Blog - Kamesei Ryokan (inn) in Togura-Kamiyamada Onsen, Nagano, Japan | Hosted by an American Innkeeper

アカシア花の天ぷらはいかがですか? How about some Acacia Blossom Tempura

May 24, 2011: グルメFoodie

'Tis Spring! Acacia flowers!

この戸倉上山田温泉の真ん中に千曲画が流れています。堤防の内側に入れば川辺の別な世界になります。今日は我が息子達を連れて、川辺へ冒険しました。アカシアの木は花がちょうど咲いていました。

信州は本当に自然で恵まれて、嬉しいです。

板長がこのアカシアの花を天ぷらでお客様に出すので、少し採ってきました。旬の味できっと美味しいでしょう。

The Chikuma River runs through the center of our onsen town, Togura-Kamiyamada. If you cross over the levee and enter the river 'zone', it feels like a separate universe. With the rustling sound of the wind through the reeds and gurgling sound of the river, you can easily forget the hussle and bussle of the surrounding town.

Yesterday I took our sons down to the river. The acacia trees are in bloom now and the air was filled with the sweet scent emanating from the white blossoms. We picked a few to take back to our chef here at Kamesei. Acacia flowers taste fabulous served as tempura. Our guests for the next few days are in for a treat!

Acacia trees in bloom with the Chikuma River and Togura Kamiyamada Onsen in the distance

松本へお出かけ:おすすめコース　Day trip to Matsumoto: Sample Itinerary

May 23, 2011: 長野に来る理由 Reasons to Come to Nagano

亀清旅館・戸倉上山田温泉の行きか帰りの途中で寄れる人気スポットの１つは松本市。お城を見て終わるという人が多いけど、松本の魅力はもっともっと深いので是非、冒険してみてください。

私たち家族は昨日、久しぶりの親子のお出かけして来ました。

縄手通りや中町でぶらぶらして、アンティーク屋さんから若女将が喜ばれるブッティクや若旦那が喜ばれるアウトドアー用品の店まで、楽しい買い物だけで一日が終わりそう。ところどころに川辺の公園や井戸があって、子供達も飽きない。

その途中で必ずおなかがつくはずなので、食事は個性的なレストランは沢山ある。今回はバーガー専門店のU2さんとピッザ・パスタのシアトルさん(どこかで聞いた事あるような名前…）

文化の面でも松本が進んでいます。今回は松本美術館の前を通るだけ;私たちの目的が佐渡島から来た太鼓の「鼓童」のコンサート＠松本市民芸術会館。

５月２８日（土）と２９日（日）はクラフトフェアーマツモト２０１１年です。日本中でも代表的なアートアンドクラフトのイベントです。

この機会で、ぜひお出かけしてみてください。そのあとは、亀清旅館へお風呂をどうぞ。車で約４５分、電車なら松本駅・姨捨管４５分。

Matsumoto City is a popular place to stop on the way to or from Kamesei / Togura Kamiyamada Onsen. Our family took a rare day off to go for a drive and explore the town.

Unfortunately, many visitors to 'Moto see the famous castle and call it good. There is so much more to the town, people should really get out and explore it.

We based our wanderings around the shopping streets Nawate and Nakamachi. There's everything from antique shops to clothing boutiques that the proprietress loves, and outdoor goods shops that I love. And with all the water features around town including riverside parks and drinking wells, the kids never got bored.

You could conceivable get lost in the shopping all day, but you eventually have to take a break to eat. And Matsumoto certainly has you covered with a corncupia of unique restaurants. This trip, we patronized burger shop U2 and pizza / pasta restaurant Seattle (Hmm, I've heard that name somewhere).

It would be a shame not to also see some of Matsumoto's cultural attractions, too. This time we passed on seeing the city's art museum because we had plans to see the Kodo taiko concert at the classy Performing Arts Center. Some of the patrons were dressed in kimono -- people in Matsumoto really know how to do it up right.

Next weekend is Matsumoto's annual Craft Fair. So if you are in Nagano on May 28th or 29th, consider attending the Craft Fair. And if you weren't planning on coming, perhaps you should -- this is a legitimate arts and crafts fair, one of Japan's largest.

