Kyushu Travel

A self-described delinquent youth who followed his dream to become a professional surfer now finds himself at the center of a...

Travelers to Japan undoubtedly view sake as the traditional liquor of Japan. Histori-cally they wouldn’t be wrong, since Sudō Honke, the world’s oldest sake brewery (and one of the oldest companies in the world), was founded in 1141 in Ibaraki Prefecture, just north of Tokyo. However Southern Japan is home to another authentic Japanese spirit—shochu, which was first produced about 500 years ago, its roots firmly planted in Japan’s warmer southern climes.

A towering pier, a concrete yellowish block under the evening sunshine; what a powerful view. The “Gunkan” (Battleship) Island was...

It had been raining since the previous day, and I could feel the thick moisture spread through the air, falling through the crevi...