蒜山 (HIRUZEN)

Wow! So after going through some photos, I found some that were not posted, but done. Therefore, I decided to post these. They will be put sporadically between the posts of the days traveling around Japan.


This post is me traveling to HIRUZEN! They are known for their cows, herbs, and dairy products. It is still in OKAYAMA, so the travel time wasn't that bad, and we went by bus.




After waking up really early, we made our way to school. We were picked up by a bus, and the cost was covered by the English Cafe, a post will be on this later. A short ride later we ended up at a cow farm.


It was everything you would expect at a farm, except everything was in Japanese. We toured around a little bit, and some of us even took to the attractions. After riding a horse or feeding it, we moved to a part that was a little more rural. There was nothing there...




Finishing up with the march around the farm, we decided to go ahead and try the food. The restaurant used all fresh ingredients, well it was on a farm, and it was rumored to be extremely good. We ordered fondue and cheesecake. The cheese in the fondue was alright, but not as good as we thought it would have been. It tasted like it had some chemicals added it. As for the cheesecake, it was delicious, if not some of the best we had made in Japan.




I say, "Made in Japan", because there is a stark difference between Japanese cheesecake and New York Cheesecake. Mainly, it is the consistency, where the NY style is more creamy, the Japanese style is more like an actual cake that crumbles. Each style has their pros and cons, but being from the states, I prefer the NY style. The cheesecake at this restaurant resembled that of the NY style.





When we were finished eating, it was time to leave. From the cow farm, we went to ta theme park. It was an interesting change and a lot of fun. There were a lot of souvenirs that could be bought as well. The rides were quite expensive though, almost $5 per ride! Incredible~!


The most interesting thing that I saw here was the story of MOMOTARO (Peach Boy/Jack, TARO is a common ending in boys names). This is a famous folklore that the Japanese people know. It just so happens that this fairytale takes place in OKAYAMA.



The basics of the MOMOTARO story:


An elderly couple finds a giant peach in a river that is near their home. They take it home, and when the grandmother figure cuts it open, a boy pops out. The couple aptly names the boy "MOMOTARO", and he grows to be a fine young man who decides to set out on a journey to defeat an evil demon. Along his expedition he meats a monkey, a dog, and a pheasant. At first these animals try to deceive him, but end up becoming his companion and creating a fellowship.


This story has been used many times, in various areas of Japan. Not only is there the regular story, but there is also the spin-offs in ANIME, MANGA, and mentioned even in American TV Shows. If you want more info, then google it.




This trip was really fun and I recommend others in Japan, if they have the time, to visit HIRUZEN. A real special thanks to the English Cafe for covering the costs.


For more photos click HERE!











































For the rest of the photos click on the title, or HERE!