亀清の「百年風呂」露天風呂の雑木林の庭はこれで２つ目の春となります。大分馴染んできたようで、植物の皆が元気で育ってきています。今は櫓の手前の石楠花が見事に綺麗に咲いています。去年の春は部分的にしか咲かなかったけれど、今年は植物全体が白い花で綺麗です。露天風呂に入りながら楽しんでいただけると思います。

This is the 2nd spring for our "100 Year Bath" outdoor bath's garden. The various plants are leafing out beautifully as they have become accustomed to their places in the garden. The rhodendron at the base of the 'yagura' tower is particularly splendid right now. Last year, it only sprouted a few blossoms. This year it is covered in pretty white flowers. It is one of the many plants that can be enjoyed while bathing in our outdoor bath.

夕べの「姨捨夜景・伝説ツアー」の時に見たお月様はもうそろそろ満月でした。姨捨の棚田の一部は既に田植えの為に水が払ってあります。今晩は他のお客さんとまた行く事になっています。田んぼ毎の月の反射（有名な「田毎の月」）は見えるでしょうか？お楽しみです。
次の満月までに全ての田んぼに水が払っていて、来月は田毎の月が見えるはずです。
姨捨の棚田に田植えが始まると（お水が払ってあれば）、蛙が自然に増えます。そうすると、夜景見に行く時に、蛙の鳴き声が物凄く大きいです。これも姨捨の楽しみの１つです。

Last night, when I took guests to see the night view from Obasute, we were treated to the sight of the nearly full moon. A few of the Obasute terraced rice fields are already wet in preparation for this season's planting. The Obasute rice fields are famous for "tagoto-no-tsuki", the moon reflecting in the individual fields. This can only be seen when there is a full moon at the beginning of planting season, when there is water in the fields. I'm going tonight with more guests -- hopefully we'll be able to see the tagoto-no-tsuki. If not, by the full moon next month, all of the fields will have water in them by then -- prime moon viewing season!
One of the other treats of the start of the planting season is the water in the fields means frogs come out. It is fun being seranaded by a frog chorus while watching the night view from Obasute Station.

地獄谷のお猿の温泉に行ってきたお客さんからこの赤ちゃんのお猿の写真を頂きました。元々可愛いお猿は春に赤ちゃんが生まれますので更に可愛いべビーモンキーが見えます。我々欧米人にスノーモンキーズが人気ありますが、誰が見てもこの可愛い赤ちゃんを見れば喜ぶと思います。志賀高原の手間にある地獄谷のおサルの温泉に行くなら、今のタイミングが最高です。雪がもうないですが、生まれたばかりのおサルが見えます。

地獄谷野猿公園の萩原さんから下記の情報が来ました：
「地獄谷のサルたちは４月半ばから６月下旬くらいまでが出産期です。
今年は今日までに６頭の赤ちゃんが生まれています。これからが出産の
ピークで次々に生まれます。」
新しいDVDやお土産も出来ましたので機会があれば、是非行ってみてください。

One of our guests just came back from Jigokudani, the famous snow monkeys onsen. He gave me this picture of the newly born baby monkey. Every spring, the cute little monkeys give birth to even cuter little baby monkeys. If you are thinking of going to Jigokudani, now is perfect timing. The snow is gone, but you can see the babies that were just born this spring.

According to Hagiwara-san, the park manager, babies are usually born between mid-April to the end of June. So far this year, there are 6 newborns, with more expected soon as the "peak" approaches.

Hagiwara-san also advises their shop has some new DVD's as well as T-shirts and other souvenirs. This is certainly an exciting time for the snow monkeys!

Jigokudani is a pleasant day trip from Kamesei Ryokan / Togura-Kamiyamada Onsen.

地獄谷のHPはこちらClick here for the Jigokudani Wild Monkey Park website.

更新した情報は萩原さんのブログにて。Updated info on Hagiwara-san's blog. In Japanese, but lots of descriptive pictures.

