Washi is the traditional Japanese paper, which has more than 1300 years history. Now registered as Hosokawa washi for the UNESCO intangible heritage.

You cannot find the same kind of paper anywhere else. Especially in Tokyo region, this area is the only place you can reach such washi making historic site.

Upon the arrival, you take a 15 minute ride from the train station to Higashi Chichibu Washi no Sato (village for tourists and visitors).

While you learn the history of washi and the process of making, you will create your original washi paper by experiencing the process of pulping, which is the easiest and fun part.

You may go out to the back yard and pick some flowers (petals) and leaves in order to place on your paper. Create your own special paper art.

After the quick tour of the factory and the surroundings, you may shop paper craft and other related products at the souvenir shop.

The paper is very strong and robust to last long.

Washi can be generally used for lamp/lantern shade, for instance. Some designer even make a washi-dress.

Since the paper you have made needs a drying process in the end, it will take one day to finish. So, your paper may be mailed later to your home directly or your next destination in Japan separately. I will take care of it personally.

It is just a 10 minute ride from Washi no Sato to Matsuoka brewery in Ogawa Machi.

The Matsuoka brewery is famous with the sake brand name of Mikado-Matsu. Sake needs good and pure water and rice. This is why this location was chosen 200 years ago.

You will enjoy lunch at the brewery with a nice view of a Japanese garden. The Japanese restaurant run by the brewery offers a variety of lunch menu using sake itself and the process leftovers to give the good flavor and texture to the foods. Please add sake for seasoning to your everyday recipe at home.

After lunch, you will take a quick plant tour to the brewery with full explanations presented by the plant manager, where you learn the similarity and difference to the winery.

When you are back, you have the tasting session before calling your most favorite taste of sake. The brewery owner will give you more than enough tasting chances if he likes you.

It is not only sake, but also you can find other sake products like candy, pickles, even ice cram. It will widen your thought about sake product range.

After having fun of lunch and the sake tasting, you may need some exercise out in the fresh air.

Thirty minute ride is enough to reach the 1300 year old Buddhism temple (Shingon sect), Shobo-ji situated on top of a hilly country in Higashi-Matsuyama city.

The gate of two Deva Kings (Ni-Oh) will first welcome you at entrance, followed by the steep 100 step slope to climb up before reaching the Kan-non (Goddess of mercy)-Do hall. You will feel something historic, divine and clean in the air.

You may pray for peace of your family and friends there in front of the Goddess.

You will find a large ginkgo tree next to the hall. In the late autumn season, the leaves turn into the beautiful autumn color.

If you are lucky, you may run into the temple head priest, Osho-san. He is sort of a chatter box. So, he will give you forcibly some good story of Buddhism or joking life events of his.

Whenever you visit a temple, don't forget to receive Goshuin stamp for a couple of bucks, that is the unique certificate of visit written in funny kanji forms. Everybody is collecting them and keep in a Goshuin book you can also purchase.

In case you are not interested in such temple visit, we can skip and go to a shopping mall nearby, Peony Walk, to shop your souvenir and everyday items in need. You will love it if you are simply a shopping animal.

Sure, we can do both the temple stuff and shopping together within the time slot given before jumping to a yakitori bar.

This is the last part of today's tour with me. After shopping, we go to the center of the city of Higashi-Matsuyama to shout for special yakitori at a old fashioned Japanese bar.

Actually, it is my watering whole anyway. One hundred percentage guarantee for satisfaction.

Here is the story:

Yakitori skewers are well known everywhere nowadays, you know. But the unique thing here is, it is not chicken. Then, guess what.

Yes, it is THE PORK. There is some history behind why. I tell you when we meet.

First of all, they use the cheek meet of pork. And then the sauce is special. It is always house-made miso-based spicy paste seasoned with garlic, fruits, peppers and so on.

There are more than 50 yakitori bars in town and each has their own secret formula of recipe.

Finding your best is another fun thing to venture in the town since they are different from others in taste and texture of meet.

Side dishes have a variety as well. I may want to give a suggestion to you when we sit at the bar table.

Seemingly we are coming to the closing session of the tour. If you do not feel enough, I can tell you where to next. Maybe I will let you go to a karaoke bar nearby.

I show you how you get to the train station back to Tokyo anyway. It should be in a short walking distance for 5 minutes or so.

So, this is why Higashi-Matsuyama's yakitori is rated as all time specialty and fame. You cannot find it anywhere once you are back to Tokyo.