Day 1 - After an early start, everyone met at Matsumoto station to check out the access to the mountains. Amazingly, everybody made it ON TIME for the 8AM start, but the Tourist Information Office was still closed so the ALTs would have to work to find the answers to the Quiz questions which checked out a range of information such as cost of a round-ticket to Kamikochi and number of direct buses per day. Maybe the JETs were still a little sleepy (or hadn’t monitored the Starbucks coffee hard enough to full wake up yet:), but almost half of the Quiz questions were WRONG!!! Still, most people agreed that between the JR Green Window and Tourist Info. Office (when it’s open) there would be plenty of helping hands to point new arrivals in the direction of the Japan Alps. Also, the 2 Day Pass made it easy to get up - and down - without worrying about extra transport expenses.

After changing from the mountain railway to a bus at Shinshimashima, we continued on up the 158 highway which follows the the Azusa River up the valley to Kamikochi. The blue skies were reflected back in the water of the 3 huge dams we passed before a series of long tunnels finally lead us into the Kamikochi basin itself.  On arriving at Kamikochi, we checked out the Information Centre and Bus Terminal before setting off on a Guided Tour of the Kamikochi basin downstream to Taisho-ike Pond. On the way, we walked through shady forests, past marshland and along wooden boardwalks. Our guide explained the Kesho  Yanagi Willow trees and handed round a pair of binoculars so we could see the smoke rising from the top of Mt. Yakedake - the only active volcano in the Northern Alps.  On the return trip we also met a pair of local Macaque monkeys who were entertaining tourists doing flips from tree to tree!

That night we stayed at some of Japan’s most luxurious hotels, with the 14 volunteers spread out across 7 of the accommodation facilities. All stood up to the test of English Check-In, and more than held their own for comfort and hospitality. Even the weather was doing its best to promote Kamikochi, with amazing starlight skies and the Milky Way seeming to shine down directly on Kappa Bridge.

Day 2

The next day dawned fine again and after breakfast we crossed the Kappa Bridge again before testing the water of the Shimizu River…a chilly 6 degrees centigrade! Next up was the Visitor Centre which had some amazing photos of the mountain ridges and peaks of the backcountry beyond. Then we set off for Myojin, following the Azusa upstream for an hour through the forest before emerging at Myojin where the smell of freshly fried fish was rising from the Kamonjigoya, 130 years old and home to Kamonji, the first hunter known to have lived at Kamikochi. We also saw the sacred shrine and pond, and - for extra good luck - a large grass snake whose sun bathing was rudely interrupted by 14 pairs of foreign hooves.

All too soon, we had to had head back downstream to the central area; we finished the final group discussion and had some lunch before people went their own seperate ways, tired out but refreshed by the Alpen experience and a great weekend in the mountains.

Hello.  This is my first blog article.  First of all, I would like to give you a rough idea of what Karuizawa, where I live and work, is like.

Shaw Memorial Chapel

 
[ Introduction to Karuizawa]
Karuizawa is one of the most renowned mountain resort towns in Japan with a population of about 19,000, located on the eastern edge of Nagano Prefecture and bordering on Gunma Prefecture.  Karuizawa is approximately 150 kilometers north of Tokyo.  If you take JR Nagano Shinkansen it takes only about one hour from Tokyo.  At the height of about 1,000 meters above sea level, its cool temperature and refreshing climate have attracted a lot of tourists.  In fact, the number of visitors to Karuizawa is around eight million a year.  To the northwest of this town is a beautiful active volcano called Mt. Asama (2,568 meters).  The mountain is a symbolic landmark and can be viewed from many parts of the town.

Karuizawa is well known as a place to have a lot of luxury holiday homes.  In fact holiday homes outnumber permanent residential homes.  Karuizawa used to flourish as post-towns of the ancient highway called Nakasendo during the Edo period.  In 1886, a Canadian missionary named Mr. Alexander Croft Shaw stopped by Karuizawa and liked its beautiful nature and refreshing climate very much.  In 1888 Mr. Shaw built the first holiday home (or summer house) and the first church in Karuizawa.  He then spread a good reputation on Karuizawa as a mountain resort.  Therefore, Mr. Shaw is now called “benefactor father of Karuizawa”, who made Karuizawa a well-known resort.

If you have a chance to visit Japan or live in Japan, why not come and relax in Japan’s representative resort, Karuizawa?

