Minshuku Yurika

The landlady welcomed me so warmly when I arrived. It was a bit chilly, so I settled into the kotatsu with some tea, which felt wonderful. Dinner came soon after, a simple, heartfelt home-cooked meal with tasty soba noodles. It's a plain, homely inn with a Showa-era feel. Because it gets cold there, they lent me an electric blanket for the futon. I'd forgotten how comforting one was, and it brought back memories of the good old Showa era. I'd like to come back regularly.

It stayed cool and comfortable even in summer, with the temperature around 20 degrees at night in mid-July. The inn felt like staying at grandma's house, lol, and the family made it lively. They seem to be taking about two groups a day at the moment. We ate country dishes and wild game with soba, including unusual things like wild herbs, flowers, and silkworm pupae. That was useful to know for camping. There's a hot spring nearby, so I'll stop there on my way home. Thanks.

The exterior had me a little concerned, but inside the traditional Japanese house was beautiful and very well looked after. It still has its hearth, just as before. I booked directly and asked for mushrooms and wild vegetables. Even though I was the only guest, they put together a full course with the ingredients prepared in different ways, and I was very satisfied, laughs. The toilet is an old-fashioned pit toilet 😂, though there wasn't much smell and it had a seated-style toilet seat, so it wasn't an issue.

We came as a family and got to enjoy seasonal medicinal herbs from Urugi Village, which has plenty of them. The Awairi rice was especially delicious to me. There was a sense of Japan in all the details, and the hospitality was more than enough for a guesthouse. I really hope places like this keep going in Japan. We'll definitely visit again.