We had to return the car by noon, since there was still time we headed for a lookout that looked over the township.

車子必須中午前還，還有點時間，先繞去俯瞰城鎮的瞭望台吧。

 

Only we we had to quickly turn back to Ryu no Hige since I had forgotten to return the sewing kit we borrowed. Created some confusion since they were readying the vans to drive the other guests to Yufuin station and the road was narrow. After that we were truly on our way.

不過在此之前得先調頭回龍之鬍鬚一下，我忘了還借的針線盒了。這時他們正準備交通車送其他住客去車站，在狹展的小路錯車造成了一些混亂。在這之後才真的上路。

 

The lookout was a short way up the side of Mt Yufu. Unfortunately it seemed to have been damaged in the earthquake and was cordoned off, so we could only park on the side temporarily and look down from the entrance to the lookout area. The grey township was sandwiched between checkered rice farm paddies, the crop had been harvested so it was all a little grey and brown, in the other seasons the contrast will be brighter. This was supposed to be a good spot to view the morning fog that often shrouds the town, at this hour late in the morning however the view was clear.

瞭望台在由布岳山往上一點點處。可惜似乎在地震中有點損害被拉上封鎖線，只能把車停在路邊，從瞭望台入口處往下看。灰色的城鎮夾在棋盤似稻田中，已經收割大多是灰色土色混在一起，其他季節會有比較亮麗的對比。這裡是俯瞰時常籠罩由布院的晨霧的最佳地點，不過此時已有點晚，沒有一絲霧氣。

The side of Mt Yufu was covered in a thick tall fields of silver grass. The white tails wagged and danced, a expanse of gentle wilderness.

由布岳的山邊長滿了濃密的芒草。白色芒花尾巴搖擺舞動，一片溫馴的荒野。

 

We drove back down to return the car. The Budget Rental in Yufuin is also the petrol station they suggested we fill up on before returning, quite convenient (I believe the rule was you had to show receipt of having filled up within 5k of the return location), while the tanks were being filled up the Budget Rental staff was already inspecting the car. Before I had even paid the petrol the car was already signed off and returned with lightning efficiency. With the full insurance package there really wasn’t the need for the staff to do more than make a cursory look, any scratch and damages were their responsibility. (But if you knowingly had an incident/accident you still had to call them, otherwise insurance doesn’t apply, it’s just for minor stuff that might have been sustained without you being aware need not be argued over)

我們開回山下還車。由布院的Budget租車也正是機場店建議我們還車前加油的加油站(規定是必須出示還車地點5公里內加滿油的收據)，挺方便的，當車子加油時Budget的員工就已經在檢視車子了。我還沒付油錢車子就已經超有效率地閃電般簽收完畢。不過也是因為買了全險，他們也只需要稍微確認沒大狀況就夠了，刮痕損傷都不關我們的事。(但若車子真有意外還是必須聯絡店家警察，不然保險不支付，只是在可能不知情形下受的損傷不會跟你斤斤計較)

Kind of sad to see the car leave, it was a trusty and comfortable drive and stored our luggages well no matter where we went, like we had to worry about now. We drop off our luggage at the store in front of the station (3 pieces for 1100Y) and begin our tour of Yufuin.

看到車子開走有點失落，它性能不錯，開起來很舒服，不管到哪也不用擔心我們現在需面對的行李問題。把行李拖到車站前的特產店寄放(3個1100Y)後，我們的由布院之旅正式開始。

Yufuin is another onsen town that avoided Japan’s lost decades (though it made most of it during the bubble era and slowed to a more gradual growth afterward, whereas Kurokawa made most of its growth after). The town adopted strict building codes such as height limits, which prevented construction of large hotel complexes. Sizes of ryokans were kept small (but not as small as Kurokawa) and the town evolved into a Karuizawa like feel to it, with the main street lined with all sort of cafes, sweets, snacks, trinket and craft shops. The town is also home to a number of art galleries, giving it a claim of having an air of refined taste.

由布院也是逃過日本失落歲月的溫泉街之一(不過主要成長是在泡沫時期，之後便大幅減緩，反觀黑川的成長大多是在近30年，泡沫瓦解後)。小鎮建立了非常嚴格的建築法規，如建築物高度等，防止大型旅館設立，成功的保存了小鄉村的氣息。大多旅館的規模不大(但也沒黑川的那樣小)，街市小店林立的發展模式使由布院又有小軽井沢的暱稱，主街上滿是咖啡館，甜點小吃，小紀念品和手工藝店。鎮上也有數家美術館，自許多添一筆高雅品味。

 

Together with Kurokawa, the two onsens form a symbiotic relationship due to their close proximity (about an hour apart) and similarly small town feel. Though Yufuin is much larger, has access to train line, expressway, closer to Oita a major city; it sees four times as many visitors(~4million) and a magnitude more spend per person because it has so many more shops.

加上黑川，兩個相隔不遠打的同是小鎮氣氛的溫泉，形成相輔的共生關係。不過擁有鐵道，高速公路，接近大分都市的由部院規模大的多了; 每年的訪客數為黑川的4倍(400萬)，同時因商店數量的差異，平均消費也相差數倍。

 

Yufuin is a paradise if you’re into shopping or trying various foods (or hell, from a different persective). I’m not too into snacks or desserts so we mostly browsed, stopping occasionally for dad to do some sample tasting. Even though there are many shops, most of them maintained a visually unobtrusive, harmonious profile. There are little nooks and alleys, hidden shops and cafes tucked away behind the busy main street for the adventurous.

由布院對愛逛街嚐美食的人是天堂(或地獄，另一層面上)。我對甜點小吃不是太有興趣所以大多時只是隨便看看，碰到有試吃的就停下讓老爸嚐嚐鮮。雖然店鋪很多，外觀上大多維持不突兀，能融合一起。有許多轉角巷弄，遠離大街紛擾的隱藏小店或茶點鋪，適合愛冒險的人挖寶。

 

The yummy sweets offered at Ryu no Hige is from Akashikashiho (赤司菓子舗), its main store is just opposite the bus centre near the train station. It also has a second store further along just before crossing the stream that runs through town. We leave the buying till later to not burden ourselves.

在龍之鬍鬚吃到的甜點是赤司菓子舗的招牌力作，本店就在車站附近的巴士中心對面。另外再往金麟湖一點在過橋前還有一家分店。避免會需大包小包拿來拿去，我們決定把採購留到下午。

 

Though the main street is impressive by themselves, there are two blocks worthy of mention. The Yu no Tsuba Yokochou (湯の坪横丁) which is a small loop alley with shops built uniformly in the style from the Edo era, and the Floral Village which mimics the looks of a some small British town with low buildings adorned with flowers, retro signages and facades. In the Floral Village there is also an Owl forest where one could see owls up close and supposedly dress up in a wizard robe (I didn’t go in though).

主街已經很夠看了，不過還有兩個區域值得一提。一是湯の坪横丁，一個繞U字一圈的小巷，全部的店皆仿造江戶時期的風格建造。另一是仿英國小村風的Floral Village，一間間用花點綴的矮小屋子，復古的招牌和外貌裝飾。在Village中還有一個貓頭鷹森林，裡頭可以近距離觀賞貓頭鷹，好像還可以穿巫師袍過過癮 (我沒進去)。

The 1.5k walk to Kirin Lake took us about an hour and half. The lake was so named because both cold spring water and hot onsen water wells up from the bottom, this temperature difference causes a glittering effect with the sunset.

到金鱗湖1.5公里的路程走了大約一個半小時。之所以叫金鱗湖是因為湖中同時湧出溫泉和冷泉水，溫度差異在夕陽時形成亮晶晶的效果。

We have lunch at the Marc Chagall cafe on the lakeshore. The burger was okay. There were plenty of restaurants in Yufuin but it would have required backtracking and joining long lines.

午餐是在湖岸邊的Marc Chagall咖啡館。漢堡味道還好。雖然由布院有很多餐廳但一來需要走回去，二來要排隊。

After lunch I split up with my parents, each off to explore on our own. I decide to check out the Marc Chagall gallery upstairs. On display was a collection of painting with the theme of circus. Chagall had a slightly modern style, using rough brush strokes and large exaggerated features, almost newsprint comic like.

午餐後我和爸媽分開行動，各自去探索。我首先決定看看樓上的Marc Chagall藝廊。目前展出的是以馬戲團為主題的一系列畫作。Chagall的畫風相當現代，在粗筆下誇張的詮釋表情動作，接近報紙漫畫的效果。

 

By Lake Kirin was the Shitanyu, a mixed gender public onsen where one could take a dip for just 200Y. On the southern shore was a shrine with a torii in the lake, reminiscent of the torii of Miyajima in Hiroshima.

金鱗湖旁是下ん湯，混浴的公共溫泉浴場，只要200Y就可以享受。在南岸的天祖神社有一個鳥居樹立在湖水內，有廣島的宮島大鳥居的感覺。

Our cake reservations with B-Speak had to be picked up before 3:30. I took a detour through the backstreets of Yufuin on my way back, Yufuin’s ryokans and hotels tended to be situated away from the main street, dotted amidst the rice paddies. Juggling development while keeping the farmland feel is a top concern for the local government.

跟B-Speak預訂的蛋糕卷必須在3:30前拿。回去的路上我稍微繞了下，由布院的旅館大多分散在離主街一兩條街外的農田間。發展觀光的同時如何保持農村氣息是當地政府正面臨的一大考驗。

 

B-Speak is Yufuin’s most famous cake shop, operated by Murata, one of the 3 most famous ryokans. Its cakes (at least the ⅓ portion ones) are usually sold by before noon, without prior reservation obtaining a cake can be close to impossible.

B-Speak是由布院最有名的蛋糕店，是由御三家的無量塔開的。他的蛋糕(至少1/3卷的小蛋糕)通常中午前就會賣光，沒有預訂幾乎是買不到的。

Our train departs at 3:50pm, we went to check out another dessert shop close to the station, recommended by the young lady from Ryu no Hige, but everything were already sold out. Even in winter Yufuin is packed with people, the place must be absolutely swamped in summer when people come into the mountains to escape the heat and have ice creams of which Yufuin has plenty.

火車發車時間是3:50。我們繞去離車站不遠處龍之鬍鬚Rika地圖上有提起的泡芙店，但櫥窗已全是空的了。就連在冬天由布院依然是人潮洶湧，在夏天肯定更是人擠人，這裡可是避暑聖地，吹著山中的涼風，邊逛邊享受由布院為數眾多的冰淇淋店。

 

We arrived at the train station before the crowd showed up, each trailing behind them a large luggage filled with souvenirs and sweets.

