A Weekend in Karuizawa

It is the end of Golden Week, so called because there are four national holidays clustered within a week. April 29 is Showa Day, May 3 Constitution Day, May 4 Green Day, and May 5, Children's Day. We spent the long weekend in the mountains, in Karuizawa, a two and a half hour drive from Tokyo. Karuizawa is located in the Nagano Prefecture and is a popular domestic resort town. In the summer it's a cool getaway from Tokyo, and in the winter it is a ski-resort destination. 

In the late 1800s, a Canadian missionary established himself in Karuizawa and then began attracting other westerners to the town. This history is reflected in the local architecture, some of which is strikingly western. Apparently, John Lennon and Yoko Ono also liked visiting Karuizawa. 

Although Karuizawa's distance from Tokyo is perfect for a weekend trip, the mountain roads are winding, and E gets very carsick. The first time she got carsick, almost two years ago now, she had eaten only blueberries for breakfast. She had never thrown up from motion sickness before, so it was unexpected. Did you know that regurgitated blueberries look like a raspberry smoothie? Raspberry smoothie projected all the way to the dashboard. Then, two months ago, it happened again. This time, thinking that E had probably grown out of it, we ate a normal breakfast. For us, this means natto. Big mistake. We were even joking about how disgusting it would be if the same thing happened, so confident were we that it would not. I won't go into detail, but the entire ordeal put me off natto for weeks. With this second incident, we finally learned our lesson. 

This time, we tried leaving at a time the kids would sleep. We ate lightly, drove slowly, and braked as gently as possible. We headed out after a light dinner, reasoning that the kids would probably sleep most of the way. It mostly worked. We stopped at a rest area for a snack midway through. It was 8:30 pm and very crowded. Food options were cured sushi, rice balls, ramen, port cutlets, curry bowls, etc. We returned to the road after sharing a box of sushi and hot tea (provided for free at the rest stop). Both kids did sleep the rest of the way and were tired enough to go to bed upon arrival. 

Although I have been to Karuizawa many times now, there are a lot of places I've never been. This weekend, we went to Shiraito Falls, known for it's beautiful volcanic spring water. Shiraito means "white string," and describes the water's thin, silky quality. 

We do lots of walking in Karuizawa. There is a street in the old section of town that leads up to the mountain. It contains shops selling Karuizawa specialties (pickles, jams, honey), old craft shops, tourist shops, and specialty shops like one dedicated to selling Studio Ghibli merchandise. We came across a newly opened Miffy store too. 

The next day, we left the kids in the care of their grandparents and visited the local onsen, or hot spring. Some onsens exist as part of a ryokan and so aren't really open to the public. The one we went to in Karuizawa is a public onsen, so any paying guest is welcome. It is also unique because it has both indoor and outdoor baths. The experience of bathing outside under trees and in the mountains is really a singular one. Plus, it was around 50 F, just chilly enough to thoroughly enjoy the heated water. I couldn't take any photos inside (since everyone is naked), but here are a few photos of the outside areas:

The onsen is located in a newer commercial area with a lot of cafes, restaurants, and craft shops. Karuizawa, unlike Tokyo, is not in a state of emergency, and restaurants were crowded. We went with an Italian one that had a relatively short line. Like most restaurants in this area, it had terraced seats and indoor seats with cubicle-like seating. 

Arrabbiata mushroom pasta and Genovese pasta with the local giant beans. Both delicious. After lunch we walked around and tried Maruyama's drip coffee. Maybe it's the type of coffee we ordered, but the taste didn't reach my expectations. Maybe it was just a matter of taste. The coffee shop, however, is very cute and doubles as store and book cafe. It would be a great place to buy souvenirs for someone who loves coffee. We also browsed a wood crafts shop. There seem to be a few of those in Karuizawa. The designs are beautiful, but sadly, I don't buy anything that is not dishwasher safe these days. No time. 

We then came across a Japanese confectionary advertising Japanese cheesecake. Japanese cheesecake is different from New York style in that it is lighter and fluffier. I have only had it once before, so I can't reliably describe what it typically tastes like, but this one was incredibly delicious. We also bought a hand cake thing with walnuts and dates and powdered sugar. It was also very good, though I would have chosen another piece of cheesecake. 

Karuizawa, despite being small, has so many amazing restaurants. All the restaurants I have tried, even ones picked at random at the last minute, have been surprisingly good. We ate our last dinner at Sawamura, a bakery that doubles as a restaurant at night. One of the things I like best about Sawamura is their assorted bread basket, all baked fresh and in-house. 

The rest of the weekend we spent taking walks in the woods and around town. All the cherry blossoms have long disappeared in Tokyo, but there are lingering blossoms in the mountains. Taking in the views before our drive back to the city: