When I woke up in the morning, the sky was clear and cloudless. Altitude here is 900m, Fuji in front, Suruga Bay on the left, and Sagami Bay on the right. I have been here many times, but this is the first time I have had such a clear view.
この写真はハーベスト天城高原の最上階にある温泉からの眺めなのです。
This photo is the view from the hot spring on the top floor of Tokyu Harvest Amagi Kogen.
そして朝の散歩は今まで行ったことのないコースを選んでみた。
For our morning walk, we chose a course I had never taken before.
こんな散歩コースがあったので歩いてみた。
I found this walking course and walked along it.
今回は全然鹿に出会えてないのでシカさんコースに向かってみた。
This time we didn’t see any deer, so we headed for the deer course.
Konatsu seemed to sense the scent of deer and pulled me along, but I could not see any deer. Konatsu seemed to be saying, “I wonder why, I don’t see any deer…. So let’s give up and go have breakfast!
というワケで伊豆高原のル・フィヤージュという人気のパン屋さんにやってきた。
So we went to a popular bakery called Le Fillage in Izu Kogen.
Konatsu got her share, too, and breakfast was over. Since we had come all this way, we decided to go see the Kawazu cherry blossoms, so we drove south on the Izu Peninsula. However, it took us more than an hour to drive there because there seemed to be so many people who wanted to see the Kawazu cherry blossoms, even though it usually takes only 30 minutes.
My wife seems to be happy to be free from her daily chores and to be able to relax and do nothing, so she is spending most of the time in the room without doing any sightseeing. However, I had a problem when I drove out for a bit of shopping, etc. The temperature is below freezing even during the daytime, so the washer fluid is frozen and won’t come out. When the car was covered with muddy water, I had to wash it with drinking waterI Next time, I will put in antifreeze washer fluid.
最終日の夕飯に行きましょう！こなつは今回は洋服を沢山持って来た。どれもドッグデプト
Let’s go to dinner on the last day! Konatsu brought a lot of clothes this time.
フレンチが三日続くけど、ここのは美味しいから飽きない。
French food lasts three days, but I never get tired of it because it’s so good here.
A bakery and restaurant, KOO, opened near Regina, and I heard that it has been introduced in magazines and has a good reputation. I decided to buy some bread as a souvenir.
実際、家に帰ってから食べてみたら凄く美味しい！ご興味あればURLを見てね。 https://crea.bunshun.jp/articles/-/34749 In fact, when I got home, I tried some of the bread and it was delicious! If you are interested, please check the URL.
At the Hachioji Junction, we wondered whether we should continue straight ahead or take the Chuo Highway. I was lost for a moment, but decided to take the Chuo Highway.
中央道を長坂ICで降りて、清里を通って佐久に出るコース。途中、野辺山の辺りはこんな雪景色。
We got off the Chuo Highway at Nagasaka IC and headed for Saku via Kiyosato. On the way, the area around Nobeyama was covered with snow.
更に進むとホワイトアウトしそうになってきたが、そうはならずに済んだ。
As we continued on, it looked like it was going to be a whiteout, but it didn’t turn out that way.
中部横断自動車道の佐久南ICで降りて、道の駅ホットパークに寄り道。
We got off at the Saku Minami IC of the Chubu Cross-Island Highway and stopped at roadside station Hot Park.
ワタシは降りたくありません、って顔してるけど歳会えずオシッコだけ済ませよう。
Konatsu looked like she didn’t want to get off the car.
ここは小さな道の駅ですがこの地方ならではのモノをいろいろ売っていて､､､
This is a small roadside station, but they sell a variety of local products…
Among them is this frozen tofu. It is said that only four shops in Japan make handmade frozen tofu, and that the taste is so good that no machine can make it. I got it!
そこから30分で軽井沢に到着。今回もレジーナリゾート御影用水に泊まります。
From there, we arrived in Karuizawa in 30 minutes. Again, we will stay at Regina Resort Mikageyousui.
今回も信州割のお世話になります！ 到着が遅くなったから一休みしたらすぐ夕飯だ。
Once again, we’re getting the Shinshu Discount! Since we arrived late, we’ll have dinner right after we take a break.
こなつは抜け毛の季節だから毛を撒き散らさないように洋服を着てレストランへ。
Konatsu is in the season of hair loss, so we put on clothes and went to the restaurant so as not to scatter the hair.
