Other domestic walks

On my way back from climbing Mt. Ontake, I saw a sign for "Atera Valley." For some reason, its name stuck with me, so when I extended my trip to Narai-juku and Matsumoto this time, I decided to make a stop there. That's because the photos I found when researching showed incredibly clear, emerald-green valley beauty that instantly captivated me.

Narai-juku is a post town I've visited several times before. While big post towns on the Nakasendo like Magome-juku and Tsumago-juku are charming, Narai-juku is definitely one of my favorites. This time, after hiking over Torii Pass from the adjacent Yabuhara-juku, I feel like my perspective on it has shifted a little.

My stroll to Naegi Castle Ruins turned into a mini-hike, leaving me pretty exhausted. So after returning the rental car and before catching my train, I was looking for a place to chill out a bit, and that's when I stumbled upon holidaypark ROASTWORKS.

Hamamatsu Flower Park is located right by Lake Hamana. I'd often pass by it during my bike rides around Lake Hamana and was curious, but it didn't seem like a place I'd visit alone, so I never went. However, when my family visited during Golden Week, we decided to explore somewhere new in Hamamatsu, and the Flower Park came up. It turned out to be far more enjoyable than I expected, actually, it was so vast we couldn't even see it all!

My family wanted to visit Nagoya, so we took a relaxed stroll around the city after a long time. They specifically wanted to see Nagoya Castle, but other than that, we didn't have any fixed plans. My family traveled from Tokyo to Nagoya, and I came from Hamamatsu, meeting up there. After exploring Nagoya, I headed back to Hamamatsu.

Unfortunately, the cherry blossoms in Yoshino were completely gone... I'd been there before, so I thought there wouldn't be much to see. But then I heard that the three largest hidden Buddhist statues in Japan, the Kongo Zao Gongen, housed in the main hall Zao-do (a National Treasure), were being specially exhibited to raise funds for the grand repair of the Nio-mon Gate, so I hurried to see them.

On Tokaido Line stations, you often find information about nearby tourist spots on the platforms. At Iwata Station, "Kumano no Nagafuji" (Kumano's Long Wisteria) is introduced as a nationally designated natural monument. Since I had just been around the Kumano area, I got curious about why there's a famous spot called "Kumano" in Iwata and why this wisteria is a natural monument, so I decided to go check it out for myself.

It takes nearly six hours to drive from Hamamatsu to the trailhead. Realizing a day trip to Mt. Hakkyogatake would be impossible, I booked a stay in Tenkawa Village. Even though the drive ended up being a long detour due to landslides, I decided to take the opportunity to slowly explore this deep mountain village the next day.

Using my JRE BANK JR East 40% discount Shinkansen ticket, I decided to take a day trip a bit further afield. While looking at the map around Fukushima, the Miharu Takizakura, one of Japan's Three Great Cherry Trees, caught my eye, located quite close to Koriyama. It didn't seem to be in full bloom yet, but the timing felt right, so I immediately set off.

There's a show on BS Fuji called "Builbura! Retro Building Exploration" by Yoshikazu Kajihara, and I often watch it because sometimes they feature retro buildings I know. Well, they introduced a super rare building in nearby Toyohashi that stands right over a canal, and it totally piqued my interest, so I decided to go check it out for myself!