I woke up at about 5:00am and prepared sandwiches for my husband and I.

I asked my parents in advance, whether they would also want some sandwiches.

However they said that they had their own bread.

The sandwiches looked very delicious, however I forgot to add mixed mayonnaise with the fillings, so the taste was just bread flavor. I think that I must have been half asleep at that time.

My husband and I picked my parents up at their hotel in Shinjuku, because they are unfamiliar with big cities.

By the way, how to get to Nikko from Shinjuku is very easy. The train which connects the two cities started operation 3 years ago and the required time is only 2 hours.

When we reached Nikko, we boarded in a bus which we had reserved in advance.

The first destination was Shinkyo bridge, which stands at the entrance to Nikko shrine.

The bridge is ranked as one of Japan’s three finest bridges, however it was only constructed recently,so it was not so interesting for us.

After we visited Shinkyo bridge, we moved to the next destination.

The next destination was Kegon waterfall which is located in Okunikko.

Kegon waterfall was very beautiful, however it was too cold in Okunikko. I heard from a local person that it was the coldest day so far this Autumn.

After we appreciated Kegon waterfall, we saw a man who was selling apples in a parking area.

We tried to eat some samples. They were very sweet and delicious, so my mother and I suddenly wanted to buy them.

You may laugh, but the apples were our first souvenir.

The schedule of the bus tour was a bit tight, so the bus moved to the next destination before long.

The next destination was Futarasan shrine chugushi. We saw a traditional sacred dance which is called “Yaotome-kagura“.

Two women who appeared to both be called “Miko“, came into the sacred room and danced in front of us.

To tell the truth, I wanted to take pictures, however, nobody was taking pictures, so I gave up to take pictures.

I think that since the ceremony seemed to be sacred, the audience felt guilty about not only making noise, but also taking pictures.

After Yaotome-kagura, the shrine’s guide urged us to worship at their shrine, and all members obeyed the recommendation.

I felt strange, because nobody refused to do it.

I imagine that such a custom in which we worship at a shrine, is very common for most Japanese.

The way worshiping by all members was also correct.

The next destination was Chuzen temple, where we saw a wonderful “Tachiki-kannon” which had been carved from a still living tree.

Tachiki-kannon was very big and marvelous, so I recommend you to see it, if you haven’t already been there.

Regrettably, taking photo was not prohibited.

By the way, the temple’s guides were good salespeople. Not only their explanation about Tachiki-kannon including the history of their temple was very comprehensive, but also their sales pitch to inspire customers to buy their special charms, was excellent.

Their explanation about the benefit of the charm was very detailed, for example, someone, who had bought one, had won 630,000 yen in a lottery.

They continued to explain that if we were to rub a charm and the color changed, yellow was a lucky color.

Their explanation was too fluent so I didn’t buy it, however some participants might buy it.

The next destination was a hotel where we had lunch.

To tell the truth, the hotel’s atmosphere and the taste of the lunch was not so interesting, besides it was expensive. We had to order this lunch before we started the bus tour.

If we had the choice for our lunch, I would have researched a more interesting restaurant.

The following image is of our lunch.

After we had lunch, we got back on the bus.

On the way to Nikko shrine, we took a very famous mountain road which is called “Iroha-zaka“.

The bends of Iroha-zaka are very dangerous.

The number of the bends is 48, and the number of Japnese hiragana, for example いろはにほへと(i, ro, ha, ni, ho, he, to) is also 48, so the mountain road was named “Iroha-zaka”.

The following image is a photo which I took through the window of the bus. You must realise that Iroha-zaka is very dangerous.

To my regret, we couldn’t enjoy seeing the colored leaves, because this autumn is colder than usual, so the best season to enjoy the colored leaves had already finished.

Soon after we reached the final destination, Nikko shrine.

That area was very crowded, because it was the first day of the long weekend.

First, we visited the famous temple called “Rinnoji temple“.

Rinnoji is the most important temple in Nikko, and is the main temple of Chuzen temple.

Rinnoji is also part of the group of Nikko shrines and temples which are National Heritage listed.

Rinnoji was very big, beautiful and magnificent. However there were very persuasive staff selling the temple’s wares, wearing Buddhist outfits.

Many visitors were buying various charms.

By the way, all bus’s guide not allowed to explain about Rinnoji or Nikko shrine, so our guide was just waiting for us at a the parking area in the bus. I imagine that there must be some strict rule as to why they cannot give explanations.

