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To welcome a New Year, the Ryokan was decorated by all the staff on December 30. According to custom, New Year’s decoration should not be set up on 31st December based on the belief that it is not faithful to have only one day before welcoming the deity on New Year's Day. Moreover, the 29th should also be avoided because 'nine matsu' is associated with 'wait for pain'.

In accordance with the annual autumn festival of Achi Shrine, residents of Bikan area entertained the visitors by displaying their cherished Byobu (folding screens), handed down for generations. Houses, which are usually closed to the public, were opened to the visitors, thus it was a nice chance to walk through and see those precious implements, flower arrangements as well as works of calligraphy.

Of course our Ryokan Kurashiki joined this event and welcomed the visitors on the theme of "Thanks to the harvest autumn and wishes for the recovery of devastated area".

We displayed our wood lattice folding panels on the Tatami space in the entrance hall and had it decorated with flower arrangement by Ms. Yoko Takahashi, the Japan’s leading flower-arrangement artist.

A peaceful rural landscape of autumn was reproduced by her in our entrance hall. To a small hedge of Japanese ancient rice (black rice), several kinds of colorful chrysanthemum were assorted: yellow - and red spider chrysanthemum, red – and brown florist’s chrysanthemum, pale pink ping pong chrysanthemum, Anastasia green and others. Above them were branches of climbing wild rose and pomegranate, both with orange fruits.

In front of the panels set were the tiny altars. On two of them regularly-cut chrysanthemum flowers were stuck upright, crowned with floss silk; on one of them silver-white cocoons were piled up.

Both were the products from Date-city, Fukushima pref., from a disaster-struck region. Although the chrysanthemum month has already passed, she dared to decorate the floss silk covered chrysanthemum to have a share of luck followed by the ancient customs to express her deepest condolences to the people suffering from the disaster.

Harvest is a great season at any part of the world.

Over two days on Oct. 15^th and 16^th, the annual autumn festival was held in and around Bikan area.

After the parade of Mikoshi ( portable shrine), a pair of Taiko-dai( portable drum stages) started the parade. One is shouldered by male youth; the other is shouldered by female youth.

The Taiko-dai is specially called Senzairaku in the southwestern area of Okayama pref. It is said that a newly created Noh song Senzairaku during the Edo period in Kurashiki-city became so popular that people generally chanted the song in shouldering the Taiko-dai (drum stage) in their neighborhoods, thus leading to call the Taiko-dai itself 'Senzairaku'.

While the Mikoshi portable shrine belongs to the shrine, Senzairaku belongs to the shrine parishioners and their role at the festival is to escort or to lead the parade of Mikoshi or to offer performances in front of the God, in which the local youth perform dynamically and vigorously by tossing it up, shaking it right and left and hoisting it.

In the final highlight, the carriers dash up the steps to the shrine gate by shouldering it. It is worth while watching it.

After the rainy days of early autumn, the air turned much cooler in October.

To reflect the deepening autumn, the dishes of our Kaiseki menu have changed to “Dishes for the splendor of autumn in gold and maple colors”.

As the title mentions, one of the theme is to reflect the deepening colors of the season like red, orange, yellow and gold into the dishes. For example the assortment of seasonal starter features orange persimmon used as a cup, yellow of Kinton-ball of sweet potato and chest nut, gold flakes to decorate the top of Kinton-ball as well as ruby-red of sprinkled pomegranate seeds.

Inevitable ingredients of the autumn are mushrooms. In the assortment of seasonal starter, there are simmered Nameko mushrooms which go well with Yuzu citrus flavor, and also French horn mushrooms which are spirally rolled by the sliced hairtail and grilled. To be fully enjoyed of the flavor and the stock of mushrooms, we prepare Dobin-mushi, delicate clear soup, in a tiny tea pot. First enjoy the broth of Shimeji and Matsutake mushrooms along with their flavor, then add the Sudachi citrus to the broth and enjoy the seasoned broth, finally you can fish out the ingredients.

Another highlight is Spanish mackerel. Though considered to be tasty in spring, it is tastiest from the autumn to the winter, when its fat increases. This time our chef will arrange the fish by briefly searing it over the fire of rice straw, adding the wild flavor to it and slicing it. It can be tasted with 3 kinds of seasoning: soy-based dip, Sudachi juice, or natural salt.

Two major festivals of autumn will be held on Sat. October 15 & Sun. October 16, which are the Achi Shrine’s annual autumn festival and the Kurashiki folding screen festival.

In accordance with them, we will have a special treat of CHIRASHI-SUSHI for the lunch guests. In the course menu of Kaiseki dining, we will prepare CHIRASHI-SUSHI which is gorgeously decorated with seafood such as vinegar-cured Spanish mackerel and small herring, grilled sea eel and boiled tiger prawn. It will be brought to the table in a wooden SUSHI bowl and then served to the individual plates in front of the guests.

