses a tire driven braking system, so the smell of rubber is in the air.

It builds up some really good speed and delivers well. There is an age limit of 64 – 2 rides.

Milky Way (Togo, Twin Stand Up, 1990/1991) Formerly known as Fujin-Raijin and Ultra Twin, it originally opened in 1990 as part of the Garden and Greenery Expo in Osaka and was moved to Greenland in 1991. This twin coaster runs sit-down trains on the blue side and stand-up trains on the pink side. Originally both sides had stand-up trains.

Although the tracks are the same length, the sit-down side seems to have an advantage to win, which it did each time we rode that it raced. Some of us liked the sit-down side better, others the stand-up side.

I liked the sit-down side better as the airtime on the standup side tended to throw me into the restraints painfully. There is an age limit of 64 – 4 rides, 2 on each side.

Ultra Twister Megaton (Togo, Ultra Twister Pipeline, 1994) This was the second of these unique coasters of our trip and the third I have ridden.

With its unique placement of the car between the track, the three heartline rolls are truly at the rider’s heartline. Like the others I have ridden, it was a lot of fun – 2 rides.

Grampus Jet (Vekoma, Swinging Turns Suspended, 1994)

With trains built by Arrow Dynamics, this Vekoma Suspended Flying Turns is one of only three ever built, with the other two being in Belgium at Bobbejaanland and in Thailand at Dream World.

It gives some good swinging, and although its layout is fairly compact, it creates some good elements – 2 rides.

Nio (Vekoma, SLC Inverted, 1997)

This gives the standard ride and is well themed.

It has an age limit of 64 – 1 ride.

Spin Mouse (Reverchon, Spinning Wild Mouse, 1998) This was the best Reverchon Spinning Mouse of our trip with really good spinning and more comfortable restraints that than others we rode. There is an age limit of 64 – 1 ride.

Sphinx (Unknown, Family, 1993) This nicely themed coaster is fun – 1 ride.

Blackhole Coaster (Meisho Amusement Machines/Zamperla, Enclosed Powered Family, 2007) Enclosed in a well themed structure made to look like rock, this space themed powered coaster gives a fun ride – 1 ride.

Unfortunately Ladybird (Unknown, Powered Kiddie, 2005 or earlier) was closed for repair, so we did not get to ride. Others visited two days later and did get to ride it.  

Hell Hall – This haunted darkride with headphones was good, and the eerie voices in your ears add greatly, even if I could not understand what they are saying – 1 ride.

Legend of Salamander – This is another interactive darkride of the type we have seen frequently in Japan, and it is well themed – 1 ride.

Horror Tower – This unique haunted walkthrough is in a weird, multi-story tower at the top of the hill, accessible only from the double sky lift. It is on both the fourth and second floor of this tower building and is themed to an abandoned school. It had some good gags – 1 walkthrough.

Doki Doki Dorono Hospital – This haunted hospital walkthrough was themed to the same characters as the darkride at Hirakata Park. Upon entering, you are given a battery operated candle with you can use to complete tasks and receive a diagnosis at the end – 1 ride.

Ice World – This was a good ice house at 30 degrees below 0 Celsius, and felt really good on this hot and humid day – 1 walkthrough.

Flume Ride Panic Jungle – This is a nice log flume with an indoor portion and good splash, but not too wet – 1 ride.

Road Train – This trackless train is a great way to get around this huge and hilly park as it makes eight stops – 2 rides.

Sky lift – This double seat chair lift with no restraint

gets you to the top of the big hill for several rides – 1 ride.

Chair Lift – This one small seat chair lift has no restraint, but is a great way to get across the park – 3 rides.

Super Slider – This alpine slide is fairly old and is slow in spots, but was fun as long as you are careful not to crash, as I was – 1 ride.

Witch’s Flying Chair – This spinning ride is at the top of the hill and had great views – 1 ride.

Ball Shoot – This unique ride allows you to toss plastic balls in targets as you go around – 1 ride.  

Several rides were closed this day including the huge 345’ Ferris Wheel Rainbow, which was being worked on.