After we appreciated Rinnoji, we moved to Toshogu shrine which is the most famous sightseeing spot in Nikko.

It appeared that the number of the visitors was increasing. As a result, we needed to wait for our turn to see some famous buildings and sculptures.

After we enjoyed looking around Toshogu shrine, we walked to the next destination which is called “Futarasan shrine“.

When finally the bus tour was finished, all members of my family were very tired.

Our bus guide was professional, because she had memorized all explanation of each sightseeing spot, however my father said that her explanation was a bit too much on the return journey, because many members were tired.

All members got off the bus at Kinugawa station, and went to their hotels.

By the way, I highly recommend our hotel which is called “Isshinkan“.

The dinner and breakfast were both very delicious, just as the staff of the travel agency had said they would be, when we had reserved our trip.

However the service was not so sophisticated, even though the hotel’s staff were very friendly and their hospitality was excellent.

In addition, Isshinkan is the only hotel in Kinugawa, which has “kurhaus” where people can recuperate in a hot spring.

One of the hotel’s concepts was for the guests to be able to enjoy the atmosphere of the hotel including displays of the many handmade crafts which have been made by the hotel’s staff.

We really enjoyed staying at Issinkan. It might be in my top 1 or 2 hotel in which I have stayed until now.

The following image is of the welcome tea and sweets.  We could take a rest in the lobby for a few minutes.

Female guests could select one yukata and obi, and receive a tabi. This type of service is not common. If it had not been so cold outside, we would have enjoyed strolling around the hotel.

My father said that the flavor of the fish was very delicious and I agreed with him.

To tell the truth, he does not like usually fish, so it was very rare that he ate fish, even more so that he said it was delicious.

My father and I ordered some kinds of local Japanese sake, and enjoyed comparing the flavors.

Not only the fish, but also local beef and the dessert were also very delicious.

The following images are of my family.

After we enjoyed dinner, we soon went to bed.

My husband and I planned a short trip with my parents, to go to Nikko and Kinugawa which are located north of Tokyo.

To tell the truth, it was our first trip to travel together as a group.

In addition, it was also the first time for my parents to travel in the Kanto region.

Since my father retired from his job this spring, my parents sometimes travel together.

However, their trips are usually just one day trips near Tokushima, where they live, because they have a dog.

Due to various reasons, my parents couldn’t stay at a hotel for more than one night for a long time.

Last Friday, my parents visited Tokyo Disney Land without me, soon after they had arrived at Haneda airport.

I remember that when I was a child, my parents and I once visited there.

However, because of heavy rain, we couldn’t enjoy it very much.

This time, the weather was fine, so my parents appeared to enjoy Tokyo Disney Land very much.

By the way, actually it was me who decided to go to Nikko, because I hadn’t been to Nikko yet.

Most people who have grown up in the Kanto region, have been to Nikko at least once.

Of course, my husband has also been to Nikko several times.

So he recommended me to reserve a bus tour, especially if I wanted to visit both Nikko and Okunikko in one day.

As a result, our trip became very enjoyable.

The next article is about our first day in Nikko.

I went to Sugamo to submit the Privacy Mark documents at the Japan Data Communications Association.

Sugamo is famous for its original street which is called the Sugamo jizo dori shotengai.

The street is also known as “Harajuku for old women”.

I guess you know that Harajuku is one of the famous shopping areas in Tokyo, and there are some famous shopping streets there.

In Sugamo, there are many shops in the Sugamo jizo dori shotengai.

the Japan Data Communications Association is near that street, so I thought that it was a good chance to enjoy window shopping in Sugamo after the submission.

By the way, I want to write about the Privacy Mark system which is becoming more and more widespread in Japan, and also about the Privacy Mark acquirement project in my company of which I’m in charge of the project leader.

When I finished the submission, it was getting dark outside.

I thought that most of the shops in the street would close before the evening because their customers are generally old people, so I needed to hurry.

One of my purposes in Sugamo was to buy salty rice cakes, Shio Daifuku in Japanese.

The red bean filled rice cakes are very common, however the salty flavoured rice cakes are a bit rare, and I imagined that they would be more tasty than the normal Daifuku.

Since my English teacher recommended me to try them, I was looking forward to buying them.

The following image is of the Shio Daifuku.