信州戸倉上山田温泉に３年半前にアメリカから引越しして、この亀清旅館の跡継ぎになりました。亀清の伝統的な昔ながらな温泉宿の良さに憧れ、戸倉上山田の芸者文化の魅力を感じ、そして信州の山と温泉、その自然に感動してまいりました。私みたいに海外から長野に来る方の為にその三つの魅力を組み合わせて、下記の商品を計画しております：
Lunch with a Geisha
＊ 亀清旅館の会席料理
＊ 上山田温泉のお湯
＊ 戸倉上山田温泉の芸者体験
戸倉上山田温泉の初の芸者・昼食プランで毎週木曜日のお昼で実施する予定です。お風呂は亀清旅館の｢百年風呂｣というテーマの手造り露天風呂と、12月に出来たヒバの露天風呂で上山田の温泉らしいお湯を楽しんで頂けます。お料理は亀清の注目されているChef武井の手をかけた会席料理です。芸者さんのエンタテインメントはもちろん芸を見せるだけではなく、お座敷遊び(金比船々、他)や踊り(地元の｢千曲の小唄｣等)の体験も。｢温泉｣と｢会席料理｣と｢芸者｣の楽しみ３味のお昼のプランです。
地獄谷のスノーモンキー、善光寺の歴史と文化、松本城と日本アルプス、白馬や野沢、志賀高原のスキー場、等など、長野県のInboundの魅力は沢山あります。この”Lunch with a Geisha"プランで海外からの旅行者が温泉文化にも触れ合えるように目指しています。
I moved to Nagano 3-1/2 years ago to Togura Kamiyamada Onsen to continue my wife's family inn, Kamesei Ryokan. I really like the traditional feel of Kamesei, with its central garden and semi-detached rooms and warm wood construction. Togura Kamiyamada Onsen also appeals to me with its geisha heritage, and I love Nagano's beautiful nature -- the green mountains and soothing onsen baths. Now I have created a plan incorporating the best of all three:
Lunch with a Geisha
* "Kaiseki" meal served in our traditional ryokan
* A soak in our Kamiyamada Onsen mineral baths
* Entertainment by Togura Kamiyamada geishas.

This is Togura Kamiyamada Onsen's first lunch-time Geisha plan. Our Chef Takei will prepare a full multi-course meal featuring local and seasonal ingredients, and I will add a detailed explanation in English for our guests from overseas. Before or after the lunch, the guests can enjoy Kamiyamada's onsen water high in sulfur content. We feature outdoor baths in both the men's and women's sides. And there will be geisha entertainment. Some songs and dances will be performed for the guests to enjoy passively, but then the geisha will engage the guests in traditional parlor games as well as teaching them some of our local dances. It should be a memorable "ryokan" and "onsen" and "geisha" experience for the guests.

Nagano is fortunate to have so many attractions for foreigners -- Jigokudani's snow monkeys, historical Zenkoji Temple in Nagano City, Matsumoto Castle and the Japanese Alps, Hakuba & Nozawa, Shiga Kogen and other ski resorts, and so much more. Now, with this "Lunch with a Geisha" plan, I hope to share Nagano's onsen culture with visitors from abroad.

戸倉上山田温泉の亀清旅館のHPはこちらClick here for the website of Kamesei Ryokan in Nagano.
Info:　Tel(026)275-1032

戸倉上山田温泉の近くに夜景が綺麗な姨捨駅があります。お客様の夕食が終わってから私が良く一緒に見に行きます。夕べの｢姨捨夜景・伝説ツアー」は満月のお蔭で特に綺麗な眺めでした。お客様に亀清旅館の新しいパンフの為の写真も取ってもらちゃった。木下さんと柴原さんと佐藤さん、ご協力を有難うございました！

Nearby Togura Kamiyamada Onsen is Obasute Station, which features a spectacular night view. I often take guests there after their dinner for a special "Obasute Night View / Local Legends" tour. Last night's was especially nice with the added drama of the full moon. I asked our guests to take some pictures for the new Kamesei Ryokan brochure we are making. I want to thank Kinoshita-san, Satoh-san and Shibahara-san for their cooperation!

戸倉上山田温泉の亀清旅館のHPはこちらClick here for the website of Kamesei Ryokan in Nagano.

今は卒業の時期ですね。小学校や、大学など、毎日の様にどこかの学校の卒業式が行われているようです。我がKenちゃんの卒園式だって今日でした。
そして、学校だけじゃないです。夕べに泊まった奈倉さんは６５歳で定年退職という事で、お仕事を卒業しました。羨ましいですね！毎日は好きな事ができる。本人も、バード‐ウオッチングや絵描き、温泉(亀清？！）など、沢山の趣味があるそうです。まあ、おめでとうございます！

In Japan, March is graduation season. It seems like every day, some local school or university is having a graduation ceremony. Even our son Kenny's preschool graduation party was this morning.

But it's not just graduation from schools. Like our guest from last night, Nagura-san, there are some people retiring from their jobs as well. Nagura-san turned 65, and is graduating from work. He says from now on his biggest difficulty will be to wake up in the morning and decide which of his many hobbies (bird watching, painting, onsens -- Kamesei, of course!) he will do that day. Well, we congratulate him and all other work graduates!

戸倉上山田温泉の亀清旅館のHPはこちらClick here for the website of Kamesei Ryokan in Nagano.