And then make the trip to Kamesei for a bath (only 45 minutes by car, or 45 minutes from Matsumoto Station to Obasute Station).

クラフトフェアーまつもとのHPはこちらClick here for Craft Fair Matsumoto's website.

One of the many riverside parks

Yummy U2 burger shop

Mayb e there's a Matsumoto sushi shop in Seattle

岩井堂山の登り口確認　Verifying Iwaido-san's Trailhead

May 22, 2011: 長野に来る理由 Reasons to Come to Nagano

現在に作成中の戸倉上山田温泉周辺のハイキング・サイクリングマップの為に、最後に一つの山の登り口を確認したかった。マップは割と簡単に作れるけど、そのマップを手に入れて、実際使ってみる人達はコースが分からなければ意味がないという事で…

上山田と坂城町の間にある岩井堂山。三角のお結びの形していて、「お結び山」とも呼ばれている。

地元の小学校は遠足で毎年に登る。(我が二男のKen君は先週に遠足で登ったばかり。）ですから、地元で皆が知っている。

ただ、登る口の看板は一つもない。駐車場もないし、途中まで行く林道は４WDじゃないと無理だし、一般の人でどうやって案内するか困っていました。

市役所の方やいろんな地元の人達と相談したら、上山田トレセンで車を止めて、林道を登れば、山の肩(尾根？)に隣の坂城町が作った看板がちゃんと出ていて、安心で登れるでしょうと、このコースを決定しました。

どうして上山田川に看板がないだろう？町おこしはやはり、看板から始まること、よく分かりました。

We are almost finished making a new Hiking / Cycling Map for Togura Kamiyamada Onsen. There was one last hiking course that I wanted to verify before putting the map to print. There's no use in making a map with courses people can't actually find.

Iwaido-san is the triangular-shaped mountain situated in between Kamiyamada and neighboring Sakaki Town. Our 8-year old son Kenny climbed it along with his classmates as all Kamiyamada Elementary School 3rd graders do for their annual outdoor excursion. So it's a well-loved mountain with the locals. There just aren't any signs for visitors to find it.

I've come to realize that civic improvement starts with good signage!

Ah ha! A Sign!

Iwaido-san as seen from the Training Center Parking Lot

自然なつつじ

野沢温泉の「魂」旅館：常盤屋　Nozawa Onsen's Heart and Soul: Tokiwaya Ryokan

May 21, 2011: 季節 Seasons

野沢温泉は長野県の温泉街の中で、我々旅館経営者達も憧れる温泉地です。立派な個性的な、歴史のある宿は沢山そろっているし、「大湯」が代表する外湯は１３箇所、源泉は目で見える(鼻でかめる）麻釜、世界レベルなスキー場、お土産屋さんがいっぱいあるにぎやかな温泉街、そして毎年の意月１５日に行う総祖人まつり、日本三大日の祭りの１つ。

魅力はとにかく沢山ある野沢温泉。

２年前にお湯の隣の３７０年の歴史のある常盤屋旅館が倒産し、外資系に売られそうでした。

一般的な宿がそうやって外資系になって、安売り出せば「仕方がない」と思われるけど、常盤屋旅館が野沢温泉の中心にあり、一番歴史の長い宿。

つまり、野沢温泉の魂旅館。

地元の村人の何人かが手を上げて、スポンサーになって、常盤屋をレスキューしました。

その中の若旦那が私の県青年部委員会のメンバーで昨日は他の委員と常盤屋さんで集まりました。その歴史のストリーを教えていただき、館内を案内して頂きました。代表の千人風呂や「個室食堂」が流行る前からの個室食堂など。個性的な、老舗な宿で感動しました。

亀清旅館はいつか戸倉上山田温泉の「魂宿」になれるかな？

Nozawa Onsen is the type of onsen village that people in the ryokan industry love. It's got a handful of really classy inns, the 13 public baths including the venerable 'Oyu', the 'Ogama' hot spring source where locals gather to wash vegetables, a world class ski resort next door, a lively townscape with lots of small shops to browse, and the annual Fire Festival held every January 15th.

