The season for open to the public of sake brewary has come. Recently, it became an annual event to visit a small village, IWAMURA(1, 2), by Morning Voice (3). We will go to IWAMURA on 11th , national holiday, in this year. Detail informaion is as follows:

Date: Feb. 11, 2010 (Thu., N.H.)
Meeting place, time and Participation fee (including only all transportation expenses):
1. The wicket on the ground of JR Chikusa st. at 9:40 AM, 2,900 yen
2. The wicket of JR Ena st. at 11:30 AM, 850 yen
ref. regular transportation fee: Chikusa-Ena (JR) 1,110 yen (for one way)
Ena-Iwamura (Akechi Tetsudoh) 470 yen (for one way)
Since we will purchase frequency discount tickets on both railways, your registration beforehand is very helpful for managing.

Schedule: Train Chikusa 10:11--(JR)--10:40 Tajimi
Train Tajimi 10:42--(JR)--11:08 Ena
Train Ena 11:37--(Akechi Tetsudoh)--12:07 Iwamura
Taking commemorative photos in front of Iwamura st.
Free in the villeage (sake brewary, ruin of castle, museum of Hina dolls and so on)
Meeting at Iwamura st. at 16:10
Train Iwamura 16:27--(Akechi Tetsudoh)--16.54 Ena
Breaking up at Ena st.
Dinner party around Ena st. or Chikusa st.

* You can taste several kind of sake which were brewed in the place we will visit. However, there is no convenience store in front of IWAMURA st. You should buy anything you need, such as some snacks with drinking, during the time you are waiting at ENA st., though it isn't allowed to have snacks at the atsting place.
* It takes 10-15 min. to IWAMURA Sake brewery from the station. At the brewary, we have to buy a small cup for tasting with 100 yen. Then we will be able to tast sake all you can drink.
* It takes 30-40 min. to the ruin of IWAMURA castle (on the hill) from Sake brewary.
* On the way to the Sake brewery, there are several houses in which dolls for the girls' festival are shown and a kind of museum for traditional handicrafts.
* There are also several shops which sell noted products of the area, such as a sponge cake (castella), pickled vegetables and so on.
* Lunch is not organized. There are a few restaurants in the villege.

References (1) http://www.iw.vrtc.net/~fureai-yakata/kankou/
(2) http://www.iw.vrtc.net/~fureai-yakata/kankou/map.html
(3) 'Morning Voice' is a group in which all conversation is in English at MisterDonut in Imaike on Sunday morning. http://mixi.jp/view_community.pl?id=974081

Host group is 'Morning Voice'.
If you want to join us or you have any questions,
please call me (KUMIMOTO Hiroshi) at 090-9173-9599 or mail me at kumimoto@csc.jp