Also closed was Danger In a Maze, an escape maze;

Crystal House, a mirror maze; and Small Java, a walkthrough with animals in the jungle. Other rides we did not get to include: 4D Theater – 3D sound theater “Dracula”; 4D Gimmick Theater “Zero”;

Luxor Magic; Card Maze Gourmet Forest Adventure, a game maze; Dragon River, a rapids ride; Splash, shoot-the-chutes; Sky Jet, monorail; Skyship, self-propelled monorail; Bumper Boat;

Merry-Go-Round Rendezvous, with a 92’ diameter, the largest carousel in Japan; Wave Swinger; Balloon Tower; Tea Cup; Super Viking, swinging pirate ship; Gyro Storm; Indy cart, go-carts; and GT Go Kart. There are also some children’s rides. East Meets ACE – Epilogue – Part 2: Greenland / グリーンランド and Fukuoka – Continued

There is one defunct roller coaster in the parks history, Atomic

(Meisho Amusement Machines/Senyo Kogyo Co., Ltd., Shuttle Loop, 1996-2009),

the loop of which interestingly still stands as a decoration.

This turned out to be my favorite park of the trip outside of Disney. It was a large coaster collection, with some interesting standouts including the unique Gao, the fun Ultra Twister, the sit-down/standup racer Milky Way and the rare suspended Grampus Jet.

Add to this a large collection of dark rides, unusual rides like the single seat Chair Lift, and the fact that the park is huge with over 40 rides, it is a really fun, well rounded park. Since it is as far away as it is I will probably never make it back, but I would jump at a chance for a return visit to this fascinating park.

Vanessa, Richard and I had a very good Japanese meal while David checked out the McDonalds.

At park closing we headed to the bus and made our return trip by two trains to Hakata Station.  

In Fukuoka we checked out Yatai Food Stalls along the river.

These portable sidewalk restaurants are a staple in Fukuoka and serve such items as Yakatori, grilled chicken skewers, and Hakata Ramen, a pork broth noodle soup, but they were crowded this night,

and with a diverse set of expectations regarding food with our group of four, we opted to walk on over the Canal City nearby.

After watching the impressive water and light show

in the canal

that runs through this mall, we found a nice Japanese restaurant for the last meal we would share together outside a park. We returned to the Hakata Green Hotel No. 1 to get some rest before catching an early train the next morning.  

Up Next: Kijima Kogen

East Meets ACE – Epilogue Part 1: Nagasaki

On Thursday, October 4 Richard, Vanessa, David and I left the Hilton Osaka early that morning

to catch a bullet train at the Shin-Osaka Station for our journey to the southern island of Kyushu. Breakfast had been good at this hotel, but we had to leave too early this morning to take advantage of our final breakfast here.

After boarding the bullet train we arrived about two and half hours later at Hakata Station in Fukuoka. After dropping our luggage off at Hakata Green Hotel No. 1,

we boarded a train to Nagasaki.

Upon arrival as we walked out of Nagasaki Station,

a ceremony

was going on

involving a boat structure with kids

being moved back and forth.

It was quite interesting

and lasted

a good while.

It was amazing that we happened on it

at the right moment. Afterwards, we went to the food court nearby to find some food. Options were extremely limited, so I opted for the Kentucky Fried Chicken. While they only had fries instead of mashed potatoes, the Colonel’s secret blend of 11 herbs and spices tasted the same!  

After lunch we walked to the Shrine of the 26 Martyrs,

which commemorates 26 Christians

who were martyred by crucifixion in 1597 when Christianity was banned for 200 years during Japan’s period of isolationism.

The martyrs were declared saints by the pope in 1862.

The Museum was a moving display to those who had stood up for their Christian faith against persecution and death.

Amazingly, the church went underground and continued to worship for two centuries

when they were allowed to come out of hiding as Christianity was once more allowed in Japan.  

We took the streetcar to Peace Park, the location of the detonation of the second atomic bomb

at 11:02 on August 9, 1945, killing 75,000 and injuring 75,000 more.

It includes Peace Statue, which is 30′ and a reconstruction of Urakami Catholic Church,

which was at the epicenter of the detonation.

As we looked at the various memorials

it was a sobering reminder

of the devastation of war

and the importance of peace.