Across the street from Oyu is Tokiwaya Ryokan, founded 370 years ago -- Nozawa's most historical inn.

2 years ago, Tokiwaya was set to go bankrupt and be bought out by a foreign firm.

If a minor ryokan were sold out and turned into a budget accommodation, the townspeople no doubt would have resigned themselves to that fate. However, Tokiwaya is the heart and soul of the village. A group of locals decided to pool their resources and by the inn, keeping it locally-owned and maintaining its rich legacy.

The 'wakadanna' (junior owner) is in my prefectural level junior innkeepers association committe, and some of the other members and I gathered at Tokiwaya yesterday. We got to hear the story of the inn, as well as get a tour. The '1000-person' bath and the individual dining rooms (made even before such a style became the fad) were especially impressive.

I wonder if we can develop Kamesei Ryokan into becoming a 'legacy ryokan', too.

常盤屋旅館のHPはこちらClick here for Tokiwaya Ryokan's website.

Tokiwaya Ryokan -- Nozawa's Legacy Inn

Tokiwaya's 1000 person onsen

Nozawa Onsen's Asagama-Dori street lined with classic ryokans

Nozawa Onsen village

夕食の満足度4.9はどこから来るでしょう? To what do we owe the high ratings for our dinner

May 20, 2011: その他 Miscellaneous

ザ板長

新聞のインタビューに亀清旅館のお料理を聞かれました。Ｃｈｅｆ武井の料理は評判がとにかく良いです。業界で認められているじゃらんネットの口コミで、夕食は5点満点の中の4.8～4.9です。お客様が喜んで頂いているのは確かです。

その理由は?またはどんな料理か?と記者さんに聞かれました。色々考えましたが、非常に表現し辛いです。

「これだ!」と言う代表の一品もないし、

旬の物そして地元の食材を生かしているけど、どの宿でもそれをやっているし、

豪華な花や飾りつけは特にしていないし、食器は普通だし、決してプレゼンテーションでポイントが高い訳じゃない、

さあ、その秘密は何でしょうか?

一つなヒントは飛び込みのお客さんとよくあるハプニング：
夕食の準備は間に合わない場合が多いです。だって、冷凍庫から出して、電子レンジで温まる様なお料理じゃないから。

もう1つなヒントは良く「絶品」と言われている冬で出す鮎の煮浸しです。板長は3日間をかけて調理している。そのお蔭で、軟かくて骨まで食べれるようになる。今は番茶付けの山女ですが、この一品はまたファンが多いです。

とにかく、板長は一品一品に手をかけています。そして、定番の物は嫌がる。天ぷらは基本的に出していない。茶わん蒸しは色々と板長の手作り鶯豆腐などの珍しい物が入っていて、「びっくり茶碗」と呼ばれています。

このアイディアー料理はお客様に感動を与えている；それが高い満足度の原因だと思います。

During a recent interview by a newspaper reporter, I was asked to describe Kamesei's meals. Our man in the kitchen, Chef Takei, is a culinary wizard, and his meals create many a happy guest. In Japan's leading internet reservation system 'Jalan', our dinners are currently rated 4.8-4.9 on a 0.0-5.0 scale by guest reviews.

But how to describe our meals -- that's not easy to do. Chef Takei uses seasonal ingredients and sources the majority of the ingredients locally, but then again, so do most other chefs. And the meals rely on the strength of all the various dishes rather than putting emphasis on one stand-out plate.

Perhaps one way to describe the meals is by way of explanation: Many times we have walk-up guests asking for a room for that day, and they are disappointed when told we can provide a room and breakfast but dinner can't be prepared in time. The reason is our chef's meals aren't something taken out of the freezer and warmed in a microwave oven. One of the dishes in fact is prepared over a series of 3 days -- the ayu river fish that our chef slowly simmers in sake and other seasonings making it soft enough to eat the whole fish, even the bones. Our guests often comment they have never tasted anything like it.

