京都で体験できる、職人技が光る和紙作りと餅作り体験

This is an incredible experience that the entire family enjoyed. Teruyubi is a fantastic tour guide. He communicated with us beforehand, in the lead-up to today, answering all my queries quickly. This morning, he picked us up from the Ayabe train station and drove us to the picturesque Kurotani village, where we met our kind and cheerful washi making instructor. Teruyubi translated for us and also arranged to have our handiwork posted to where we will be staying in 4 days’ time, after the papers dry. After we finished making the washi paper, he gave us a tour of this historic washi factory and the washi making process. Then it was back to the Ayabe city centre for a delicious home-style Japanese lunch and a short matcha making experience. We left some room for the mochi that we were going to learn how to make next! We got to pound and shape mochi with two lovely ladies, then eat our handiwork served in red bean soup and with a side of pickled cabbage and tea while sitting under a cherry tree. The ladies were so kind to seal our mochi professionally air-tight in plastic. All through the day, Teruyubi was a fountain of knowledge, providing us with fascinating insights on the area, the crafts, the flora and the food. His English is excellent and he took care of our every need. The peaceful countryside we travelled through was stunning and there were no crowds of tourists. The activities were fun for the whole family. And we enjoyed learning so much from Teruyubi.