The station’s waiting room also doubles as an art gallery. To be honest despite Yufuin’s claim, I very much feel its artistry claims were overshadowed by its sweets and desserts. Only a very small percentage of its visitors were probably interested much less visits one of these art galleries. I was certainly the only one there inside Marc Chagall despite the cafe downstairs having a long queue.

到車站後不久，準備搭車的人群開始湧入月台，人人拖著裝滿戰利品的大行李箱。

車站的候車室同時也是一個畫廊。老實說雖然由布院官方想塑造這種形象，感覺藝術的賣點完全被甜點小吃蓋過去了。大概只有極少部份的遊客對美術館有興趣，更不用說實際參觀了。在Marc Chagall時雖然樓下的咖啡館是大排長龍，樓上卻只有我一個人。

 

The Yufuin no Mori is one of the first tourist trains by JR Kyushu back in 1989, now the rail company operates a dozen tourist trains throughout Kyushu to boost patronage for lines that would otherwise see very few passengers.

由布院之森是JR九州在1989年開始營運的第一輛觀光火車，現在他們在九州有多至十多種觀光火車，來提升搭乘人數少的路線的營收。

 

The Yufuin no Mori has elevated seating level and large windows to allow passengers to enjoy the scenery outside. The interior makes use of wood to give the whole train a forest like feel. The first generation trains also sports a lounge area with bench seats facing the windows directly and space for one to stand around, chat with a friend, all while enjoying a drink bought from the shop the next car down. (The second generation trains are newer, has brighter interiors but forgo the lounge space for more seats)

由布院之森有挑高的車廂和特大窗戶好讓旅客欣賞沿途的風景。內部各處使用木頭，想讓人有坐在森林中的感覺。第一代列車還有一個觀景車廂，有面朝窗戶的座位還有站立空間，可以從鄰近的餐車買杯飲料來在這和朋友聊天。(第二代車比較新，內裝比較明亮但犧牲了觀景車廂換取更多座位)

 

The onboard shop sells a limited ekiben only available on the train, other snacks and drinks such as Aso milk. B-Speak rolls are also available, if they haven’t sold out already.

餐車有賣由布院之森的限定便當，其他點心和飲料，如阿蘇牛奶。也有賣B-Speak蛋糕，若還沒賣完的話。

 

As the whole train is reserve seat only it can be hard to get a ticket if one walk up to the counter on the day, or even a few days before. The train we took was completely sold out at least 3 weeks earlier (I booked the seat the moment they went on sale a month prior to departure). The 3:50 train is one of the most popular one as it is the most convenient after a day of sightseeing. The later train that leaves at 5pm still had some seats when we left.

由於整輛車都是指定席，發天當天或甚至發車前幾天才去櫃檯買票的話很可能會沒有位子。我們搭的這一班在發車三個星期前就賣光了(我在一個月前一開放買票就訂了)。下午3:50這班車很熱門，一整天逛完由布院後搭時間上再恰當不過。出發時晚一班5點的還有一些位子。

 

Note that to reserve a seat in advance one must do so online and pay with credit card at time of booking. If one wishes to use a Kyushu JR Pass, then one can only try their luck after entering Japan and go up to a counter in person. Even if I had a schedule that could have saved by using a pass, I probably would still have booked the seats online, paying that extra to have a peace of mind.

注意要提前訂位一定要網上訂票，且訂票時就需用信用卡付。如果想用JR九州pass的話就只能到日本後再親自去票務櫃檯試運氣了。就算行程上能用pass省錢我應該還是會用網路訂票，花錢換心安。

 

The train was not that impressive, but perhaps it was due to me being tired at the end of the day and also the fading lights making the interior a little dark. The lounge car was a definite plus and I question the decision to forgo it in the generation 2 Yufuin no Mori.

大概是玩了一整天有點累了吧，列車沒有想像中的特別，也可能是時候已晚，車廂內顯得有點陰暗。觀景車廂算是不錯的亮點，覺得第二代列車取消這車廂有點可惜。

 

During the trip an attendant comes around with a signboard with today’s date on it for passengers to take a photo with it to show they’ve been on the Yufuin no Mori. In the shop carriage there were little train master uniforms for kids to try on and have photos taken.

途中會有列車小姐拿寫有日期的紀念卡牌來給大家合照，證明有搭過由布院之森。在餐車裡也有小車掌制服可給小孩穿上拍照留念。

 

Overall JR Kyushu definitely tried to make the train ride as unique an experience as possible. Thoughts had also been made with regard to the target audience’s needs; there was wifi on board (speed questionable) and luggage space was plenty at the ends of the carrages.

JR九州確實在許多地方有花心思提升搭車體驗，滿足旅客的需求，車上有wifi(速度不怎麼樣)，車廂末端也有放置行李的充裕空間。

 

The train reached Hakata at about 6:10pm. We navigated the maze that is Hakata station and out the east gate in good time, the benefit of having been to a place before.

到博多是6:10左右。很快的穿過迷宮般的博多車站從東門出去，一個地方曾來過的好處。

 

Our stay this time is Richmond Hotel, about a hundred metres out and to the right after exiting the station east side. After complaints from my parents about the last trip, this time I went with a little pricier choice. The elevators and rooms are accessed by cards, and each room was spacious (for a business hotel) and had their own aircon control. Power sockets were plentiful and USB chargers were also available. Definitely more comfortable than my usual choices.

這次住的是Richmond Hotel，大概東側出去後往右一百公尺左右。自從上回爸媽反應過後，這回選的稍微貴一點。電梯和房間是用磁卡出入，以商務旅館而言房間算寬廣，也有獨立空調。插座很多，也有提供usb充電。比我一般選的舒服太多了。

After check-in, as I had ekiben on the train already we decided to split up for the night. I brought my parents to the ramen street in Hakata station (note: 2nd floor Deitos on the north east side). I was going to take them to the new KITTE 0101 (note: it’s pronounced Marui) B1 restaurants where I’ve identified a few choice restaurants. My fault for not explaining what the choices were I guess, dad said he wanted ramen and ramen we went.

Check-in後，我在車上已經吃過便當了還不太餓，於是決定分頭行動。我帶爸媽到車站的拉麵街(東北角二樓Deitos)。原本是想帶他們去新開的KITTE 0101 (註：發ma-ru-i)的B1餐廳街，有幾家看來適合的餐廳。不過一開始沒解釋清楚我的計畫，老爸說吃拉麵就好所以就去吃拉麵了。

 

I helped them order from the ticket machine (ramen ordering machines can be intimidating at first. Can I choose more than 1 item at once? What do I press to get the change?)

我幫他們使用機器買餐卷(拉麵點餐機對第一次用的人還有點難，一次可以點幾樣東西，按什麼找錢?)

 

Then I’m off to the christmas market in front of the station.

然後我就自己去逛站前的聖誕市集了。

 

It has always amused me how Japanese do western holidays better than many western countries. Halloween in Australia is barely alive with a smattering of kids dressing up, as we saw last time Japanese put out Halloween themed products everywhere, cakes, drinks, pumpkins in every displays, people dressing up. Valentine? They love it so much they’ve made it into two days, they also switched it around by making it customary for the girl to give the chocolate, and if the guy wished to reciprocate, give something back on white valentine.

很有趣的，明明有許多節日是源自西方的，日本人卻比許多西方國家更會慶祝。在澳洲萬聖節只不過是幾個小鬼穿點衣服，大多人幾乎沒有在慶祝的。但如上回來日本所見，日本到處都是節慶裝飾和產品，蛋糕，飲料，櫥窗裡滿是南瓜，一堆人換裝打扮。情人節？他們喜歡到要有兩個，也把習俗轉了一下改成由女方送巧克力，若男方想回禮再在白情人節送東西。

 

Christmas is no exception. The christmas jingles were on repeat in the shopping streets, department stores tries to outdo each other with decorations, and a big christmas market with wine and beer and food in the station’s courtyard.

聖誕節也不例外。商店街反覆播放著聖誕歌曲，百貨公司在裝飾上互相競爭，車站前擺起充滿啤酒，葡萄酒和美食的聖誕集市，熱鬧極了。

It was almost 8:30pm, I scored a strange roll of sushi for cheap from the stalls below the station’s department store and headed back to the hotel, grabbing a carton of milk from the 7-11 on the way. Japanese milk is awesome.

快8:30時我在百貨地下街的食品區買了一盒特價但不確定是什麼的壽司，回旅館途中又順便在7-11買了一罐牛奶。日本的牛奶可是超好喝的。

 

A late dinner of sushi, milk and B-Speak rolls for dessert.

宵夜就是這卷壽司，牛奶，點心還有B-Speak蛋糕捲。

Kusayane no Yado – Ryu no Hige (草屋根の宿 龍のひげ) is a unique ryokan. It’s not in Yufuin proper, instead about 10 minutes drive to the west, its old name was Sansou Yumuta no Mori (Mountain House of Yumuta Forest) before it revamped as a high class ryokan in 2012.

草屋根之宿 龍之鬍鬚 是一間很特殊的旅館。不在由布院 (湯布院) 主區域內，而是往西開車10分鐘處，前身又叫山荘 ゆむ田の森，在2012年重整成一間高級旅館。

 

Actually, Kusayane no Yado – Ryu no Hige is not its full name, the ryokan has two areas, Ryu no Hige are cabins while its other half Bettei Yumuta (Annex Yumuta) consists of an separated wing of 5 double rooms. The full name is thus Kusayane no Yado – Ryu no Hige/Bettei Yumuta (草屋根の宿 龍のひげ/別邸 ゆむた). The meaning of Yumuta is not known, my guess is that it’s Yu meaning hot bath and Mu for village, or a homophone of Yu-Me (Dream) as Yu-Mu. (Correction: Found out it’s 湯無田 as in hot bath, nothingness, field)

其實 草屋根之宿 龍之鬍鬚 還不是全名，旅館有兩區，離屋叫龍之鬍鬚，另一區一棟5間雙人房的分館稱別邸 ゆむた。合起來為草屋根之宿 龍之鬍鬚 別邸ゆむた。ゆむた意思為何不知，猜測是湯的ゆ和村的む，也可能是夢ゆめ的諧音。(改:問了Rika是ゆむた原漢字是湯無田)

 

The ryokan earns its name by the beard of dragon grass (リュウノヒゲ, lilyturf) grown atop the roof of its main hall, the grass shields the building from the sun and acts as an insulation in winter, making the inside cool in summer and warm in winter.

龍之鬍鬚取名來自母屋屋頂上種的龍鬚草(麥門冬草)，可隔絕炎日，同時也是保暖的絕緣體，屋子內冬暖夏涼。

When initially looking at the comments a few things stood out. The comments are very consistent, they talk about how the place exceeds expectations, how good the food is (and how much there was) and how well the staffs are.