I ate them after shopping in Sugamo, with my friend and colleague, Naomi, who had recently moved near my area from Osaka.

If I have a chance to go to Sugamo again, I think I will buy them again.

Although the salty rice cakes were sold in many shops in the street, I bought them at the original shop which had developed the salty rice cakes. I think my choice was not wrong, because they were very delicious.

Red underwear is also a special item in Sugamo.

In Japan, red is a symbol of happiness and a celebration of longevity.

When one shop which is called Maruji, developed the red panties, they became a great hit. As a result other shops followed them.

It was a great experience for me to enjoy window shopping in Sugamo, because I really like such traditional shopping districts.

After window shopping in Sugamo, I went directly back to my apartment, and bought a bottle of wine and some snacks, then I prepared dinner for my friend who would come to my apartment after work.

Since my husband was staying at a hotel on that day, as he would play golf in the early morning of the next day, Naomi and I enjoyed chatting till midnight.

The following images are of our dinner. It was very healthy.

Now I will tell you about the Privacy Mark and our company’s Privacy Mark project.

If you have seen some Japanese company’s websites, you might have seen the following logo of the Privacy Mark.

The Privacy Mark is one of the official certifications, which is proof that Japanese companies deal with private information.

Here I want to explain to you about what private information is. Private information consists of, for example, names, addresses, telephone numbers and account information, which are sometimes misused for illegal purposes.

We sometimes see such news on the Internet or in newspapers or on TV, where companies have leaked private information which they are holding, to the outside.

It’s easy to imagine the damage to the companies which had leaked the private information and, also to the people who had their private information leaked.

So a solid system whereby companies deal with private information carefully and systematically, is becoming more and more important in Japan.

In addition, in the business world, it’s becoming difficult to get contracts for public projects, if the they don’t have the Privacy Mark; the official certification.

So my company decided to apply for the Privacy Mark.

However, to tell the truth, it is the second time for my company to try the Privacy Mark.

When applying for the Privacy Mark, it’s necessary to do many things, for example, create many documents, explain the Privacy Mark system to all members in the company, and of course, create new IT systems.

In addition, most companies can’t carry out the Privacy Mark application process without a specialist.

I heard that my company tried to get the Privacy Mark several years ago and hired an outside consultant, however they eventually gave up.

So I felt a heavy responsibility, when I was nominated as leader of the Privacy Mark project.

Soon I noticed that it was very tough to accomplish the project, because, it was troublesome to get all members in my company to cooperate with me, because most of them were very busy.

Furthermore, unfortunately, the managers in my company were lacking responsibility of commitment and understanding for the Privacy Mark application, because only I could communicate with the consultant according to the contract.

I had been feeling heavy stress to accomplish the task since several months ago.

However, now I’m thinking that I was very lucky, because I could learn how to accomplish such a big project, and could also know about the Privacy Mark system in depth.

I think that the most important thing in such a project is the management and delegation of various tasks to different people.

It’s necessary to consider the situation of each project member and think logically how to accomplish the project.

I usually work with only a few colleagues, and most of my colleagues also work with only a few members on our projects.

So we don’t have many chances to learn about such big projects where it’s necessary to consider all members.

Although I need to do many things for the next step of the Privacy Mark project, I feel more relaxed now, because I have finished the first step; the submission of the documents.

The next step will come soon, so I should continue to do my best.

I hope I will be able to report about the final step of the project in my blog.

My best friend and colleague, Alisa planned an interesting dinner party at her nice apartment.

She is really interested in joining or organizing events, especially food events.

On October 2nd, she invited all colleagues who are working in the Tokyo branch office to her apartment.

At first, she had trouble deciding the dinner menu. She wanted to impress the guests.

I helped her to think about menu.

I thought of having Tsukimi Dango, white rice dumplings which are generally eaten while viewing the moon on Tsukimi, at the party, because the day after party was Tsukimi day.

She also wanted to eat special Sushi, especially that which she had eaten in America.

Furthermore, the party would be held after work on Friday, so we didn’t have enough time to cook the food.

So, we decided to buy some things on the day before the party, and to buy some juice and beer on the day.

Also, I wanted my colleagues to listen to my shamisen music, so I brought my shamisen to the party.

One colleague who is interested in foot massage recently, also suggested by email in advance giving us massages.

The following images are of our party.

The owner of our Tokyo branch office building is an old nori company, so we bought special nori at their shop.

