Oooookama Crater!*

(*sung to the tune of Oklahoma, you'll need to accent the ka.)

I had a hankering to visit somewhere today, either Morioka or Yamagata and the driver has always wanted to travel along the Zao Echo Line...so...Yamagata won the coin toss. We wound our way to the Zao Echo Line (I don't know if it actually echoes anywhere) and drove up Mt. Zao. Near the top, we stopped for a photo op. Here is a pano.

As you can see, we stopped for a pee.

A little further up the mountain, we snapped a few more pics...

 Snowy!

Another pano.

Rather than park for free and walk up the rest of the way, we opted to pay 550 for parking. A wise choice as my back has been acting up lately.

Okama Crater!

Yet another pano. That may be Sendai in the distance.

Back to the Kettle/Cauldron which is what Okama means.

My friend trekked up the path to the peak of Kattadake, (a secondary peak of Zao). I'd done it before, so I opted out.

While he was gone, I snapped a few more random pics.

This may pique your interest, take a peek at the peak to the right of the crater.

It is called Goshikidake which means Five Colours Peak. I can't really discern which colours compose the five, but I admire their creativity.

Almost everyone there had masks on, except for a few dudes who were too cool to do so.

In the tiny gift shop, I considered buying some Pocky but decided against it.

I did buy a Clear File depicting the crater.

With Snow Monsters on its reverse.

Because there was an anime gal on this bottle of cider, I decided to give it a try.

Dan (the Man) who knows all there is to know about anime told me that she is Tohoku Zunko who is named after the green Zunda beans. (Click that link if you want to learn more.)

A few shots of the other side from the crater.

If you squint real hard, you might be able to discern Yamagata.

It was nice to get out in the fresh air and since it wasn't crowded, that made it even better. (If you go, take a jacket, it gets chilly.)

Ton o' Towels!

By the time I write this, Towel Day will have passed us by.

I'd been meaning to do this all weekend, and finally got around to emptying a drawer full of towels that are still in their plastic wrapping.

Quite the hodgepodge there. When necessary, I'll open up the plastic and take a pic of the entire towel. For example, these two Godzilla towels that I won't put back in the drawer and use them as seat covers for my car. These I acquired via UFO Catcher.

 

This little Mothra towel is one that I think I'll use as a handkerchief. I have nearly a complete set of these...somewhere.

Hey, I have two T-Shirts in that drawer too.

In a similar vein , here's an Evangelion towel.

A couple of Dragonball and a One Piece.

 

No idea where I got this nor what it is.

A couple of Lupin III from The Castle of Cagliostro.

A mini Moomin from KFC.

Two Snoopy ones.

Rilakuma. This is very soft and I don't think it's a towel but rather a wrap-around shawl.

I never noticed that Sailor Moon is such a metalhead.

Of course, Disney makes an appearance.

I'll have to add this to my Halloween costume bag for the kiddies to wear for dress up.

Not sure when or where I landed this Alice. It is gorgeous!

Not a clue what this is.

Rugby towels given away when you buy four pops.

Probably acquired at a St. Patrick's Day party.

I don't remember buying this. Glad I scored a bit of history.

This Ninjago came as a freebie when I saw the Lego movie.

Finally a pair of UFO Caught Marvel beach towels. These things are taller than I am.

I do believe that when next I travel to Canada (if ever), most of these will be omiyage to be given to friends and family.

Are you a hoopy frood who really knows where his towel is!