Destinations: Hoshino Village’s Tea Culture Museum

October 25, 2019

Sipping from a tea bowl of matcha I had whisked with the powder I had ground from tencha leaves, I savored the view from Hoshino Village’s Tea Culture Museum. Curving rows of green tea snugly hugged steep green slopes below. Verdant rice stalks and golden florets shimmered in tiny plots near the tea fields. Above the tea and rice, bamboo stalks bowed with the breeze. Sparklin

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Greg Goodmacher

My goals are to become a better writer and educator. I want to inform, persuade, and touch others with my words. For over twenty-five years, Japan has been my home and base from which I explore the world. I am a tea enthusiast, hot spring addict, animal lover, snowshoe athlete, environmental activist, professor, and travel and culture writer. Please read my scribbles and join me on my journey around this fantastic planet.

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8 Comments

Giulia
on October 25, 2019 at 7:29 am •Reply

I’ve been there last spring, enjoyed driving in and out tea plantations . Loved sipping a tea at Hoshino and also tasted a very good ice cream admiring the green of the new shoots on the trees. It’s such a quite and poetic location…
- Greg Goodmacher
  on October 25, 2019 at 8:30 am •Reply
  
  Thank you, Giulia, for your comments. I absolutely agree with your description of the area as a “poetic location.” That is an apt phrase. I wish that I had thought of it.
Asako
on October 25, 2019 at 9:29 am •Reply

I used to live in Kyushu. I have visited this place. The views and tea are as good as the author wrote.
- Greg Goodmacher
  on October 25, 2019 at 10:29 am •Reply
  
  Thank you for your comments. Kyushu is a wonderful island. Off the main tourist routes of Japan, not many tourists go there. But it has a lot to offer visitors.
[email protected]
on October 25, 2019 at 10:23 am •Reply

I noticed on top of the lush green gate a plant that also grows here in the Midwest – poke weed. It is always relegated to the backside of my gardens for it can grow 6′ tall. In the fall, the fat
dark purple “blueberry like” berries grow on fuchsia dangles. The birds particularly love them! So leave and feed them as winter closes in. Enjoyed the article. paula winchester
- Greg Goodmacher
  on October 25, 2019 at 10:28 am •Reply
  
  You have great plant identification skills. I wonder if poke weed is native to both the US and Japan or if it is an invasive species.
maxine levine
on October 26, 2019 at 11:24 am •Reply

I love tea and drink at least one large pot full daily. This article was extremely interesting. The scenery was really beautiful and made me want to see it in person.
- Greg Goodmacher
  on October 27, 2019 at 3:04 am •Reply
  
  I am glad that you enjoyed the article and the images. Your comments gave me a sense of reward. Thank you for writing.