I was in charge of making Tsukimi dango, so Alisa helped me to drink beer.

It was very easy to make Tsukimi dango. Here is the recipe.

Step1: mix the dango powder with water and knead into dough.

Step2:roll the dango dough into small balls.

Step3:throw the balls into boiling water.

Step4:scoop them out when they float to the top and cool them down on a dish.

I also prepared soybean flour, bean paste and a tin of fruit.

The above images are not the correct way to eat Tsukimi Dango, however I just wanted to eat various style of dango, so I made my own version.

The following image is of the correct way to decorate Tsukimi Dango.

The following image is of Origami rabbits. Although I couldn’t buy Japanese pampas grass for Tsukimi, I made these with origami paper.

In advance, Alisa researched some combinations for Sushi on the Internet. I really respect her passion for food.

Some colleagues finished their work on time, and went to the apartment ahead of us.

Other colleagues arrived there gradually.

The following image is of the correct way to making temakisushi. However I couldn’t make it well.

Some colleagues cooked salad and made delicious cocktails, and a Taiwanese colleague brought Taiwanese dumplings.

In the latter half of the party I played the shamisen, and my colleagues praised me.

I think my technique is not so special, however I’m happy that they could know about the shamisen a bit.

Some colleagues wanted to hold my shamisen, so I took photos for them.

The following image is of the scene of massage.

Actually some arguments happen between some colleagues, however their personalities are not bad.

I don’t know when I need to leave my company, however I want to enjoy my life with them until that day.

Finally I finished my diary about my summer vacation.

I want to write about my decision for starting shamisen lessons with the new teacher from now.

In September, my original shamisen teacher’s teacher asked me whether I could help him to create his website.

I replied that of course, I would help him.

As I had written about my impression of his performance in my previous diary, it was my pleasure to help him.

He also asked me, if I would like to take his lesson. It was no problem.

To tell the truth, I was worried about my original shamisen teacher from whom I have been taking shamisen lessons since 5 years ago.

If I would take my shamisen teacher’s teacher’s lesson, surely my original shamisen teacher would feel uncomfortable.

So I frankly told him about my concern.

He answered that if I would take the same style of lesson from him, it must be rude to my original teacher.

However if I would take a different style of lesson from him, it would be no problem.

Actually he can teach various styles of shamisen lessons to his pupils.

Usually I receive lessons on Japanese folk songs, which style is generally called Minyo.
Minyo have been sung all over Japan for a long time, and the songs’ themes are about work, life and love for families and lovers.

Minyo’s historical background is based on poverty and people’s simple life styles.

Even tough now Minyo are sung on stage, and on TV, they are really based on Japanese people’s simple life style in the past.

My teacher’s teacher also can teach another style of shamisen lesson, which is called Hauta.

Hauta has been sung since the Edo period. The sound of Hauta is more cool than Minyo.

Still now, Hautas are sung by Geisha at high quality restaurants.

If I sing Hauta playing the shamisen and wearing a kimono, I think people would view me as a typical Japanese.

Let me return to the story about my teacher’s teacher.

In the end, I started to receive his Hauta style lesson.

I think Hauta is more difficult than Minyo, because Hauta’s tone is very different from Minyo. However I want to learn it more deeply.

In addition, I also wanted to know about the traditional customs of the shamisen world, so I asked him some questions about them.

He explained to me politely about those customs.

I also told him about my complaints against the traditional customs, which I had had for a long time.

He not only explained about such customs but also told me his opinion.

I was very surprised and could know about his passion for the shamisen.

Further more, luckily I could know about his background as a shamisen player deeply, because I am going to create his website.

Since I was requested to make his website, I sometimes follow him to his activities to take photos.

The purpose is not only to take photos, but also to learn his technique and about his shamisen world.

I think I’m really lucky.

I had believed that he was just a strict teacher, however I noticed my misconception.

I know most of his pupils complain against him secretly.
Most of their complains are about money and his furious temper.

He is not good at explaining his opinion, and his pupils also never ask him about money and the reason for his opinion.

What a shame it is that they can’t communicate deeply.

I want to help my new teacher by creating his website.

For him, the purpose of having his own website is to get more pupils, however, for me, the second purpose is to explain to his pupils about his activities and opinions.

Of course, he told me that he would pay me the cost of making his website, but I also need to pay for his lessons.

Actually my salary is not so high, so it’s my solid decision to learn the shamisen more seriously.

