A Note from Chizuru — August 2026
This story was originally written in Japanese on December 13, 2017.
Reading it again now, I realized that it was really about something I did not understand very well when I was still visiting Kagoshima as a traveler.
Back then, I thought enjoying a trip meant using every hour efficiently and seeing as many places as possible.
After moving to Kirishima, I began to see things a little differently.
Sometimes a local market, a beautiful view from a parking lot, a small hot spring, or even a little time with nothing planned can become part of what makes a journey memorable.
Rather than rewriting this completely from today’s point of view, I decided to share it in English while keeping the feeling of that day in December 2017.
A Little Extra Time Near Kagoshima Airport
That day, I finished a few errands in the morning and had lunch near Kagoshima Airport.
With lunch finished and no particular need to hurry home, I began to think:
Since I’m already out here, maybe I should stop somewhere before heading back.
One of my usual places to visit after lunch near the airport was Mizobe Bussankan Yokode-ro, a local market selling fresh vegetables and products from Kirishima.
There were beautiful vegetables and fruit, but also local sweets, soba noodles, and other simple foods that felt very much a part of everyday life here.
It became one of those places I naturally stopped at whenever I was nearby.
Near Kagoshima Airport — December 2017
Mountains, Tea Fields, and Airplanes Overhead
Yokode-ro is only a short drive beyond Kagoshima Airport.
Before you have much time to admire the wide sky, the tea fields, and the Kirishima mountains in the distance, you are already there.
On a clear day, the view of the mountains from the parking area can be enough to lift my mood completely.
Sometimes the timing is just right and an airplane that has taken off from Kagoshima Airport passes overhead.
You can look up and see the underside of the aircraft as it climbs into the sky.
It is a very small thing.
But that too can be part of the fun.
After doing a little shopping, if the sky is still clear and the mountains still look beautiful, it becomes difficult to go straight home.
You begin to think:
Maybe just a little farther.
A Little Farther to Shiohitashi Onsen Ryoma Park
That day, I decided to visit Shiohitashi Onsen Ryoma Park for the first time in quite a while.
When I used to visit Kirishima as a tourist, I had almost no sense of how the places around here were connected.
I imagined Shiohitashi Onsen as somewhere deep in the mountains and far away from everything else.
Only after moving here did I realize how close it actually was to Kagoshima Airport.
That was one of many surprises I had after beginning to live in Kirishima.
Before Shiohitashi Onsen Was Renovated
Shiohitashi Onsen once had a very different appearance from the park visitors see today.
The older facility closed in March 2009 before the area was later renewed.
A video uploaded by Tukasa Houjou preserves a glimpse of that earlier Shiohitashi Onsen.
For anyone interested in how places change over time, I think this old footage is especially interesting.
A Glimpse of the Old Shiohitashi Onsen
Watch the original video on YouTube →
Years ago, there were very few visitor facilities here.
There was no polished tourist center or large souvenir shop.
It felt more like a hot spring known mainly by people who already knew where to find it.
Later, the area was developed and became a more recognizable sightseeing spot.
But seeing the old footage reminds me that places have their own histories, long before we discover them as visitors.
Things I Never Knew When I Was a Traveler
Kareigawa Station, another well-known place in the area, is also closer to Kagoshima Airport than I once imagined.
I only understood that after moving here.
It made me remember the trips I had taken to Kagoshima years earlier.
On the final day, I would constantly think about the departure time of my flight.
I would arrive at the airport early and spend the remaining time inside the terminal.
Looking back, I smile a little at that version of myself.
If I were traveling here now, knowing what I know today, I would probably use those final hours differently.
But I don’t mean trying to squeeze in as many sightseeing spots as possible.
That is not necessarily what it means to truly enjoy Kagoshima.
Leave a Little Empty Space in Your Kagoshima Journey
These days, I think there is another way to enjoy a place.
You can have lunch near the airport.
Stop at a local market because you happen to be nearby.
Look at the mountains.
Watch an airplane pass overhead.
And if the weather feels good, drive just a little farther.
No great plan.
No list that has to be completed.
No need to turn every hour into sightseeing.
When you visit Kagoshima, I hope you might leave a little room in your schedule for what could almost be called “wasted time.”
Not wasted because nothing happens.
But because nothing has to happen.
Sometimes that empty time is when you notice the sky.
The mountains.
A small local shop.
A river.
A place you had never planned to visit.
And perhaps those quiet discoveries are what stay with you after the journey is over.
That is one of my favorite ways to enjoy Kagoshima.
A Note for Visitors in 2026
This story reflects a day I spent around Mizobe and Shiohitashi Onsen in December 2017.
Road conditions, travel times, opening hours, facilities, shops, admission information, and other details may have changed since then.
The old Shiohitashi Onsen shown in the video is not the current facility. The older facility closed in March 2009 before the area was later renewed.
If you are planning to visit Yokode-ro, Shiohitashi Onsen Ryoma Park, Kareigawa Station, or other places near Kagoshima Airport, please check current official information before you go.
What has not changed for me is the feeling behind this story.
You do not always need to hurry through Kagoshima.
Sometimes the best part of a journey begins when you leave a little space for somewhere you had not planned to go.
Originally published in Japanese on December 13, 2017.
Read the original Japanese article →
出張や観光で霧島に来られた方で、
静かに過ごせる場所を探している方は、こちらもご覧ください。
