Aizuwakamatsu Fukushima Snow Trip

[KikoyBalayon]

Good day to all of you..

i will share my series of pictures in a way that is different from my past posting of pictures here, so bear with me..

this is about my recent snow trip to aizuwakamatsu.. the experience was both exciting and tragic..

the total stay in that trip was 24 hours.. so in that 24 hours of stay in aizuwakamatsu / fukushima i will tell to you our adventures in pictures..


This happened between 5:00AM to 6:00AM, January 12, 2008

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu1.jpg

We arrived at kooriyama station, fukushima at exactly 5:00AM Saturday.
it was still dark, cold, but no snow.. we entered into the station only to find out that the ticket counters were still offline, and the first trip to aizuwakamatsu starts at 5:56. hehehe
so me and my friend roamed around the station(and this station has got no waiting place with a heater) bought a one day pass from the infamous "midori no madoguchi" and waited for the first train..

[mtwalton]

wow! thrilling ha!....looking forward ..keep going...:)

[KikoyBalayon]

This happened between 6:00AM to 7:00AM, January 12, 2008

Behold our sunrise picture from Inawashiro Station.. very dramatic colors eh? :hihi:

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu2.jpg
"view from inawashiro station"

Finally, the train departed from kooriyama station and traveled towards aizuwakamatsu.

First Stop, Inawashiro Station and the Swan Beach/Lake(Hakuchou Hama).
This was our first stop, since i was curious about these migratory ducks from siberia..

since it was still dark, we waited for the sky to be bright and make our way towards the swan lake..

[KikoyBalayon]

This happened between 7:00AM to 8:00AM, January 12, 2008

When the sky was finally bright enough. we double checked our route and maps, asked some locals for confirmation about our destination. the old lady told us that it will take half-an-hour by foot.. so we went outside and continued to our destination, but we got lost, because of the thick snow covering the roads and pathwalks..

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu3.jpg
"Lost"


after 30 minutes of a futile attempt(we realized we were the only people out there in the street.. hehehe), we went back into the station, got a taxi(ouch!) and made our way towards the swan lake..

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu4.jpg
"Outside Weather from inside the taxi"

[KikoyBalayon]

This happened between 8:00AM to 9:00AM, January 12, 2008

Ground Zero, Swan Beach(Hakuchou Hama)

the Taxi dropped us in a 7/11 Store near the lake beach.. we prepared our gear and proceeded to the location.. the moment we arrived, some ducks were alarmed and they flew away to the lake.. fortunate to have a telephoto lens donated by crispee(it was a very old lens) which i used to capture these shots. then, we started our shoot.. it was very difficult because aside from holding a camera on one hand, we had to hold an umbrella on the other.. here are some ducks shot worth 2000 yen.(our 2-way taxi fare :hihi:)

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu5.jpg

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu6.jpg

Lake Inawashiro, Winter during a snowfall..
http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu7.jpg

[KikoyBalayon]

This happened between 9:00AM to 10:00AM, January 12, 2008

So After spending a fortune on some "ducks in a lake" shots.. we took a taxi back to the station, bid farewell to inawashiro and continued our adventure(kuno?!) to aizuwakamatsu.

after 30 mins... we have arrived at the famous ancient castle town..

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu8.jpg
JR Ban-etsu West Line Train at AizuWakamatsu Station..

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu9.jpg
Infront of the Aizuwakamatsu Station, with a Byakkotai Statue

[hanikami]

Kiks, great blow-by-blow account (at parang di ka naubusan ng Ingles, hehehe ;))

wow, adventures galore pala kayo!
でも本当にすごいと思う。

sige, kwento pah! :D

[KikoyBalayon]

hehe.. napansin ko nga eh.. ingles na pala ginagamit ko LOL..

coffee break muna.. :coffee: snoop snoop... waaaaaaa! hehehehe.. (para mapatunayang si kiks ato at hindi isang impostor na nag i-ingles..)

soredewa.. tsutsukimashou!

[KikoyBalayon]

This happened between 10:00AM to 11:00AM, January 12, 2008

so after arriving at the station, we saw a tourist information booth and asked for some advice on some good sight-seeing landmarks.. afterwards, (to compensate for the expensive taxi ride earlier) we bought a one-day pass since we are going to visit many places(pero actually dalawa lang nabisita namin hehe) so we saved a whopping Yen 100. :hihi:

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu10.jpg
Mr. Tour bus driver

thirty minutes after, we arrived at the site of tsuruga castle(a.k.a aizu wakamatsu castle)
in the midst of a wet snowfall we ventured around the castle...

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu11.jpg
Picture of the castle Moat

The Castle is near, just a little more
http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu12.jpg


Aha!
http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu13.jpg

[sarpon]

ganda nung castle kiks!.. kaya lang parang nanonood sa tv.. dami commercial.:D kakabitin.. hintay ko na lang yung pirated dvd copy??:D

more!

