Join us for another “bus team versus train team” race. This time, the two teams will start from Kumamoto Castle in Kumamoto Prefecture and head to the goal, Hirado Castle in Nagasaki Prefecture, which is more than 200km away. The teams will be allowed to make shortcuts by taking ferries, an essential means of transport in Kyushu, as long as the rides are under 10,000 yen.
The two teams must clear several checkpoints, which are popular attractions in Kyushu, and complete missions there before heading to the next one. The first checkpoint is Greenland in Kumamoto, an amusement park about 40km away from Kumamoto Castle.
The bus team wants to first get to Kumamoto Station, 2km away, to gather information about bus routes. They find a bus which leaves at 11am for the Sakura Town Bus Terminal, from where they can transfer buses and go to Kumamoto Station.
As for the train team, they make enquiries about the best route to go to Arao Station, the nearest station to the first checkpoint. Kumamoto City has trams running in all directions so the team is advised to take one to Kami-Kumamoto Station. They manage to find the tram stop called Daniyamamachi but they missed the tram leaving at 11.05am. The next tram is at 11.20am.
The bus team, meanwhile, takes the bus near Kumamoto Castle, thinking it will go directly to the bus terminal. Unfortunately, the bus ends up circling around Kumamoto Castle. It passes the bus terminal, stops at the entrance of the castle again and will wait for five minutes before heading back to the terminal. The team decides it would be faster to walk to Sakura Town. At the bus terminal, they ask about getting to Arao. They are told to take the 11.25am bus to Tamana Station and then transfer buses to go to the Arao Bus Centre, 1km away from the first checkpoint. At this point, the team has already decided to take the Ariake Ferry later as it will take a long time to get to Nagasaki by bus.
After missing their tram, the train team is now slightly behind the other team. They manage to catch the next tram called Heidelberg and head to Kami-Kumamoto Station. From here, they travel by the Kagoshima Main Line to Arao Station on an express train leaving at 11.50am. When they arrive at Arao, they decide to have lunch first before walking to the first checkpoint. While eating deep-fried lotus roots stuffed with seafood, the members discuss their strategy after visiting Greenland. They plan to walk back to Arao Station, take a train to Nagasu Station and then the Ariake Ferry. After their lunch, the train team starts walking for 4km to Greenland.
In the meantime, the bus team has reached Tamana Station. They are now trailing behind the train team. They go to the Arao Bus Centre and must wait 40 minutes for the bus that goes near the first checkpoint. While they wait, they grab a quick lunch of ramen with rich pork bone soup topped with garlic. They then catch the bus and after making enquiries, find out that the nearest bus stop to Greenland is the Arao City Mall one. They also learn there are no buses going directly to the ferry terminal at Nagasu Port. So after visiting Greenland, they will take a bus to Sakurayama Danchi and then walk for about 5km to the port.
The train team arrives at Greenland first. It has the largest number of rides in Japan. For their mission, each team must work together to cover three rides. The first is NIO, a roller coaster known to be the scariest in Kyushu. The second is a shooting game and the third is a 59-metre-high swing ride called Star Flyer Goku that rotates at a high speed. The train team completes their mission first. Before heading to the second checkpoint, they order some cutlet bowls. As the train team waits for their cutlet bowls, the bus team members are taking the last ride and finally complete the challenge. The next checkpoint is Kagetsu, a restaurant in Nagasaki City, which is 60km away. The restaurant was established more than 300 years ago.
The bus team wants to the bus from Arao City Mall at 3.25pm and must walk for 13km to the bus stop. The other team, meanwhile, will be taking the Ariake Ferry which leaves in two hours. They walk for 4km again back to Arao Station and take the train to Nagasu Station. However, they will need to walk from Nagasu Station to the port for about 2km. The bus team manages to catch the Arao Station-bound bus from the Arao City Mall bus stop. They alight at Sakurayama Danchi and then walk for 5km to Nagasu Port. So both teams are now heading to the ferry terminal.
Tips:
1) Trams are a convenient way to get around Kumamoto City
2) Check out Kyushu’s scariest roller coaster and a 59-metre-high swing ride at Greenland