If you are thinking of skiing in Japan you should put Cortina on your list

Cortina is one of the Jewels in Hakuba’s crown. Situated at the northern end of Hakuba, in the Japanese Alps, the ski resort of Cortina links up with  another resort called Norikura on the southern side. It takes about 25 minutes from the center village area of Hakuba to reach the resort  Cortina is renowned for it’s powder and is in fact listed as one of Japans top snow fall resorts. The micro climate of the area tends to draw more snow into the resort so a small amount down the valley could be a lot more up that end.  Cortina is a great place for a day trip when the powder is deep. Other days you might want to be on one of the big mountain resorts that have a bit more variety like Happo One. The tree skiing at Cortina though is some of the best you will find in Hakuba and at the end of the day take in a soothing onsen before moving back into the town center to enjoy the restaurants and nightlife of Echoland.

The Main Dining Wisteria at Fujiya Gohonjin

OK, before I say anything, please trust me that I was not bribed or in receipt of anything to get me to write this post.  Really.  No, really.  Stop laughing!

I recently went out to dinner, perhaps for the third of fourth time, at the Fujiya Gohonjin in Nagano City, on Chuo Dori, just downhill a bit from Zenkoji temple.  I am convinced this restaurant has the BEST Italian and Continental fare in Nagano.  I would go so far as to say it is the best in all of Japan, but since I haven’t eaten much Italian in, say Tokyo or Kyoto, I can’t yet make so bold a statement.

Over the twleve years I have been in Japan (11 of them in Nagano), I have patiently put up with a lot of what the locals call Italian food.  The Fujiya Gohonjin was such a breath of fresh air for me.  It is one of the few restaurants around here that does NOT have ketchup as one of their pasta sauce ingredients.  Here the sauce is thick — order pasta with tomato sauce and you get a tomato and vegetable sauce so thick you could eat the sauce itself with a fork.  And when you have cleaned off your plate, you won’t find a reservoir of pink water at the bottom as you would find eating out at just about any other Italian restaurant around here.

The pasta is not the only great food to find here.  Everything my family, friends and I have tried on the menu is fantastic.  So much so, it was almost enough to make me feel like I was in Italy again.  But just one look at the staff reminded me that I was, in fact, in Japan.

The Fujiya has a number of rooms, all of them very nicely appointed.  The Main Dining Wisteria is the most popular place to eat.  It is a large room with a view of the garden on one side and the open kitchen on the other.  A very nice atmosphere all around and the staff is very polite, professional and friendly.

Kids are welcome here too; even the noisiest ones such as my own are tolerated.  This restaurant is a great place to surprise someone on their birthday.  The entire wait staff will bring out a cake while cheering and appluading the birthday boy or girl.

For more  information, take a look at their website, which is in Japanese and English:  http://www.thefujiyagohonjin.com/

Yaki-dake from Taisho Pond

Even with the weather not cooperating and the sky being overcast, we were still treated to awe-inspiring views of the majestic mountains.  From our first stop, Taisho-ike Pond, we could see always-steaming Mt. Yake-dake.  And from the  from the iconic Kappa-bashi Bridge in central Kamikochi, we could gaze up at massive Mt. Okuhotake-dake and the surrounding peaks. And the temperature was so nice and cool. Where we live, Togura Kamiyamada, the elevation is 370 meters, and the mountain behind us (Kamuriki-yama, the mountain from the famous Obasute-yama legend) is 1,252 meters. The Kamikochi valley is situated way up at 1,500 meters, making for cool days even in the middle of summer.

Kamikochi's symbol: Kappa Bridge over the Azusa River with the Alps in the background

And the mountains that raise up above the valley are simply awesome. Yake-dake (2,455 meters and still puffing volcanic ash) and the 3,000+ meter peaks on the north side, and 2,646-meter Mt. Kasumizawa-dake & 2,449 meter Mt. Roppyaku-zan on the south tower over the valley. For people with the time and courage, the mountains beg to be explored. For everyone else, there is still so much beauty and nature to be enjoyed around the basin below with the Azusa River flowing down the middle. I have been to Kamikochi several times, and one of my favorite parts is the Azusa River, with its turquoise blue water. This time, I was excited to finally be able to share my love of the river with our kids, and they, too, enjoyed it.

The turquoise blue waters of the Azusa River

In fact, looking around we saw many other families bringing their kids to Kamikochi. There were families from northern Japan, western Japan, even the southern islands. In fact, there were a number of travellers from Hong Kong, Korea and Europe, too. I think the need to experience and have your kids experience the wonder of nature is universal!

For visitors that are just staying down in the valley, I highly suggest taking a walk along the Azusa River. The Kamikochi Information Center by Kappa-bashi offers nature walks, one in the morning to Taisho-ike, and one in the early afternoon to Myojin-ike Pond. The walks cost 500 yen to cover insurance. For more info, the Center’s tel# is 0263-95-2433.

