Photogenic Kyoto! Travelling around the Otokuni area with a camera in hand for 2 days and 1 night

Ai Nishimura

Administrator of the blog "My Diary," which began in 2004. A writer who has traveled to all 47 prefectures and loves local culture and history.
Author of Shimane's "Geography, Place Names, and Maps" Mysteries (Jitsugyo no Nihonsha), My Town is the "Number One in Japan" Dictionary (PHP Institute), and Prefectures Explained in Neko Neko Japanese History (Jitsugyo no Nihonsha). Official blogger for Suntory Gourmet Guide, official top user for Retty, and official platinum blogger for Excite.

A stroll along the "Bamboo Path" in the refreshing morning air

There is a beautiful bamboo forest path in the Muko Hills of Muko City.
When you think of bamboo forests in Kyoto, many people think of Arashiyama, but this is a longer and quieter walking path that is attracting attention. On both sides of the bamboo forest path, there are bamboo fences such as "takeho-gaki" and "kofun-gaki" for a total length of 1.8 kilometers, and you can take a walk while looking at the lush bamboo.

Bamboo is a fast-growing tree. It grows in an instant, filling no gaps, and when the bamboo groves die, they become desolate. While abandoned bamboo groves are widespread across the country, the bamboo groves of Muko Hills are well-maintained, and the soft, supple ground can be seen from outside.
This is also a production area for bamboo shoots, which are found and harvested with skilled techniques before they emerge from the soil. Kyoto bamboo shoots, which boast pure white and soft flesh, are also a brand name and are loved by many people as a spring delicacy.

Mornings are the best time to take a walk in the fresh air. It's also a great spot for taking photos. I was able to enjoy the atmosphere of Kyoto while listening to the sounds of the leaves rustling and the birds singing and getting in touch with nature.

Bamboo Path

"Toyo Bamboo Works" - Experience bamboo crafts and get up close and personal with bamboo

After finishing our stroll along the Bamboo Path, we headed back to Mukomachi Station and enjoyed the bamboo basket making experience in front of the station.
The company we visited, Toyo Bamboo, is a specialist bamboo company that produces and sells bamboo crafts for flowers and tea ceremony utensils, daily necessities such as baskets and strainers, miscellaneous goods, and interior items. Bamboo has different properties, hardness, nodes, and the distance between each node is also different. This company has been handling these with masterful skills for over 60 years, using their many years of experience and knowledge.

Bamboo is cut down in the winter and a year's supply is secured at one time. The bamboo used for processing is 3 to 5 years old, and currently four bamboo craftsmen are making products.
With the guidance of the craftsman, I tried my hand at making the beginner's version of a bamboo basket called "Shikaihago."
We use flexible and resilient madake bamboo and weave two different types of bamboo together. It can be difficult to figure out which parts go where until you get used to it, but with the help of the craftsman, we managed to complete it. When it was finished, the flow and flexibility of the bamboo was elegant and I really liked it.
Reservations are required for the experience, and if there are a large number of people, it is possible to move the venue. At the head office, you can see many bamboo products at once and purchase them.
The basket I made is the perfect size for storing small items or flowers, and is the perfect size to take home or use as interior decoration. It became a good memory of my visit to Bamboo Village Otokuni.

Oriental Bamboo Crafts

Enjoy a quiet moment at a shrine close to the station, "Nagaoka Tenmangu Shrine"

Nagaoka Tenmangu Shrine is a shrine that can be visited on foot from Nagaoka Tenjin Station.
Nagaoka is a shrine built on historic grounds, where Michizane Sugawara, the god of learning, was often a frequent visitor. It is also famous for the beautiful scenery it offers in each season, from the azalea season to the autumn leaves, irises and lotus flowers. However, even when it is not the season for flowers, the shrine grounds are home to a beautiful waterside pond, Hachijo-ga-ike, where you can enjoy the calm and refreshing air.
From the cypress bridge over the water, you can watch wild birds quietly resting their wings, and the natural scenery of the wide sky and quiet waterside is soothing to the soul.

The main hall was moved from Heian Shrine in 1941 (Showa 16), and the existing worship hall was expanded and remodeled for the Sugawara no Michizane 1,100th Anniversary Daimanto Festival, which was completed in the autumn of 1998. The area around the vermilion-painted shrine is small, but we enjoyed spending some quality time in this sacred space, touring the cow statues closely associated with Sugawara no Michizane and the numerous subordinate shrines.
There are well-maintained gardens, such as the Kinkeien garden within the temple grounds, which are perfect for a stroll. During illumination times and festivals, the area becomes lively, and is a popular place of relaxation for many local residents.

Nagaoka Tenmangu Shrine

Take a break with baked goods made from rice flour and specialty coffee at "THE BAKING produced by Unir"

This is a coffee and baked goods cafe that's perfect for stopping by after visiting Nagaoka Tenmangu Shrine.
The store is run by Unir, a popular specialty coffee shop in Nagaokakyo City that visits the producing areas, evaluates the taste and flavor of coffee that is carefully managed from the cultivation and harvesting stages, and carefully selects and purchases high-quality specialty coffee. However, THE BAKING produced by Unir is a shop that focuses on baked goods, and offers gluten-free sweets that do not use wheat flour and are made in-house.

It's nice to eat freshly baked goods in the shop, but the moist sweets that have been left to sit for a while are also delicious. It's close to the station, so it's easy to stop by, and you can easily get takeout coffee and buy souvenirs.
The "Piyokoyaki" with the logo on it are cute in appearance and also come in seasonal flavors. On this day, the bean paste used was black beans. It has the crispy texture that is unique to rice flour taiyaki. The texture of the freshly baked Piyokoyaki in particular changes as you eat it, gradually becoming chewy. I was impressed that it is truly a specialty sweet. The rice flour financier is also rich and delicious. I thought it would be light because it is made from rice flour, but the rich flavor of fermented butter spreads in my mouth.
It's great to eat it freshly baked in the shop, or you can take it out and enjoy it when the dough has settled a little and it's moist. It's a gluten-free, healthy dessert. It's the perfect snack for tea time.

THE BAKING produced by Unir