If you go to Akizuki you must stop by this wagashi (Japanese confectionary) store. Firstly because, when I visited the store, the owner kindly came out to greet me in traditional work dress (including armor and helmet). His appearance was well suited to the shop’s 196-year history.

The second reason you have to visit this store is because the wagashi that you can buy here is quite rare nowadays and you would be hard pressed to find it anywhere else. One thing they made that smelled really sweet and tasty was a dish made from kuzu or arrowroot. They extract the arrowroot from the root of the plant (called hon-kuzu) and pulverize it into a powder. They then add water, dissolve it over a pot of hot water and cool it down again to be cut into flat noodle-like, long, thin strips. It’s then served with a cold syrup poured over the top and the taste is utterly refreshing. One thing I heard later on was, women who eat this apparently grow a bigger bust...

Another thing worth noting is that the building that houses this store, complete with inner courtyard, is 260 years old. According to the shopkeeper, the Japanese people of old would relish in the joy of eating and drinking sake at home. That’s not because they loved their houses, but because in the olden days, Japanese people would construct their houses around the natural environment, so when they sat down for a meal they could look out over their garden and watch the sun set and the moon rise and really just bask in nature’s beauty from the comfort of their own home.