adventures in Akita

Homestay with the Hosoya Family

Akita Prefecture

Just got back from Akita!!! I had an incredible time with new friends and the fantastic scenery! Winter has hit in Akita and I had to wear layers and layers of clothes the whole weekend--as I was a bit ill prepared for the arctic blast. Sophia had the brilliant idea to take a quick trip to the hot springs one early morning....and it turned out to be the most beautiful one I have been in so far! It was right along the Sea of Japan...and outdoors of course. You cold see and hear the huge waves crashing on the beach and we were even rained/snowed on for a bit...but so relaxing and enjoyable!

I should back up a bit and tell you why I chose to visit Akita. A friend of mine I met through the Japan Club at SCSU, told me I should visit the neighboring prefecture of Akita. Though Hatsumi is busy at work in Detroit, she arranged for me to meet her family in Akita and do a homestay. I have really lucked out with my homestay experieces as we had a blast! Her father, Muneyoshi, reminded me a lot of my dad. He loves to cook, party and be a leader...Muney had a whole package of brochures and pamphlets on the area and mapped out our itinerary for the weekend. His English is great and he did a swell job acting as my tour guide! His sister, "Sophia", was equally entertaining. I hit it off with her immediately. Such a sweet pea and so helpful in answering the zillion culture questions I threw her way (hey, have to take advantage of the English support when I can!!) Muneyoshi's wife, Satoko, made delicious meals and their other daughters--Yukako and Noriko were eager to use their English! Muney took me through various parts of Kisakata--their hometown and then we went down to Yamagata Prefecture to visit some famous cities.

Enjoy some of the pics and places below!

This rocky beach in Yamagata-ken has 16 Buddhas carved into it. The weather was incredibly uh, crappy---windy, snowy, rainy...all of the elements rolled into one and about 20 degrees. So, we only stayed long enough for me to find the 16 (reminiscent of Easter egg hunting!) How many can you find in this picture?

From left---Satoko, Yukako, Sophia, Noriko, me and Muneyoshi.

And below, the view from their neighborhood. So lucky! This is Mt. Chokai...a range that stretches through most of Akita-ken. Way different climate on the "other" side of the Tohoku region...SO cold. Bitter cold, winds, snow and rain didn't keep us inside though...check out some of the places we went below!

We also went to Sakata City...a once renowned city in all of Japan. It was an important area for rice production and trade. We checked out a rice museum and saw the "ships" they used to ship the rice from Sakata, Yamagata-ken to Kyoto and Osaka...it took a couple of months to travel down by these boats that are just shy of "wooden row boats". Pretty interesting to see how profitable something like rice could be back then. One of the richie rich rice producing families lived in a HUGE home--which has been restored and we were able to tour it. 25 rooms in this "home"...it could have been a small hotel! The house, owned by the Honma family, was also home to a popular Samurai. Great memorabilia at this place and so interesting to see how the "other" side lived during this pre-industrial era.

This is Naso no Shirataki, a scenic park that is accessed by bridge that is suspended over a ravine. The fall colors peaked several weeks ago, but its remnants were still scattered throughout the wooded forest. Muney-san and I were the only ones in the park, so we could enjoy the temple, which is nestled in a beautiful forest with sequoia-ish trees that tower overhead, in peace and quiet. The pics look like postcards...but the views in person were even more impressive!

This waterfall is called Mototaki. This is a naturally occuring spring...there is no meandering river that produces this waterfall. Water just gushes out of the rock (I think its the underflow (??) of Mt. Chokai. When I complained of the cold, sweet Sophia gave me her winter coat!!! Its going to prove super useful in the coming months and of course, it will remind me of her friendship whenever I wear it!

It was a really great time, spent with wonderful people! Thanks again to the Hosoya family for taking me in! Maybe next time Hatsumi can join us!!! See you in February...Kakunodate and Tawazako and the snow festival! Matta ne!