The Tono Guide

2010 – 2011

A guide for living in Tono for the JET community.

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東濃地区　Tono-chiku

Tono is one of five regions in Gifu prefecture. The first kanji character in Tono (東濃 ) means east and the second is taken from an older name for the southern half of Gifu which was once called Mino (美濃 ). Tono is located in the southeastern part of Gifu prefecture bordering the neighbouring prefectures of Nagano and Aichi.

The main rivers that run through Tono are the Kiso River and the Toki River. Historical sites such as the famous Nakasendo trade route and the Iwamura castle ruins attract many visitors each year.

Tono consists of 5 main cities. From north to south they are as follows:

中津川 なかつがわ Nakatsugawa恵那 えな Ena瑞浪 みずなみ Mizunami土岐 とき Toki多治見 たじみ Tajimi

Note: In the last few years as a result of amalgamation there are also many smaller towns and villages that make part of each of these cities.

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MAP OF GIFU

CHUNO HIDA

SEINOTONO

GIFU

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Transportation In Tono

If you live in a remote village of Tono, it may prove difficult to get around without a car. However, for those living in the actual cities, it is a little easier to get by without a car with the JR Chuo Line running through each city.

The JR Chuo Line runs from Nakatsugawa to Nagoya, making many stops along the way. A one-way ticket from Nakatsugawa to Nagoya costs ¥1280 taking just over an hour. If travelling from Tajimi, the cost is only ¥650 and takes about 35 minutes. From Nagoya it is convenient to travel to almost anywhere Japan as it has a shinkansen line. From Nagoya, it takes under 40 minutes to get to Kyoto if travelling by shinkansen. It is also possible to catch a train from Nakatsugawa into Nagano.

When planning to travel by train a good English website to check train times and prices is:

www.hyperdia.com/cgi-english /hyperWeb.cgi

This website will also provide transfer information and gives more than one travel plan option to choose from.

For those of you driving there is a highway that has exits at every city in Tono, however the tolls are quite expensive. Most JETs choose to use Route 19, a slower option that runs parallel to the highway. On Route 19, it takes no more than an hour to get from Nakatsugawa to Tajimi.

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Tono AttractionsThere are also plenty of places within Tono to enjoy! Listed

below are some Tono attractions and their websites to check out. The websites are in Japanese but can still hopefully be of some use.

馬籠宿　Magome-juku

http://www.kiso-magome.com/

About a 20-minute drive north along Route 19 from central Nakatsugawa, is the town of Magome-juku. It is an old post town along the Nakasendo (中山道 ), or “Middle Mountain Passage”. This road was one of the two used during the Edo period for travel between Kyoto and Edo (Tokyo). It is a major tourist spot but maintain a slight semblance of authenticity, and the forest

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hike to the next post town of Tsumago ( 妻 籠 ) in Nagano prefecture is quite nice. 恵那峡Ena-kyo

http://www.hub24.jp/ena/yuransen.html

A valley in the Ena region with beautiful views of unusual cliff forms along the Kiso river. It is definitely a worthwhile visit in the spring season for viewing sakura (cherry blossoms) and also in the fall with it’s autumn foliage. In both these seasons there are usually festivals with stalls set up with night illuminations. A nice picnic area all year round. There are also boat cruises along the Kiso river and an amusement park nearby.

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岩村城跡 Iwamura Castle Ruins

http://welcome.city.ena.gifu.jp/contents/html/0315016.html

A place of much historical significance, Iwamura castle was built in the 12th century but now only it’s ruins remain. To get to the castle ruins from the car park is a brisk 20 minute walk up the mountain. From the top there are splendid views of the Ena surrounds and is a nice place for picnics.

クリスタルパーク恵那スケート場　

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Ena Crystal Park Skating Rink

http://skate.city.ena.gifu.jp/

An outdoor skating rink open during the months of winter. The closest station is Takenami station. The cost is ￥１０００ per visit. Skates and helmets are available to rent.

土岐プレミアムアウトレット Toki Premium Outlet Mall

http://www.premiumoutlets.co.jp/toki/

Toki Premium Outlet Mall is one of the few outlet malls located in Japan attracting visitors from all over with its wide variety of mainly foreign brands.

永保寺 Eihoji Temple

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Established in 1313 by the Nanzenji branch of Rinzai Zen Buddhism, Eihoji Temple is still used today by zazen trainees and for zazen services. Two of the buildings in Eihoji are national treasures and the surrounds of the temple are quite picturesque with a pond, bridge, waterfall and a traditional Zen garden. If you don’t want to go all the way to Kyoto for some temple action, then Eihoji is your next best bet. It is also less crowded.

竜神の滝 Dragon God Waterfall

http://www.nakatu-f.or.jp/yumori/taki.html

Found in the upper skirts of Sakashita, right on the border of Gifu prefecture and Nagano prefecture is the breathtaking Dragon God Waterfall. Known to almost all JETs who have lived

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in Tono, it is about a half an hour drive from Nakatsugawa city and you would need to go by car as it is not accessible by public transport. The waterfall is located within the Yumori camping grounds. Also a great area to have barbeques and swim in the river during the warmer months.

http://www.nakatu-f.or.jp/yumori/

Places To Eat And Drink

土岐 Toki

Sabbat Sabbat: A great jazz bar, relaxed with live music.

