Seperation

A star was born today.

We were on the train leaving from Hagi and I was just about to take out my notebook and to begin sketching this very post as I was approached by a camera team.
They asked me if they could do a short interview for TV, to which I agreed, even if a little hesitantly.
Having seen very similar camera teams filming in Tokyo before, I wanted to find out what they were all about.
As it turned out, they were interested in the most trivial things, such as where I was from, what I was doing in Japan and how I liked it here. 
Failing quite badly at hiding my bemusement I tried to give interesting and varied answers, but quickly noticed that they didn't understand half of what I was saying.
After the short-lived interview they went back to filming trains and looking for other, groundbreaking news.
I highly doubt my interview has any intellectual value and see it suited only for the rubbish bin. However, the Japanese have a record of showing anything on TV, so I might just as well end up on a late-night-show of some rubbish program.

Anyhow, this post was intended to inform you about the continuation of our journey, as there have been dramatic changes to our itinerary.
Alessio and I have decided to go separate ways for the next six days.
He is returning to Tokyo where he is going to spend some time with Yuriko and I am heading down to Yakushima, a subtropical island located 135 kilometres south of Kagoshima City.
It is a magical place to whose topic I will dedicate a seperate post.

In the meantime you can enjoy some pictures of Hagi, an old samurai town in Yamaguchi.
It is cluttered with beautiful old residences and lemon trees and famous for its pottery.
At the moment Hagi is a hidden gem and only chosen very rarely as a travel destination by foreign tourists.
This could soon change however, as Hagi will be used for the setting of an NHK TV drama and thus might gain international appreciation.

a potter at his work

Hagi Castle ruins

SIDE NOTE: I was able to draw out money at a 7/11 in Hagi.