The longest ride of the tour (no way around it) led us eventually to Fukiya. This is my favorite of all of the villas, for many reasons. It's a lovely one-street traditional town that resembles Kurashiki before the tourists arrived. Like Koshihata, people have been living in it continuously so it has a sense of community. The old buildings have been beautifully restored with exhibits of what life was like two hundred years ago. There is great cycling in the mountains around the villa and lots of attractions (feudal mansion, pottery center, old copper mine, etc.) to go to. And there's a great restaurant in town that serves beef and wild boar and a sansai (mountain vegies) donburi to die for. All of this may be secondary; this was the first villa to be built, and the first I visited, and thus will always hold a special place in my heart.

There are actually two parts to the town: here you see the group arriving in Lower Fukiya. One more hill to go...