A short trip in Oku-Aizu Kanayama-town

Kanayama-town where fairy tale might be set is a fantastic place filled with water, green nature and delicious food.
It gets very foggy with mist hanging over after an evening shower.
Let’s take a short trip in Kaneyama-town as you drive to Oku-Aizu in the late summer.

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Take your mind off daily life in the art museum

“Yousei Museum” by the lake Numasawa in Kanayama-town is a fairy museum which is rare in Japan. There is a legend that “a big snake which lived in the lake Numasawa was punished by the domain lord of Aizu a long time ago” and it is said that this big snake also belongs to the Japanese fairies. You are welcomed by valuable documents related to fairies as well as fantastic pictures and dolls collected by a researcher Kimie Imura once you step into the European style museum filled with flowers in the forest.

It gets more fantastic when soft afternoon sunlight comes through stained glass. In addition to the permanent and special exhibitions, you can also enjoy seeing stained glass and bronze statue made based on original pictures of an illustrator Yoshitaka Amano. This museum is a perfect place for fantasy fans but can be also enjoyed by those who are not familiar with fantasy.

　Yousei Museum

2765 Oaza Ookuriyama Kitsuneana, Kanayama-cho, Onuma-gun
Tel.0241-55-3180
Opening hours: 9am to 4:30pm (until November 10th)
Closed on every Wednesday
Admission fee: 300yen/Adult, 200yen/Elementary and Junior high school students
*Please check the opening hours in advance as it may be different from the current information.

Don’t miss TOFU in Kaneyama-town!

“Aoba to Mame (Green leaves and beans)” is a dialect in Tamanashi-district and refers to Edamame (green soybeans). Tofu which is made from strictly selected beans and 100 year old water of Oku-Aizu is slightly greenish. This Tofu has been introduced in media several times and there are customers who come all the way from Tokyo metropolitan area.

Upper-left: Yosedofu (fresh tofu)
Upper Middle: Soy milk
Right: Namaage (thick fried tofu)
Middle: Okara (bean curds refuse) seasoned with beans
Lower-left: Aoba-dofu (soybean tofu)
Lower-middle: Bean ice cream
Lower-right: Okara doughnut

You can enjoy various tofu dishes such as Namaage, Yosedofu, and Okara in their signature course meal “Tamanashi-gozen”. The sweat smell of soybeans hit your nose once you put warm yosedofu in your mouth. Water is really delicious and you can feel that “tofu is made from only high quality beans and water”!! Okara-doughnut is popular in mobile vending service as well and its fluffy texture and gentle sweetness make you feel like having as many as you want to. Of course, eating fresh doughnut in the shop is definitely recommended!!

　Tamanashi Tofu Chaya

363 Tamanashi, Kanayama-town, Onuma-gun
Opening hours: 8am to 5pm
Open every day of the year