[shiawase]

ganda kiks! tinitingnan ko palang mga pics, nilalamig nako... hehehehe.... :p :D

namimiss ko tuloy gumawa ng yukidama.... :O

[KikoyBalayon]

This happened between 11:00AM to 12:00NN, January 12, 2008

Continuing our sight-seeing around the place, we also visited some gardens and interesting places..

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu14.jpg
View of the Castle from the Garden..


We weren't the only ones there, also some tourist and locals alike..

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu15.jpg
grampa and his daily leisure walk in the snow.. :hihi:

During the Ancient Period this spot is a reception for Outsiders..
http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu16.jpg
Taimenjo

Then, we also searched some good spot to find nice angles, like this one.
its situated high in the corners of the castle perimeter just before you plunge into the icy waters of the castle moat. :D

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu18.jpg
a perimeter outpost(with my friend as a model)

from there you could see a nice view of the castle, as well as the moat and the surroundings..

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu17.jpg
Castle from the High viewpoint.

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu19.jpg
Castle Moat Part 2

[sarpon]

:nuts:

[KikoyBalayon]

break muna... naubusan na ako ng english.. medjo halfway na sa trip yung kwento ko hehe

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/break.jpg

[shintaro]

This happened between 11:00AM to 12:00NN, January 12, 2008

Continuing our sight-seeing around the place, we also visited some gardens and interesting places..


http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu18.jpg
a perimeter outpost(with my friend as a model)

from there you could see a nice view of the castle, as well as the moat and the surroundings..

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu17.jpg
Castle from the High viewpoint.


nice pics kiks...i'm day-dreaming during those time. hindi ba gininaw yung friend mo, i notice na hindi snow repellant yung suot nya though he had an umbrella(napaghalata tuloy kayong gaijin):D

[KikoyBalayon]

@shintaro
haha... same goes for me.. malamig sya actually pero naka maraming patong kami kaya ok lang.. yung limb protection lang talaga problema namin.. hehe

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/break2.jpg
"Rubber shoes in the snow, stupid me.."

[shintaro]

@shintaro
haha... same goes for me.. malamig sya actually pero naka maraming patong kami kaya ok lang.. yung limb protection lang talaga problema namin.. hehe


http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/break2.jpg
"Rubber shoes in the snow, stupid me.."

sorry, i hadn't give you some warnings/advices... i never thought that climate in tokyo and fukushima is a bit different. gomen ne.:(

[Dondake303]

Ganda naman cool na cool ang view!:D

[mtwalton]

couldn't believe you can do this......yung lumaki sa country na even winter coat never worn eh maka tour in such a place like this......I am so proud of you guys!!

looking forward for the next story...:)

[adechan]

hontouni gomeni din kiks, hindi ko natunugan kaagad etong shooting mo na ito eh, may mga pang snow na rubber shoes, pero kahit regular shoes lang may mga mga pang minus degree na socks din, at may nabibiling rubber na puwedeng ikabit sa ilalim nang sapatos para makalakad nang maayos sa snow at hindi madulas,

pero wala talaga akong ma-say umuulan talaga nang yelo, super galing nang photo shoot experience mo

@shintaro
haha... same goes for me.. malamig sya actually pero naka maraming patong kami kaya ok lang.. yung limb protection lang talaga problema namin.. hehe

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/break2.jpg
"Rubber shoes in the snow, stupid me.."

[KikoyBalayon]

sorry for the long break.. lets continue shall we?


This happened between 12:30 to 13:30, January 12, 2008

So after visiting Tsuruga/Wakamatsu Castle we had to bid farewell and continue on our trip.

Next Stop, Iimoriyama Hill, the sight of the Famous Byakkotai. (lit. White Tiger Party), a group of young Aizu Warriors during the Boshin war, whom after defeat retreated to the hill. when they thought they saw the castle burning, they all committed seppuku.. thus they became a legend.. and the rest is history as they say..

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu20.jpg
Welcome Sign

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu21.jpg
Byakkotai Statue and Iimoriyama Hill Map

Since its a hill, we expected a climb, but we never expected it was very high, and steep..

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu22.jpg
Stairway to Heaven?

In the midst of a heavy snowfall, we started our ascent, being careful of the wet stairway.. we pushed on..

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu23.jpg
The Climb

to be continued... (つづく) :hihi:

[KikoyBalayon]

Continued...

upon reaching the site, we finally saw the grave of the byakkotai, with a winter mood..

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu24.jpg
Byakkotai Grave, Winter

we were amazed by the place, its literally a true-to-life black-and-white "scene that you only see in the movies", at least that's what i think.. :D

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu25.jpg
Winter Guardian

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu26.jpg
Frozen Tribute

more inspection on the surrounding, we saw some surreal landscapes, that is possible only on winter, during a heavy snowfall..

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu27.jpg
surreal

the hill commands a scenic view of aizu-wakamatsu city, but during our time there.. it was errr... a bit different but nice nonetheless..