I believe, through studying shamisen, I can learn not only about the shamisen world and playing techniques, but also I can learn many new things.

The following image is of his website.

On the last day I visited Maebashi city and Kiryu city which are located in Gunma prefecture.

I really didn’t want to go back to Tokyo, because my summer trip was so wonderful.

At first I went to the Gunma prefecture government building which is well known for it’s view from the top of the building.

Unfortunately, the day I visited there, it was cloudy. If it had have been fine, the view would have been better.

Few people visited the observation deck at that time, so I could enjoy it very much.

After I visited the Gunma prefecture government building, I moved to a small amusement park which is well known as the cheapest amusement park in Japan.

The park’s name is Luna Park.

Actually the concept of that park is “to make the customers feel nostalgic with it’s old-fashioned attractions”.

It was a very small park, and to my surprise, the price of most of the attractions were under 50 yen. Especially the price of the attraction in following image was only 10 yen.

These are protected as being the oldest rocking-horses in Japan by government.

It was not the weekend, but still many families enjoyed the park. It made me smile.

Actually my guide book didn’t feature that park in detail, but I think my decision to go there was not bad.

After I visited Luna Park, I went back to Maebashi station, and moved to the next city, Kiryu.

For over a millennium, Kiryu’s principal industry was textile manufacturing, primarily silk.

Although Kiryu is located in a rural area, Kiryu became welthy, so Kiryu has many famous cultural facilities, such as museums and parks.

Although the Kimono culture declined after the Meiji era, other types of industry, for example, Pachinko, and car components, flourished.

I knew Kiryu only by name, because I learned about Japanese history in my childhood.

I rented a bicycle at the station the same as in the other cities.

The above images are of  factories with saw-roofing.

“The saw-roof factories“  are the main symbol of Kiryu, and it was my purpose to see them.

Most of them were built before the 1950’s, however their number is decreasing with the decline of textile manufacturing. So now some of them are used as sightseeing facilities, museums, and cafes.

I saw some old Japanese houses in the streets on my way to Gunma University.

The following image is of one of the buildings of Gunma University, which is protected by the government.

It was buit in 1916, and is still in use.

There I saw some wedding photos. The building is sometimes used as a location for photoshoot.

The above guardroom is also protected by the government. I talked with a friendly guard for several minutes.

Finally my summer trip finished, and I went back to my home in which my husband was waiting for me.

It was only 6 days, however I could meet some nice local people, and could know a little about Gunma and Niigata.

My next trip is to go to Nikko with my husband and with my parents who live in Tokushima, in November.

On the 5th day, I moved to Minakami, which is well know as an outdoor adventure spot and hot springs.

At first, I thought that I would try bungy jumping in Minakami, however later I gave up to try it because of my budget for this trip.

I bought some local bread for my lunch at Nagaoka station while waiting for my next train to Minakami.

Although every meal is very important for me, this one was not so interesting.

I reached Minakami station before evening.

The atmosphere of Minakami hot spring area was very quiet, because of the day I visited there was after the Bon holiday.

I called my ryokan to ask them to pick me up and take me to their ryokan.

The following images are of my ryokan and room. To tell the truth, my ryokan was very old.

I didn’t ordered dinner from the ryokan, so after a short break, I strolled around that area.

At first I walked along a river bound for Minakami bridge.

The nature was very beautiful. One family wasenjoying fishing at the river side, and other families enjoyed walking like me. To tell the truth, the Minakami area was not so interesting for me, because I just walked around there.

If I had have enjoyed some outdoor sports there, maybe my impression would have changed. If I have time next year, I will try bungy jumping and a trekking tour in Ichinokurasawa.

The following image is of the main street of Minakami hot spring. Only a few people were walking down the street.

I was disappointed. However, I enjoyed talking with the friendly owner of a small souvenir shop.

He suggested how to enjoy trekking in Ichinokurasawa, and he also taught me a recipe of a lily dish.

I bought a pack of dried lilies, to try cooking later. He told me that the local people in that area generally eat lilies.

After talking to him, I went to a small restaurant which he recommended to me.

He also told me that in the main street of Minakami, most of the restaurants open after 8:00pm, because all customers eat dinner at their ryokans, and after dinner they go out to drink.

The following image is of the restaurant and my dinner.

After dinner I leisurely relaxed in the hot spring at my ryokan.

