A weekend visiting old storehouses doesn’t sound that interesting, but when the storehouses contain sake breweries with tasting opportunities, things look a whole lot brighter. It also helps that the storehouses are traditional old structures with a lot of character. Aizu Wakamatsu and neighbouring Kitakata, north of Tokyo in Fukushima Prefecture, have lots of old kura (storehouses), samurai… Continue reading Sake & mama-chari samurai
Tag: onsen
Fuji-san & the cosmos
The cosmos were blooming on the shores of Kawaguchi-ko, and the late afternoon sun was shining on Fuji-san. I bought a new guidebook recently, which describes hikes near Tokyo that end at onsens. The cosmos was kind to us yesterday, by providing sunshine, good views of Mt Fuji across Kawaguchi-ko, and a nearly empty rotenburo… Continue reading Fuji-san & the cosmos
GEKISAKA hill race – Tour de Utsukushigahara
The Tour de France? No, the real tough hill climbing cycle event is the Tour de Utsukushigahara, with its gekisaka (檄坂 – severe slope). The race is only 22km in distance, but ascends 1,270 metres up to Utsukushigara from Asama Onsen (in Matsumoto) – the first few hundred metres of the race ascendup an 18%… Continue reading GEKISAKA hill race – Tour de Utsukushigahara
Yufuin
Yufuin is a charming onsen resort town in Oita Prefecture, inland from Beppu. It is full of ryokan with hot springs, and is situated under a towering mountain called Yufu-dake. The spring flowers were still out – it was a nice town to walk around before heading back to the ryokan for a big meal… Continue reading Yufuin
Arima Onsen
In the last weekend of November, I spent a weekend in Osaka with Akiyo (high school host family sister) and her family. On the Sunday, we headed to Arima Onsen, a hot spring resort in the hills behind Kobe.
To no Take
With my new gear in tow, I got out of Tokyo for the first time this trip, and headed out early on Sunday morning on the Odakyu Line to a town called Shibusawa (Kanazawa Prefecture), about 75 mins south west of Shinjuku. From there, it’s a short bus ride to Okura, where some hiking trails… Continue reading To no Take
Sculpture park, wine tasting, a picnic with the kookaburras and soaking in an onsen
Today’s trip took around 16 of us on a minibus to three wineries on the Mornington Peninsula, with some other assorted stops along the way. Well done Glen for organising and being tour-guide/announcer. Keeping with the Japanese theme, we finished at the Peninsula Hot Springs, a Japanese-style onsen next to the Moonah Links golf course at… Continue reading Sculpture park, wine tasting, a picnic with the kookaburras and soaking in an onsen