Chef Takei's tendency to avoid the 'orthodox' and be creative in his combination of ingredients as well as his pain-stakingly detailed preparation are the keys to the popularity of his meals. If you are interested in trying Japan's 'kaiseki'-style dinner, you will be in for a treat here at Kamesei.

亀清旅館の剽軽の亀 Kamesei's Comical Turtles

May 19, 2011: その他 Miscellaneous

Comical Climbing Turtle

外の温度が急に夏の様になってきまして、そのお蔭かどうか分かりませんが、亀清旅館の中庭の池に住んでいる亀２匹は冬眠からしっかり出て、あちらこちらに遊んでいます。一匹は置物の亀の上にも上った!

亀清の看板動物ですのでお越しになれば中庭で探してみてください。

Temperatures outside have climbed to summer-like highs. I'm not sure if that's the reason or not, but the 2 turtles that live in Kamesei Ryokan's koi pond have definitely come out of hibernation and are playing all over our naka-niwa garden.

One of the turtles even climbed up on the little turtle figurine we have by the pond!

If you come to Kamesei, try seeing if you can find one of the turtles in the pond.

姨捨情報：　今は田毎の月タイム Obasute News: Now is 'Tagoto no tsuki' time

May 18, 2011: 青い目のおもてなし This American’s Omotenashi

The elusive 'tagoto no tsuki'

姨捨の「田毎の月」で有名な棚田でその「お月様が田んぼ毎に反射している」場面を見る為に２つが必要：
１．お月様
２．田んぼにお水が入っている事

ちょうど今が満月（１．はＯＫ！），そして田植えの準備が始まったので、棚田の田んぼの皆に水が入っています（２．もＯＫ！）．

つまり、今は田毎の月タイム!

夕べもお客様を連れて、見に行きました。大きい満月が田んぼに移っていて、とっても綺麗でした。

ちなみに、普段は１ヶ所から見ると、お月様が田んぼの一つに反射している様に見える。「田毎」で見るには、まず、姨捨政宗の地酒を飲むようにお勧めします。（笑い）

The nearby Obasute terraced rice fields are famous for 'Tagoto no tsuki' -- the moon reflecting in the individual rice paddies. In order to see that, 2 things are required:
1. the moon
2. water in the paddies.

Right now is the full moon (1. OK!), and all the fields have been flooded in preparation for planting (2. also OK!)

So right now is the magical 'tagoto no tsuki' time! Last night I took some guests, and the full moon reflecting in the fields was sereenely beautiful.

NOTE: In order to see the moon reflecting in multiple fields (which 'tagoto no tsuki' mysteriously hints at), I suggest drinking some of the local Obasute Masamune sake first!

飯山の人気スポット、もう１つ：高橋まゆみ人形館 Another Iiyama Popular Spot: Mayumi Takahashi Doll Museum

May 17, 2011: 活動 Activities

Misaki outside the Mayumi Takahashi Doll Museum

先日の若女将と若若女将との飯山巡りドライブで、菜の花以外にも目的がありました：高橋まゆみ人形館。

２２年４月にオープンした人形館に全国各地から大勢の観光客が訪れています。まゆみさんの独特な人形つくりは田舎のおじさん・おばちゃんの表情・雰囲気そっくりです。

人形館の展示場は思ったより狭いですが、一つ一つの人形の顔、展示の背景を見て、ゆっくり楽しめる。

そして、人形館の周りはまた私が好きな街の雰囲気で、伝統的な建物が沢山ありました。特に、仏壇通り。飯山は仏壇生産で知られているって聞いた事があったが、この仏壇通りは今回で初めて見ました。良く考えたら、当たり前の事ですが、日本でこういう商店街があるのは最初、驚きました。お神輿を売っている店もありました。祭り男の私には興味深い所です。

仏壇通りと人形館を出て、飯山の町の中と周辺を回りました。また面白い現象がありました：畑で働いている農家のおばさんや、町に歩いていたおじさんとかの姿を見て、まゆみさんの人形の感化はどこから来たか、分かる様な気がした。

Besides seeing the nanohana flower fields, our drive to Iiyama had another purpose: to see the Mayumi Takahashi Doll Museum.