The next day in Minakami was the last day of my summer trip.

On the 4th day, I went to a small island called Awashima in Niigata prefecture.

In Niigata, Sado island is more famous than Awashima(Awa island).

In addition, on that day when I visited Awashima, there was a big festival, Earth Celebration 2009, being held on Sado.

However I chose Awashima, because I wanted to feel relaxed and avoid crowds.

The following image is my boat ticket to Awashima.

It took about 1 hour to Awashima, so I enjoyed the breeze on the deck.

My first purpose in Awashima was to cycle around the island. The circumference of Awashima is about 23 km, so I thought that cycling would not be difficult.

I rented a bicycle from the town office as soon as I arrived at Awashima, and started cycling.

The scenery on Awashima was really amazing. The sky was blue, and the sea was also blue. I regretted that I didn’t bring my swimwear.

I was very excited, however I soon noticed that the cycling road was very tough for me. Well, it might not be tough only for me but also for everyone who thought they could enjoy cycling.

There were many steep paths, and some of them were very long. I met only 3 people on my cycling journey.

I stopped at some view points.

About 1 and half hours after I had started cycling, I arrived at a small village which was located on the opposite side of the harbor.

At first, I didn’t plan to eat there, however I changed my mind when I saw a small restaurant, Kamome shokudo, whose menu seemed very delicious.

I guessed that the seafood ramen, Iso ramen, was the best dish at that restaurant, because most of the customers ordered the same ramen.

I have to say the taste of that ramen was in my best 3! It was very fresh and the seafood stock had a strong taste. In addition, the pieces of octopus were very big!

On the second half of my way, I met a university student who wanted to be an accountant. He looked very tired, and we took a short rest together at a small rest spot.

At one of the view points, I needed to get off my bicycle and walk to climb a small hill. However just before the top of the hill, many wasps blocked my way, so I gave up to go there.

The atmosphere in Awashima was like being in a movies, and I could feel very relaxed except for the wasps.

The following image is of my Japanese inn.

I could see the sea through the window of my room.

I didn’t have any plan after my cycling, so I strolled around the surrounding area of my Japanese inn till dinner.

By the way, there were over 20 similar Japanese inns in that area. I guessed that the local people who were living in that area, made their living by a running Japanese inn and fishing.

The atmosphere in that area made me wallow in nostalgia.

The distance from the sea to the mountains was very near, and the Japanese inns were built within such a small area.

Behind of the Japanese inns, there were some steep steps, and to my surprise, the old landladies of the Japanese inns go up and down the steep steps every day, carrying heavy items.

The following image shows the view from the top of the steps.

There was a small shrine which is used as a shelter, if a tsunami hit the island.

On a small harbor, children were looking for turban shells. I talked to them for a few minutes. I think that the children who grow up in rural areas, especially on small islands like Awashima, have innocence.

I also tried looking for turban shells, however I couldn’t find any. Nevertheless I knew I couldn’t take them, even if I found them, because tourists don’t have fishing rights.

The dinner on that day was very fresh and delicious. I guess if I ordered same course in Tokyo, it would cost me over 5,000 yen. However the price at my Japanese inn for accommodation and dinner was only about 8,500 yen.

My second purpose in Awashima was to eat the special local food which is called “Wappani“.

Wappani is like miso soup, and is made by putting heated stones into the soup. Fresh seasonal fish is used as the main ingredient of Wappani.

I read some information in my Japanese inn that guests can enjoy Wappani in a public area. That’s why I chose my Japanese inn.

The following images are of cooking Wappani and of my delicious breakfast!

After breakfast the landlady took me to the same harbor which I had arrived at. Since a guy was waiting for the community bus bound for the harbor, the landlady asked him if he would like to ride in her car together.

The guy and I talked for a few minutes, and I could find out that his apartment was in Nakano, which is only 2 stops by train from my place. We promised to meet again in Tokyo. I like such a casual meeting.

I really enjoyed Awashima as much as the other places which I visited on my trip.

On the third day, I moved to Murakami in Niigata prefecture.

I like traditional areas, so I chose Murakami city.

Actually, I couldn’t find much information on the Internet about Murakami.

I know it’s difficult to find information about rural areas of Japan online, so I bought 2 editions of a famous guide book which featured Gunma and Niigata prefecture and I read them before my trip.

According to the Niigata guide book, Murakami seemed very nice, so I decided to visit Murakami.

