what we're known for

Every town in Japan seems to be known for something…and whatever it is will be featured on manhole covers, as keychains, in restaurants, et al. There's even a term for the items from a specific place that you buy to bring back for someone — omiyage (not to be confused with “souvenirs”, which are usually kept for yourself).

This week we visited Shikoku, the fourth largest island in the Japanese archipelago. While the area has many large cities (each with its own features) the island itself is know for a few things:

Citrus

Everywhere we went we found mikan (oranges), remon (lemons), and even yuzu (a lemon-scented citrus fruit) in all forms.

In one town we ordered some flights of orange juice and orange beer, and then in another we tried lemon-infused dumplings and lemon soft serve ice cream.

So much mikan!

Towels

While researching points of interest I found a towel factory/museum, but I didn't realize how popular towels are, especially on the western part of the island. Nearly every shop has a varied selection including hand towels, washcloths, onsen towels, and more.

Five stories of towels!

One historic town we visited on the eastern side is known for aizome (indigo dyed fabric). We learned how to make our own designs and produced a few items to take home. One of us did NOT like the smell and another ended up with blue hands, but we were happy we got to do it!

Full production mode

Udon

It's not exactly the season for hot soup, but the udon restaurants are always popular here. Of course, there are lots of other options too — most menus featured seafood and/or citrus — so we found plenty to eat.

Food!

Mountains, Rivers, and Waterfalls

Ok, so most of Japan is known for this as well, but Shikoku Island is home to one of the best white water rafting spots in the world — they even hosted the Rafting World Championships a few years ago.

E signed up for a guided trip and fortunately (?) the river was just under the maximum height allowed for rafting on the day he went. He had a blast though, and was lucky not to be in one of the (several) boats that dumped its riders that day.

Aside from the allure of the current, the river is absolutely beautiful and crystal clear, even in the deepest sections. There are many picturesque bridge crossings as well.

Pictures from not rafting

We also drove 🫣 up to a smaller river that had lots of waterfalls to play in. The access road was pretty typical, so… sketchy at best.

chasing waterfalls

And of course we had to visit a mountaintop castle too, but we used a more Japanese style of ascending to the top:

P.S. We haven't found a single place in Japan that is immune to the summer heat, but the adventures continue (especially now that we know all of the ways to keep cool)!

A weird shrine on a hill on the longest day of the year...