We then walked a short distance to the Atomic Bomb Museum showing Nagasaki before and after the bomb, the events leading to the bombing, the history of nuclear weapons and the peace movement. While the bomb stopped the war and further devastation,

seeing the impact on the civilians whose lives were suddenly changed or ended was emotional. But in full perspective one must look at the destruction brought on our troops at Pearl Harbor and the atrocities committed against the Jewish people to understand the necessity of defeating the Axis unequivocally.  

Shifting gears a bit, we took the streetcar to Suwa Shrine.

Set at the top of a large hill,

it required walking up many steps to get to it.

This is a Shinto Shrine

built in its current location in 1648 and is quite beautiful.

Interestingly,

it has a lot of little paths

that take you around

to small shrines,

statues and gardens.

There were great views of the city.  

After this we headed back down

and followed the river

to the Megane-bashi,

known as Spectacles Bridge as its reflection in the water of the Nakashima River makes it look like spectacles.

A gift from China in 1634,

it is the oldest stone bridge in Japan.

We then walked a few blocks

to Teramachi-dori (Temple Street), walking past Sanpoji Temple,

Kofukuji Temple,

Koei-zan Choshoji Temple, Iozen Enmei Temple, Buddhist Temple Hall, Heifuri Slope,

Hosshini Temple, Daionji Temple,

Sofuku-ji Temple, Yasaka Shinto Shrine

and Seisuiji Temple.  

We took the streetcar back to Nagasaki Station. We decided to find dinner before catching the train, so we went to an upper floor of the same building we ate lunch at and found a nice Japanese restaurant.

We caught the train back to Hakatta Station in Fukuoka and went to Hakata Green Hotel No. 1. It had been a long and tiring day, but a rewarding one as we had enjoyed our day of sightseeing. The next day we would be off to an amusement park, but we would have the challenge of navigating trains and busses on our own to get there.   Up Next: Greenland and Fukuoka

East Meets ACE – Part 16: Himeji Central Park / 姫路セントラルパーク

On Wednesday, October 3 we had come to the last day of East Meets ACE. We had two parks on the agenda this day, the first of which was Himeji Central Park in Himeji, Hyogo, Japan. Operating since 1984, this was the second of two parks not visited on the 2005 Japan trip that ACE did with ECC. As the trip wound down, it was time to begin reflecting on this wonderful opportunity of a lifetime. This park is smaller, like many parks in Japan, but unlike many of those it has five coasters including a popular B&M model. We had two and half hours to enjoy the park.

Diavlo (Bolliger & Mabillard, Inverted-Batman, 1994)

A Batman: The Ride clone, this one is running very well and is quite smooth.

With one man operations, (which was interesting to witness) load times on the one train were somewhat slow.

No doubt that when this debuted (before most Six Flags parks got theirs, by the way), it needed the full queue line, which is now overrun with kudzu, something we saw a lot of in Japan as our kudzu in Georgia was unfortunately imported from Japan.

This ride is their signature attraction, gives a very good ride and is my third international Batman: The Ride clone – 1 ride.

Camelback Jetcoaster (Meisho Amusement Machines, Steel Sit Down, 1984)

Although RCDB is not certain that this is a Meisho built ride, it is certainly a unique coaster.

It is somewhat rampy, as I am learning that Meisho rides often are, so I suspect they did build it.

Watching it before riding, it seemed painfully slow through its 3,537’ course, but upon riding I was surprised at its peppiness once it picked up speed on long, straight downhill sections. It was actually quite fun with no pain – 1 ride.

Hurricane

(Togo, Looping, 1984/2007)

Relocated from Kintetsu Ayameike as Tornado,

this coaster is Togo’s version of a loop and corkscrew.

Except for a rough transition or two, it gave a good ride – 1 ride.

Labyrinth (Meisho Amusement Machines, Steel Sit Down Family, 1993)

This is a unique coaster, perhaps described as a cross between a mine train and a wild mouse. It was fun – 1 ride.

Imorinth (Pinfari, Big Apple / Wacky Worm Family, 1998)

This name is a combination of the Japanese word “imomushi”, which means caterpillar and the English word “labyrinth”. It gives a good ride – 1 ride.  

Free Fall – This was the second Intamin Freefall ride of our trip and it was smooth except for a jolt on the backward drop down to return to the station – 1 ride.

Psycho Labyrinth of Mirrorna – This mirror maze was good and a bit difficult to find a way through – 1 walkthrough.

