The
attractions
of
And what do you do for 25½
Ogasawara
lay
in
hours? Well, when you take
secluded
beaches,
into consideration time for
hiking, boating, sailing,
napping, eating, becoming
snorkeling, scuba diving,
mesmerized by the emptiness
sea-kayaking,
whaleof the ocean and the swelling
watching, swimming with
of the waves, taking photos,
wild dolphins, fishing,
watching some television,
conservation, as well as
reading, chatting,
peoplethe sheer uniqueness of
watching, having an Asahi
experiencing
the
Beer or two and sleeping,
destination (what many
then all of a sudden it’s 11:30
travellers refer to as the
am the next day and exactly
‘what else’ in travel).
25½ hours after we left Tokyo,
Plus it is important to
we arrived in Chichijima.
note that the Ogasawara
Our tour guide, Katchan, offers a taste of
the fruit from the Octopus tree.
group was formed by
We checked into the Seafront
underwater volcanoes 48
Hotel (about an 8-minute walk
million years ago and were never attached to a
from the Ferry Dock-it’s a very small town). It
land mass. They became home to a number of
offered basic accommodation but it was neat
unique species of flora and fauna, a fact that
and clean and afforded a nice view of the main
has given rise to the nickname, The Galapagos
street from our balcony. We then roamed the
of the Orient’.
town and settled on a Ramen restaurant for a
delicious bowl of mixed seafood ramen.
After spending a few days in Tokyo, we arrived
at Takeshiba Pier on a cool November day and
Back at the hotel Katchan, our guide from the
at 10:00 am we departed on the Ferry, the
Nature Academy introduced himself and we set
Ogasawara Maru. Our First Class room was on
off for an orientation tour of the island. We
the 2nd level and contained two bunk beds, a
stopped at amazing lookouts to enjoy vistas of
window, and a small television.
the city, the harbour and the smaller islands in
the area.
Marujo is a traditional Izakaya with excellent seafood and a friendly, decorative atmosphere