一開始研究時注意到幾件事。一是他的評價很一致，大多提到這地方超出預期，食物多好吃（且量很多）還有恰如其分的待客服務。

 

Every room (Ryu no Hige and Annex) faces Mt. Yufu and has a half open air onsen bath.

每個房間（離屋和別邸皆是）都面對由布岳和半開放式的露天溫泉。

 

There’s something very personal about the place, the way its facebook posts are written and the way its website is built.

這地方給人很個人化的感覺，從臉書上的發言，網頁的設計上都很溫馨。

 

It doesn’t promise luxury, nor does it promise tradition or history. There’s no hundred year old main buildings, no Japanese garden with little streams or zen pebbles. Actually there’s no garden at all, just landscaped footpath connecting the cabins. It doesn’t even have a bar or reading space or lounge area. It barely has a lobby. In short, it has essentially no public spaces for guests to stroll or hang about.

他不提供豪華享受，也不靠傳統或歷史。沒有百年老屋，沒有日式庭院的小溪或充滿禪意的碎石子。其實連個花園也沒有，只有連結小屋之間的走道旁稍有修飾過。沒有酒吧或讀書間或聊天室。連大廳也是小小的。簡單說，基本上沒有公共空間給住客閒逛或打發時間。

 

It’s often said, make the guests them feel at home. Many hotels, resorts and ryokans certainly strive to do this, with plenty of services and hospitality and asking about how they may serve you. What makes Ryu no Hige stands out is this is the first time I’ve felt the true meaning of the saying. It is the combination of the comfort of its cabin and the delicately balanced distance of its staffs that truly makes one forget every worry in the world and more at home than home.

常聽到『賓至如歸』這句話。許多飯店，渡假村，旅館宣稱這是他們努力的目標，提供許多服務和招待，並且常詢問有什麼他們可效勞之處。龍之鬍鬚獨特之處是這是我第一次感受到這句話的真諦。舒適的小屋和服務人員保持的微妙的距離，讓人確實將一切煩惱拋到腦後，感到比在自己家中還更自在輕鬆。

 

What will immediately strikes you after turning off the road, down and up the small path into the carpark, is how low profile the place is, figuratively and literally. There’s only a single sign by the main road pointing out this is where you should turn. Atop the hill at the entrance of the carpark, there’s a small hut where the staffs already awaits your arrival.

轉入叉路，尋小路下坡後再向上開往停車場，立刻注意到的是這地方有多低調，字面上和比喻上皆是。公路上只有一個看板指出該在這裡轉入。在坡頂的停車場入口有個小亭子，服務人員早在這裡等候住客駕臨。

 

There’s no planted flowers or other rock decos, no signboard saying welcome or where to go. The whole carpark could pass as a scenic lookout carpark on the side of the road.

沒有花叢或石頭藝術，沒有看板寫著歡迎或往哪走。不細察可能會誤以為是那個觀景點的路邊停車場。

Next you’ll notice the ryokan is missing, that’s because the main hall is actually situated slightly downhill and has such a low profile that with its grass roof, blends perfectly into the surrounding landscape. Blink, and you’ll miss it’s even there.

然後會注意到的是沒看到旅館。這是因為母屋位於山坡另一側，視覺上很低調，加上屋頂上的草，無縫融入自然中。稍一眨眼就會忘記它的存在。

A moss lined path graciously curves to the entrance of the hall, plain and devoid of furnishing save for the ryokan’s name to one side. The colours are subdued throughout and easy on the eyes. The interiors similarly without excess wall pictures, statues or other trinkets, only a few vases of flowers dotted the space, elegant without hinting utilitarian.

小徑兩側鋪著苔癬，以高雅的弧線通道母屋門口。簡約，除了一旁寫著旅館名字外沒有多餘的裝置。處處色調柔和悅目。內部裝潢一樣，牆上沒有多掛畫，擺設雕像或其他小玩意兒，整個空間只散洛這幾只花瓶點綴，優雅而不顯實用主義。

 

The staffs initially thought we were from China, probably because in my email I mentioned we speak english and chinese. A friendly, spirited Taiwanese young lady was assigned to us and showed us to our room and gave us a detailed introduction to its features.

一開始服務人員以為我們是中國來的，大概是我在信中提到我們也說中文和英文吧
。負責我們這次住宿的是位在日本工作的台灣人，是位活潑友善的女孩Rika(後來請問的）。她帶我們到我們的小屋，介紹房間和旅館的設備。

 

Ryu no Hige has 5 cabins, each slightly different, of the twins, Tsukushi (つくし) and Warabi (わらび), Warabi was traditional Japanese style while Tsukushi which I chose for us was described as modern Japanese style.

龍之鬍鬚的5間離屋都不太一樣。つくし和わらび兩間並排為一對，算是雙胞胎。 わらび是傳統和式而我們選的つくし說是現代日式。

 

I had chosen Tsukushi instead of Warabi because it had a clearer view of the mountains. Warabi was situated closer to the main hall, there’s another cabin directly in front and below, though not obstructing, could see the roof of it.

選つくし是因為他看山的視野比較遼闊。わらび比較接近母屋，前方坡下有另一間小屋，雖然不至於擋到但可看到屋頂。

The inside of Tsukushi was made of fir wood (I think?), from the floorboards to the furnitures and pillars and frames, the colour light and soft. There’s a foyer, on the wall hung a shoe horn doubling as the space’s only decoration. Step onto the raised floor, to the right was the door to the toilet and baths, in front leads into the main room.

つくし內部以杉木為主，從地板到桌椅匡柱，顏色淺淡柔和。一進門是玄關，牆上掛有鞋拔，充作這空間唯一的飾品。踩上和室架高地板，右側是通往衛浴的門，正前方則是主間。

 

The living room had two areas, the tatami sleeping area and a living space with sofas. Japanese paper sliding doors could either be closed to create two separate spaces or completely slid to the side to create one continuous wide open space. To note the slide doors slides into the walls and to the side of the closet so when fully opened there are no doors in sight, it is truly without boundary (save for one pillar in the corner).

主間分為兩的區塊，榻榻米的睡覺間和有沙發的起居空間。可將紙門關上形成兩個完全獨立房間，或是完全打開連結成一個寬廣的空間。紙門完全滑入牆內和衣櫃側邊，完全打開時是看不到門的，空間視野上無分界(除了角落的一根柱子)。

 

The side facing Mt Yufu consisted entirely of glass doors that keeps out the cold air. Spotless, there’s not a smudge or spot to be found on them. The eyes gazes past them without the slightest hinder, to the deck outside, over the railing and drawn to the rolling mountains in the distance, all in one breathless wonder filled sigh.

面由布岳那側是整片玻璃門，隔開外頭的冷空氣。一塵不染，上頭找不到一點手印或污漬。視線毫無阻礙的看過去，到外頭的陽台，越過欄杆，注目於遠方的山巒，皆在一息讚歎之間。

A water cooler sits in the corner. No need to fetch water from the basin. There’s a TV in the living area and another smaller one by the tatami for those needing some bedtime drama.

角落有個給水機，不用像其他住宿從水龍頭取水。起居間有台電視，榻榻米旁也有一台小的，為睡前想看點電視劇的人而備。

There’s tea and drip filtered coffee on the shelf. On the tea table packets of delicious Japanese sweet cake from a famous shop in Yufuin.

櫥櫃裡有茶和吊掛式咖啡。茶桌上是來自由布院一家名菓子店，超好吃的小甜點。

Return to the foyer and open the other door. The wash basin/vanity is on the right, upon sits rows of care products, and an entire travel set of Shiseido. On the opposite side of where one came in is another door, the light automatically turns on when one enters the toilet. To the left is another door, here there are racks with 3 set of baskets and towels, a small changing room space before one enters the bathroom. Open this final door and one at last enters the bathroom. The first half is the shower area, the other half lies a huge onsen bath, enough for at least 5 people to comfortably bath in at same time (though Tsukushi is limited to 3 guests only).

回到玄關滑開另一道門。右側是洗臉台，上頭放著贈送的一套小罐資生堂產品。入口對面是另一個門，進入廁所時頭頂的燈自動亮起。穿過左側另一道門，這裡架子上擺著3個籃子和3套毛巾。一個進入浴室前的小更衣間。打開最後一扇門，進入浴室。一半是淋浴區，另一半則是一個大溫泉池，要5個人同時泡也夠 (つくし設定是最多3人)。

 

Note the number of doors mentioned. The bathroom, change room, toilet, wash basin/makeup room are all separated, there is no concern about affecting each other. A person can be on the toilet, another drying hair before the vanity, and another changing out of their clothes to go into the bath, all while another person is sipping coffee in the living room and yet another sleeping in the tatami room (again, this cabin only allows up to 3 guests).

注意提及門的次數。浴室，更衣間，廁所，洗臉/化妝間全部都是隔開的，不用擔心互相干擾。可以一個人用廁所，另一個在洗臉台前吹頭，一個在更衣間脫衣準備進去泡澡，同時還有一人在起居室品咖啡，另一人在榻榻米間睡覺。(重申一次，小屋住宿最多只准3人）

 

The glass doors in front of the bath can be slid open (again, completely into the wall) and the right side window opened to create a half open air bath. Or if feeling cold, slide out a few or shut them completely. The mountain view could be enjoyed while one baths.

溫泉池前的玻璃門可以滑開（同樣的，完全滑入牆側)，右邊的落地窗也可打開，形成一個半露天風呂。若覺得冷也可以只留一扇或完全關閉。邊泡溫泉可以邊欣賞外頭的山景。

 

The onsen water here contains a little more iron and has a reddish tint, with a slight sulfur smell. Of course, it’s kakenagashi, to be enjoyed even in the middle of the night.

這裡的溫泉水含鐵成分比較多，色澤略紅，微帶硫磺味。當然了，這裡是放流，半夜也可享受。

 

Two forms of yukata was prepared. The more common yukata and the samue (shirt and pants) combination if one felt yukata to be a little cumbersome. Plus haori and tanzen.

準備的浴衣有兩種。除了常見的浴衣，另外還有比較舒服靈活的作務衣，若不喜歡穿浴衣可選擇。

 

I don’t have too many photos to show. Once inside the whole person becomes so relaxed I often forget to take photos. All a person feels is the mountains, the woods, and the comfort of the cabin.

我沒有太多房間的照片。一到裡頭立刻正個人放鬆下來，也就忘了要照相了。感受的全是山，森林，還有小屋的舒適。

 

Sometime before dinner I hopped over to the lobby to ask for a sewing kit for mom to fix her shirt’s button, at the same time also asked if they could help me book the popular B-Speak cake rolls for tomorrow. Originally I had trouble explaining the sewing kit to the lady at the desk (this is a little bit above my Japanese….), thankfully the Taiwanese young lady came back and helped with the situation. I cannot thank her enough, and feel a little bad because we caused her a lot of extra efforts, as will be mentioned further down.

