Kyoto to Kurashiki

Today's Noodles with Tempura

Kurashki

Our room at the Ryokan

Appetizer Plate

Sashimi

Simmered Dish

Rice with Dried Shrimp and Seaweed

Rice, Miso Soup and Tea

Wow! That was a lot of food and wine!

We met Tom and Scott one final time at breakfast before we went our separate ways. We took a morning Shinkasen (Bullet Train) to the city of Okayama. We transferred to another Shinkasen for 1 stop (a short 10 minute ride) but at almost 200 miles an hour a far distance.  We got off at Shin-Kurashaki and then took a cab ride to central Kurashaki. Kurashaki itself is very industrial and not very charming. Central Kurashaki is a different story. They have preserved its narrow twisting old streets to remain a delightful area. There is a small river stocked with koi running down the middle of the street. The stores are converted storage facilities. There are several museums. We visited the Kurashiki Museum of Folk Art that had a special show of Lacquer ware. I can’t believe it but I am actually beginning to appreciate Lacquer ware. Of course we had noodle soup for lunch.

We are staying at the Kurashiki Ryokan. Our rooms are huge There is an entryway, dining room, 2 bathrooms, huge bedroom. This will be a treat for us. Dinners are served privately in your suite. They give you a yukata robe and jacket to wear in the Ryokan. We walked around Kurasahiki. It will be a great area to discover on foot. There is one charming store or restaurant after another dotting its small twisty streets. We decided we wanted a drink (no surprise) and after searching unsuccessfully for a bar that serves wine, we found a sake bar. The sake was good.

We returned to our Ryokan and undressed for dinner. We had a traditional Kaiseki dinner:10 courses. I don’t know what this is doing for my diet, but the food sure is good. One unusual aspect is you have to grate your own wasabi. The server keeps popping in out of our room, clearing one set of dishes bringing another. We had salted kelp as a condiment. We have never had it before. The manager of the hotel wrote down the name in Kanji, and we will go looking for it tomorrow. It would go great with a grilled steak (which after all of the fish we are eating sound just great). This is a great little town. I wish the internet was better. But maybe bad internet is a blessing in disguise when you are on vacation and are supposed to relax.