Opened just in April of last year, the museum has attracted visitors from all over Japan to see Mayumi-san's unique dolls that adroitly depict the type of country bumpkins one is apt to see in Iiyama's backroads.

The museum itself has surprisingly little display space, but that is more than compensated by the enjoyment that can be had from looking at each individual doll's expression and composure, especially in relation to the background displays.

The doll museum is set in a neighborhood filled with the type of traditional Japanese buildings that I love. Especially impressive is 'Butsudan-dori (street)'. A Butsudan is a Buddhist altar that most families in Japan have in a prominent place in their houses. I had heard that Iiyama is a major manufacturer of Butsudan, but I wasn't aware that there was a whole street of Butsudan shops! I guess it makes sense, though, to have a Butsudan shopping district here in Japan.

There was an interesting phenomenon that came out of seeing the doll museum. Driving around the town and in outlying farming areas afterwards and seeing the old ladies bent over in the fields or the old gentlemen walking along the back streets, I started to get a sense of where Mayumi-san got the inspiration for her dolls!

Mayumi Takahashi Doll Museum
2941-1 Iiyama Oaza, Iiyama City
Tel (0269)67-0139
Hours: 9:00-17:00 (Apr-Nov); 10:00-16:00 (Dec-Mar)
Closed Wednesdays
600 yen for adults, 400 yen for middle and elementary school students

高橋まゆみ人形館のＨＰはこちら。Click here for the Mayumi Takahashi Doll Museum website

菜の花ワンダーランド Nanohana Wonderland

May 16, 2011: 長野に来る理由 Reasons to Come to Nagano

Misaki peek-a-boo with the nanohana

信州の代表的な花見は色々ある：高遠の桜、あんずの里の杏、戸隠・鬼無里の水芭蕉、等など。

今日はそのもう一つを始めてみました：飯山の菜の花。

写真ではよく見ましたが、自分の目では初めてその黄色い花の畑と千曲川・北信五岳の背景を見ました。

亀清の若女将と若若女将と三人でドライブで行きましたが、「菜の花公園」が素晴らしかった。写真だけじゃ菜の花畑の良さが分からない。もちろん、花の甘い香りもあるけど、公園で菜の花迷路があって、入り込めば不思議な感じになる。

飯山の菜の花公園では４月中旬から５月上旬の間、８００万本が咲くそうです。その最中のゴールデンウィーク（５月３日～５日）に「菜の花祭り」が行って、千曲川に菜の花私船など、沢山の楽しみがある。

今年は春先の温度が低かったせいか、菜の花は１週間ぐらい遅れている。（ＧＷに行った皆さんは少しがっかりした様）

Nagano has numerous headlining flower shows: Takato's cherry blossoms, Anzu no Sato's apricot blossoms, the the pure white 'mizubasho' (unfortunately named 'skunk cabbage' in English) of the Togakushi and Kinasa highlands above Nagano City, and so many more.

One other is that of the 'nanohana' blossoms in Iiyama, which I saw for myself for the first time today. (Nanohana also has an unfortunate name in English: rapeweed. Forgive me as I stick to the Japanese name, nanohana, which has a much more elegant feel.)

I had seen pictures of the fields filled with yellow flowers with the Chikuma River and Nagano's 'five northern peaks' in the background. But pictures don't do the flowers justice. For one thing, seeing them in person means you can enjoy the sweet scent of the flowers wafting on the breeze.

And for another reason, Iiyama's main nanohana park, called simply enough 'Nanohana Park', has a nanohana maize allowing you to immerse yourself in the field amongst the plants bursting with yellow color.

My wife and daughter and I went for a drive today to Iiyama and thoroughly enjoyed the nanohana show. The plants normally bloom between mid April and early May, with special events scheduled from May 3rd to the 5th coinciding with Japan's Golden Week holiday. This year, however, the blossoms are about a week later than usual.

菜の花公園の詳しくはこちらClick here for more info (in Japanese) on Iiyama's nanohana.