Shocking Horror Museum – This walkthrough haunted house was presented as a museum in the dark. We were given flashlights and instructed to push the red buttons, which set off various gags, a few of which were unique such as pictures that changed in the mirror to have ghostly faces, but the pictures remained unchanged – 1 walkthrough.

South Pole Adventure – Another 30˚C below zero ice house, it was somewhat shorter than others – 1 walkthrough.

Magic House – This was an upcharge of 300 yen which allowed me to tour a small gravity house with uphill water and the standard chairs and steps in a tilted room – 1 walkthrough.

Ahirukantai – This duckling themed suspended monorail gave great views of the park and surroundings – 1 ride.  

Other rides include: Maze of Mystery, a twisting labyrinth; The Jungle; Super Splash, a water slide attraction; The Haunted Castle; World’s Largest Grand Carousel Pegasus, a two-story merry-go-round; Flapper; Helios, an Enterprise; Crazy Bar, rocking barrels; Great Poseidon, swinging ship; Go Carts; Let’s Go SL; Giant Peeter, 280’ Ferris Wheel; Bumper Boats; and Buster Bomb, a 3D attraction. There are seven children’s rides. They also have a separate Safari Park.  

We presented a plaque to the park just before we left.

It is a fun park on a hillside without much landscaping but with beautiful mountain views in each direction.

We boarded the busses for our journey to the final park of the trip.  

Up Next: Hirakata Park

East Meets ACE – Part 14: Nagashima Spa Land / ナガシマスパーランド

On Monday, October 1, we had survived the typhoon and it was time to resume our trip. We checked out of the Hilton Nagoya that morning as we prepared to move to Osaka. We had enjoyed good breakfasts at this hotel, although not as elaborate as the ones in Tokyo. Our park this day was slated to open two hours late due to the storm, so once again we were concerned the storm would impact another day. We left a little later than scheduled that morning, but arrived at Nagashima Spa Land in Nagashima, Kuwana, Mie, Japan almost an hour before the expected noon opening to find that the park was already open and coasters were running. Operating since 1964, this is the largest coaster collection in Japan and we hoped we would have time to get all the credits, especially considering our late arrival. That turned out not to be a problem as the storm likely left others preoccupied this day, so crowds were light, weather was beautiful and operations were efficient. There were two coasters down, but we had plenty of time for all operating coasters and a number of other rides in our almost six hours in the park.

Steel Dragon 2000 (Morgan/Steve Okamoto, Giga Coaster, 2000)

It is the world’s longest coaster at a length of 8,133’, the sixth highest at 318’, and has the seventh tallest drop at 307’ and a speed of 95 mph.

The name is from its opening in 2000 in the “Year of the Dragon.”

Its original Morgan trains were replaced in 2013 with B&M trains. It was SBNO for several seasons following an accident involving a wheel.

It is an amazing coaster, the best of the trip to me, and combines tremendous speed, plentiful airtime and a unique and well-paced layout that delivers one of the best coaster experiences out there.

I see this moving into my top ten steel coasters. My favorite part is the series of eight bunny hops after the mid-course brake, some of which are in tunnels – 3 great rides.

Ultra Twister (Togo, Ultra Twister Pipeline, 1984) Having not ridden this type of coaster since my visit to Six Flags Astroworld in 2002 (one of three coasters at both of these parks), I now remember why I liked this so much.

With the train traveling between the tracks, the center of your body is at the center of motion and the three heartline roll inversions taken in that position are a lot of fun.

It was relocated within the park in 2012 to make room for the Peter Rabbit children’s area – 2 rides.

Acrobat (Bolliger & Mabillard, Flying, 2015) This is a clone of Manta at SeaWorld Orlando, with four inversions, and it has a duel station.

It gives a very good ride and has some really nice flying elements over water – 1 ride.

Looping Star (Schwarzkopf, Looping Star, 1982)

These are so rare and is another of three coasters this park had in common with the now defunct but much missed Six Flags Astroworld.

With its tight clearances and great turns this is truly a classic,

and I was able to make it my 1050^th coaster – 2 rides.

Corkscrew (Arrow Dynamics, Corkscrew, 1979)

For an older Arrow, it was good without too much difficulty on the transitions.

