tourism

In recent years, Bungotakada City has taken the top spot multiple times in the ranking of the most desirable rural communities to live in. First, you will visit Karinsha, an ikebana atelier in the Sano, an area of the city with beautiful bucolic scenery. Here you will meet ikebana master Miwa Anan, who is engaged in numerous activities revolving around flowers, including holding classes on flowers, growing edible flowers and vegetables, running a cafe, and hosting events. What Ms. Anan consistently values is helping people lead healthy, balanced lives by connecting them with flowers and plants. When you visit her atelier, you are sure to enjoy a moment of relaxing calm.

You will arrange rice and side dishes on a large plate and decorate it with edible flowers, grasses, and other natural materials. Once you finish your creation, you can savor the fruits of your labor. After a brief explanation from Ms. Anan, you will head outside to gather flowers and plants. Anything is fair game—edible flowers, herbs, medicinal plants, wild flowers and plants, and even branches and stones. Stepping outside with Ms. Anan, you will be amazed at how everything suddenly looks like potential material for your art plate. You will never run out of things to talk about with Ms. Anan, from the properties and uses of each plant to unexpected anecdotes. You will find yourself thinking “This one’s cute” or “Maybe this would work too,” and the delightful time you spend chatting while picking plants will take you back to the simple joy of childhood. Experience the healing power of the quiet nature-rich environment. Once you have gathered your ingredients and materials, you will arrange them on plates alongside rice and side dishes prepared by Ms. Anan, who will provide expert tips on arrangement and color combinations. As you start to arrange your materials, ideas will come to mind, and before you realize it, you will be lost in the moment. Each plate becomes a unique world of your own creation. Once finished, you can enjoy giving your work a theme and showing it to the other guests, which makes your plate feel more like a work of art, deepening your connection to it. At the end of the session, you can savor the work you created as the true essence of this experience lies in “eating your art plate to complete the cycle.”