It is hard to believe we are four days from the end of the trip. The sights and learning keep coming. There has not been a moment that wasn’t jam packed with learning and wonderful sights.

We followed the mackerel trail up the mountain and through the the cedar forests. The mackerel trail was a forty hour journey over the mountains to deliver fresh mackerel to Kyoto. The fish was passed by runners relay style. The cedar tree were planted at the end of world war 2 and have become so dense that you can barely pass through, it is impacting the wildlife. The lack of light is choking out the native growth on the forest floor. The bottom fell out of the lumber industry years ago now and no one will harvest the wood.

Our first stop today was a rice vinegar factory. 400 years of family tradition in the making of this rice vinegar that is sold locally and online. Once again fermentation plays a role, the secret starter is sake.

We checked into our Obama hotel. We all had balconies with seas view windows. In every room in every hotel have stayed at they leave pajamas for your use. Todays hotel left kimonos which we instructed to wear for dinner.

At the hotel we had a traditional Japanese dinner. We were all dressed in kimonos. The room was set with a beautiful Ikebana arrangement. I believe I was told she is the house mother of the hotel, in charge of keeping all the flower arrangements fresh and assisting as hostess for banquets.

In the morning we had a cruise around Obama Bay. After lunch we visited the culture museum. We learned how to make paper and the visited the food culture display.

In the morning I took a bath in the hot springs. Very hot, relaxing and traditional.

On the way to Kyoto, we stoped at a small town< Miyama and learned about the traditional thatched roofing. We had the opportunity to use the tool as and learn thatching.

Our next stop was at a traditional indigo dye shop. We watched a demonstration of how to dye the fabric and then visited the museum. The most impressive piece was a coffin cover that the artists mother made in the last two years of her life
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