晚餐前某個時候我去櫃檯一趟，老媽上衣扣子掉了，跟她們借個針線盒，另外請問她們是否可以幫我預訂超人氣B-Speak蛋糕捲，好明天拿。一開始我想不出該如何問針線盒(日文太爛)，幸好Rika這時回來了，幫忙解決了所有問題。真是太感謝Rika了，也要說聲抱歉，添了許多麻煩，見本篇下面。

Dinner is served at 6:30pm. No exceptions.

晚餐固定是6:30。沒有例外。

 

The meal is served at the main hall in semi-enclosed rooms. The walls do not extend to the top of the rooms, probably to help with ventilation.

用餐是在母屋的半獨立個室。大概是為了通風，隔間牆並沒有延伸到天花板。

The first dish was a warm boiled fish in soup dish. Immediately it warms the body and gently eases the stomach in readiness.

第一道菜是溫暖的煮魚配湯。一吃立刻全身暖起來，也溫和地告知胃該準備進食了。

Perhaps because the young lady was also from Taiwan, she asked if we would like our rice and miso soup to come first (instead of last as is usually the case for Japanese meal) which my parents gladly accepted.

或許因為Rika也是台灣人的關係吧，她詢問我們是否想要先上飯和味噌湯 (通常在日本是最後上)，我爸媽很開心地接受這提案。

There’s a hot water kettle/thermos and tea set in one corner so one could help oneself to some tea at anytime.

一角擺著熱水壺和茶具，想喝茶時隨時可自己泡。

It’s little details like these which initially seemed insignificant that leaves a strong impression.

這些看似微不足道的小細節讓人印象深刻。

 

I ordered some sake, something which I never usually do.

點了一小瓶米酒，通常我是不會加點東西的。

Sashimi, in addition to the wasabi there’s a yuzu and pepper too for use on the fish with stronger taste (very spicy and very good, it’s slightly cool and sweet from the yuzu first then the pepper kicks in). The young lady looked up each of the fish’s name (and each ingredient in every dish) in chinese to help explain the dish to us. (I’m ashamed to say I don’t remember all of them)

生魚片，山葵之外還有一種香橙加胡椒子的佐醬搭配味道較重的魚 (很辛很有味，一開始香橙涼涼甜甜的，然後才感到胡椒後勁)。Rika還查了每種魚的中文 (還有每道菜的各個材料) 好一一為我們解釋。(很慚愧的我沒能記住幾個)

Fried pumpkin, pork with dandelion leaf. The slight bitterness of the leaf counteracts the fatty pork perfectly.

炸南瓜，豬肉，和蒲公英。葉子微微的苦味正好平衡肥肥的豬肉。

The main dish. Ryu no Hige’s signature meat grill. The beef and chicken were from Kagoshima (southern Kyushu).

The chicken was what’s called a chi-tori, meaning local chicken, very meaty and bitey.

The beef was very good, succulent and seemingly just melts in the mouth.

Yes, all this for 3 people. Some people might be able to finish this, we don’t have a shot. We’re told that if we cannot eat it all, they will use the meat to cook a new dish for us for breakfast. It’s almost like their trademark as many many people mention this in their comments. So if you ever visit, only cook what you will eat, leave the rest for the next day.

The grill is deceiving, it’s the infrared flameless type which provides an even and strong heat.

主餐。龍之鬍鬚的招牌烤肉。牛和雞肉是鹿兒島產的（九州南部）。

雞是地雞，也就是土雞，肉感十足很有嚼勁。

牛肉肉質很好，柔軟多汁，似乎入口即化。

沒看錯，3個人吃這麼大一盤。或許有些人能吃完吧，我們很有自知之明直接投降。她建議我們說，若吃不完廚房會用剩下的肉在早餐時做成另一道菜。算是這裡的特色了，評語中常會提到這點。所以若有機會來龍之鬍鬚，切記要吃多少考多少，多的留隔天再戰。

烤架是無煙紅外線式，火候強烈均勻。

Soft boiled egg with chicken? The egg was done just right, the yolk soft and slippery and the white slightly firm to give a contrasting texture.

糖心蛋和雞肉? 蛋煮的剛好，蛋黃軟滑，蛋白QQ的，互相襯托。

Salmon fillet sandwiched with potato. Slightly charred persimmon with orange and tomato. In the middle is chinese mustard (芥菜). All on white cauliflower sauce. The chinese mustard is a little peppery.

鮭魚排夾馬鈴薯。稍微烤過的柿子和橘子，番茄。中間的是芥菜。配白花椰菜醬。芥菜微帶點辛刺。

Soba sushi. Rice wrapped with soba noodles on a soup of cooked buckweat. It’s a refreshing dish, the texture of noodles and rice in the mouth was very interesting.

蕎麥麵壽司。蕎麥麵包飯，底下湯含煮蕎麥粒。味道比較清淡。麵條和飯同時的口感很有意思。

Japanese Spanish Mackarel (Scomberomorus niphonius 鰆) fried then boiled with mushroom and red bell pepper. It smells incredible and is full of flavour, yet does not have the oily feel of fried food.

鰆魚，先炸再煮，配香菇和紅椒。很香，味道很濃郁，卻沒有油炸食物的油膩感。

Fried daikon mochi. It’s not as sticky as regular mochi making it quite easy to eat, and soaked up a lot of flavour of the stock.

炸羅蔔麻糬。沒有一般麻糬黏，很容易吃，吸收了很多高湯的味道。

Pudding with rice puffs (ポン菓子). It’s a very light sweet taste, the rice puffs gave it a very fun texture.

米果布丁。味道微甜，加上米果的口感很有趣。

 

Delicious would not do the chef justice.

單用『好吃』形容這餐會是對料理長的不敬。

 

After the most creative and delightful dinner we return to our room. It was night, the bright full moon silhouetting the black mountain peaks, a thin wisp of cloud capped Mt Yufu. The tranquil landscape was like a scene out of a book.  

在充滿新奇喜悅的晚餐後回到房間。天早黑了，明亮的滿月畫出漆黑綿延的山峰輪廓，一縷絲綢薄雲幫由布岳圍上頭巾，閃閃星斗倒映林海中點點燈火。眼前的寧靜猶似壁上躍下的潑墨山水。

Everything was quiet, with the thick glass doors nothing can be heard of the highway in the valley or guests in other cabins. There’s a stereo system next to the TV, it can play CD, usb, and more conveniently bluetooth. It springs to life with Ghibli orchestral music. A curious thing, never having felt the need for familiar music in hotel or ryokans, now it felt the most essential thing.

房裡很安靜，厚玻璃門隔音效果很好，聽不到山谷裡的大分高速或其他住客。電視旁有一套音響，可以放CD, usb, 更方便的是有藍牙。音響啪的開始放送宮崎駿交響樂曲。很有意思，從前在飯店或旅館時從不覺得需要聽點熟悉的音樂，現在卻覺得沒這不行。

There are a dozen guest books in the room, filled with praise from amazed guests. We asked dad to write something since he had the best handwriting, but he forgot.

房內有留言簿，十多本內滿是住客驚嘆讚美之詞。有請字最漂亮的老爸寫幾句，但他忘了。

The bed was warm, soft with good support. Each bed had two futons, a harder base and a softer one on top.

床很溫暖，很柔軟彈性也夠。每張床有兩個床墊，底下的比較硬，搭配上頭的軟墊。

 

It was then it dawned on us that despite the heater was on, the room was not stuffy. I remembered something I had read on their website. Looking around I soon found the answer. Beneath the TV shelf was a set of grills, which at first looked abit like designs for a drawer. Put your hand closer and you can feel a gentle cool breeze. Each cabin has an under floor air cycling system that brought in fresh air from the outside to keep the room comfortable.

這時意識到雖然有開暖氣，但房間一點也不悶。我想起在官網上有看過什麼。我四處看看後很快找到了答案。在電視櫃下有一排格子，看上去有點像是抽屜還是什麼。手放過去便會感到微微涼風。每間小屋都有一個屋下換氣系統可從外面帶入新鮮空氣，保持房間舒適。

I woke up around 5 (fell asleep very early night before). My parents had not yet risen, I slid the doors close till there was only a small gap and turned on the living space lights without affecting them. Made some coffee, and sat on the couch and waited for the sunrise.

我大概5點睡醒 (前晚很早睡著)。我爸媽還在睡，於是我把紙門拉到剩一條縫後打開起居間的燈，沒有打擾到他們。泡了杯咖啡，坐在沙發上等日出。

It was the most remarkable view. The sun was behind the mountains and the peaks cast shadows on the cloud above, like rays of dark light. The snowy peak glimmered in the golden light, the whole of Mt Yufu was basked in a warm reddish glow.

景色太令人印象深刻了。太陽是從山後升起，山峰影子投射到雲上，像是黑色的光柱。山上的白雪變成一片金黃，整個由布岳籠罩著一股溫暖的紅光。

I went for a bath, the cool morning air fresh and golden sun on the face.

泡澡時，早晨的冷風和金光同時撫摸著臉頰。

Breakfast was served at 8:30am, again no exception.

早餐是8:30，同樣不能提早。

 

There was a platter of various sides, a curious mix of japanese and western dishes that matched well together.

早餐有一盤各式小菜，引人沉思的日式西式巧妙混和。

 

The rice came in 3 bowls, two large one small, without prompting. The small one for my mother.

送來3碗飯，2大碗1小碗，事前沒特別提出過請求。小碗是給老媽的。

Our unfinished meat from the night before came as a marinated stir-fried dish, a straightforward approach that focused on the taste of the meat.

昨晚沒吃完的肉重新登場，簡單的醃肉快炒，凸顯肉美味的直球。

During the meal the young lady brought to us a map of Yufuin, annotated by hand in chinese using many coloured pens, of the various shops and recommended sweets, cakes and other foods. It’s hard to imagine the effort it would have taken to translate and write them all out in detail.

用餐時Rika拿出一張由布院的地圖，上頭用各種色筆寫有中文，細膩討喜的標式出有特色的店家還有推薦的糖果糕點和其他小吃。很難想像花了多少時間精神來翻譯，標寫出來。

 

 

Back to the cabin, enjoying the music and scenery, chatting with my parents.

回到房間後繼續聽著音樂和風景，跟爸媽聊天喝茶。

At last, it was time to say farewell to this small, unforgettable ryokan. I call the front desk to let them know we will be checking out, and the staffs came over to help with our luggages.