芸者の世界が奥深くて、外からなかなか入れないようです。その意味で、私が恵まれている。この戸倉上山田温泉の旅館に入った御蔭で、お客さんの宴会で私も芸者さん達の三味線や踊りを見る機会があります。夕べは私にとって、また初めての経験でした：座敷ゲーム。「こんぴらふねふね」と言いますかな？噂は良く聞きましたが、自分の目で見るのは初めてでした。そして、見るだけじゃなくて、「おい、おまえもやれ」と。玉子さんにご親切に教えて頂いて、そしてチャレンジ！私が飲んでいなかったにかかわらず、勝てられなかった。やはり芸者さんはプロですね。最初は三味線がゆっくりでなんとなく上手くできたけど、三味線が早くなる内に、失敗してしまう。三味線と合わせてやるのは凄いですね。さすが芸者さん達の芸！
The geisha world is deep and mysterious, and it's difficult for outsiders to enter. So I consider myself fortunate, because thanks to my job at the ryokan here in Togura Kamiyamada Onsen, I am able to see some of the shamisen music and traditional dance at our guests' banquets. Last night was another first for me: geisha parlor games. I'd heard about the games, but had never really seen one. So when I heard the sound of the shamisen and stepped into the banquet room last night, I was thrilled to see "konpira fune-fune" taking place. And not only did I get to watch it, but then one of the guests said, "Hey, you try it, too!" Tamako-san taught me the rules (it's too complicated to explain here), and I gave it a try. One thing I learned really quickly was it's impossible to beat a geisha. They are pros! While the shamisen is going slowly, I could keep up with Tamako-san, but as the shamisen picked up speed, before I knew it I had lost. Playing the game accompanied live by a shamisen was so cool!

誕生日、おめでとうございます、｢千曲｣駅。しなの鉄道の戸倉と屋代の間に出来た千曲駅は今日からオープンになりました。木造造りの駅建物がぴかぴかです。千曲市はやっと看板（？）の駅が出来ました。
私が顔を出してみたら、やはり他の鉄道マニアの人達もいました。どんな重要性があるか分かりませんが、取り敢えず、３月２０日からキグレサーカス長野公演｢善光寺御開帳記念｣が約２ヶ月間行いますのでこの新しい千曲駅からサーカスのテントまで歩いていけるそうです。
Do people sing "Happy Birthday" when a new station opens up? I'm not sure, but seeing the brand new wooden station house at Chikuma Station, which opens for business today, put me in the mood for singing. Chikuma Station is in between Togura and Yashiro on the local Shinano Railway line. I stopped by today to see what it looks like, and there were some other railroad fans there, too, taking pictures.
I'm not sure how much this new station will be used, but starting 20-March the New Kigure Circus opens there tent for a 2 month run within walking distance from the station. If you get a chance, check it out!

戸倉上山田温泉の亀清旅館のHPはこちらClick here for the website of Kamesei Ryokan in Nagano.

しなの鉄道のHPはこちらClick here for Shinano Railway's website.

夕べは久しぶりに姨捨夜景・伝説ツアーの実施ができました。最近は新年会で地元のお客様が多いこと及び、低い温度のせいでこのツアーは売れていませんでした。（売れるといっても、無料でやっておりますけど。。。）今回のメンバーはなんとリピーターでした。去年の8月に来た時にご一緒に行かれて、そしてまた冬の澄んでいる空気の時に夜景も見たいのでまた来たわけです。前回は一緒に行ったお客様と連絡を取り合うようになって、お互いに年賀状も交換したそうです。姨捨はその効果もあるようです。マジックですね。
Last night, our Obasute Night View / Legends tour took place, the first time in quite a while. Lately, most of our guests have been locals coming for New Year banquets, and/or the guests have chickened out due to cold temperatures. The guests last night were actually Obasute Repeaters. They had stayed with us last August and had gone on the tour with me then. But they wanted to see the night view in the winter when the air is clearest. When we went last year, another couple had gone with us, and those two couples ended up keeping in touch with each other, even sending each other New Years greeting cards. Obasute has that magic effect on people.

オーストラリアから来たThackrayさん親子が地獄谷のおサルの温泉に行って来た。おとりになった写真はあまりにも可愛いかったのでここで提供いたします。皆の表情が人間のような感じします。地獄谷野猿公園に行ったことがなければ、是非お勧めします。戸倉上山田温泉・亀清から車で約１時間＋３０分の散歩です。
Mr. Thackray and his daughter took a day trip to see the snow monkeys at Jigokudani. The pictures they brought back were so cute, I just had to share them here. Their expressions are so human-like!
For anyone who has never been to the wild monkey park at Jigokudani to see the monkeys soaking in the onsen bath, I highly reccommend it. The park is about 1 hour by car or 1.5 hours by train/bus from Kamesei + approx. 30 min. walk.

地獄谷野猿公園のHPはこちらClick here for the snow monkeys website.