Hitoyoshi

The rafting company is in a town called Hitoyoshi in Kumamoto. If I ever come back to live in Japan, I want to live in Hitoyoshi or a place like it. It's beautiful.
It's about half the size of my current town, so only about 40,000 people. There are mountains and rivers, there thousands of rice fields, but all the conveniences you really need.
Driving with my windows down through the countryside during late summer is one of my favorite feelings. My friend couldn't smell it, but one of the best parts is the smell of the rice fields. It's very faint, but it's like the smell of lush grass, but even better.