美好總是有結束，該是跟這間令人流連忘返的旅館告別的時候。我打電話到櫃檯告知我們要準備退房了，Rika和另一位小姐連忙來離屋幫忙搬行李。

 

Before getting into the car I remembered to say, “Osewani nari mashita”, thank you for all the care given. I wish I knew better sentences to describe my gratitude for the experience.

上車前我記得該說什麼『お世話になりました』，感謝照顧。如果我會別的日文，能更貼切表示我對這次經驗的感謝就好了。

 

They helped direct us back out the car and waved us goodbye.

她們幫忙導引倒車，然後揮手和我們告別。

 

Most excellent food, most excellent room, most excellent view, excellent value, most perfect service. Even now there’s the urge to book a flight and visit again come summer.

吃滿分，住滿分，景色滿分，CP值超值，服務完美超滿分。現在不時有衝動想夏天再去一次。

 

Ryu no Hige Website 草屋根之宿 龍之鬍鬚官網：http://ryunohige.com/index.html

Tsukushi cabin for 3 on weekdays is 84000Y (28000Y per person). This may seem a little high, be assured it’s worth spending one night here than two at a regular ryokan in the 10~20k per person range.

つくし住三人平日84000(一人28000Y)。乍看可能很貴，住了就知道，其他一人一萬～兩萬的旅館兩晚不如住這一晚。

One thing to note, the telephone number in GPS navigation is incorrect. You must set the location manually or use the mapcode [269 292 760*44]

另外要注意GPS用電話的住址是錯的 需要手動設定或用mapcode 「269 292 760*44」

Woke up about 3 in the morning to find bath’s awning outside completely covered in thick white layer, and snowing heavily. I was terrified now, what if the roads became sealed off? I checked the road status websites to find all roads to Yufuin under snow gear restriction, meaning either chains or studless tyres. Despite my mom’s attempt to assuage my fears, that even if we were trapped it wouldn’t be a problem, I could barely sleep. I could have requested the car be equipped with studless tyres, but I didn’t.

早上3點起來迎來的是滿天風雪，外頭風呂的遮棚上已厚厚一層白色。這可把我嚇出一身冷汗，若是道路被封閉怎麼辦。看路況網站上往由布院的路都有雪地止滑的限制，需要雪鏈或雪胎。雖然老媽安慰我說就算被困住也不是問題，還是睡不著。原本有機會跟租車公司要求裝雪胎的，但沒有這麼做。

Sunrise, I took a bath in the room’s private onsen. All the hills and rocks was now covered in white, a lovely view which I tried my best to enjoy.

天明了。在房間風呂內泡了下溫泉。所有的山坡和石頭都覆蓋了白色，我也試著放鬆享受這美景。

Before breakfast time I went to the main hall and found the Taiwanese staff there, and I asked him about the conditions. Good news was if it became absolutely necessary it would be possible to swap into studless tyres at the local service shop, however the other local staffs who had been here much longer were not worried and say the light snow would have melted by the time we check out.

早餐前我先去母屋打聽看看，找到那位台灣籍的服務員，問問他認為狀況如何。好消息是必要情形下可以在附近的維修店換雪胎，其他住這裡的在地員工則認為這點雪等到我們要出發時就會融化了，無須擔憂。

 

I was a little skeptical, but felt much more relieved. Worst case was just a matter of spending some money and changing tyres. Outside, Hozantei’s mascots, a flock of ducks were frolicking in the freezing pond unbothered by the cold, their feathers thick and fluffy.

雖還是有點懷疑，但放心許多了。最糟就是花錢消災換輪胎。外頭，帆山亭的吉祥物們，一群鴨子，無畏寒冷的在冰池中嬉戲，牠們的羽毛厚又毛絨絨的。

Breakfast served at 7:30. Platter of pickles, tofu sides, miso soup, rice and the requisite grilled fish. It was a simple, satisfying meal and we thought better than dinner last night.

早餐7:30開始。各式醬菜，小碟豆腐，味噌湯，白飯和必備的烤魚。簡單，有滿足感的一餐，比昨天晚餐好吃。

Turned out there were two Taiwanese staff working here. Apart from the young man there was another young lady who helped serve our breakfast. My parents struck up a conversation with her and asked about her experience here. The rural onsen towns were facing depopulation, combined with the hard working involved it was difficult to attract new young staffs, so many in the areas turned to people from overseas who were interested in working in Japan. It also had the benefits of helping overcome the language issue with foreign guests.

這才發現原來這裡有兩位台灣籍服務生。除了先前那位年輕人外還有一位小姐今天早上負責我們的早餐。爸媽和她聊上幾句，詢問她在這的經驗。鄉下的溫泉區面臨人口流失，加上旅館的工作不輕鬆，很難吸引到年輕人，於是許多地方便從國外招募想到日本工作的人。這同時也能幫助跟外國住客語言不通的問題。

 

The sun had fully risen and the riverside view from the room was exquisite. The bright glittering snow contrasted with the dark of the bush and tree branches. Whatever trouble the snow might cause, this view might be worth it along. Had it not snowed the view might have been a barren brown of winter, now it was like a scene out of a traditional ink painting.

太陽完全升起了，房間外的景色相當精緻。閃亮的白雪和黑色的樹叢和枝葉形成強烈對比。不管這雪製造多少麻煩，能見到這景色也值了。若不是這雪外面的景色可能就只是冬天枯黃一片，現在則像幅山水畫。

The staffs were right about the snow. By 10:30 much of the snow on the road had melted away. I’m not sure whether they had sprayed them with water or the asphalt naturally soaked up sunlight more and was warmer; the grass and trees on either side were still covered thickly.

服務員說的不錯，到10:30路上的雪大多都化掉了。不知道他們是不是有灑水或是柏油本來就容易吸熱; 兩旁的草木仍積著厚厚的雪。

 

The staffs helped carry our luggage up the ramp to the car park, the luggage were held up in the air to avoid them touching the wet grounds. They had already helped brush away the snow from the car windows, though upon the hood and trunk the snow was left there which gave some quite interesting sights later in the day. As we drove chucks of powdery snow would break off and scatter into the wind poetically.

旅館人員幫忙把行李抱到停車場，高高抱著避免行李沾到泥水。他們已經幫忙把車窗上的雪掃掉，車頂和引擎蓋上的則留著，還挺好玩的，之後開著開著就會有一塊雪剝落，瀟灑地在風中灑散。

 

Hozantei overall was a good experience. There were some bad spots, like the old lady in the first day a little cold (probably due to the language issue). The Taiwanese staffs on other hand were very friendly (probably nice to see someone from back home). CP was average, the room was definitely worth the extra price (I think Standard III is a must, only 2k more than a Standard I but the bath is so much larger plus the shower room). Food was average. The room and ryokan buildings were adequate and traditional, a very rural farmhouse feel to them. It would be better in other seasons as the warmer weather would encourage guests to wander into the main hall and gardens and enjoy some other activities.

帆山亭綜合來說是個不錯的體驗。有些可改進的地方，像第一天的老太太有點冷漠（可能是語言的關係）。台灣籍的服務員則是很友善（大概難得遇到家鄉的人）。CP值普通，房間值多費那點錢（標準III式是基本，多兩千但溫泉池大得多，加上有淋浴間）。吃的還好。房間和旅館建築大致上沒問題，很有傳統味，有鄉間農舍的感覺。在其他季節會好一點，天氣若叫暖就可以在母屋和院子閒逛，享受點其他的活動。

 

We drove to the tourism centre of Kurokawa Onsen. Parking was very limited in Kurokawa Onsen, this was one of the few spots where one could park. In the peak seasons it might be hard to find a spot and will have to park at the carpark on the outskirt, today there were plenty of space.

我們開到黑川溫泉的旅客中心。黑川溫泉的停車場所有限，這裡是唯一幾個能停車的地方之一。旺季時可能一位難求會需要停到郊區，不過今天位子很多。

One must learn abit of Kurokawa in order to fully appreciate it. Kurokawa is a legend amongst Japanese onsens. What makes it special? Nothing, which is why it is so special.

要體會黑川必須先稍微對他有所了解。黑川在日本溫泉中是個傳奇。他有什麼特別的？沒有，所以才很特別。

 

The 60s and 70s were Japan’s golden age. In the boom years companies and people were flush with money. Companies would host onsen outings for their employees, and people joined tours and visited onsens for leisure. Onsen tourism exploded and many onsen towns saw big investments.

60和70年代是日本的黃金歲月。經濟飛漲的那個年代公司和人們都很有錢。公司會舉辦員工溫泉旅行，一般人也會參加旅行團去溫泉渡假。溫泉觀光成了當紅炸子雞，許多溫泉村鎮增加了許多大型投資。

 

Large onsen hotels propped up in onsens that were close to the cities, the most famous being Kinugawa and Atami. These hotels may be 10s of storeys tall, with grand lobbies, shops and theatres. There would be nightly performances to entertain guests, the stereotypical pingpong tables for guests to pass the time, and various gaming machines. These hotels sought to capture guests, satisfy their every possible needs in order to keep them inside and take every yen they spent.

大型溫泉旅館在接近都市的溫泉區一一立起，最有名的就是鬼怒川和熱海。這些旅館可能有10多層樓高，有雄偉的大廳，店鋪和表演廳。晚上會有取樂住客的表演，有老套的乒乓球桌來打磨時間，還有各種遊樂機台。這些旅館試圖綁住住客，滿足他們所有的慾望，盡可能讓他們待在旅館裡拿到他們花費的每一塊錢。

 

But this destroyed any feeling of an onsen town. Instead of having a sense of township each hotel and ryokan became their own little isolated fortresses, competing against each other with little regard of the overall appeal of the onsen.

但這毀了溫泉村鎮的氣息。取代村鎮向心的是一棟棟各自為政要塞似的飯店和旅館，互相競爭不顧整體溫泉區的受歡迎度。

 

Then the bubble burst and companies could no longer afford employee trips, the number of visitors to onsen towns fell off a cliff and the huge hotel complexes which costed a fortune to maintain went into the red. As the hotels closed up it caused a downward spiral. Each shuttered hotels and shops became derelicts and made the town felt ever less lively until everything became a deathly quiet broken only by the light of the few hotels that still struggled on. People felt less inclined to visit these onsens.

然而泡沫瓦解了，公司無法再負擔員工旅遊，溫泉區的訪客數雪崩式滑落，需龐大經費維持的大型旅館開始赤字連連。旅館的倒閉造成惡性循環。每一間拉上鐵門的旅館或店家都成了破壞景觀的廢墟，村鎮顯得越來越沒有生氣，直到變成一片死寂，偶爾才被少數苟延殘喘的旅館的燈光暫時打斷。人們更不想去這種溫泉區了。

 

Kurokawa escaped such fate by a combination of luck and misfortune giving birth to ingenious ideas.