Murakami is famous as the northernmost area producing Japanese tea, salmon and also the birth place of the crown princess. It’s also known as one of the “historical castle towns” in Japan.

The following image is my seishun 18 ticket.

When I arrived at Murakami, it was not crowded even near station, because the bon holiday had already finished the day before my visit.

I rented a bicycle at the station, and rode around Murakami city.

It was a bit hot outside, however I enjoyed seeing the old Japanese houses along the streets.

I talked to some local people there. It was a lot of fun for me.

At an old tea shop, which seemed famous, I bought a gift for my shamisen group member.

There I also bought a tea flavored ice cream, which was called “Monaka“in Japanese. It was very delicious!

After a short rest, I dropped by a tourist information center.

There I met a unique person who was a Tuishu craftsman.

Murakami is also famous for a Tuishu(Japanese Lacquerware).

The tourist information center was originally opened by a non-profit organization in Murakami, however unfortunately, that group gave up to administer the center.

The craftsman heard about that, and soon decided to take it over with his friends.

I talked with him for 2 hours about his opinion on how to train pupils, and how to protect such a traditional culture.

His way of thinking was very neutral, and I began to like his personality.

I also talked to him about my opinion on the shamisen world, and he advised me about my situation.

I really enjoyed talking with him and appreciated him, so I decided to buy his handmade chopsticks for my parents as a souvenir.

He also explained to me about the details of the architecture of Murakami’s old houses.

All houses are connected to the neighbouring house.

After talking to him, I rode around again by bicycle, and arrived at the Murakami Museum of History.

When I arrived there, it was only 15 minutes before closing time. However the staff of the facility waited for me to finish seeing the exhibits.

I thought that the people who I met in Murakami were very kind, and that’s why I like rural areas.

On my way back to the station, I found a nice regional meat shop by accident. I was very lucky!

I bought a nice big beef bowl and a beer for my dinner, and enjoyed them in the waiting room of the station.

Oh, I almost forgot to tell you another topic.

On that day, a small summer festival was being held all over Murakami.

I saw some Dashis(floats) on some streets.

Unfortunately, a bigger festival would be held on the day after my I visited Murakami, and the most famous festival, which is called “Murakami-taisai” is held in July every year.

I took a taxi to my ryokan. The following images are of the ryokan and my room at the ryokan.

The Senami hot spring is the nearest hot spring areas to Murakami.

When I saw this old style of mirror in my room, I was very surprised!

Usually we only see them in the movies.

Actually, the late owner of my ryokan was a founder of Senami hot spring.

I suddenly wanted to drink alcohol. I ordered a chu-hi.

The taste of the drink was not so interesting, however the situation in which I drunk alone at the ryokan was intersting.

The following images are of my breakfast. It was delicious which goes without saying.

On the second day, I moved to Yamakoshi village, which had became a famous one, because of The Niigataken Chuetsu-oki Earthquake in 2007.

I wanted to know the present condition of Yamakoshi village, so I decided to go there.

The route of my trip was making my way though Gunma prefecture and Niigata prefecutre for 6 days.

Before visiting Yamakoshi, I went to one of the famous stations in Gunma prefecture, where the platforms are located 81 meters under the ground.

It’s called “the mole station” and actually the platforms of Doai station are in the deepest in Japan.

It was very cool down there, and I needed to go up 462 steps to the ticket gate of Doai station.

It was too hard to go up so many steps, shouldering a heavy backpack. There was only one bench for passengers on the way up to the ticket gate.

After 400 steps, I found the sign of the goal. However there were still 17 more steps to go.

Finally I reached the goal! To tell the truth, many passengers got off the train at Doai station. Maybe all most of them were climbers, because the surrounding area of Doai is very famous because of Mount Tanigawa.

I rode the next train 1 hour later, and got off at the nearest station to Yamakoshi, and then I transfered to a local bus.

About 20 minutes later, I reached the bus stop, which the landlady of the ryokan indicated me to get off at.

But I couldn’t find the community bus which I needed to catch to go to my ryokan, so I called her.

She said that she would ask her husband to pick me up. Soon her husband came, and he took me to the correct bus stop, where the community bus was waiting for me.

The name of both the bus stops was very similar, so I had made a mistake.

When I reached the ryokan, the landlady was in the middle of cleaning. The above images are of the ryokan and my room.

The atmosphere of the ryokan was unique, however it was nice.

