A Few Days in Nishi-Izu

What a great getaway! Though we only spent two nights and three days away, we had a great time down on the west coast of Izu!

We decided to make our 'home base' in the little village of Toi, which has a small fishing port, a nice beach, and awesome sunsets over the Pacific ocean. Though it could have easily been a day trip to Toi and back, we really wanted to get away for a bit, and also spend a couple of pleasant days exploring the coast of Nishi-Izu (west side of peninsula) on our motorcycles. The roads around that side of Izu are curvy, mountain as well as coastal roads that are also less trafficked at this time of year, which made for some fun riding, over the mountain ridges and along the coast, through fishing villages and sandy beaches.

Here's a map of the area we stayed:

View Larger Map
The minshuku that we found, the Kikusui (??), was also really fantastic and we will definitely stay there again. Nestled on a quiet side street of the village, this Japanese style inn offered friendly service, a (very!) large tatami room, and a mountain view. Most importantly, since we love Japanese onsens (baths), this place also had a great indoor and outdoor onsen! We spent two nights here, using the days to explore other villages and views along the coast.

[caption id="attachment_1685" align="alignnone" width="491" caption="Kikusui Minshuku"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1686" align="alignnone" width="491" caption="Indoor bath at Kikusui (women's)"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1687" align="alignnone" width="491" caption="Rotenburo (outdoor bath) at Kikusui"][/caption]

I highly recommend the Kikusui minshuku. Call them to make a reservation - 0558-98-0062

Though we often opt for the meals-included option when we stay at minshuku or ryokan, this time we went the less pricey route, and decided to explore local restaurants for dinner. After a lot of walking around on our first night in town, we stumbled upon a small, homey izakaya (Japanese pub) just around the corner from our minshuku. Called Hatsune (??), the place was run by an older woman and her daughter. The menu featured some of our favourite izakaya fare, such as yakitori and kawa-ebi, and was delicious!

[caption id="attachment_1688" align="alignnone" width="491" caption="Izakaya Hatsune"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1689" align="alignnone" width="491" caption="Inside the Izakaya"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1690" align="alignnone" width="491" caption="Yakitori (grilled chicken skewers)"][/caption]

During our daytime explorations, when we took our motorcycles into other villages and towns, we had the chance to sample other local fare; of course, since these are all sea-side fishing towns, most of that fare was, well, fish! In the town of Ugusu, Brian spied a seafood 'BBQ' restaurant called kaisenyaki Kanejou (??? ????? - check out their website here http://www.kanejyou.com/). Like yaki-niku restaurants, this place has grills on the table and you grill your fish yourself. We got one of the fish sets, which included shrimp, squid, tuna, and shell fish - lots of protein and healthier than grilled pork!

[caption id="attachment_1691" align="alignnone" width="491" caption="Shrimp and Squid on the grill"][/caption]

For the duration of our trip, the weather was perfectly wonderful. The days were warm and sunny, and the evenings were cool and pleasant. And as this was the sunset side of the peninsula, offered gorgeous sunset views over the ocean.

[caption id="attachment_1692" align="alignnone" width="491" caption="Silhouette statue in Toi"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1693" align="alignnone" width="491" caption="Sunset over Toi pier"][/caption]