黑川透過從不幸中誕生的智慧，加上一點好運，逃過了這宿命。

 

Kurokawa is essentially a small onsen town in the middle of nowhere. It has no access to trains and is several hours out from the major cities by car or bus. It has no long history or traditions, no landmarks or famous shrines and temples, its onsen water quality is not spectacular. There’s nothing special about it that distinguishes it from the several hundred other small onsens throughout Japan and while the major onsen towns boomed, the ryokans in Kurokawa merely existed, with only Shinmeikan doing decently due to its open air baths.

黑川基本上是個處在鳥不生蛋之地的小溫泉村。沒有鐵路，從大城市開車或搭巴士也要數小時。沒有歷史或傳統，沒有地標景觀或有名的神社或寺廟，溫泉的泉質也沒好到哪裡。他跟日本其他數百個小溫泉沒什麼不一樣，當大型溫泉村鎮在蓬勃發展時，黑川的旅館只是卑微的存在著，只有新明館因為有露天風呂而比較有人氣。

 

Then in 1985 the second generation took over running of Shinmeikan and sought to bring changes to the onsen. The idea of running the onsen town as a single entity with a single brand and identity was born. The theme would be open air baths amongst the wild forests. Tree were planted, a standard appearance was adopted throughout town, black signage with white text, black on earthen orange walls for buildings and any unnecessary sign boards removed. The onsen hopping pass was born, for 1200Y (now 1300Y) one could visit any 3 ryokan’s baths, to encourage guests to visit different ryokans and enjoy the feel of different onsen baths, the idea was to treat the entire town as one big onsen ryokan, and selling the hopping pass also gave the tourism association a steady source of income which they could utilize to maintain the town’s appearances and host events.

1985年新明館第二代當家接管後企圖改變黑川溫泉。把整個溫泉村當作單一主體，單一形象和特性的概念產生了。主軸定位為天然樹林中的露天秘湯。他們開始種樹，村內建築的外觀統一為土橙色牆面和黑色樑柱，標示全改為黑底白字，多餘的廣告也全撤除。建立了溫泉手形的制度，只要1200Y(現在1300Y)就可以任選三家旅館泡湯，鼓勵訪客光顧不同的旅館，享受不同的風呂的滋味，這想法是把整個村當作一家大溫泉旅館。而販賣手形也提供當地觀光協會一筆固定收入，可以用來維持村子的整潔和舉行活動。

 

Because of Kurokawa’s initial lack of investments the town had no large ryokans that would affect the small hidden village in the mountains atmosphere and were able to come together as locals. The town was reborn, against the overall trend of onsen town decline, Kurokawa’s visitor numbers increased 3 fold by the 2000s. Over a million visitors a year for a town less than 4000.

由於黑川一開始並沒有吸引投資，這裡沒有會破壞山中小村氣息的大型旅館，整個溫泉區也能以當地人為出發點凝聚起來動員。整個村子重生了，面對溫泉村鎮普遍的衰退，黑川的訪客數反逆勢高速成長，2000年代時已成長三倍。一個不到四千居民的小鎮一年卻有超過一百萬訪客。

 

That’s the story of Kurokawa.

黑川溫泉的故事。

 

I bought a onsen hopper pass from the tourist centre, no intention of using, just a souvenir. The tourist centre also has lockers and provides accommodation booking service, and other general information.

我在遊客中心買了一個溫泉手形，純粹紀念沒有要用。遊客中心有置物櫃，也提供訂房服務和其他觀光詢問。

 

Kurokawa onsen is not very big, to make a walk around the main street would take about half an hour only, apart from the ryokans there’s only about 10 shops. We went at a leisurely pace, checking out the various ryokans and shops along the way. Many ryokans either also operate restaurants or have public sitting spaces outside to encourage tourists to drop in, take a bath or buy some snacks and other products. Day onsen guests can contribute significantly to a ryokan’s income.

黑川溫泉不大，主街走一趟只要半小時，旅館外不過也就十家店左右。我們用很悠閒的步伐逛著， 檢視沿途的一家家旅館和店鋪。許多旅館也同時經營餐廳或是在門外有可歇息的公共區域，鼓勵遊客入內泡湯，或買點吃的和其它商品。日湯訪客可是旅館收入的重要一環。

For example Ikoi operates a restaurant and offers lunch + onsen packages as well as selling onsen eggs outside with free sitting areas around a warm hearth and footbath. The footbath is also free but usually people would buy a towel for about 200Y. Their daytime operation accounts for 20% of yearly revenue. Many other ryokans also earn about 10% during daytime.

舉來來說，いこい有附屬的餐廳，提供午餐+泡湯的方案，在外頭也有賣溫泉蛋，提供圍繞暖爐的免費座位和足湯。足湯也是免費的，一般會買一條毛巾大約200Y。他們日間營業的收入佔年收入的20%。其他許多旅館日間營業的比重也有10%左右。

 

 

We take a break at the Shiratamako, a Japanese sweets cafe specializing in shiratama (a kind of little rice balls) and mochis. The grilled mochi was delicious, it was the first time I had a proper grilled mochi. I had bought mochi before and tried grilling myself but they never tasted right, at last I understand how they are supposed to taste.

我們在白玉團子吃了些茶點，這家日式茶點店專賣類似湯圓的糰子和麻糬。烤麻糬很好吃，這是我第一次吃真正的烤麻糬。從前有買過日式麻糬來自己烤，吃起來總覺不太對，現在我知道味道該是怎樣了。

The main street curves gently uphill. There’s a few souvenir shops, a honey specialist, a cafe selling Aso milk and horse meat buns and croquette, pottery and local sake seller.

彎曲的主街慢慢往上爬。有幾家紀念品店，蜂蜜專賣店，一家賣阿蘇牛奶，馬肉包子和可樂餅，陶藝，還有地酒賣店。

 

At the end of the main street we decide we should have something to eat before we head for Yufuin. Cafe Fu-Do, meaning Wind Degrees C, had a burger using meat from a local cow breed, akaiushi meaning red cow. Tasted about the same as other beef, nothing special but a decent choice if you felt like something with no surprises. Lunch choices in Kurokawa can be a limited as there were only 2-3 other eateries, not counting the slightly more expensive ryokan restaurants.

在主街盡頭我們決定出發往由布院前先吃點東西。附近的Cafe風C有當地紅牛肉做的漢堡。吃起來跟其他牛肉差不多，沒什麼特別但若不想遇到驚奇的話倒是OK的選項。黑川溫泉午餐選項有限，若不考慮較貴的旅館餐廳大概只有2-3家其他餐館。

We returned to the tourist centre and I asked the staffs for opinion on how to get to Yufuin.

回到遊客中心，我向服務人員詢問該如何去由布院，聽聽他們的意見。

 

The scenic Yamanami highway was out of question, it went high up in between two tall peaks and was knee deep in snow. The best detour available was the 387 highway that led from Minamioguni to Kokonoe, takes about the same time as the Yamanami highway, however this one was also marked with a snow restriction on the road status website. If the 387 was no good then we would have no choice but backtrack to Hita and take the Oita Expressway, adding over an hour to the original 1 hour journey.

景觀道路やまなみハイウェイ是不可能的，這條路一路往上從兩座山峰間通過，現在雪深及膝。最好的繞道選項是387公路，從南小國町通到九重，所需時間和やまなみハイウェイ差不多，但這條在道路狀況網站上也有標示雪地限制。如果387公路不行的話就必須走回路到日田再走大分高速，這樣會多繞一小時。

 

The staffs weren’t so sure about highway 387. It may be okay, they suggested.

服務人員不太確定387公路。或許可以走吧，他們這樣說。

 

My parents suggested we should give it a try, if not we can still take the detour to Hita. It was a good thing we did, the road status website must be a little slow in updating information as we saw no sign of road restrictions on the way. The road surface had less snow than areas around Kurokawa.

爸媽建議走走看，若真不行再繞日田。幸好我們有走，道路狀況網站大概更新沒那麼快，我們一路上都沒看到限制行駛的跡象。道路上的雪比黑川一帶還少。

 

Initially I was nervous and constant expected to see a check point. We descended the mountains and it turned to elation. The scenery along the way was quite beautiful, plenty of rolling woods and hills. There are a lot of onsens along the way, can’t go a 5 minutes without running into signs pointing to onsen hotels. There was a small stretch of road where steam was readily rising out of the sides.

一開始還很緊張，一直認為會遇到檢查點。慢慢下山後心情才轉為開朗。兩側的風景很好，有許多綿延的山丘和樹林。一路上都是溫泉，走沒五分鐘就會看到溫泉旅館的指標。其中有一小段路兩側還不斷冒出蒸氣呢。

Kokonoe showed that we had cleared the snow area completely; the path to Yufuin was now assured. We take a short break at the information and local produce promotion centre at the intersection.

到九重代表已經脫離雪區; 到由布院的路途確認沒問題了。我們在交叉路口的農產特銷觀光所停了下。

Because we left early incase we had to detour via Hita, we now looked to reach Ryu no Hige ahead of schedule. Given that we decided to drive through Yufuin main street first instead, get a feel for the town, confirm where the rental return and petrol station are, and pick up our train tickets so there’s one less thing to do tomorrow.

由於可能會需要繞日田，我們離開黑川的時間比計畫得早許多。現在到龍之鬍鬚變的會太早，於是我們先繞去由布院主街一趟，確認還車和加油站地點，順便取火車票這樣明天就少一件必做的事。

 

We parked at a 7-11 near the station, I went for the ticket while my parents went inside for some shopping. Convenience store parking is probably the best source of temporary parking in Japan, easy to find and so long as you bought something all is okay.

我們停在車站附近的一家7-11。我去拿票時爸媽就在裡頭逛。便利商店停車場大概是日本最方便的臨時停車方法，只要有買點東西就好了。

We bought more bread and a bottle of sake for dad, after that we head for Ryu no Hige, which must be discussed in its own chapter.

我們買了些麵包，還有爸要的大吟釀。然後前往龍之鬍鬚，關於這旅館的事必須另外一篇介紹。

 

Day 1 begins much the same as any other trip. The one deviation was that Plaza Premium had opened lounges in the airport so the credit card had switched to them as the partner lounge. There were actually two Plaza Premium in Terminal 2, one an open cafe style area where food with self serve foods, and another more lounge like one off to the side where the food came in sets and couches were plenty. I actually preferred the old Moore lounge’s food, there were more variety even if the seating were terrible.

