Misadventure in Kawachi

It was approximately 11am, as I alighted the bus at the final stop of the route. The bus driver looked into his rear mirror, giving a slightly puzzled look at me before driving off, disappearing at the right bend. I took a look at Google Maps on my phone; I still had roughly 4 km of distance from my destination. Oh boy.

The first time I discovered an Instagram post featuring Kawachi Wisteria Garden, I knew I absolutely had to visit that wondrous place. A brief introduction to the aforementioned garden: Kawachi Wisteria Garden ( 河内藤園, Kawachi Fujien) is a private garden that houses Wisteria flowers (obviously) and maple trees.

I was en route to this majestic garden when I suddenly noticed that I was the only passenger on the bus remaining. Strange, how come there’s no one except me that’s going to this tourist spot? I checked the travel guide on my phone once again; wisteria peak season is around late April to early May, while maple leaf season is in autumn. The date was 5th December. Surely there was something left to see right? Even though I totally missed the peak season? Those thoughts were running through my mind while I found my way to JR Yahata station.

At the bus terminus, I had to make a decision to proceed or abort the journey, because Uber reported that there were zero cabs in the area. So it was going to be a total walking distance of 8km for the return trip, and that was just to the bus terminus. Well, since I’ve came all the way here already, might as well continue on, I thought.

The first kilometer was dull. An empty road that stretched on forever, thick vegetation surrounding from the sides. Literally quiet, no birds chirping, no cicadas singing, the silence was deafening. I checked my map again; I was approaching a reservoir.

Don’t worry, I wasn’t fooled by Google Maps to take the longer path. Maybe Google Maps was merely acting in my best interests, to take me along a scenic path to experience more natural attractions perhaps? I’ll never know, because I was sure as hell won’t be taking that detour.

Judging from the map, the reservoir (named Kawachi Reservoir) was quite wide, and the view spanning across the reservoir was a sight to behold.

After walking for another half hour, I spotted civilization in the distant horizon, with small houses and restrooms. Great, I was hoping for a small restaurant to have lunch, because the onigiri I bought from Hakata station’s Family Mart wasn’t going to satisfy my hunger. Unfortunately, to the dismay of all my dismays for the day, all the ‘shop-looking’ houses were closed and there was no one in sight to ask. Well, that’s to be expected during the off-season where visitors are near zero (I made it non-zero). Left with no choice, I continued on towards the garden.

The last kilometer was a gruesome one; uphills and more uphills awaited the ‘hangry’ me. It felt like I was reliving my route march army days, walking forward mindlessly like a zombie. But as soon as I saw the garden’s sign, I brightened up and quicken my pace, ready to receive my reward for enduring the arduous march.

As I got closer to the garden entrance, I realized something was very wrong: where were all the flowers? Where were the wisterias that were promised in all the Instagram photos? All I see were barren trees! Not even a slight hint of purple anywhere!

There was a young Japanese couple talking to an oji-san at the entrance, walking away after their conversation. They probably didn’t even enter the garden, I imagined. I approached the oji-san, and asked whether the garden was open. He replied with a tone of regret, ‘zan’nendesukedo imawa tōen de nani mo mienai’. That struck despair in my mind. There was nothing to see in the garden? I walked 4 km for nothing? And I’m going to walk back another 4 km empty-handed? Incomprehensible!

Fortunately, the oji-san mentioned that there was an Autumn section within the garden, especially for the Autumn season. It was the last week of Autumn in Japan and maple trees were still blooming red. With nothing more to lose, I paid the entrance fee of 100 yen (80% discount!) and explored the empty garden.

Although I couldn’t fulfill my wish of seeing wisteria flowers in person, I was still glad to witness the final phase of Autumn, where the garden landscape was decorated by maple trees with yellow, orange and red colored leaves. After countless photos and footage of Autumn scenery and exploring the Autumn section, it was time to head back to Kokura for my much-needed, well-deserved lunch.

I wanted to ask the oji-san about any transportation nearby that could bring me back to Yahata, but looking at the non-existent traffic, I’d rather not get my hopes up and face reality. Staring down at the down sloped road, I began my 4km journey back to Yahata.

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