Palais Blanc Koshikaikan Toyama

It's almost impossible to guess how nice & luxurious the inside of the hotel was just by looking at the exterior of Garaku. A huge glass window reflects a flow of Zinzu river. I had thought that Zinzu river is just an ordinary river which is not so much worth watching. I was quite surprised to see how nice the river looks through the glass window there! I was quite impressed by the ...

Soba restaurant "Takano" that stands on the half way of the two main streets of Yatsuo, I heard, is famous among soba manias. Soba plant is cultivated by Yatsuo farmers, so there are many soba restaurant that serve locally made soba noodles.



You cannot leave Yatsuo without having soba!!

... himself explained the roots and history of kamanboko! After the presentation, we were led to see inside of the kamaboko factory. There was a long and big window from which we can see kamaboko making process. It was interesting to see how they handle colorfully colored fish paste to decorate kamaboko. They are not only making fish-shaped kamaboko but also shapes of flowers and animals. I really ...

... means you can lay down to see the stars!

I have never actually seen this kind of huge telescope before. You can spot a star even in the daylight. At night you can see stars and moon in details. I really want to come back to see stars and moon at night! The staff told me that one of the stars that is the most popular is Saturn as you can often see the rings!! It must be pretty exciting to see it!!

... be a great sightseeing spots that Toyama City can be proud of. The falls are not specutaclar in neither size nor amount of water, but it was a kind of place where you can get away from a hustle of a city. The temperature there was probably 10 degrees lower, and I felt like I wanted to stay there all day as the day we visited there was a very very hot day.

Walking through a street of stone-paths will take us back to a time before our time. It is a quiet and peaceful street where local neighbours enjoy chatting while enjoying sunshine. Traditional houses with lattice doors lined up on the street are reminiscent of the past.



Yatsuo, Toyama, Japan toyamakk

... they preserved a traditional architectural style. A man in a yukata was showing how they used to make medicine traditionally. He was using a uniquely shaped wooded machine to round pieces of medicine.


There are many different types of medicines on sale at the store. They are nicely packaged for souvenirs.

Mori Residence (the town of Iwase, Toyama)
It is a home of Kitamae-bune trade vessel agency. Up until the Edo era, the town of Iwase was thriving with kitamae-bune trade. The town is reminiscent of those times. Mori Residence is one of those houses that you can accually go ...

... especially with sushi!

Iwase is a harbor town which was once prosperous with Kitamae-bune trade vessels during the Edo Era. The streets with shipping agencies are reminiscent of the past. Many luxurious houses still remain on this street.

Hokuriku Bank in Iwase


It is renovated when LRT (Light Rail Train) was opened. Their exterior matches with the streetscape of Iwase. It's so neat!

... family had supper. It was a pretty good time. I will admit that it has been a bit isolating here for me though -- my Japanese language skills are minimal (I basically have the vocabulary of a two-year old). This makes it difficult for me to communicate when Hana is not around. My sister-in-law, brother-in-law, and their children have arrived and we are doing our best to communicate. One of the great things about ...