Lately we have been traveling frequently, but it has been in the spirit of making as many happy memories as possible while Konatsu is still in good health. On this particular day, we went to Manyo Park in Yugawara.
I took a peek and sure enough, there is a footbath. But who would use a footbath while visiting a bank? Well, it seems like a bank in a hot spring resort area.
その近くに古めかしい和菓子屋があったので行ってみた。
There was an old-fashioned Japanese sweets shop near the bank, so we went there.
ここのお団子おいしかった。
The dumplings were delicious.
この日の宿泊は東急ハーベスト熱海伊豆山。
We stayed at Tokyu Harvest Club Atami Izusan.
それにしても、この1週間のサッカーW杯はお驚きの連続だ。
Still, this past week’s soccer World Cup has been full of surprises.
I asked the doorman of Regina to take a commemorative photo of us, the first and last family shots of our trip. We were so comfortable during our 4-day/3-night stay at the Regina Resort that I have already made a reservation for our next visit (lol). After checking out, we went shopping at Tsuruya.
軽井沢で最後のランチは蕎麦屋の東間（とうま）
My last lunch in Karuizawa was at a soba restaurant, Toma.
This is another soba restaurant where you can have a meal with your dog on the terrace, and after we entered the restaurant, people came one after another with their dogs.
だし巻き玉子。コレ美味しいよ！
Japanese-style omlet. This is delicious!
ここの蕎麦は鎌倉の「こ寿々」の味に似ている。もちろん美味しい。
The taste of the soba noodles here is similar to that of “Kosuzu” in Kamakura. Of course it is delicious.
デザートもしっかり！
We also had dessert!
これでいよいよ今回の旅行が終わりとなる｡｡｡
This was the end of our trip…
上信越道を走って我が家まで4時間。また来たいねえ､､､
It took us 4 hours to get home on the Joshin-etsu Expressway. I want to come back again…
It’s a lithograph, not an expensive one, but it’s in my house. Thaliassen is a nice place to stroll around. The day after this, we went to the dog park in Komoro City.
山の中腹に駐車場があって、そこから上まで登って行くのでけっこうキツイ。
There is a parking lot in the middle of the mountain, and it is quite hard to climb up to the top from there.
下に見えているのは小型犬用のドッグラン。そして私が居る所が大型犬用のラン。
The one below is a dog park for small dogs, and the one where I am is for large dogs.
最近はあまり走ることがないこなつだけれど、ここではよく走っていた。
Konatsu doesn’t run much these days, but she used to run a lot here.
We left the dog park early and went to the top of the park. The autumn leaves are beautiful here, too.
レジーナに戻り、館内で撮影。内部はもうクリスマス仕様になっていた。では夕飯を食べに行きましょう。
We returned to Regina and took some pictures. The inside of the hotel was already decorated for Christmas. Let’s go have dinner. Now, let’s go have dinner.
これはレジーナ1日目のメニュー
This is the menu for the first day in Regina.
ここの食事はいつも美味しい！更にワンコと一緒に食べられるのがいいね。
The food here is always delicious! And I love that I can eat with my dog.
これはこなつ用の 秋鮭と野菜 ↑
This is for Konatsu. Autumn salmon and vegetables.
蒸し鶏の胸肉と野菜 ↑ こんなの毎日食べてたらまたダイエットやり直しだ(笑)
Steamed chicken breast and vegetables ↑ If I eat like this every day, I’ll have to start my diet all over again, lol.
After checking out of the hotel, we headed for Karuizawa, but a short detour would take us to Togakushi Village (now Nagano City). Since I had come to Nagano, I wanted to eat delicious Soba, so I searched for Soba restaurant on my smart phone.
戸隠に向かう途中のリンゴ農園。真ん中の赤い帯状に見えてるのがリンゴ
An apple orchard on the way to Togakushi. The red band in the center is a harvested apples.
This is Togakushi Shrine. In this picture, tourists seem to be sparse, but I was surprised that there were actually quite a lot of them. I don’t know if it is because there are many soba lovers or because of the travel discount.
ネットで紹介されている蕎麦屋はどこも超満員なので空いてそうな店を探してここにした。
All the soba restaurants introduced on the Internet are very crowded, so we looked for a place that seemed to be quiet and decided to go here.
私は三味蕎麦。タレは左から、いくさ(エゴマ)、醤油、ゴマくるみ。
I chose Sanmi Soba. The tare (sauce) are, from left to right: ikusa (egoma), soy sauce, and sesame walnut.