We will also prepare CHIRASHI-SUSHI in one of the dishes of “Kurashiki-Gozen” at the restaurant.

◎Kasiseki course of lunch in a private Tatami room
  (Reservation required)

   Rates: 5,000 Yen, 6,500 Yen, 8,000 Yen 〜
  (15% services charges are additional)

 Hour: 11:00 – Last starter time 14:00

◎Kurashiki-Gozen lunch at the restaurant
　(Reservation available only for 11:00)

   Rate: 2,500 Yen

   Hour: 11:00 – Last starter time 14:00

To all the lunch guests of our restaurant, there will be a small dessert of “bracken starch cake” as our special treat. Please taste a bite-sized homemade Japanese sweet from our teatime menu. It is available during lunch hour of weekdays from Mon. October 3 to Fri. October 28.  

Moonviewing or Tsukimi is a traditional Japanese custom in which people admire the full moon in autumn. Moonviewing takes place on the 15^th day of the eighth month of the Japanese lunar calendar and this year it falled on September 12^th of modern calendar. It is the day when the most beautiful full moon of the year with perfectly round shape can be observed and the moon is also called “Chushu no Meigetsu”, literally “the best moon in the mid-autumn”.

Followed by the tradition, for 3 days from September 11^th to 13^th, seasonal round-shaped harvests such as sweet potatoes, chestnuts, grapes and taros as well as autumnal pampas grass were displayed in Ryokan as offerings to the moon.

Also the rooms were decorated with rice dumplings known as “Tsukimi Dango” and our guests were welcome to our treat to taste Furumai Dango/ rice dumpling. Eating Dango has a meaning to celebrate the beauty of the moon. 

Over 5 nights, from Wed. October 12^th - Sun. October 16^th 2011, the historical Machiya townhouses of Bikan area will turn their appearance to illusional space with the flickering candle lights set in the glass candle stands.

The exhibition, which started 5 years ago, is titled “Kurashiki and candle lights and glass artists”. The main exhibition places are “Gallery Hashimaya” and “Saikan of Achi Shrine”.

Also between 18:00 – 21:00 of Sat. October 15^th a special event will be held in which the visitors can taste the local Sake from a tiny glass cup in an illusional space along with light snacks. The Sake glass cups used are specially made for this occasion by several artists and after tasting selected 4 kinds of Sake in a favorite cup, it can be presented.

In accordance with this exhibition period, there are 2 main festivals of autumn. One is Achi Shrine’s Autumn Festival. The other one is “Folding Screen Festival”.

Exhibition of Glass Candle Stands

Displayed at Gallery Hashimaya

 10:00 - 17:00 of Wed. October 12^th – Sun. October 16th, 2011

 Displayed at Saikan of Achi Shrine

 10:00 - 18:00 of Sat. October 15^th, 2011                
        10:00 – 17:30 of Sun. October 16^th, 2011

Tasting Local Sake under Candle Lights

  Held at Saikan of Achi Shrine

 18:00 - 21:00 of Sat. October 15^th, 2011

        Reservation required (full capacity is 25 members)

Admission fee 3,000 Yen.

        For further information, contact to Pegasus Candle Co. Ltd. at  086-465-1035

Achi Shrine Festival and Folding Screen Festival

  Both held around Bikan area on Sat. October 15th & Sun. October 16th..

Abundant harvest will be celebrated by the Achi Shrine’s annual autumn festival. The huge Mikoshi (portable shrine) will be carried along the streets of Bikan area in a gallant manner. Our be-loved Su-Inkyo, the humorous jesters in masks of elderly men and women, will walk around stroking the heads of sightseers with the round fans. In the same period, residents of Bikan area will display their cherished Byobu (folding screens), handed down for generations. Houses, which are usually closed to the public, will be opened to the visitors, thus it is a nice chance to walk through and see those precious implements, flower arrangements as well as works of calligraphy.

Of course our Ryokan Kurashiki will also join this event by displaying a Byobu which will be specially decorated with a flower arrangement.

How about taking a walk in Korakuen Garden on a sunny day of autumn?  You are sure to meet lots of autumn themes there.

Bizen Pottery Festival will be held over two days, from Sat. October 15 to Sun. October 16 at Bizen Pottery Traditional and Contemporary Art Museum and around JR Ako Line Imbe Station.

Visitors to this festival have chance to experience using potter’s wheels at the Museum which is applicable between 10:00 and 15:30. It is a rare chance to shop cute pottery for relatively reasonable prices.

From Kurashiki to JR Imbe Station Station it is about 1 – 1.5 hour distance by JR Sanyo Line and JR Ako Line via JR Okayama Station.

Please take your time to look at the pottery and the town.