瑞浪 Mizunami

Gandhi: For great Indian food, look no further than Gandhi. Has been a great hangout for JETs in the past.

恵那 市 Ena City

Wild Cat: Yakiniku restaurant. A bit out of town but still comes highly recommended by former Ena JETs.

Mimura: Italian restaurant with big portions.

Ganko: Yakiniku on the main street of Ena. Easy to walk to from Ena station.

@ Papa Kitchen: A small vegetarian friendly restaurant located near the Tono driving center. Their dishes use locally grown organic produce.

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岩村 Iwamura

Mitsuba: A Udon restaurant / izakaya on the main old road of Iwamura with a very relaxed atmosphere.

中津川 Nakatsugawa City

Annie Hall: Great little restaurant / café. The owner doesn’t speak any English but is super nice! There are also concerts there once in a while.

Daijirou: The best okonomiyaki restaurant in town. Each table has a large skillet and you cook food for yourself. The design is of that of an old-time post office, with lots of vintage Japanese advertisements and all-wooden décor.

Majorica: A restaurant with a pretty varied menu. The pizza and pasta is quite good.

Daisen: A great ebi-fry (huge fried shrimp) and miso-katsu (fried pork cutlet with sweet miso sauce) restaurant located in the hinterland between Nakatsugawa and Ena. It is a little off in the middle of nowhere so try to go with someone who has been there before!

Kisaku: A fantastic, classy little Italian restaurant about a 10 minute walk away from Nakatsugawa station. Serves dinner courses and wood-fired pizzas. Usually need to book in advance.

坂下 Sakashita

Senri: Japanese food / izakaya. Set lunches run from about 800 to 1000 yen. The kara-age (fried chicken) is highly recommended. From Route 19 cross the bridge into Sakashita,

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go straight through a stoplight, it’s on the left just before you go under the train tracks. Closed on Wednesdays.

Sushi: Worth going for the 700 yen sushi lunch set. From Route 19, cross the bridge into Sakashita, go straight through two stoplights. It’s the small wooden building on the right.

Shukurin: Izakaya, also serves okonomiyaki, takoyaki, etc. The friendly owner speaks decent English. From Route 19, cross the bridge into Sakashita, go straight for a while and it will be on the right just before the second stoplight.

Things To Try In Tono

温泉 Onsens

For those who love to relax in the hot springs, Tono has much to offer with a wide variety of onsens to choose from. Some that have been recommended by previous JETs are the onsen waters of Magome in Nakatsugawa, Sogi onsen in the outskirts of Toki and Kushihara onsen in the mountains of Ena, just to name a few. Be sure to check them out and enjoy for a true Tono experience!

KaraokeReally a must for any kind of Japan experience. There are

many karaoke places in Tono.

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In Nakatsugawa, Japan Rent-A-Car (ジャパンレンタカー) is the best place to do karaoke. There are other places in Nakatsugawa but “Japan-ren” is cheap, easy and has the best selection of English songs. It is located on Route 19.

In Toki-city, a popular place for karaoke is Maneki-neko (まねきねこ). It is also very cheap and offers nomihoudai (all-you-can-drink) beer and a great selection of songs.

In Mizunami, there is also a caravan park style karaoke next door to the famous Gandhi Indian restaurant on Route 19.

Soba-makingThe area of Nakatsugawa is known for it’s soba. In

Sakashita there is a place called Kirira where you can learn to make soba and then eat your noodles afterwards. The cost is 3000 yen for one batch (3 – 4 people). From Route 19, cross the bridge into Sakashita, turn left at the first light and it’s straight ahead.

Kurikinton

This is a very tasty chestnut sweet originally from Nakatsugawa. It is usually only available to buy during the autumn months. It is made by boiling chestnuts and then mashing it together with sugar into a chestnut shape.

CastellaBrought to Japan by the Portuguese, the town of Iwamura

is known for making delicious castella.

Houba-zushi

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Made around the Gifu and Nagano area, it is essentially vinegar rice with pickled vegetables and cured fish that is wrapped in a houba leaf. It is only made in the summer months.

Gohei-mochiThis is a specialty food with its’ origins in the mountains

surrounding Gifu and Nagano. Sticky rice that is barbequed on a stick coated in a sauce that is usually made of sesame seed, soy sauce, mirin, sugar and peanuts.

FestivalsFestivals are a great way to get involved with your local

community. There are local O-bon festivals in almost every town and village in August each year as well as other festivals scattered around throughout the year.

Some recommended festivals are listed:

Kusihara Taiko Festival: An amazing festival in October, it is held at the top of a mountain with a shrine, anyone can turn up and participate in the drumming and the dancing.

Hana-uma Festival: A procession of portable shrines and horses through the town of Sakashita to the shrine. At the shrine, there is a race to grab the decorated sticks (flowers) that are sticking out of the horses’ saddles. Takes place on the second Sunday in October. There is also a fireworks show the night before.

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Hananoko Soba Flower Festival: A festival dedicated to the soba flower. It is held at Hananoko lake, about a 15-minute drive from Sakashita. Takes place in mid to late September.

Acknowledgements

Thank you to all of the JETs that volunteered information for this Tono Guide. Please note that this is only a mere smudge of what Tono has to offer!

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