It was relocated in the park in 2012, to make room for the Peter Rabbit children’s area – 1 ride.

Jet Coaster (Togo, Steel Sit Down, year unknown)

This coaster is almost a mine train type ride and is very old even though the exact year is not known.

It looks as if it might have at one time had a splashdown simulation as it goes through a concrete trough in a small pond. Though not overly thrilling, it is a fun ride – 1 ride.

Arashi (S&S Worldwide, Free Spin 4th Dimension, 2017)

Japanese for Storm, this was the coaster that we saw under construction at S&S in Utah when we went there as part of Preservation Con in 2016. It has pretty wild spinning as the other of these I have ridden has – 1 ride.

Wild Mouse (Mack Rides GmbH & Co KG, Wild Mouse, 1996) This is one of two Mack Wild Mouse coasters located side by side that are mirror images of each other. We rode the right mouse, the non-standard version as the lift hill is usually on the right. It gave a good ride – 1 ride.

Unfortunately the one on the left, Wild Mouse (Mack Rides GmbH & Co KG, Wild Mouse, 1996), was not open to the public this day although they were working on it and running cars. I expected this to be the case as I understand they only run both on really busy days, and fortunately for us getting in all we did, the park was not too crowded this day.

Unfortunately Shuttle Loop (Schwarzkopf, Shuttle Loop / Flywheel, 1980) was closed during our visit and it looked as if it might have been down for a little while.

It is another coaster this park has in common with Six Flags Astroworld.

Children Coaster (Zierer, Tivoli-Medium Family, 1983) It gave the expected ride – 1 ride.

Peter Rabbit Coaster

(Hoei Sangyo Co., Ltd., Powered Family, 2012)

This is fun little powered ride – 1 ride.  

Haunted House – This was a fairly long walkthrough and was, I thought, a very good representation of a Japanese haunted house, with a number of specific elements I was coming to expect – 1 walkthrough.

Freefall – They still have one of these first generation Intamin drop rides, which are almost all gone at home. This one runs really well with minimal jolts but with all the characteristic clanking that adds to the experience – 1 ride.

Bobcat – Like one we had done before in The Netherlands, this Bobsleigh ride is a powered alpine slide type ride in a relatively flat area.

When we arrived they were taking buckets of water out of the trough following Typhoon Trami, so I was surprised when they were able to open it later in the day. The rider controls the speed and it gives a fun, thrilling ride – 1 ride.

We did not get to ride: Space Shot, a drop tower; Shoot-the-Shoots; Water Ace, paddle boats; Peter Rabbit Skyliner, a suspended monorail; Train; Merry-Go-Round; Star Flyer, tower swings; Giant Frisbee, a swinging pendulum; Flying Carpet; Space Shuttle; Frisbee, an inward seating swinging pendulum; Paratrooper; Viking, double swing pirate ships; Jet Ski; Rock ‘n’ Roll; Wave Swinger; Telecombat; Ferris Wheel Aurora, a 272’ Ferris Wheel; Swing Around; and Tea Cup. They also have21 children’s rides.  

We could see the structure ofWhite Cyclone (Intamin Amusement Rides, Wood, 1994-2018) which is being transformed into Hakugei (Rocky Mountain Construction, Steel Hybrid, 2019), which means White Whale.  

This is a nice park and based on our visit, it is run pretty efficiently. This was one of the best park experiences of our trip. I definitely want to get back here to ride the new RMC and try to catch the two credits we missed.

This is a nice park and based on our visit, it is run pretty efficiently. This was one of the best park experiences of our trip. I definitely want to get back here to ride the new RMC and try to catch the two credits we missed.

David, Richard and I decided to buy a fast pass to get a third ride in on Steel Dragon 2000, and just as we sat on the train, there was an issue and we had to get up. As the bus departure time was nearing we debated leaving, but in the end it opened and we had about five minutes to get to the bus, which necessitated me running. I was out of breath, but made it exactly at 5:00, unlike many others who were late. After being late at Belantis in 2013, I cannot afford to be late again, but I am too old and overweight to run that hard!  

