Shinshu salmon is a new variety of salmon that crosses easily farmed, high quality rainbow trout with disease resistant brown trout, inheriting the strengths of both. It has beautiful silver scales and flesh with a delicate, melt-in-the-mouth texture and is getting attention as a fish that goes well with Japanese-Western crossover cuisine. Don’t miss your opportunity to try it while visiting Nagano.
Mountain carting originated in Germany is a mountain activity in which the rider drives through the mountains without an engine, using the steering wheel and brakes from the top of the mountain. The low weight, wide wheels, and easy-to-operate handlebars make it fun for beginners. The exhilaration of riding with the spectacular view of the Northern Alps at your back while looking down on the city is irresistible. Check it out to enjoy Hakuba in a different way!
With water trickling down from the Hotaka Mountains and a cool climate with high night-day temperature variation, the Hakuma area is well-suited to buckwheat production, and is a major producer within the “buckwheat country” of Nagano. Many lodgings and soba restaurants in the Hakuba area offer experiences making soba noodles produced from this buckwheat. Experiences are approachable even for those with no experience, and participants can try their freshly made soba on the spot. Popular with families and students.
Due to its high altitude and dramatic night-day temperature shifts, there is always a high likelihood of cloud formation around the village of Hakuba, and there are several spots for viewing this sea of clouds in the mountains, such as in the Nodai area and the Donguri Panorama Observation Deck in the Kurashita area. At Kitaone Kogen Morgenrot, there is a tour that takes visitors up the mountainside at dawn by cable car. With some luck, you may be able to catch an incredible sight: a sea of clouds colored soft shades of red by the fiery rising sun.
“Three-Tiered Autumn” refers to the beautiful sight Hakuba Iwatake is famous for: snow-capped peaks, mountainside autumn colors, and green foothills all on view at once. With sweeping views of the Hakuba Mountains, the terrace at Hakuba Mountain Harbor is one of a handful of places in Japan where the incredible three-tiered autumn spectacle can be seen. The best time to visit is from mid- to late-October. Come and enjoy the beautiful contrast of these three interwoven color schemes.
The city of Shimabara in Nagasaki Prefecture, with more than 60 natural springs, is also known as the City of Water. The ‘Swimming Town of Koi’ is beautifully maintained by residents who release koi into the city’s waterways, filled with spring water. The sight of various koi (red and white, three-color, golden, etc.) swimming in the beautiful waterways, still reminiscent of the old castle town, can be quite moving.
On the Shimabara Peninsula, a hot spring resort area, there is a “onsen steamed food” that takes advantage of the hottest spring temperature in Japan. This is a popular local method of using hot spring steam to cook local vegetables and seafood in a healthy way. The “steaming kettles” in the Obama hot spring resort use hot spring water that rises to about 105°C (221°F). The food is placed in a steamer basket and placed in the kettle, where it waits for a while to be steamed until it is hot and ready. There are many restaurants specializing in steamed food in the area, and visitors can enjoy a variety of steamed dishes.
Kanzarashi is a traditional sweet that has been made in the Shimabara area in the past. It is said that “Kanzarashi” originated from the wisdom of the residents of Shimabara, who used to make dumplings from rice flour and eat them in spring water to keep the rice scraps from spoiling. The recipe for the honey used on the dumplings differs from household to household and from store to store, making it possible to enjoy a variety of flavors, which is one of the charms of this sweet.
Kanzarashi are traditional sweets made by cooling boiled small dumplings in spring water. In Shimabara City, you can try your hand at making kanzarashi. Refined rice flour, called kanzarashi flour, is kneaded to form round dumplings, boiled, and then soaked in running water to finish. After immersing them in running water, the kanzarashi have a mild texture that goes well with sweet syrup. Try your hand at making your very own kanzarashi.
According to another report, after the riot in Shimabara-Amakusa, immigrants from Shodoshima introduced the method of making hand-stretch somen noodles. Visitors can experience the process of stretching the noodles to a length of about 2 meters by inserting a large pair of chopsticks called “sabaki. The texture of the freshly made “raw” somen noodles after stretching is chewy, a taste that can only be experienced in the area.
