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.
To Kikuchi City, a town of history and nature
This time, I left Haneda Airport on a morning flight and headed to Kumamoto Airport. In good weather, I could see Mt. Aso from the sky! When you look at Kumamoto from the sky, you can see that it is a large basin. Kumamoto, which has wide plains, is a prosperous agricultural and dairy industry.
It takes about 1 hour and 15 minutes to get from the airport to Kikuchi Onsen. A free taxi will take you to Higo-Otsu Station, the closest station to the airport.
We departed from Haneda Airport in the morning glow. It was a rare weekend flight, so the airport was crowded.
Say hello to Mt. Aso from the sky! The base of the mountain is so beautiful.
Kumamoto Airport is nicknamed Aso Kumamoto Airport.
It also has international flights and a lounge. The airport has a warm atmosphere, making extensive use of wood from the prefecture.
Let's head to Kikuchi City right away. First, go to Higo-Otsu Station. This taxi is "free." If the large taxi is full, they will call another taxi for you. They depart every 30 minutes.
We arrived at Higo-Otsu Station in about 15 minutes. There is also a visitor's center, making it a hub station for Kumamoto tourism. Now we transfer to the next bus bound for Kikuchi Onsen. From the south exit to the north exit, you are allowed to cross the station's tracks! You can do so if you get a pass that gives you a free pass.
Kikuchi Onsen is one of the most famous hot springs in Kumamoto, with excellent spring quality that is recognized even by locals.
Natural peeling! The tour will focus on the high-quality alkaline hot spring "Kikuchi Onsen."
Kikuchi Onsen is a relatively new hot spring that flourished after the war as the "inner sanctum of Kumamoto City."
The water has a very high pH value, and is highly alkaline, making it a famous hot spring, and there is a lot of water. Alkaline hot springs remove dead skin cells from the skin, making it very smooth, so it is a great hot spring for women. I also looked forward to bathing every day.
There are also foot baths in and around the hot spring town, which are a great place to take a break when you get tired of walking.
Kikuchi Onsen is a hot spring resort that opened after the war. There is a monument at the place where the hot spring first gushed forth.
The free foot baths are also very pleasant. You can drop in whenever you like. This is the foot bath at the entrance of the inn "Kikuchi Sasanoya."
We stayed at the Kikuchi Grand Hotel. The logo is retro and cute. The hotel was built on the grounds of the nearby Shoganji Temple. It is a hotel built in a historic location.
It seems to have a long history, but it is clean. Above all, the staff always greeted me with a smile, which was very comforting.
A luxurious room for one person. Relax in a Japanese-style room.
In addition to the open-air bath shown in the photo, there was also an indoor bath and a barrel bath. The source of the hot spring was excavated from within the premises. The quality of the spring water is simply amazing! It leaves your skin feeling silky smooth.
A barrel bath made from sake barrels from "Kiku no Shiro Sake Brewery" in the city. A unique bath that makes you feel like you're soaking in sake. Kikuchi Onsen has alkaline spring water that has a whole-body peeling effect. There is a lot of water and it is a hot spring that flows directly from the source without being circulated.
The culture of Japanese sweets remains in the castle town. The famous confectionery "Matsukaze" has a delicate taste with a thin texture.
There are many Japanese sweet shops in Kikuchi. The most well-known sweet made at each shop is "Matsukaze."
Matsukaze is the only sweet sold at Matsukaze Honke Shoganji Maruho. Every day when I pass by the store, the sweet aroma fills the air and makes me feel happy. This historic store is now in its fourth generation and has preserved its recipe for generations. Some processes have been mechanized, but most are still done by hand. They add a lot of sugar to make it sweeter and to brown it, but they use beet sugar to match Matsukaze.
Matsukaze is made with only simple ingredients. It is a famous confectionery that is always appreciated by anyone, and can be purchased at department stores nationwide.
Now, Kikuchi is home to a famous confectionery called "Matsukaze." We visited Shoganji Maruho, which produces and sells only Matsukaze. While the confectionery was being baked, a sweet and delicious aroma was floating around the area.
A long-established confectionery store that has been in business for four generations. It is a specialty store that sells only Matsukaze, and in the back there is a factory where Matsukaze is baked before being shipped all over the country.
This is Matsukaze. I tried one that was freshly baked and not yet wrapped. It was very thin. It's like a Japanese-style gaufre. It's made with simple ingredients and has the characteristic aroma of poppy seeds.
The dough is still soft when it is baked by machine. It is quickly cut with a knife, arranged and left to dry. Traditional sweets are made through each step that requires skilled techniques.
The packaging is also retro, making it perfect as a souvenir.
We also visited "Koshi Confectionery". They were making sweets so we had a chance to see them.
The bright pink color is stuffed into the mold. These auspicious red and white rakugan are sold together with the white version.
It's a bit of an unusual snack with sweet bean paste inside a rakugan rice cracker. It's bite-sized and popular as a tea snack.
It was "Sakura no Akebono" by Goshiki Confectionery.
Read the second part here
The contents published are accurate at the time of publication and are subject to change.