We had a long bus ride that evening to the Hilton Osaka, so we hoped to get a meal at the travel plaza stop along the way. The issue we had was that the only restaurant did not serve take out, so you had to order and eat there, so I opted for a couple of pastries from the convenience store, one with shrimp and one with potatoes. The former was very good; the latter not as much. This was my only meal since breakfast as we did not have time for lunch at the park. I guess it is another culture difference that people in Japan take time to stop and eat a meal instead of eating on the go like we sometimes do.  

We arrived at Hilton Osaka and once we got checked in, we had time to explore the city a bit.

We took the subway to the Dotonbori area of the city,

an entertainment district along the river.

We rode the Dotonbori Ferris Wheel,

an unusual oblong observation wheel overlooking the river. This unique attraction has recently reopened after being closed for a long time.

It gave great views

and was interesting when it made the four turns on its oblong course. It is attached to a Don Quixote, a large discount store found all over Japan, so we took the opportunity to look around, which was interesting.

We walked through a covered street

on our way to Hozenji Yokocho,

an alley of restaurants we considered going to for dinner had we had more time in Osaka.

It includes

a small shrine.

We took the subway to the Hilton Osaka to get some rest before our next day.  

Up Next: Universal Studios Japan

East Meets ACE – Part 13: Typhoon & Missed Credits at Parque Espana / 志摩スペイン村

The next morning, Sunday, September 30, we would not be able to go to Parque Espana-Shima Spain Village in Shima, Mie, Japan, as it would close at noon, most coasters would not be running and the three hour drive back could leave us on the road just as the typhoon hit. We missed four credits (bringing the trip total to 11) including: Pyrenees (Bolliger & Mabillard, Inverted,1997), one of the more anticipated coasters of the trip with its six inversions; Gran Montserrat (Mack Rides GmbH & Co KG, Steel Sit Down, 1994); Kiddy Montserrat (Hoei Sangyo Co., Ltd., Family, 2016); and Steampunk Coaster Iron Bull (Sansei Yusoki Co., Ltd., Enclosed Steel Sit Down Family, 2003 or earlier). The park also has many other, highly themed rides. Oh, well, another trip!  

Since the storm was expected to hit in the mid to late afternoon, we started investigating what we could do in the morning to make something of the day while still staying safe during the storm. While there are a number of museums near our hotel, all of them made the decision to close all day due to the storm. With help of the concierge, we learned that Nagoya Castle would open as scheduled that morning, but would likely close early. We also learned of a Buddhist Temple nearby that we would be able to see.  

We decided to walk to Nagoya Castle

and arrived

to see signs saying that while it was currently open,

it would close soon

and everyone

would have to leave immediately.

While the main part of the castle is closed for renovation,

the palace rooms were open.

Although the original, as in much of Japan,

was destroyed by bombing in World War II,

this recreated building

was fascinating

as we walked through

in our sock feet,

our shoes left in lockers as we entered.

We admired the interesting artwork

and architecture.

Back outside, we got some good views

of the main castle building, typical of Japanese castles,

but very different

from Western castles.

We walked

through the gardens,

with its many paths,

which includes

a tearoom.

and saw a storage building which held most of the castle treasures during the war

and was fortunately not destroyed.

It was about 12:00

and we heard the announcement that the castle would close at 12:30,

but as we walked out about 12:15 they were insisting on everyone leaving immediately.

We walked around and got some good shots

from outside the castle walls.  

We then took the subway to the Buddhist Temple,

which was quite beautiful with its vermillion and black colors.

We walked around

and saw

the many fascinating things.  

Since we had not had lunch yet, we stopped for an ice cream snack, which was good,

and then walked down street after street that were covered and filled with shops and restaurants. We bought flavored popcorn.

Off the main streets

there were a number of shrines,

some of which we stopped

to look at

with there interesting features.

We began to notice that some of the restaurants were closing so we realized we better get to

Oasis 21, a shopping and dining development where we intended to find some lunch.

After a quick subway ride we discovered that most of the restaurants there had closed, so we headed back to the hotel hoping to find something nearby.

We found a place near the hotel and had a good Japanese meal.  

After stocking up on food supplies, we headed back to the Hilton Nagoya around 4:00, just as the rain and winds began to pick up. Around 6:00 the intensity of the storm picked up. I stayed in the room the rest of the night watching weather reports in Japanese. The eye came through around 11:00 and the storm calmed down. By morning the sun was out and I had survived my first typhoon. But it was not the last that would impact this trip.  

