Hi Minasan, I'm Nathan and welcome to ninja monkey the place for all things related to Japan,
where I help you plan your trips and give you Japan related ideas.
I had the privilege of visiting Ashikaga and discovering an area with so much to offer.
Ashikaga is certainly worth a day trip and if not an overnight stay.
Being only around 70 minutes away from Asakusa in Tokyo using the direct limited Express Ryomo train from the Tobu Line,
and about the same travel time using a combination of the JR Tohoku Shinkansen
with a change to the Ryomo line.
I hope to Showcase some of the many things to see and do in this less visited but awesome area.
So let's get started!
My first destination took me to Kurita museum
about a 10 minute walk from Jr Tomita station only two stops from Ashikaga station
I've come to Kurita art museum. Behind me is actually quite famous because Freddie Mercury came here
as you can see by some of those pictures
and it is said that when he arrived at this Museum he wanted to purchase everything.
One of the things that I absolutely love about coming to these places
is discovering or rediscovering a love of Art.
And these items, these Ceramics are so beautiful that
as I mentioned before Freddie Mercury came here especially to check this Museum out.
This place itself is so much bigger than I expected,
and it's worth coming for a little Wonder just in case you're in the area.
Standing here in front of this ancient lime kiln Hill or pottery kiln, or whatever it is.
I was reminded that this location actually has some pottery workshops.
So if that's something that you might be interested in then you can also check that out.
I won't have time and I also wanted to mention that I've actually been given permission to film inside.
So you're not supposed to film inside remember that.
From Kurita Museum a short 12-minute walk will get you to Ashikaga famous flower Park
and although it wasn't the best season to visit it really was a beautiful sight
and I really wanted to Showcase this the location as many people have seen the images but don't realize how easy it is to get to from Tokyo.
This is certainly somewhere that you will not want to miss especially during Wisteria season
I'll include some photos that really don't do this place any justice.
The location that I stand in right now is a Ashikag flower Park, very famous for its Wisteria.
Probably you've seen the photos of the famous Wisteria hanging tunnel
well this is a place and yes I'm here in the summer and actually I've even spotted some wisteria surprisingly.
There is no Wisteria tunnel
but there's plenty more to see, so if you are in the area and it is Wisteria season I definitely recommend you come
Something that's really interesting that I didn't know is that actually all the Wisteria were taken
from another Park in Ashikaga and brought over here because of fear that the park was
too small and that they couldn't expand so they brought all the Wisteria here so that
they could expand the park and boy oh boy there's Wisteria everywhere even now in the summer
theres some flowering.
A 15 minute drive from a Ashikaga flower park or a 10 or 15 minute taxi drive from the main stations
lies the first Shrine I will visit in ashikaga.
Also accessible using public transportation along with a half hour walk.
This Shrine or Temple is located in the Northern Area.
Kabasaki Hachimangu Shrine or Temple is a National Historic Site
and was built for Ashikaga Yoshikane the Lord who established banajii Temple.
And I must admit that I was surprised to find such a unique place and really enjoyed my visit.
I'm here in kabasaki hachiman Shrine and it said that if you walk in a figure of eight
like I've just done, that you'll be purified, so make sure that you do that if you ever come here
It's obviously a very local shrine where locals will come and
give an offering and a prayer and it's fantastic, these sort of shrines that are basically surrounded by
forests with such tall trees, they just remind me when they look at the the trees that are
so tall up in the sky. They just remind me of how old this sort of place is.
it really is a reminder and I just love wondering and I've said this many times in my videos.
Actually when it's raining or drizzling these places become even more magical and peaceful
This shrine used to be a temple actually. It was founded by Yoshikane a very famous Samurai in this area
and the reason why this Temple was built was to pray for the souls
of the deceased in a big battle.
The story of Yoshikane is incredibly interesting
and I totally recommend that you do a little bit of reading especially if you are going to come here.
The next spot is Coco Farm and Winery
a 20-minute taxi drive from the main stations
or a 60 or 80 minute walk if you really want to stretch your legs that is.
And believe you me you're not going to want to drive to this one
although you can if you want to.
Coco Farm is also accessible by bus and open from 10 a.m to 6 p.m
with a cafe open from 11AM to 5:30 PM.
Welcome to Coco farm and Winery, this place actually has one of the most renowned Wines in Japan.
Surprisingly, so if you're a wine lover this is definitely someone that you need to come to
and behind me is actually all The Vineyards where they actually grow and
there's somebody banging away trying to scare all the the birds.
So that they don't eat the probably very delicious grapes.
Cocoa comes from the word kokoromi and kokoromi basically means to try something
but it also means heart.
And this place is pretty unique and amazing because it's actually employs disabled people
to give them a job so they can actually have a life
and make a life over here and people from all around the area
they come and they work here on this Farm
to produce really delicious wine which has been even served for G7 Summit members.
So let's get to it
this is a, this is maybe the first Japanese wine that I've ever had to be honest.
I think I've never had a Japanese wine
and what better place to try a Japanese wine than actually in a Japanese Winery or Vineyard, Kampai!
am I supposed to do the whole like (slurp)
am I supposed to do all of that? I'm not gonna do that anyway. Kanpai!
oh! it's very easy to drink, I mean I do like red wine
and actually when you come here you're given you for 1 000 Yen
you're given five different wines to try
you can try from sparkling to Red to White
and there's even a non alcoholic um you know choice just in case you are driving around
So this is just the start of my Ashikaga adventure
stick around and subscribe so that you don't miss any future videos.
in a future video I will be exploring a range of temples and shrines that might be on par or better
than many that I have visited in Japan.
I will literally be jumping into the location of a Japanese historical painting,
hanging out with the locals, learning how to make soba noodles,
wearing some Samurai armor whilst exploring the city,
have an in-depth conversation with a Buddhist monk and staying in what could potentially be
the most unique and interesting ryokan traditional Inn that I've stayed in and
that's just a start.
So hopefully this will be a good reason to subscribe.
I really enjoyed my time in Ashikaga and I hope that I can convince you to give it a go too.
Once again thanks so much for watching all the way to the end
and if you have then prove it by commenting with a Ramen Emoji
even if you have nothing to say.
Like I always say stay positive team but Covid negative!
arigatou gozaimasu, gracias, thanks, bye