Kakunodate, Akita Prefecture,Japan

Thursday, 29 August 2013

What luxury to awake on a clear,sunny day and take a spa before breakfast in such an exotic place as Tazawako.
Breakfast was exotic too with a poached egg cooked in the spa and served with an assortment of pickles,vegetables,rice and  a dish which had soy beans chopped up and mixed with soya sauce. Lots of flavours and tastes to saviour. The presentation of food here is so attractive,we can learn much from Japanese food and the preparation they go to to make it attractive to the diner.

After breakfast we set off to visit Kakunodate also known as 'Little Kyoto' , maybe because in early times the princess who lived in Kyoto was married to the local royal and remained here for the rest of her life.There was a castle overlooking the town but it was burned to the ground in a catastrophic event.
The town is famous for its blossom displays in spring and as a historical site where the Samurai, known as Bukeyashiki, settled  in the 16th Century because of their allegiance to Lord Ashina of Hitach who was moved here in 1603 by his overlord shogun.There are still descendants of those families living here today. who are descended from those feudal times.
 We took a walk along the river which has cherry trees bordering a walkway, today the colours are just beginning to turn so I expect the autumn is colourful here too as many maples are evident in the area.
The street where the samurai lived was  very picturesque with lots of maples and cherry trees,one  three hundred years old and still flowering.Samurai made their money from the  polished cherry wood tree carvings, financial expertise and medical knowledge
We had a ride around this area on a rickshaw which was fun and the rickshaw driver gave us a commentary on the area as we went past the homes of the famous samurai.

We had a tour of the Aoyagi Samurai Manor Museum because John knew the owner's wife who works with him in Akita so we were privileged to have a look at the treasures the family had collected over their glory days as the premier family or chief of the Nanbu-area boundary guards for several centuries of importance. Today they are a tourist attraction.
The gates of this home are important indicators of importance in this society and how high your fence is and how you enter the home all point to your importance. You enter  the manor though the Yakui Mon gate built in 1860  to show their status and various doors indicate your staus as a visitor-women  and children occupy the lowest status and enter the  middle or back door as do the servants.

This family had a great collection of amoury built up during the Edo period as well as clothing,books,wooden dolls and toys enjoyed by the family. Other displays showed scrolls and art works, drawings and cherry wood carvings. One of the ancestors was famous for his anatomical drawings in 1773 and published books which lead to the science and career of doctors in this area.
we saw very thick garments worn to bed by samurai -must be very cold here in winter.There was an indoor fire in a pit and lots of large cooking utensils on display. There were very thick doors too which probably indicated their wealth and position. The safe was  well protected.

 

There was also a collection of western antiques and record players,cameras and music boxes  all collected before the gates closed and Japan retreated from the world's influence.John really enjoyed the gardens,they were so peaceful and full of texture and form from the ancient trees.

The garden in this manor house was lovely and peaceful and featured moss,water,trees and garden ornaments. We enjoyed walking around the  walks through the  trees and  over the bridges which surrounded the manor house. We even came upon an old fire engine and a travelling puppet show all set up on a trailer theatre ready for a performance.

We could have spent much more time exploring this place,so much history and items of curiosity to a western eye. I was fascinated by the history and charm of the manor house,what stories lay behind these walls.I am so lucky to be able to share this with family. John and Kasumi have shared a very special place with me.So much fun to be with family.

We ate in a little cafe  where I had a toasted sandwich Japanese style and then explored the shopping! Kasumi is a shopper so we had a lovely time Lots of little boutiques  selling local crafts such as polished cherry wood art works,  fabric and paper items,traditional dolls and artifacts.

We also went to Ando Jozo, a brewery founded in 1853 which sold traditional soya sauce and miso soup and was one of the oldest in the area. We tasted some of their brews and tried some of the pickle samples and Kasumi bought some to take home to her parents as a treat.

