surrounded by mountains that  offer amazing views throughout the seasons  

minakami is a haven of outdoor sports activities   

traditional crafts delicious food and onsen 

the rich resources of geothermal water led to its name water shangri-la

but the main reason i came  to minakomi is glamping

that was a long ride. 

so i'm here but i still have some time before  the stuff from the oasis comes to pick me up

why don't we go and explore the areas nearby

i decided to stop by takumino sato where you can explore and try out different traditional arts and crafts

i went to a place called Shiki-no-ie that i found as i was walking around  

near the fields. Here i was welcomed by the owner honda son and his helper richiko-san

Shiki-no-ie, or the home of four seasons

was a restaurant and soba making workshop in a 300 years old building

the interior was extremely cozy  and made me feel like i traveled back in time  

what's more the company was even better  and people there made me feel like at home

after the sobe making lesson i was  ready to eat the result of my hard work

without realizing three hours passed by as  we were just chatting and enjoying our tea  

i was really happy i could spend my time here now it was time for me to go　glamping  

Glamping is becoming more and more popular in japan 

i was lucky enough i found myself a place in  

gunmas canyons riverside oasis nestled near the yubiso river

there are three types of tents you  can choose from

bell tent safari tent and  waterfront tent i went with the waterfront  tent

The greatest advantage of glamping is  that you get to do all the fun things that  

traditional camping offers like barbecuing in the evening spending time in nature  

sleeping in an actual tent without having to give up on comfort such as running water or comfy bed

wow well it is a tent maybe i was imagining too much of a living room kind of a style but i mean  

in reality it is an actual tent the air smells like forest and you hear the river from the  

outside and it's just like you're right in the middle of it but then you have a bed to lay on  

which is kind of cool really really liking this i was kind of concerned that this place wouldn't be  

campy enough i was kind of imagining more like a wooden building it totally feels like camping  

what else do we have? this is a  blanket there's also a towel ,two cups

oh it's filled with water ah super cold and a  picture

after taking a short walk in the area

it was time for my barbecue dinner that was included  in the price

i also ordered a night barbecue for one

so i got my meat here i got my yakisoba and now it's just ready to be grilled

okay

look at that beauty

sauce ulla. Ulla Yakisoba.

after the filling dinner it  was time to get ready for bed  

bathrooms here were super nice and  clean and provided everything needed

i slept like a baby

it was extremely extremely cold so i actually put on my regular clothes  

so now i'm fully dressed already i grabbed another extra blanket because it was really really cold so  

it took me some time to fall asleep so definitely definitely bring warm clothes

i was totally not  prepared for that but then once i fell asleep it was like magic

river is quite loud and especially  

when you're inside the tent like you really  concentrate on the sound so i was worried that  

like maybe i'm not gonna be able to fall asleep to that but i couldn't hear anything bodily functions  

just slowed down i feel refreshed

i might not look refreshed but i actually feel refreshed wow

despite the fact that i was clearly unprepared for the night temperature drop i still enjoy  

the glamping experience a lot as it really  allows one to disconnect from all the city  

rush while still providing amenities that  make your stay comfortable

i'm really glad  

i could meet many wonderful people and see these beautiful places i will always gladly come back