I don't mean hells in the literal sense. In fact Beppu is a really nice place. It is a small town that is famous for it's abundance of hot springs (onsen). Beppu is also big on sex, it did have a sex museum which closed down recently and has a pretty big red light district. Apparently it was called the Japanese Las Vegas, but I would say it is more like the offspring of Vegas and Bath. Although Beppu is seedy in places, it is more commonly beautiful. The onsen's are lush and the mountains that surround Beppu create a picturesque beauty. A few people we met told us Beppu was only worth a two night stay. It lacked things to do and was quite dull. However, I have to disagree with what they said as so far I have found Beppu to be quite quaint and fun.
Our first day at Beppu was simple. Walk around the town and not do too much. After a long bus ride, we hadn't got to Beppu until quite late in the afternoon, and by the time we had checked in at the hostel, we had decided it was too late to do anything of importance. The next day however was brilliant. We took a bus to the Kannawa area where we went to view the 8 Jigoku (Hells) of Beppu. The town's claim to fame. These Hells are onsen's, natural hot springs, however they are not for bathing, they are for viewing. Some of them reach temperatures of 105 degrees Celsius, and literally bubble continuously. Each of them had a unique selling point and were a spectacle to behold. Also the area of Kannawa has steam everywhere. Literally rising from any hole in the ground. Some of it is funneled and used for cooking, so there are lots of stalls selling steamed vegetables and other goods. Quite unique.
First we visited the Shiraike Jigoku (white pond hell) which was an onsen that had, over the years, turned the water a natural white, it was quite impressive, especially the exhibition that ran alongside the onsen which showed a variety of man eating fish...crazy. Secondly we visited the Onayama Jigoku (monster mountain hell) the onsen was not visible through the thick steam but never the less was not important, as this hell focuses mainly on the fact that the temprature of the waters nearby the onsen creates perfect conditions for breeding crocs. Thats right, about 50 crocodiles all around, some as still as statues, others swimming lazily on by. I love crocodiles so was overjoyed by the vast majority of them. Next was the Kamado Jigoku (cooking pot hell) this jigoku focused a lot on the cooking aspect of the steam and had a few displays of items being cooked, it was made even more fun by the foot bath that Hayley, just couldn't handle... Forth we headed to Yama Jigoku (mountain hell) this was my least favourite. The hell itself was great. It was steam escaping from the side of a mountain and was pretty good. But there was a zoo built around the Jigoku and all of the animals looked miserable. Their cages were dull and boring, and too small for them. An elephant there looked so lonely and sad it made me start to question zoos. Why the hell do they exist, animals should live in the wild, no argument can win against the statement that animals do not belong in cages, they belong in the fields, in the sky, in the seas and in their own world. Our fifth Jigoku was the Umi Jigoku (sea hell). This onsen is the most famous and it's fame did not dissapoint. It was beautiful, a sea blue onsen with steam constantly rising from the surface. I thought the onsen was maybe, ankle deep, i mean it looked really shallow. But it turns out the onsen was 300 metres deep. I still do not belive it. It was easily the most beautiful hell of the eight. Next we went to Oniishibozu Jigoku (shaven heads of monks hell) it is called the shaven heads of monks hell because the hot steam tries to rise through thick mud and makes it bubble in a huge size, making it look like, you guessed it... We then took a bus ride down to the last two remaining hells. We went to the Chinoike Jigoku (blood pond hell) first. An onsen as red as hell itself, i have no idea how it gets that colour, but it looked really cool and it just goes to show that nature can create things of true mystery and beauty. Then lastly we went to Tatsumaki Jigoku (spout hell). A geyser that erupts every half hour. It was frustraing because towards the build up of the eruption everyone was trying to get in my god damn way. Really pissed me off, the lack of consideration for others around. Oh well, I saw it quite clearly after a bit of moving around and was thoroughly impressed.
That night we visited the most popular onsen in Beppu, but this one was for bathing. It was nice, not as good as the Kobe one by a long shot, but any onsen is enjoyable. The hot water not only cleanses the body, but it cleanses my mind. I feel, if i ever have any trouble, an onsen is the best cure, some people drink, some people take drugs, I reckon i would need an onsen, because in my opinion they remove society from the mind, and you relax into a state of near perfection, caring for nothing, but the moment.
The next day was a delight. According to Hayley, this was her favourite thing so far. We ventured out to Takasaaki Yama. A mountain which was a natural monkey reserve. My thought was that there would be a lot of walls and fence that cut us of from the monkey in its natural habitat. I could not have been more wrong. As the deer where in Nara the monkeys were on that mountain, roaming freely, brushing past your feet and going about there own business. Also there were literally thousands of monkeys, just waltzing and sauntering about. It was crazy, a little scary at first but it was so damn cute, the fear soon subsided. Some mother monkeys even had their babies clutching to them as they walked. It was truly fascinating.
Today, we hit the beach. It was stupidly hot, but it was nice. We even saw a giant Jelly fish float on by. Made us get out the water for a bit that's for sure. We have extended our stay in Beppu to see the Hanabi (fireworks festival) on the 31st, and then we head to Kagoshima. A place famous for it's live volcano, that errupts at least five times a day. That I think, is awesome.
Thanks for reading
Arigatou, Sayonara.
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