 

第一天的開始和其他次旅遊大同小異。不同的一點是環亞(Plaza Premium)貴賓室所以信用卡合約貴賓室改為他們。二航廈其實有兩個環亞貴賓室，一個是類似咖啡店的開放式區域，食物飲料為自助式。另一個比較接近正統貴賓室在側邊，餐飲是點的套餐式，有許多沙發。我其實比較喜歡舊的Moore貴賓室的食物，變化比較多，雖然座位很爛。

Other than that it was the same old, the EVA Air Hello Kitty jet was joyful as ever, the outside was painted with the cuddly cat and and food containers and utensils were similarly designed. The food felt worse than last time but my parents actually liked them.

 

除了有點舊外長榮的Hello Kitty飛機依然討喜，外頭有可愛貓咪的塗裝，餐飲的器具和刀叉也有設計過。食物感覺比上回差，我爸媽反比較喜歡就是了。

The rental car chosen was Budget Rental. It is not the cheapest rental car company around but it was the best option given our plans. We needed to pick up from the airport and drop the car off at Yufuin. There were only 4 or 5 rental companies in Yufuin and only 2 had branches also at the airport. However only Budget had branch on the International Terminal side. The other company, Nissan Rental, was on the Domestic side. Outside that we would have to head to Hakata station.

 

選的租車公司是Budget. 不是最便宜的租車公司但對我們的計畫是最適合的。我們需要從機場直接拿車，在由布院還車。由布院只有四五家租車公司，而只有兩家也在機場有分店。而只有Budget是在國際航廈有分店，另外一家日產租車在國內線。除此之外就只能到博多車站一帶了。

 

When considered that we were staying at Hozantei and the sooner we reach there the sooner we could enjoy the onsen, a few thousand difference in car rental was secondary. Budget offered significant time saving and convenience over the other options.

 

考慮住的是帆山亭，越快到就越快能享受溫泉，在租車上多個幾千不過是次要考量。相較下Budget省時又方便。

 

I called Budget on the phone, the person talked a little English and after confirming my name, told us to wait outside the departure level, to the right side where there is a small police post. If I hadn’t read it about it on their website beforehand though I doubt I would have understood where we were supposed to wait.

 

我打電話給Budget，另一頭的店員會說一點英文，在確認我的名字後便請我們在出境那層樓右側有個駐警室那裡等。如果我不是已事先在網路上讀過我懷疑我是否能弄清楚等車地點。

 

We headed upstairs and the shuttle van showed up before I could even take a photo of the police post. The driver confirmed my name again then drove us to the store situated just across the road at the entrance ramp of the airport terminal.

 

我們上樓後還沒有機會照駐警室，Budget接送車就來。駕車再次確認我的名字後把我們載到機場入口大道另一側的店面。

We were quickly ushered inside and a chinese lady walked us through the procedures, most of which I had already known about. Insurances, must inform the police and rental company after any accident, even if it’s just driving into a wall yourself, driving and parking rules, needing to fuel up before returning the car, things like that. The lady also mentioned that Yufuin had seen some weather lately and that we should be careful since we were driving there. I wasn’t too worried, I had checked the forecast earlier that day and things were expected to remain about 5 degrees C, overcast but otherwise fine.

 

我們被帶到店內，一位中國籍店員為我們一一講解手續，大部分我已經讀過了。保險，若出任何意外一定要通知警察和租車店，就算只是自己撞牆也一樣。開車和停車的規矩，還車前要先加滿油，’這一類的。店員也提醒我們由布院最近有些天氣狀況，我們要開車去要留意。我並不太擔心，前一天已確認過預報，應該會維持在5度左右，陰天但除此外良好。

 

Despite our plane’s delays of about 15 minutes behind scheduled time thus arriving at Budget after 12, a fair bit behind schedule, we actually left ahead of time, before 12:30.

 

雖然我們的飛機延誤了15分鐘所以到Budget時已12點，我們離開時其實還比預期的早，還不到12:30。

 

The trip down to Kurokawa was expected to take around 2 hours, with a quick stop or two we should reach there by 3:00pm.

 

往黑川的路途預期需2小時，途中稍停一兩次大概下午3點可抵達。

 

The total cost of the rental was about 28k for 48 hours. The base rental cost about 17k, plus 13k for dropping off at a different location, 4k for the total safety pack (2k per day), then there was a 33% promotional discount for offseason, plus a 1k coupon for being a first time user.

 

租車48小時總花費大約28k。基本租車費是17k，加上異地還車13k，4k全保險(每天2k)，然後淡季33%折價促銷，還有第一次使用送的1k折價卷。

 

I did not rent an ETC card as we were travelling on a weekday so no discount was to be had from using an ETC. We couldn’t blitz past the toll booths, but we won’t need to confirm the ETC usage upon dropping off the car either. The toll was expected to be about 2.5k all up.

 

我並沒有租ETC卡，在平日駕車過路費ETC沒有打折。我們或許不能在路過收費站時直接開過去，但還車時也不用核對ETC過路費。過路費加起來大約要2.5k。

 

The GPS navigation in the car was a thing of beauty, giving extremely precise voice directions (we chose Chinese, but it can also do English, the interface remained Japanese though which could be an real issue for others), and is very meticulous about which lanes to drive in so there were never any surprising lane changing.

 

車內的GPS導航可真優秀，不但語音導航非常準確（我們選中文，也有英文可選，不過介面還是日文所以對其他人可能會造成一些問題），同時對切換車道也有詳細的指示，這次從沒遇到突然需換車道的情況。

 

Japanese signages, at least on the expressway, were also very well designed in giving directions, even the shape of the interchanges and which lane to take.

 

日本的道路標示，至少在高速公路上，在指引方向方面也設計的很好，連交流道的形狀和該走哪條車道都有標示。

 

One peculiar thing one notices while driving in Japan is that no one obeys the speed limit. Usually, at least in Taiwan and Australia, one drives 10k above the indicated limit. Every car in Japan was driving at least 20k above that. I settled on about 12~13k above the limit to not hold up traffic while still feeling some plausible deniability if any police cars pull us over. Never did see a police car however, didn’t even see any speed cameras. I hope there weren’t any cameras anyway. We paid the rental car in cash and they didn’t ask for any credit card details, I wonder who would have to pay the fine if we were caught speeding.

 

在日本開車有一件事很奇怪，就是沒有人遵守速限。通常在台灣和澳洲，開車會開超出速限10公里左右。在日本每輛車都至少超過20公里。我最後選擇開超出12~13公里，這樣比較不會影響車流，就算被警察攔下來也覺得還在可裝不知的範圍。不過沒看到一輛警車，連測速照相機也沒有，至少希望沒有測速照相機。我們是用現金付款，店家也沒有要信用卡資料，若真超速被罰不知道是誰要付罰金。

 

The loop expressway around Hakata had a single toll fee and one had to pay upon entering it, after that upon entering the main Kyushu expressway systems at Dazaifu, we had to take a ticket similar to the ones at the mall car parks. Then upon exit feed the ticket to the toll machine for it to calculate the appropriate fees.

 

繞博多一圈的環狀高速是單一收費，一上去就需付錢。之後在太宰府進入九州高速時則是需取票，類似賣場停車場機器會吐的那種。然後下交流道後把票插入機器讓它計算過路費。

 

The driving went surprisingly smooth, so smooth I could hardly believe it when we turned onto the Oita Expressway, way ahead of schedule. A little bit into the Oita Expressway I pull the car into the Yamada service area. This was one of the larger service areas along the expressway and one of the last places where we could stock up before heading into the mountains where even convenience stores were rare.

 

駕車初期的順利，當提早行程轉入大分高速時有點難已置信。上大分高速不久後我轉入山田休息區。這是高速公路上一個比較大的休息區，也是我們入山前唯一能採購的幾個地方之一，進入山區後連超商也沒幾家。

 

The service station had a eatery and a grocery shop area, turned out to have a little less instant noodles or bread than expected, focusing more on local goods such as various sweets and other food products. We did manage to pick up a bunch of locally grown oranges and persimmons, they were cheap and delicious. There would not be other fruits as cheap as here throughout the trip later, a good thing we stopped here.

 

休息區有一個快餐部和賣店，泡麵和麵包種類比想像的少，比較多各種糕餅零食和一些食產品。不過有買到好幾包當地產的橘子和柿子，便宜又好吃，之後都沒看到這麼便宜的水果，有停這真是賺到了。

 

 

 

We turn off the expressway at Hita. Since we hadn’t picked up any instant noodles I pull over at a 7-11. We load up on some noodles and bread, plus dad bought a hot bun, then was back on our merry way.

 

我們在日田下交流道。由於沒有買到泡麵，我在路旁一家7-11停下。我們採購了泡麵和麵包，還有老爸買了個包子，然後繼續上路。

 

The road from Hita to Kurokawa was more winding than looked on the maps, even if one didn’t cared for the speed limit one couldn’t really drive too much above anyway. After Minamioguni, the town nearest to Kurokawa, specks of flakes began to drift into the windshield. Snow? I frowned before deciding a snow this light couldn’t pose any trouble.

 

從日田到黑川的路比地圖上看起來的彎曲，就算不管速限也開不了多快。過了黑川最接近的小鎮南小國町後，斑斑薄片開始飄到擋風玻璃上。雪？我皺了皺眉，認定這點雪不構成問題。

 

We reached Hozantei around 3:30pm. It’s clear the GPS expected one to drive above speed limit too as its initial timing estimates were spot on. And I had thought we would manage it early by driving over the limit. It was good enough, I had originally envisioned us reaching there around 4pm.

 

抵達帆山亭時是3.30pm。很明顯的GPS導航預期駕駛維持速限以上，一開始預估的抵達時間完全無誤。我原本還想超出速限可以早到呢。不過這樣夠早了，我原始設想是4點到呢。

 

A Taiwanese staff picked up our luggage and an old Japanese lady brought us to a small cottage which had been turned into a bar. We were glad to be out of the cold, the place was a little cramped and did not seemed to have proper seats. A welcome drink was served, it was a fruit wine, though I could not understand the lady at the time other than it was some form of alcoholic drink.

 

一位台灣籍服務員先幫忙抱起我們的行李，另一位日本老太太則帶我們到一間小屋改建成的酒吧。很高興能脫離外頭的寒冷。裡頭地方有點擁擠，也沒有比較正式的座位。老太太送上迎賓酒，一種水果酒，不過當時我並不理解老太太所說的，只知道是某種含酒精飲料。

Mom was none too pleased about the cleanliness of the place however. Someone before us had spilled their drink over the table and floor, now dried into sticky patches. I tried to inform the old lady but either I couldn’t make it clear or she couldn’t really be bothered, it wasn’t until we asked for a towel to wipe the table ourselves that she came around to clean up the spilled patches.

