Aogashima is a six squared kilometres island with a population of 170. Although is relatively close to Tokyo and administered by the city's prefecture, very few people visit this paradisiac land. Ever since I saw a picture of it, I had been dreaming of visiting it. This is the second of three articles describing my journey.
There is no direct flight or ferry to Aogashima; you must first arrive to the bigger and more popular Hachijojima. Although I wanted to go straight to the less explored island, the timings of the ferries made me stay one full day in Hachijojima. It was such a great experience I really thank I could taste a bit of its magic.
I must admit I was really lucky. As soon as I got down the ferry from Tokyo, Daigo, the ticket agent at the ferry terminal, was extremely friendly with me. He explained that I had to buy my ticket to Aogashima the day I departed. We then continued talking for a while about my experience in Japan, my reasons to visit such remote areas of his country, and even about sushi and sake. He then offered to show me around the island on his car.
As soon as we picked up his girlfriend we had lunch at Len Gue - a very small but delicious local restaurant. I asked him to order for me, I would eat anything tasty and traditional he recommended. He chose a perfect dish. It was Len Gue special - a spicy ramen soup with pork, fish, and vegetables.
We waited to have dessert at Huru Sato. A classic Japanese house which welcomes tourists with green tea, sweet potatoes, and shiso jelly. All for free. You can also try to play the traditional Hachijo taiko. One person plays a rhythm on one side of the drum while the other improvises at the other end. As soon as we left, the two old women taking care of the traditional home gave us tasty ashitaba candies. This endemic plant from Hachijojima literally means “Tomorrow’s Leaf” given its rapid rejuvenation.
Before reaching a magnificent viewpoint we stopped at some infamous walls of the island. These tamaishigaki were built in the Edo period by convicts exiled to Hachijojima. They were forced to build the walls carrying heavy round stones from the beach. They would receive one rice ball for each rock.
When we arrived to the viewpoint, the landscape was so magnificent that completely hypnotised me. The dramatic blue sky, perfect green plants, and a hostile deep sea, combined with Hajijo-kojima, a three squared kilometre island just in front of Hachijojima, made the scenery impossibly beautiful.
Daigo allowed me to visit his house, he showed me the Geothermal Energy Museum, before we ended up relaxing at an onsen with amazing view of the vast ocean.
After a perfect day I finally checked in at my guesthouse. Although there are not many budget places to stay in Hachijojima, Kencha Rumah was a friendly, economic, and extremely clean option. They have dormitory and private rooms.
My day at Hachijojima was an amazing natural and cultural experience. In case you decide to visit the island you’ll have a wonderful time filled with a lot of unexplored beauty.