Up Next: Nagashima Spa Land

East Meets ACE – Part 12: Suzuka Circuit / 鈴鹿サーキット

We arrived at Suzuka Circuit in Suzuka, Mie, Japan early Saturday afternoon, with rain coming down steadily. With a large number of the rides here being various sorts of go-carts, we expected to see most everything closed. We just hoped we could get to ride the coasters. As we entered the park we were happy to find out that not only were the coasters operating, but so was almost everything in the park in spite of the rain.

We presented a plaque to the park, and then we, of course, headed straight for the coasters, of which there are two. I will review by themed section.  

BATTO’S ADVENTURE VILLAGE

Adventure Drive (Hoei Sangyo Co., Ltd., Family, 2014)

We headed to this one first as the rain was pouring, but it broke down soon after we arrived. We headed to the other coaster,

but eventually the park got it back up and I think everyone who wanted to ride got to ride. The coaster has several tire lift/launches, a chain lift and two cable launches, and one is affected by how loud the riders scream. We had our doubts that this could run in the rain, but it did. This was a very fun ride, even in the pouring rain – 1 ride.

Rocky Coaster (Senyo Kogyo Co., Ltd., Steel Sit Down, unknown year)

This log themed coaster has seats that are forward and backward.

It was a little rough at times, but to me was more enjoyable going backwards – 2 rides, 1 each forward and backward.  

Batto’s Power Crystal Hunt – This interactive darkride was fun as all riders sat in a line of cars that encircled the scenes with targets – 1 ride.

Duel GP –

Similar to Test Track, this allows drivers to race and control the steering. It is an amazingly fun ride.

Although some wanted to call it a coaster as it uses tubular steel track under the road surface, it is not – 2 rides.

Flying Ship – This suspended monorail ride gives great views as it crosses over other rides – 1 ride.

We did not ride Para-Sailor, a monorail; Adven-Boat Frontier, a boat ride; or Circuit Challenger, which allows you to drive a go-kart on the actual track that hosts the F1 Grand Prix, which I don’t think was operating in the rain.  

PUTO’S MOBI PARK

ene-1 – This energy themed go-cart ride allows you to attempt to conserve energy as you drive, quite a unique experience – 1 ride.

Acro X Evolution – This go-cart test track allows drivers to test driving over various obstacles – 1 ride. We did not ride the other go-cart ride in this section,

DREAM R.GP Field

We did not get to any of the attractions in this section which includes: Kochira’s Racing Kart, go-carts; Advance Kart, go-carts; Racing Theater; or Circuit Wheel, a 150’ Ferris Wheel with a full view of the International Racing Course.

Kochira’s Putti Town

This section includes Test Flight, an airplane ride; Run-run Balloon, a hot air balloon themed monorail; and several children’s rides.  

Chirara’s HELLO GARDEN

Bun-Bun-Bee – This ride on tubular steel track has cars with a bee that tells a story in Japanese. Some considered it a powered coaster, but I will not unless RCDB ever counts it as such – 1 ride.

Also here is Chirara’s Flower Wagon, a wagon ride through a garden; Den-Den-Mushi; and several children’s rides.  

Pipira’s MOTO FIELD

This area has several children’s rides.  

They have a water park, Adventure Water Park, but this day almost all rides in the regular park were water rides!  

Defunct roller coasters in their history include Blackout Steel (Vekoma, Inverted SLC, 1995-2007), which was relocated to Beto Carrero World in Brazil as Firewhip, and Mad Cobra (Premier Rides, LIM Launched, 1998-2003), which was relocated to Discoveryland in China as Crazy Cobra.  

This is quite a unique park with many rides themed to racing and transportation. With so many unique rides, it would be interesting to visit with more time on a dry day. After our experience earlier in the day we were amazed to have gotten to do so much. But that was only the beginning of the typhoon.  

On the ride back to the hotel we got the bad news that our park for Sunday, Parque Espana, would close at noon that day, and due to the long drive we would not be able to safely go. We were on our own for Sunday before the typhoon was expected to hit in the afternoon.

Saturday night we found a good Raman restaurant near the hotel, a good meal after getting soaked in the rain all day.  

Up Next: Typhoon Day & Missed Credits at Parque Espana-Shima Spain Village