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu28.jpg
aizuwakamatsu from iimoriyama hill.

[mtwalton]

Good morning!

My goodness!! the view is so beautiful...amazing. .....!:)

[KikoyBalayon]

o-matase, nag food trip lang ako kanina.. nakakagutom pala talaga ang pumunta sa lugar na may snow..

sore dewa, saigou ni tsutsukimashou!

[KikoyBalayon]

This happened on the last part of our trip..

So after iimoriyama hill, we went back to aizuwakamatsu station and took the train to kitakata city(just north of aizuwakamatsu, barely 20 mins. ride).

our reason here was to taste their famous ramen..(kitakata city is a ramen town, they have different kinds of ramen..)

so after arriving at the station, we went to the information desk. they pointed us to the number one ramen stop which is just a block away..

but we found an interesting shrine in the map just near our location, so we decided to visit that place first before our ramen..

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu31.jpg
"it reads sugawara Shrine"

we found some pretty interesting subjects..(camera before ramen.. haha)

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu32.jpg
more on Sugawara Shrine

as we looked around the site, we even found a frozen park beside the shrine..

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu34.jpg
Frozen Playground

and as we are about to call it a day, the most unfortunate event happened..
the snowfall stopped, and the sky became clear.. major bummer.. hehehe

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu30.jpg
Clear Winter Sky

because it cant be helped, we ended our photo session and headed towards the ramen shop i mentioned earlier..

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu29.jpg
A Street in Wintery Kitakata..

it was a very nice experience.. unfortunate turn of events happened.. was my first snow encounter(an unforgettable one if you ask me), blah blah blah.. and thus our journey ends here..

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu33.jpg
Ramen anyone?

Minna, Otsukaresama deshita..

[mamimo]

ang galing mo kikoy.....gusto ko yung The Climb.:thumb::)

[itchay]

ako naman i like the ramen....it's the one that stood out....lahat malamig tignan....ang ramen lang kaaya-ayang tignan....:D

ang galing mo na talaga, kiks! four thumbs up!
dramatic para saken yung frozen playground mo. :)


ngayon, alam ko na epekto ng zero degrees sa yo.....nagiging kano ka :hihi:

[guy26]

kaka-ingget naman! :cool:

[pinkheart]

grabe..:) ang ganda!..:p

[KikoyBalayon]

hehe.. napasukan kaya yung paa ko ng tubig.. as in *squish *squish.. hehe parusa yun.. tapos malamig pa.. woohoo.. grabe ansakit ng talampakan ko pag-uwi..

[sarpon]

looking at your "adventure" and pics made me want to go on my own winter adventure..:)

[tokyoboi2]

nice pics kiks..its awesome...pwede bang save ko yong mga pics sa castle and the wild ducks? so amazing..

[KikoyBalayon]

its ok.. as long as its for non-commercial use.. :D

[mikkie]

na pa WOW ako sa photo adventure experience mo.....galing ng mga shots...:)

[depp]

Galing-galing talaga ni kikoy,bilib ako sa determinasyon mo....pagod at lamig,grabeee..di ko ata kakayanin yan...sabagay,layo naman ng edad natin,hehe:D

[KikoyBalayon]

@depp
ayus na sana.. toinks.. hehehe

@mikkie
salamat.. regards mo na lang ako jan sa taga gunma.. :D

[ning2]

galing naman ng adventure mo! an amazing experience! at siyempre hindi mawawala ang "wow" sa mga shots mo.:) kaze wo hikanai youni ne...;)

[rhynissa]

wowowi, gandang adventure... waaahhh, gusto ko makaranas ng ganyan..:eek:

[rad]

Panalo! Kuhang kuha mo ang feel ng Japanese castle during winter!
Hindi ba mahirap ung WB sa mga ganitong condition?
Pwede matanong ano-ano settings ginamit mo sa mga shots na to?

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu14.jpg

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu17.jpg

Lupet netong 2 shots na to! Sang ayon ako sa sinabi mong ala-movie effect!

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu24.jpg

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa221/kikoyz/aizu25.jpg

[KikoyBalayon]

auto WB lang rad.. since white naman yung snow.. pwde mo gawing yung WB reference.. :D

sa settings naman.. tendency talaga na mag underexpose mga pic pag auto yung settings.. manual mode lang.. test shot.. check sa histogram.. pag ok.. set na yun..

[nokiko]

okay yang style ng mgashots mo ah.

favorite mo ba winter shots?;)

[rad]

auto WB lang rad.. since white naman yung snow.. pwde mo gawing yung WB reference.. :D

sa settings naman.. tendency talaga na mag underexpose mga pic pag auto yung settings.. manual mode lang.. test shot.. check sa histogram.. pag ok.. set na yun..

Ah ok. Ayos... test shots... then check.

Pansin ko Nikon ung dSLR mo... sino dito mga naka Canon?
Ung meh mga experience sa mga architectural shots.