Aso-san 2009 (page 5)
I headed to Beppu Guesthouse to keep my luggages. About 3 mins walk from the JR Beppu Station. And it is really cheap: ￥1,500 per person in the dorm. Looks pretty decent and they have free drinks.
And they have free computers with internet:
And here is the dorm:
With my luggage settled, I head for Beppu town. And got a "My-Beppu-Free" bus ticket (￥700 per day, unlimited bus ride). Took the bus to the nearest jigoku (cost ￥400 per jigoku, per pax or you can buy a pass for all jigoku). Plus if you visit them individually, you'll get a ticket or a postcard. Nice view of the town too:
A city powered by geothermal..
But frankly, from what I read online, I would only visit 3 of them:
Chinoike Jigoku
Umi Jigoku
and..
Oniishibozu Jigoku
After a long trip, i accidentally slept on the bus but with my pass, I didnt really care where I landed :) Head back to the hostel. Took my stuff and headed for the onsen recommended by the guys there.
Takegawara Onsen
It is a public onsen and one has to bring their own towel, soap and shampoo. The water is really hot, 42'C but definitely feels hotter than that.. It costs ￥100 per person and ￥1000 for the (hot) sand bath. Sand baths are not common in Japan and only available in some parts of the area. Since it was near new year, entrance was free! But sand bath was already closed when I reached there. After the onsen, I retired for the day.
Day 5
Time to head back home. I woke up early in the morning to catch the first train of the day. It was before sunrise and I manage to spend some time watching the sunrise at the seaside.