Later we went to the railway station and bought my train tickets to Tokyo for the following day before we headed back to the car for the drive to Akita.
John was a novelty on the roads-seeing a European driving  a car here attracted lots of attention and people waved and smiled at us as we drove through the town.I did not see any other Europeans in this part of Japan so we were a bit special.

 

Homeward bound. I have had a wonderful visit but NZ beckons.

Wednesday, 21 August 2013

Japanese Adventure - from Tokyo to Akita and return......

Travelling home  to New Zealand was a long haul option  until I opted for a stop over in Japan with my nephew and his wife.
What a lovely adventure that was. They live  and work in the northern prefecture of Akita, a four hour trip from Tokyo by shinkansen or bullet train so I had to navigate the train system from Narita Airport via the express train to Tokyo Railway Station (about an hour trip at speed) and then explore  the bewildering array of suburban trains lines,underground trains and a metro system before I located the shinkansen train platform.  The system does not allow for lateness,trains arrive and depart on time and with speed. The platform is marked with your carriage number so you stand in position ready to board smartly-two minutes and it is gone:a snake-like  move- smooth and sinuous  completely unlike anything experienced on NZ Rail!

The trip took me through the urban suburbs of Tokyo and cities such as Sendai,home of the devastating earthquake and tsunami two years ago. Try as I might I could not identify the iconic landmarks we saw night after night  on our televisions - victim of the floods and carnage unleashed that day. The city is huge and from where I sat much repair work had been done to get the city back to life but for the people their lives will never be the same again.
John told how his sister-in-law had to climb out of the top of the train carriage to escape from the wreckage of the suburban train as she was making her way home after work and how she and her brother sheltered together in a local shelter that night fearful of the toll the earthquake had taken that day.

The train continued up the coast for about two and a half hours before it  turned inland and crossed over the mountains and inland plains reminiscent of the Southern Alps.

Clear rivers and water falls were prominent as heavy rain had been experienced in recent days(it is the rainy season so entirely expected). The trees were beautiful,conifers of rich green hue and lots of towering trunks close to the train.I did see two little bears chasing each other across the grass as we passed.

.It was still raining as we travelled north towards Lake Tazawako, the deepest lake in Japan and home to Tatsuko ,the dragon lady and by the time I alighted at the station thunder was brewing and heavy clouds signaled a downpour ahead.
 I was exhausted by the time I arrived as too scared to sleep on the train in case I did not wake at the lake stop station so kept walking around the area to keep myself awake. It was a public holiday so little was open for the traveler,especially one who did not speak Japanese.
I was meeting John and Kazumi at the station and from there we were going to stay at a spa hotel nearby in the mountains. What a treat that was.
We explored the lakefront until the rain drove us back to the car. A beautiful walkway offered but it was too wet to contemplate so back to the car and a stop for refreshments at a local cafe before heading off to find the hotel-no mean feat as it is a mountainous area a little like Murchison and little hideaway places snug in the bush sites. In winter this was a ski resort and the whole area would be covered in deep snow.

That night we had a traditional Japanese meal  served in the dining room with an array of dishes, both hot and cold, raw and cooked, eaten with chopsticks and served in cooking pots with rice and meat, the meat simmering away in a pot like a fondue. A delicious thinly sliced pork which you cook yourself in the pot. Fish  vegetables,pickles and salads  were served in a variety of bowls to tempt your appetite and served with plum wine,beer and green tea. Fresh fruit was served at the end of the meal.
John told the story of locals heading into the outdoors  fossicking for mountain vegetables and being attacked by bears -in some cases killed as they harvested the prized items. Scary....
Later that evening we had a spa in the hotel. This is a traditional holiday treat for Japanese and a range of rituals are associated with the spa.
A dressing gown is supplied to you  and women tie it right side over and belted with a tie. A small towel is provided for modesty as you enter the pool and a larger one to dry off on. You wash and shower before entering the pool area in a special area with seats and toiletries arranged for your use.Pristine conditions at your service.
I have to say it was an exhausted traveller who fell into bed that night many hours after arriving in Japan that day.