This time, we ran into cloudy weather so we couldn’t enjoy Kamikochi’s beautiful sunset and sunrise, and the stars at night must be spectacular. The valley can get pretty crowded during the afternoon with daytrippers, but after the tour busses leave in the evening, Kamikochi is at its quietest and most peaceful. That means you simply have to take the time to spend the night at Kamikochi. We had the pleasure of staying at Nishiitoya. Okuhara-san, the owner, kindly gave us all kinds of information about the Alps. For our room, we choose one of the Japanese style tatami mat rooms, but they also have western style with beds, as well as an annex with hostel-type rooms. And the meal was short on seafood, and long on Nagano’s regional cuisine. We enjoyed soaking in the bath, but it would probably even have been better if the clouds weren’t obscuring the 3000-meter peaks normally visible from the picture windows.

Alpico provides convenient bus service to Kamikochi from Sawando and/or Shin-shimashima Station

From all across Japan and the world, travellers are coming to Kamikochi to enjoy the spectacular nature. A trip here makes a perfect summer vacation.

www.kamikochi.or.jp is the official website for Kamikochi.

The Okagura lion dance troupe members

Habeshina Shrine’s Fall Festival is a unique opportunity to see a small local festival here in the Japanese countryside. It is a time for the locals to give thanks for the harvest and enjoy some traditional fun. The day’s schedule varies by year, but is generally something like this:

8am: Opening banquet at a nearby community center
10am: Ceremonial Procession departs the center.
12noon: Procession arrives at Habeshina Shrine
1pm: Adults sumo
2pm~: Kids sumo
Evening: Karaoke contest
8pm: Ending ceremony featuring an “okagura” shi-shi lion dance

Kids Sumo -- fun to watch!

The kids sumo is very entertaining to watch, and for the adults sumo, often times there are not enough participants. I have twice had the dubious honor of joining their ranks. You drink your way through the 8am banquet, parade around town in your ‘fundoshi’ g-string, then when your name is called, enter the ring and hope your opponent had more sake than you did.

Adults sumo -- not as easy as it looks!

(If you, too, are interested in being a sumo wrestler for a day, contact me here at Kamesei Ryokan and I can see about getting you an invitation.)

There are a few food and toys booths set up for the festival, and a lot of drinking goes on (sake is an important part of Japanese ‘matsuri’). After it gets dark, at some point the sounds of the shi-shi flutes and taiko drums can be heard, as the okagura lion dance troupe finishes up its tour of the town and arrives back at the shrine. The elders gather in front of the shrine’s main building holding ‘chochin’ lanterns, and the lion dance takes place in the center.

The lion dance by lantern-light is a pretty powerful experience. I was really moved by it when I first saw it right after moving here. Later, when the the leader of the troupe invited me to join, I was honored to accept. I’ll be there this year trying to keep up with the other flutists.

Habeshina Shrine is located on the southeastern edge of Togura Kamiyamada Onsen.  Follow Koen-Dori street past Joyama-dori up the hill and you’ll see the ‘torii’ arch on the right.

vast Nobeyama fields

As a farmer in Kawakami village, a neighbor village to Nobeyama, it has been a hectic month struggling with the unprecedented heat.

Once the harvesting started in mid June, I had no time left whatsoever beside cropping lettuces or planting yet other ones.

I very much hoped to take pictures of us cropping lettuces or laboring in the fields,but in fact we have been amid so much of a turmoil that just bringing a camera  just hasn’t occurred to me.

Well, as busy as we are, I still had an errnad the other day to the neighboring Nobeyana region.

So I took my camera and researched some tips about the place.

Nobeyama railway station;JR Koumi Line

national highway Route 141 stretches through Nobeyama

 

If you drive up to the place from the direction of Tokyo, it is a 2 and a bit more hours of drive from Tokyo.

 

You can buy fresh-out- from the fields veggies along the route 141.

 

Takizawa family ranch

 

 

There also is a family ranch ,Takizawa Bokujo along the route 141.

You can enter the site and pet some of the small animals for free.

You and your kids also can experience some activities from riding a horse , taking horse riding lessons, to milking a cow and making soft icecream out from the milk.

The fee for the activities vary from 700 yen or more.

http://www.takizawa-bokujo.jp/

 

 

The New Onsen Town Togura Kamiyamada Gourmet Guide and Walking Map

The map side features descriptions of 21 shops and businesses, giving guests an idea of places to check out when they visit our onsen town.   The map shows locations for a coin laundry, convenience stores with ATM’s, a pharmacist and medical clinic as well as a church with service in English, so guests from overseas will know their various needs are covered.  As travellers from abroad often like to walk and enjoy the outdoors, the map mentions walking times and distances between major points and shows where rental bicycles are available.

So on your trip to Togura Kamiyamada, stop in at the Visit Japan Information Center aka Kamesei Ryokan (www.kamesei.jp) and we will be glad to give you your own personal copy of the new Onsen Town Togura Kamiyamada Gourmet Guide and Walking Map.