My wife ordered hot soba noodles. I later found out that this restaurant has been in business for more than 50 years, and their soba soft serve ice cream is a masterpiece that no other restaurant can imitate. It’s too late!
It was one of the pleasures of travel to move around without a fixed schedule. It takes about one and a half hours from here to Karuizawa via Joshinetsu Expressway.
この日からは最終日まで3泊4日をここレジーナリゾート軽井沢御影用水で過ごします。
From this day until the last day, we will spend 3 nights and 4 days here at Regina Resort Karuizawa Mikage.
Konatsu seemed to be a little tired because we traveled long distances every day and walked in unfamiliar places during the first half of this trip. So it was a good decision to choose this familiar place for the last part of the trip, and Konatsu gradually regained her energy. I will post more about our stay in Karuizawa at a later date.
When we take Konatsu out for a morning walk, the early morning hot spring resort is still quiet , and we only encounter people walking their dogs who seem to be staying at the same hotel as us.
いかにもこの地方らしい説明看板
A sign telling the 400-year history of this cedar tree
I didn’t show you a picture of the rooms, but all the rooms here are Japanese-style rooms with dog-friendly tatami mats and beds on them. It was a cozy room.
早めの時間にチェックアウトして次の目的地・金沢に向かう。
We checked out early and headed to our next destination, Kanazawa.
ここから金沢までの所要時間は約1時間。高速には乗らずに国道8号線を走って行った。
It takes about one hour from here to Kanazawa. We did not take the expressway, but drove on Route 8.
The first place we visited in Kanazawa was a long-established Japanese sweets shop called Morihachi. There used to be a branch of this shop in Kamakura, where I live, but it is no longer there. My wife bought some wagashi that can only be bought here.
ここが海産物で有名な近江町市場。170店もの鮮魚店や飲食店があるのですが､､､
This is the Omicho Market, famous for its seafood. 170 fresh fish stores and restaurants…
カニ漁が解禁になったばかりということもあるのか凄い賑わいだが、第8波が心配｡｡｡
The crab fishing season has just started, and the market is very crowded.
On this day, my car’s mileage hit the 200,000 km mark! It’s still less than 6 years old, lol. The temperature is 24 degrees Celsius in Komatsu City at around 10 in the morning. When we arrived in Hakuba, the temperature had dropped to 10 degrees Celsius.
This day is actually November 12, the day we move from the Pacific Ocean side to the Sea of Japan side, so we finish our morning walk early and leave as soon as we eat breakfast.
ここは浜名湖。こなつは海の波は怖いのだが、湖の小さな波なら怖くないらしい。こんな風に歩いていた。
This is Lake Hamanako. Konatsu is afraid of ocean waves, but she is not afraid of small waves on the lake. This is how she was walking.
これは黒ヤギのウナギ君。前回来たときは子ヤギだったけどこんなに大きくなった。
This is Unagi, a black goat. The last time we were here, he was a baby goat, but he has grown up to be this big.
This is Lake Biwa. Compared to Lake Hamanako where we were this morning, Lake Biwa is much larger. We had only seen it from the window of the Shinkansen, but standing on the lakeshore, we could really feel the size of the lake.
ここでもこなつはこうして遊んでいた。
Again, Konatsu played in this way.
昼頃に長浜市に到着。
Arrived at Nagahama City around noon.
ワンコ連れOKの96カフェ(ｸﾛｶﾌｪ)でランチ。
We had lunch at 96 Cafe (Kuro Cafe), where you can bring your dog.
After lunch, we walked around the area called Kurokabe Square. I had no prior knowledge of the area, but I found it to be an unexpectedly nice neighborhood…
We arrived at YU-KAI Wan-Wan Resort in Awazu Onsen. It was a Saturday night, and the room was full, and it was a hard state to put it in the parking lot. We stayed here on the second day.
This year my wife and I both turned 70. So we started planning a trip in the summer to celebrate. Now in Japan, there is a campaign called “Travel Discount,” which offers a 40% discount on the price of travel anywhere in Japan.
So we are going to leave home on this day and drive a little bit each day to the Sea of Japan. On the first day, we will visit the family temple in Fujieda, stay overnight in Hamamatsu, and go to Awazu Onsen in Ishikawa Prefecture via Lake Biwa on the second day.
半年ぶりのお墓参り。
The first day was the first visit to the gravesite after a half year’s absence.
