【Outdoor Activities】Hiking in Mt. Rokko

  Hiking has become a popular activity among young people in the past few years. Even the term Yama-Girl, or a mountain girl, was created to refer to girls who wear colorful mountain outfits and go hiking. Hiking is one of the favorite outdoor activities for people of all ages.

                                                                                        

 

Hiking in Mt. Rokko

  

【Outdoor Activities】Cycling in Awaji Island

  Our new series will be on outdoor activities in Hyogo.

  Today’s blog will be about cycling in Awaji Island. Awaji Island is located in southern Hyogo, and the quality of the road makes it a popular course among die-hard cyclists.

To get to Awaji Island, catch the Jenova Line ferry from Akashi to Iwaya in Awaji. At the information centers listed below, they offer rental bicycles,as well as electric bicycles.

【Bicycle Rentals】

○Information Center: First floor of Port Building in Iwaya, Awaji

 TEL：0799-72-3420

○Information Center: Bus terminal in Higashiura, Awaji

TEL：0799-75-2119

Cyclists can choose from variety of courses depending on their level and schedule, from an easy course visiting popular facilities on the island, to a course that circles the whole island. All courses run along the coastline, so enjoy the cool sea breeze during your bike ride.

　

　Cycling in Awaji Island（2010 Awaji Long Ride 150) 

Summer Events and Traditions: Festivals and Fairs

  The third installment of our Summer Events and Traditions series is on summer festivals and fairs.

  During summer, many festivals are held to keep away the bad luck. One of the most popular events is called Bon-Odori. Odori means dance in Japanese and this particular type of traditional dance event is held during Obon season. It is held to greet the spirits of the deceased who can only return to this world during the time of Obon.

  One of the most famous Bon-Odori festivals is the Dekansho-festival held in Sasayama, Hyogo. This year, the festival will be held on August 15 and 16.

 Dekansho Festival

Summer Events and Traditions: Beach

  You can’t talk about summer time in Hyogo without talking about the beaches! Hyogo is one of the rare prefectures in Japan that faces the Sea of Japan in the north, and the Seto Inland Sea in the south. There are many beaches suited for swimming, and many people visit from surrounding prefectures as well. In today’s blog, we’re going to introduce some of the popular beaches in Hyogo, as well as the beach culture in Japan.

Summer Events and Traditions: Fireworks

 We hope you enjoyed our last month’s Gourmet series. There are many other delicious gourmet foods in Hyogo, so we hope you get a chance to come and enjoy them.

 This month, we are going to focus on “Summer Events and Traditions,” and our first topic is going to be on fireworks.

 Fireworks are one of the first things that come to mind when talking about summer in Japan. With a long history, it is said that the first fireworks started in the Edo period. Japan creates some of the most intricate fireworks in the world, and they are known for their unique designs and colors. 

Port of Kobe Fireworks Festival  

Japanese Sake of Nada

  Nada-gogo is the popular sake brewing area between the Nada ward of Kobe city to Nishinomiya city. The five sake brewing districts of Nishi-go, Mikage-go, Uozaki-go, Nishinomiya-go, and Imazu-go, have many sake breweries. Nada-gogo has a 30% share of all Japanese sake sold in Japan, which is the biggest share in the country. 

 Sake Brewery of Nada Gogo

[GOURMET] Hyogo's Ramen

  The third installment of our Gourmet Series is Kobe Ramen. Japanese people love ramen, but these days, it’s becoming increasingly popular among foreign visitors as well.

Hyogo prefecture is known for delicious ramen. Route 2 between Sannomiya and Shukugawa is also known as the Ramen Road, and there are numerous ramen restaurants in the area, all competing to become the number one restaurant.

  I visited one of the most popular restaurants in Kobe to try out a very unique ramen.

  Before we continue, let’s talk little bit about ramen itself.

Many people in Japan think that ramen is a Chinese dish, but it’s actually a Japanese dish that originated from a Chinese dish in the Taisho era. It’s sometimes called Chuka-soba, or Chinese noodles.

  Ramen uses wheat noodles and the soup is made from stock based on chicken or pork, and different flavored sauce. The toppings usually consist of char-siu pork, green onions, kamaboko (steamed fish paste), bamboo shoots, and egg. Some of the most popular flavors include soy-sauce, miso (bean paste), salt, and tonkotsu (thick broth made from pork).

 Tonkotsu Ramen