The landlady served me cool tea and a piece of watermelon, as soon as I entered my room.

Actually I didn’t plan any schedule in Yamakoshi, so I asked the landlady about her recommendations.

She suggested I follow her husband and when he came back to the ryokan, go to the fishponds, in which they cultivated the colored carp, and also go to see their vegetable patch.

Before the husband came back to the ryokan, I strolled around there by myself.

Yamakoshi is famous for bull fighting, which is a protected national cultural event.

I wanted to see the fight, however to my regret, the fight had finished the day before my visit.

So, I just took pictures of the place in which the fight had been held.

When I went back to the ryokan after 1 hour walking, the husband had also just come back.

The landlady lent me a long sleeve shirt, gloves, and boots.

At first, we went to the fishpond near the ryokan. There I saw many fry of colored carp .

Yamakoshi is famous for the cultivation of colored carp around the world.

Since Yamakoshi is the original area of cultivating colored carp, and the quality of the colored carp is very good, many wealthy people from all over the world buy Yamakoshi’s colored carps.

While he was driving his car, he told me some interesting stories.

A British guy has been living in Yamakoshi, and he has been introducing Yamakoshi’s colored carp to the world in English.

I guess the following website is his.

Niigata-nishikigoi.com

The Yamakoshi Year – This is a past version of his website.

Many foreign buyers visit Yamakoshi every year, and their scale of wealth is beyond comparison to Japanese buyers.

However the price of carp is decreasing in recent years, because of an overstock.

Unfortunately, in addition, the same industry is growing in China.

He also took me to the fishponds which are located in the mountains. He said that he built all of the fishponds himself.

After visiting the fishponds, we moved to the vegetable patch with regional vegetables which is called “Kagura nanban“

It was my first time to see such rare, regional vegetables.

This vegtetable looked like a green papper, but the taste was a bit spicy.(I ate them for dinner later.)

On the way to the patch, he showed the houses which had gone under water, because of the river which became dammed up which had flooded due to the earthquake.

It was a shocking view for me, and I recalled the news at that time.

The following images show the cruelty of the earthquake.

I want to tell you a bit about the story of the earthquake, especially regarding Yamakoshi.

In Yamakoshi, 2 days after the big earthquake, the chief of the village decided to evacuate all 2,200 people from Yamakoshi village to the next city.

Residents had to leave the bulls, the colored carp, and their fields, and abandon the Yamakoshi village.

Half of the bulls and all the carp, which people had cherished, died. All residents were evacuated away by helicopters, because all the road had been cut by the big earthquake.

A few days later, some people returned, and they succeeded to evacuate the surviving bulls and dogs which had helped their owners in the earthquake. A true story about a dog in this earthquake became a movie titled “A tale of Mari and three puppies“.

http://www.yamakoshi-mari.net/

http://mari-movie.jp/index.html

Although I was hesitant, at last I asked him about the present condition of the owners of the houses.

He told me that some of them left Yamakoshi, and that others were still living in Yamakoshi.

They could reconstruct their houses, because most of them were farmers and they had joined the earthquake insurance of the farmer’s cooperative.

I think it’s very rare. In other cities, which the big earthquake had effected, many people still live in temporary houses.

However, I was a bit relieved to know that Yamakoshi village seemed to be recovering from the earthquake.

Yamakoshi is also famous it’s beautiful view of the terraced paddy fields.

The husband took me to one of the famous photo spots. However, I saw the scars of the earthquake had not healed there yet.

We went back to the ryokan before 7 o’clock, and I took bath before dinner.

The dinner was very special and the most delicious one during this summer trip.

After dinner, the husband took me to a small local festival near the ryokan. It was held in a playground of an elementary school.

A dancing and fancy-dress contests were held there.

The local people were dancing the Bon dance which was particular in that area(a small area of Yamakoshi village).

I tried dancing, by following the sister of the landlady, however, it was very difficult, so I couldn’t dance well.

The husband told me, the number of people dancing became decreasing, compared with past festivals.

I think it’s the reality that traditional local culture is disappearing. I regret that very much.

The following images are of my breakfast and a pet whose name is Bob.

Finally I want to tell you about the community bus, which I couldn’t find easily.

I saw the sign about the community bus at the bus stop.

The community bus is provided by the local people free of charge. This service is paid for by the local people since the public bus stopped running after the earthquake.