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Home » Culture » Asian Cultures » A-Z of Japan: A is for Aso-San

A-Z of Japan: A is for Aso-San

February 3, 2017 by Crystal McClean

Welcome to a new year and a new series!  I’ve been doing a lot of reminiscing about the time I spent in Japan and I’ve been telling my children stories of the places I travelled.  I have been inspired by The Wise Owl Factory’s FREE Japan Presentations for SMART Board and PPt. What I am planning to do is go through the (Romanji) alphabet and share a little piece of Japan with you every couple of weeks.  Most, if not all, of the photography used will by my own – back in the days of a pocket point-and-shoot film camera. Ooh how I would love to return with my digital camera!

Let’s start off today with the letter A.

A is for Aso-San, Working through the A-Z of Japan with Castle View Academy homeschool

When my mom came to visit me in 2002 we went on an epic adventure.  From Toyama on down south to the island of Kyushu.  We visited many places in between, but perhaps the most memorable was Aso-san; a live volcano!

Aso-Boy

Aso-Boy steam train in Japan, 2002 Vacation with Castle View Academy homeschool

Mom and I took an American steam train, called the Aso-Boy from Kumamoto to a station near the caldera.  Sadly, the Aso-Boy is no longer in operation.  My travel agent hadn’t hear of the Aso-Boy herself, and was surprised that I could find some interesting things do in Japan that were new to her.  I just loved my travel agent, a year later I went back to my hometown of Toyama and we went to a festival together with her daughter.

A is for Aso-san

Aso-San volcano in Kyushu, Japan in 2002 with Castle View Academy homeschool, A-Z of Japan

We arrived at the Aso Caldera, which is one of the world’s largest.  At first we were disappointed that the Nakadake Crater was closed off due to sulfuric gases being emitted.  We wandered around the information centre, hoping that we’d be able to get a closer look before our next form of transportation was scheduled.

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We were in partial luck.  The winds shifted and we were able to walk up to the rim of the crater an look down into it, but we weren’t able to walk right around the crater.

A is For Aso-San, Japan, Looking down into the steaming caldera with Castle View Academy homeschool

I was surprised to see that when looking down, it wasn’t all red and black lava, as one might expect.  Rather, it was a pleasing blue and almost mint-green!

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Of course Mom and I took the obligatory photo opportunity to have our photos taken in front of the might volcano.

Mom and I at the Aso-San Volcano in Japan, Castle View Academy homeschool, A-Z of Japan

In fact, you’ve probably heard of Aso-san yourself, as it’s erupted a couple of time in the past two years.  One never thinks that could actually happen, but of course it does.  Seeing the concrete shelters peppered near the crater’s edge was a clear reminder of that.

I hope you’ll join me again next time as I work my way through the alphabet.  Below I’ve included some of my favourite Japanese resources for planning my trips (affiliate links).

 

Filed Under: Asian Cultures, Field Trips, Nature Tagged With: A-Z of Japan, AF-AM, Japan, Travel

About Crystal McClean

I am a Mom, Wife, Home Educator, and Virtual Assistant. We love to have fun together while learning and exploring our environment.

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