Nasu, Tochigi, Japan｜みちのく民芸店

5/5. This store is a must visit if you are travelling anywhere near Mount Nasu or the Sesshōseki. I just got back from a 20 day trip going through Japan, seeing Osaka, Kyoto, Hakone-en, Tokyo and a few places in Fukushima prefecture. This store was my personal favourite ‘lucky find’ that our group stumbled onto as we had no idea where we were looking to find a rest spot. We ended up finding the best and most unique crafts store we’d seen on the trip, and they serve pickled vegetables with the beers we ordered. What more do you want? If you are looking for gifts or souvenirs to take home from Japan, you won’t find a better place. If I had a better grasp of the language I would have loved to ask more about the people who ran it, but unfortunately all I know is that there was an incredibly lovely man and woman working there. The man happily demonstrated a selection of centuries old toy designs, from spinning tops to fun little unraveling paper crafts I couldn’t even begin to describe. Ended up buying an ocarina, a couple of the wooden toys and a carved wooden shoe horn for my mom, and had to stop myself from coming back multiple times while waiting for the taxi. On that note, the lady working there was gracious enough to help call the taxi and even stayed with us to help clarify to the driver where we were going. Both of them were just incredible people, very nice, and are honestly the reason why I would return when I go back to Japan. Hopefully by then I’ll be able to speak a bit more of the language to thank them properly.

Our family's ultimate favorite shop up on Mt Nasu. A must-stop to see, enjoy, have a tea/snack and get some great souvenirs. Enjoy this gem of a shop and the classical great Japanese customer service!

Nasu is near the Onsen Shrine (pronounced Tozen Shrine), just across the road and down a hill. The inside of the store is filled with folk crafts and is so fun that it catches your eye. When I went up the stairs, there was a snack cafe corner where I ate delicious sweet noodles and miso oden. The materials and ingredients are carefully designed, and it's fun to explain them to you. It was probably because it was a strange time and the other customers were gone, but he also gave us an explanation of the inner garden through the window. I heard that "sulfur moss" growing on stones is quite rare. Furthermore, the red flowers that bloom there are called Monroe Lips. If you are interested, please check it out.