 

老媽對這屋子的整潔度不怎麼滿意。在我們來之前有人在位子把飲料灑了，變得乾乾黏黏的。我試著告訴老太太但要不是我說的不清楚就是她並不想管，一直要到跟她要茶巾後才過來幫旁忙把污漬擦掉。

 

After drink we were taken to our room, Yamaboushi (山ぼうし). The old lady showed us around the room, asked for our heights so she could fetch yukatas of the right sizes. Seemed a little odd as yukatas are loose wears so sizes needed not be exact, she could surely judge the approximate fit just by looking.

 

喝完酒後終於可去期待的房間了，山ぼうし。老太太幫忙介紹房間的設備，也問了我們的身高好去拿大小適合的浴衣。感覺有點奇怪，浴衣是很寬鬆的衣物，大小不用多精準，應該靠目測就可知道該拿多大的浴衣吧。

Anyway, we were more taken in by the outdoor onsen to be bother by the small details.

 

也不管那麼多了，比起這些細節我們對外頭的戶外風呂更有興趣。

 

Yamaboshi was one of the Hozantei’s two Standard III rooms. The Standard I and II rooms are similar, with a simple rock onsen bath next to the gently flowing stream, the only differences in the bath’s size. Standard III sees some big differences. Standards I and II have the shower installed on the wall right next to the bath without any protection from the elements, in winter taking a shower can be quite cold. In addition to an even larger bath, Standards III gets the addition of a secondary shallow lie flat bath and a half enclosed shower area which became sufficiently warm once the hot water is running and steam fills the shower space.

 

山ぼうし是帆山亭兩間標準III式房間之一。標準I和II式房類似，都在潺潺溪岸邊有個簡單的石頭溫泉池，差別只在池子的大小。標準III式的差異就大了。標準I和II式房的淋浴設備就裝在露天風呂旁牆上，沒有任何對風雨的阻攔，冬天淋浴時可能會很冷。除了更大的石頭溫泉池，標準III式房間還多一個臥湯和半封閉的淋浴間，開熱水淋浴間充滿蒸氣後就夠暖。

 

Despite the name the two Standard III rooms are not alike. Yamaboushi’s lie flat bath is right next to the regular waist deep bath with a wooden awning overhead. The other room Azami have its lie flat bath indoors, inside a small hut by the regular bath. Indoor was more comfortable in the cold, but the little hut also blocked much of the view of the river from the room. Things considered Yamaboushi’s view probably makes it the better room.

 

雖然和另一間同樣是標準III式房，但兩間房並不相同。山ぼうし的臥湯就在一般及腰深的泡湯池旁，上頭還有個遮雨木棚。另一間あざみ的臥湯是室內的，在泡湯池旁的一個小屋內。天寒地凍時內湯會比外湯舒適，但小屋會擋住房間觀賞溪流的風景。考慮景致下還是山ぼうし略勝一籌。

 

Hozantei also has two large public onsens baths. In the old days they were one female and one mixed, but now they are strictly gender separated. A decreasing number of ryokans in Kurokawa still has mixed public baths; as private room baths proliferated there was less demand for mixed public baths for couples wanting to bath together.  

 

帆山亭另有兩個大露天風呂。從前有一個是混浴，現在改為男女分離。黑川有混浴的旅館漸漸減少; 個室私人風呂的盛行意味想要混浴一起泡湯的情侶的需求降低。

 

In the morning the two public baths are swapped so one gets a chance to experience both.

 

早上兩個大露天風呂會互換，這樣兩個風呂都有機會體驗。

 

The room is separated from the onsen by an engawa, a kind of half open air corridor connecting the interior with the outside, almost like a veranda. The exterior facing side of the engawa has clear glass doors and on the inside another set of more traditional Japanese screen doors. The screen doors have slidable paper windows, closed up they allowed guests to change in the engawa then go out and take a bath without being seen or disturbed by those inside the room. I can enjoy a tea in the room while my parents bath outside.

 

房間和外面風呂間隔一個縁側，半開放式的走廊空間。外側是整片玻璃門，內測是日式拉門。拉門上有可開關的小紙窗，關起來的話住客可在縁側更衣，出去泡湯和房內的人互不影響。爸媽泡湯時我就在房內喝茶。

 

Like many ryokans the room does not have separate shower inside, just toilets and wash basin.

 

跟許多旅館房間一樣，房間並沒有浴室，只有廁所和洗手台。

 

We change into the yukatas brought to us. As the weather is quite cold 3 piece of wear was provided. The standard yukata, a haori (almost like a jacket) and a tanzen (thick lined robe). Deceptively warm, the tanzen blocked out even the chilliest wind.

 

我們換上拿來的浴衣。由於天氣寒冷一共有三件。一般浴衣，類似背心的羽織，還有長袍的丹前。看起來不怎樣穿起來可暖了，再冷的風穿了丹前也不怕。

 

I head to the public onsen while my parents settled into the private bath outside. We were one of the earliest to arrive and Hozantei being about 1km out from Kurokawa Onsen main street few day bathers come by. There were no one in the public onsen yet. I grab my trusty Acro S to snap off a few shots (this is why I insist on waterproof phones), leaned back against the side and let the hot mineral water soak away the chills.

 

爸媽在房間泡湯，我便去大露天風呂。我們是住客裡比較早到的，而帆山亭離黑川溫泉中心有一公里多，很少會有泡日湯的來。大露天風呂裡空無一人。我拿我的Acro S快速照了幾張(堅持防水手機就是為了這一刻)，靠著池岸享受充滿礦物質的熱水驅離寒意。

The sky had grown dark by the time I returned to the room. It was still snowing lightly. I killed some time in the gardens, soon it was 6pm and we headed to the main hall for dinner.

 

回房間時天色已暗。四周仍飄著薄雪。我在中庭消磨時間，很快到了6點，可去母屋吃晚餐了。

Hozantei’s meals are served in a dining hall, with no separation between the tables. It’s not a big deal, but it does indicate that in terms of service and quality the place didn’t aim for the highest.

帆山亭用餐是在餐廳內，每個桌子間並沒有區隔。這沒什麼大不了，不過這的確顯示這裡並不要求頂尖的服務或品質。

 

The first course is a platter of appetizers, soup. A float is brought over, upon were plates of sashimi, including horse sashimi. Horse sashimi is kind of a local delicacy. I cannot say I like it too much, felt abit like slightly rougher beef sashimi.

 

第一道菜是開胃菜拼盤，還有湯。店員們端上一艘大龍船，船上擺著一盤盤生魚片和馬刺生。馬刺生是這地方的名菜。味道不能說喜歡，感覺比牛刺生更豪野一點。

 

The comments about Kurokawa Onsen’s weakness being food has some merits to them. From the very start to the end of the dinner course it was clear that Hozantei was at least 2 or 3 levels below Yatsusan-kan. From the presentation, the delicateness of the dishes, method of cooking, to the overall speed of serving and choice of orders.

 

說到黑川溫泉有時會看到評語說料理是他們的弱點，似乎並非是無根據的。從晚餐開始到結束，明顯跟八三館差2-3個層級。從裝盤，料理的細膩度，烹飪手法，到上菜速度和先後順序，都略微遜色。

 

It’s a very subtle thing and hard to describe. I do understand now why sometimes kaiseki meals are described as being a poem. A good course has a natural rhythm to it, you do not realize it when it is there, but when it is missing it becomes apparent. Yatsusan-kan served a very proper, traditional kaiseki, while Hozantei was more a countryside home cooking using better ingredients.

 

這是很微妙的事，不太好形容。我現在了解為何有人形容懷石料理為詩。好的料理會有一個自然的韻律，存在時不會感到，缺少時則能感受到。八三館遵循的是正式傳統的懷石，帆山亭的感覺則是用料較好的山野家常菜。

 

Take the western dish inserted in the middle. It came right after the tempura dish, yet still contained a western batter fried prawn, right next to western style salads. It seemed a little jarring.

 

拿中加插入的那道西式菜來說。他是在天婦羅之後，但在西式沙拉旁仍有西式炸蝦。感覺有點突兀。

 

The speed of serving was also uneven, sometimes they would serve 2-3 in succession before we had finished, other times needed some waiting..

 

上菜速度也不太穩定，有時會連上2-3道，有時又會要等一下。

 

Minor details, the food was good and we enjoyed the meal.

 

不過除了這些細節，料理不算差，晚餐有滿足感。

 

The main course was a hoe grill. Literally, a black iron hoe was placed over open flame, pieces of Higo beef and vegetables were grilled on it. It’s basically teppanyaki in a very fun way and fitting of the rural landscapes. The history behind it was that in ancient times farming families may not have many cooking utensils, so when necessary they would simply turn over their farming hoe, put it on a flame and cook food on it.

 

晚餐壓軸是鋤烤肉。如字面的意思，一個黑鐵鋤頭放到火上，豐後牛肉和蔬菜放到上面烤。基本上就是鐵板燒啦，很有趣且符合鄉村氣息的做法。來由是古時候農家沒有太多的做菜器具，必要時就把務農的鋤頭一翻，架在火上就可在上面烹飪食物了。

 

The Higo beef was good with some flaws. The meat wasn’t marbled evenly and there were pieces which contained large bits of fat and tasted fatty. Can’t expect them to serve 5A meat though, even at Yatsusan-kan it required booking a special 5A beef plan.

 

豐後牛肉不錯不過稍有瑕疵。肉的花紋不夠均勻，有些地方有整塊肥油吃起來會膩。不過也不能期待吃到5A級牛肉，就算在八三館那次吃到5A牛也是訂房的特別方案。

 

 

We retreated back to our rooms, enjoyed some tea then headed back into the onsens. The public onsens closed at 9, which seemed a little early since we only finished dinner at 8, which meant it was 8:30 by the time we felt digested enough.

 

吃飽喝足後在房間喝茶稍作休息後就再次去泡溫泉。吃完晚餐已經8點，也就是稍微休息消化後就8點30了，大露天風呂只開放到9點，感覺早了點。

 

The public onsens had lights that could be switched off. In summer this would provide perfect stargazing while enjoying the hot onsen, sadly today was cloudy with drifting snow.

 

大風呂的燈可以關掉。在夏天可以邊泡湯邊賞星，可惜今天不但烏雲密佈還飄雪。

The seats and trees in the garden were now glazed in a thin sheet of snow. It didn’t looked to be stopping either and worry crept into the mind. Maybe the snow will stop during the night. I hope.

 

中庭的長椅和樹這時已覆蓋上一層薄薄的雪。看起來一時停不了，也開始有點擔心了。或許這雪入夜後會打住吧。希望。