The jewel of Japan: A cultural and culinary tour around Ishikawa

The beating heart of Japanese art and culture, the city of Kanazawa is the gateway to some of the country’s most fascinating creatives. Not to mention culinary delights…

Sushi master Mr Shimizu wets his hands, claps them together, then turns to his huge rice cooker. He selects a portion of warm, sticky rice and, using gestures, teaches me how to make sushi. I choose a piece of yellowtail that I’ve just watched him fillet as reverently as a mother tending to her newborn baby.

Following his movements I dip my finger into wasabi, swipe it along the length of the fish, and press the yellowtail onto the rice, squeezing gently to mould the delicacy into a little bundle, before placing it on the waiting plate.

Food for thought

This hands-on culinary adventure at acclaimed restaurant Akame-chan is the first of many such activities I will experience in Kanazawa, a UNESCO City of Craft and Folk Arts on the coast of Japan, 2.5 hours by shinkansen fast train northeast of Tokyo. The prefecture, Ishikawa, is home to the highest percentage of Japan’s living national treasures – people who are masters of traditional crafts. Throughout my tour of the city I meet a number of them.

At his famous shop Koshiyama Kanseido, Mr Honda demonstrates how to make and decorate traditional wagashi mung beans sweets. And Ms Ishiwata teaches me how to roll miso balls for the delicious umami soup the Japanese eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

All that shimmers is gold

I wander through the narrow, cobbled laneways of the Nagamachi Samurai District and stop in at Kanazawa Higashiyama Shitsurae for a hakuichi experience with Mrs Sakuma, a master in the art of using gold leaf for decoration. Kanazawa produces 99 per cent of Japan’s gold leaf, so this activity is unique to the destination.

Using bamboo tweezers I pick up bundles of the feather-light gold leaf paper, and use sieves to sprinkle the flakes over lacquer plates to create my designs.

Quiet contemplation

As I travel around the city I learn about the Japanese consideration for others and their dedication to community over individuality. I develop mindfulness through crafting. Having to concentrate on one thing – whether it be etching a design into chopsticks at the Traditional Handicrafts Village Yunokuni no Mori, or throwing a mug on a pottery wheel – every activity takes intense concentration. A Zen-like need to be present in the moment.

For those interested in Zen Buddhism, Kanazawa has a museum dedicated to D.T. Suzuki, a culturally significant Japanese essayist and philosopher who is credited with introducing Zen Buddhism to the West in the early 20th century.

He wrote and translated over 100 books and often lectured to Western audiences. Original copies of his work are on display, but it is the pool of reflection and the architecturally designed buildings that captivate me the most; their simple lines and shimmering shadows inviting contemplation, serenity and connection with the surrounding environment.

A focus on art

The 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art was created as an inspiring space for locals, but it also attracts plenty of international visitors. The permanent collection focuses on works created in the past 50 years, with a strong nod to pieces closely connected with Kanazawa.

That said, Argentinian artist Leandro Erlich’s The Swimming Pool installation is a permanent exhibition that draws a crowd. There are also play spaces and a great cafe.

Time amid nature

In Japan, green spaces are living works of art. And Kenrokuen, widely rated one of Japan’s top-three most beautiful gardens, includes the six essential characteristics of a Japanese garden: spaciousness, seclusion, artifice, antiquity, water sources and magnificent views. Initially it was the outer garden of the Kanazawa Castle, and the 10 hectares of everchanging natural landscapes make it a tranquil and meditative place.

It’s winter when I visit Kenrokuen, and the Karasaki pine trees are protected by yukitsuri – bamboo poles constructed over trees and secured with ropes to keep their branches from collapsing under snow. The clean lines of the ancient symmetrical design is a charming continuation of the simplicity I observe everywhere in Ishikawa.

The traditions of tea-time

I’m introduced to the concept of ichi-go ichi-e when I participate in a tea ceremony on site. Our master pours matcha into kutani pottery bowls and explains that to be drinking tea at this one moment in time, with these people, is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

This idea continues to impact me as I travel around Japan, and echoes long after I’ve returned home. Every moment, with every person, is a unique experience.

Sipping and soaking

For a change of pace I take an hour drive (1.5 hours by train) south of Kanazawa to Yamanaka Onsen, where I experience life in a traditional rural hot-spring town. At the top of a short laneway I find Washu Bar Engawa, a sake bar owned by the passionate Yusuke Shimoki, Japan’s first ‘sake-ist’ (like a mixologist).

After lining up a dozen sake bottles on the bar and peppering me with questions about my tastes, he serves up drinks in tiny bowls of different designs, until I’m are as cheerful as Shimoki’s other customers.

Checking in

I stay at a large traditional ryokan (inn) in Yamanaka Onsen, Kagari Kisshotei, on the Kakusenkei Gorge, which is a real treat. It’s a hot-springs resort village, and soaking in the tension-relieving spring water in rotemburo (open air baths), listening to the rushing river, is soothing and enthralling.

Like other travellers staying in the ryokan, I wear a yukata: cotton dressing gowns tied with an obi belt, and geta wooden thongs, to wander through the hotel to the dining room. It is remarkably luxurious to not have tight jeans digging into my sides as I tuck into an extensive kaiseki set-course menu.

A feast for the senses

Meals in Japan are a feast for the senses, and most are designed to promote the health of the diner. During my feast at the ryokan, a procession of small plates holding even smaller portions of dried persimmon, sweet potato, sashimi from the Sea of Japan, grilled blackthroat sea perch (nodo guro), pork from the Noto Peninsula, deep-fried fish tempura, pickled seaweed in vinegar, miso soup with mushrooms and fried rice with snow crab (a winter delicacy) dances across the table until the waiters present rice and pickled vegetables.

I know I’m finally finished. It’s a medley of crunchy, jellied, cold, warm, soft, hard, raw, cooked, sour, sweet, salt and umami delights.

A journey for the soul: Ishikawa

Like the perfect balance of flavours in each dish, this journey through Ishikawa is a harmonious blend of discovery and gives me a deep appreciation for Japan’s traditions.

Ishikawa is a year-round destination. Visit in spring for cherry blossoms, in autumn for vibrant foliage, or in winter to see the way the snow dusts the trees and streetscapes. There is so much more to Japan than the big cities.

It’s worth getting off the well-travelled train tracks and exploring a regional area to get a true understanding of the beauty of this prefecture and its talented people.

Discover more about Ishikawa today!

The writer was a guest of Ishikawa Prefecture. The photos in the articles were provided by Ishikawa Prefecture Tourism League.