Places we stopped along the way

Sobanchi

From: Hydrangea season in an old house in Tamba

The soba restaurant's entrance and round sign in the rain

A soba restaurant in an old house, with veranda seats looking out on a garden maple, rice fields and hydrangeas. I had the three-color soba (thin noodles topped with pink grated daikon and wasabi; the daikon changes color when you squeeze sudachi over it), a rolled omelet, and a warm bowl of sliced meat and leek. Bottled non-alcoholic beer is available. The closing day can change, so check before you go.

125 Kajiwara, Ichijima-cho, Tamba, Hyogo

Sources: retty.me r.gnavi.co.jp

This moment in the journey

Taking shelter at a soba restaurant

I took shelter from the rain at a soba restaurant, an old house with seats along the veranda looking out on a maple in the garden and the wet rice fields. First, a glass of well-chilled non-alcoholic beer.

Then came a plate of thin soba topped with pink grated daikon and wasabi: a "three-color soba," where the daikon changes color when you squeeze sudachi juice over it. The side dishes are part of the pleasure at a soba restaurant too, so I had a rolled omelet and a warm bowl of sliced meat and leek.

Outside the window, beautiful hydrangeas were blooming here as well. By the time I finished, the clouds had broken and sunlight fell on the road between the paddies. A happy afternoon.

Watch this scene on YouTube2:32

Read this scene in the full journey