The temperature was about 20 degrees Celsius, a pleasant coolness for Konatsu. She seemed to be walking more vigorously than when we took walks around our neighborhood.
こんな霧の中だから鹿の姿が見えない｡｡｡
I couldn’t see the deer because of the fog.
鹿が居ないよ！と訴えているみたいだ(笑)
It was as if she was complaining, “The deer are not here! ” lol
この日は私達がチェックアウトする時間になってもまだ霧の中でした。
It was still foggy by the time we checked out.
山を下って伊東市内に向かいます。
We headed down the mountain to Ito city.
ここは伊東市八幡野の「ル・フィヤージュ」というパン屋さん。ここで朝食です。
This is Le Feuillage, a bakery in Ito-Yawatano. Breakfast here.
ここのパンは美味しいので、天城に来るといつもここに食べにくる。
The bread here is so good that my wife and I always come here to eat when we come to Amagi.
It would be nice to take a walk with Konatsu here, but it is prohibited to walk here with dogs. The time was just right, so we decided to head to Amagi Kogen from here.
東急ハーベスト天城高原に到着する直前にいつものように鹿の姿が見られた。
Just before arriving at Tokyu Harvest Club Amagi Kogen, deer were seen as usual.
ペット同伴用の部屋です。
This room is for pets.
さあ、散歩に行きましょう！
Come on, let’s go for a walk!
こなつの視線の先には鹿の群れが見えている。
Konatsu’s gaze caught a glimpse of a herd of deer.
そうするうちに辺りはどんどん暗くなっていき､､､
Meanwhile, the area is getting darker and darker, and…
遠くに富士山が見えていた。
Fuji in the distance.
夕飯の時間です
It’s time for dinner!
この秋、初めての松茸。土瓶蒸しと松茸ご飯が嬉しい！ これで1日目が終わった。
We ate matsutake mushrooms for the first time this fall. So happy to have steamed matsutake mushrooms in an earthenware teapot and matsutake rice! That was the end of the first day.
I found a long-established Japanese-style confectionery shop called Shintsuru. We were told that the “mochi manju” we were looking for was already sold out! We had no choice but to buy another one and headed to Suwa-taisha Shrine.
This is Suwa-taisha Shrine. Suwa-taisha is the headquarters of about 25.000 Suwa shrines throughout Japan. It was built in the Kamakura period. That was about 1,000 years ago.
こなつも一緒に歩けると良かったのですが、立て看板を見ると､､､
It would have been nice if Konatsu could have walked with me, but looking at the sign…
ペットは境内には入れませんでした。
Pets were not allowed on the grounds of shrine.
このしめ縄、重さ1トンなんだって！
The large object seen above the worshippers is called a shimenawa. Shimenawa is a sacred rope made of rice-straw. This shimenawa weighs 1,000 kg!
これがかの有名な御柱。
This is the famous “Onbashira”. It is a sacred wooden pillar that is cut from the mountain during the great festival held every seven years.
秋宮には2本の御柱が立っている。
Two of these pillars stand at Suwa Akinomiya Shrine.
The world written here is the mythical world of Suwa-taisha Shrine. While we were walking, we started to get hungry. Since this is Shinshu, I thought it would be better to eat soba noodles.
We entered this restaurant after searching on the Internet. It seemed that this restaurant was very popular and there were only 10 buckwheat noodles left when we entered, and the customers who came a while later were refused, saying that they were sold out.
メニューはこれだけ。私はせいろと田舎を各1枚ずつ食べました。
This is the only menu.
上がせいろ、下がいなか。 どっちも美味しかった！
We had two kinds of soba noodles, top and bottom. Both were very tasty.
上諏訪から見た諏訪湖です。今回は仕事の日程の都合で1泊しか出来なかったけれど楽しい旅行でした。
This is Lake Suwa seen from Kami-suwa. This was an enjoyable trip, although I could only stay one night due to my work schedule.
This is our family’s last trip this summer. In the past few days, we have been able to feel a hint of autumn in the mornings and evenings. I headed for Matsumoto, hoping that it would be cooler in Shinshu. I headed for Matsumoto, hoping that the weather would be cooler in Shinshu.
Here is the Okaya Junction where we enter the Nagano Expressway from the Chuo Expressway, about 20 minutes to Matsumoto. The purpose of this trip was to watch the opera “The Marriage of Figaro” at the Seigi Ozawa Matsumoto Festival. Since we left home early, we had plenty of time, so we decided to visit Matsumoto Castle.
