It was a Saturday, Spring had finally arrived and for the want of something to do on a beautiful day, I took a trip to the local amusement park called Beneyland.Trust me when I say I have NO idea why they call it Beneyland. I asked around and no one seemed to know the answer. Was it named after a guy called Beney? I looked up beni in the dictionary and it spat back that it was the color "rouge".  Whatever the reason for the name, I found it to be a remarkable little amusement park hidden away near Sendai Castle and across from the zoo. By car, it was only about 45 minutes to get there. Japan is spotted with little amusement parks here and there, many are quite good albeit expensive. I bought an all-day pass for the norimono (rides) and marched on in.

I was expecting it to be crowded on such a fine day, but surprisingly, it was a little sparse. I was also surprised by the actual number of rides they DID have. It was colorful and bright and as amusement parks go, very clean. I was also surprised by the actual size of the park. While it wasn't huge or anything, it was big enough for me to feel like there wee things to see and do. There was a midway area full of games and eating places. It had a real fair-like atmosphere.

The first ride I took was Pirat. No, the misspelling is not mine. That's what it was called...Pirat. It was basically a large swing shaped like a "pirat" ship that left my stomach, along with other parts, hanging in the air.

They several jet coasters (roller coasters) and one screw coaster (uhm...well...it's not what you immediately think of...it's a roller coaster that has loops). Many of the rides were your standard fare that you can find just about any place like this balloon ride There was nothing special about them except that they were SHORT! Each ride lasted no more than a minute or so and some even less than that. Fortunately, it was not crowded and you could ride them as many times as you liked...but still...

The Suspense House was not all that suspenseful. The guy greeting you on the outside was scarier than anything the interior of the place had to offer.

The park was beautiful though and the ume (plum) trees were starting to bloom. I have to admit that since I have arrived in Japan, I have noticed just how beautiful these trees are.

While I was there, I bumped into two of my students from Shogen-Higashi Junior High School I didn't recognize them at first because they were wearing civilian clothes and not the school uniforms. They looked so young! they told me they had been there since 9:30 AM and it was already 3:00 PM. On the left is Yumiko and on the right is Midori. We enjoyed riding several of the rides together including the Ferris Wheel.

It was a good day. I had fun and it was a lot better than sitting at home and watching TV. I actually DO recommend coming here if given the chance, if even for a few ours. I like amusement parks and I have to say that this was much better than I expected it would be. But go with friends, especially if they are Japanese. They scream much better than I do!