Our last morning in Hiroshima consisted of us waking up early to grab breakfast from the lobby. After grabbing more bread packages than yesterday, since I was quite hungry yesterday, we packed our luggage before heading out to catch the streetcar to Hiroshima Station.
Unfortunately, we had to catch the Kodama (the slowest Shinkansen for this line since it makes a lot of stops) to Hakata Station in Kyushu. My girlfriend was excited to board the Yufuin no Mori, a scenic train that would take us to our next destination. However, due to heavy rainfall, our train was canceled. There was a lot of chaos among the passengers, and I had no idea what was going on at Hakata. Once again, fortunately, my girlfriend was able to speak to the conductors to get an idea of what we had to do. A nearby family from China was also able to ask her for directions since she's able to speak Mandarin as well!
JR ended up putting all of us on a train to Yufuin. It was a mad dash to the train since we were given only about 3 minutes to find the platform and to board. In the end, there was no need to rush since the train was delayed, which I assumed was also due to the rain. After an hour or so though, we finally arrived at Yufuin station. We took a taxi to our stay for the next week: Yufuin Country Roads Youth Hostel. In exchange for accommodations and meals, we were going to volunteer with chores around the hostel. It was my first time doing a homestay, so I wasn't sure what to expect. When we entered, we didn't see anyone so I awkwardly waited in the foyer while my girlfriend went to go find the host. After she was able to find one of them, they told us the location of our room, which was in the basement near one of the onsens they had on site. The roof was extremely low (I'm around 5'8" and my head brushed the ceiling), and there was no a/c, but the room was large. We placed our stuff and went back upstairs to a living room area to relax. The other host came to introduce himself to me and to welcome back my girlfriend since she's done a couple homestays at this location. We were taken to the kitchen to eat the dinner they prepared for us and for the guests who opted for a meal plan that night.
Dinner was a classic example of Japanese cuisine. Each dish was flavoured well with nothing overpowering one another. Once dinner was finished, we were handed an apron. It was time for our first task: washing the dishes. I had to say, it was pretty straight forward, though learning where to put the plates back after they were dried was challenging due to the vast amount of dishes and plates. Once the dishes were done, we were taught (or retaught) how to check to make sure the kitchen was cleaned and the burners were turned off properly.
First night was easy, which allowed a smooth transition for the week to come!
I believe the warning was lifted for Yufuin. Apparently it was at risk of a landslide.
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