I have been visiting Matsumoto for about 20 years, but this is the first time I have seen Matsumoto Castle from close up. 1504 is said to be the year the castle was built, and it is magnificent and beautiful.
昔は天守閣からの眺めはこんなだったらしい。
The view from the castle tower used to be like this.
まだ時間があるので、あがたの森公園に行って散歩することにした。
Since there was still time, I decided to go to Agata no Mori Park for a walk.
ここです
Here it is.
さあそろそろフェスティバル会場に向かいましょう。
Now it’s time to head to the festival site.
松本市内は至る所にこの旗があり、歓迎ムードでいっぱい。
The city of Matsumoto is filled with a welcoming atmosphere with these flags everywhere.
ここがコンサート会場の松本市民芸術館
This is Matsumoto Citizen’s Art Center, the venue of the opera.
座席は4階席です。オペラは料金が高いからね
The seats are on the fourth floor. Opera is so expensive.
In this opera, I paid attention to the stage as well as to the conductor, Nodoka Okisawa. Ms. Okisawa became the third Japanese winner of the Besançon International Conducting Competition in 2019, following Seiji Ozawa and Kazuki Yamada. The way she conducted was so graceful that it reminded me of Carlos Kleiber, though that may be an exaggeration.
この日の最後は宿にチェックインして生ジョッキ缶！
We ended the day by checking into the inn and toasting with a can of draft beer!
Now in Japan, there is a “prefectural discount” to support the tourism industry, which has been slowed by COVID-19. This is a system in which the national and prefectural governments provide subsidies to allow users to travel at a discount. We took full advantage of it again this time and went to Atami Izusan – Shizunami Coast.
初日は東急ハーベストの熱海伊豆山です。
The first day is at Tokyu Harvest Club Atami Izusan.
今回の旅行ではここ伊豆山は経由地みたいなもので、メインイベントは2日目にこなつママと娘が行くFantasy on Ice 2022 というフィギュアスケートのショー。会場は静岡県のエコパアリーナ、3年前のラグビーW杯の日本vsアイルランドで大盛り上がりしたあの場所です。
The main event is the Fantasy on Ice 2022 figure skating show that my wife and daughter are going to on the second day of the trip. The venue is the Ecopa Arena in Shizuoka Prefecture, where the Japan vs. Ireland Rugby World Cup game was held three years ago.
二人がショーを見に行っている間、私とこなつは東急ハーベスト静波海岸で過ごす。それが2日目。
While they went to see the show, I and Konatsu spent time at Tokyu Harvest Shizunami Beach. That was the second day.
There is only one room that allows dogs to stay with you, and dogs are not allowed to walk inside the hotel. Therefore, Konatsu is carried around in a cart.
こなつはカートに乗ったことが無いので何だか落ち着かない様子でした(笑)
Konatsu had never ridden in a cart before, so she seemed somewhat uncomfortable (lol).
We were so hungry we forgot to take a picture of the bread and ate it. (lol) Next we headed to Bakery & Table Sweets Izu, another bread and sweets shop!
ここは熱川に近い山の上にある「伊豆ホテル リゾート＆スパ」の敷地内に2年前にオープンした店です。
This shop opened two years ago on the grounds of the Izu Hotel Resort & Spa, located on top of a mountain near Atogawa.
テラス席は眺めが良い。
The terrace seats have a nice view.
こんな感じですが、遠くに伊豆七島の利島と新島がうっすらと見えている。
It looks like this, and Toshima and Niijima of the Izu Islands are faintly visible in the distance.
What’s more, under the chairs on this terrace is a footbath. Amazing! We bought bread and side dishes for dinner here and at Le Fillage, and decided to spend the evening in our room at Harvest.
これが夕飯の様子
Dinner was like this.
こうして3日目が終わり、翌朝目が覚めると､､､
And so the third day ended, and the next morning we woke up to…
辺り一面すごい霧で50m先くらいまでしか見えません。
It was so foggy all around that I could only see about 50 meters ahead.
The temperature was 12 degrees Celsius, as cold as winter, but Konatsu seemed to feel good in the cold and was running around the dog park in good spirits.
This is the end of our Amagi trip. Konatsu seems to be a little tired because of the unusual days, but her appetite has recovered and she has been fine since we got home.
