Yuba, strawberries and a first visit to Ikaho on a Gunma bus tour
It had been a while since Haruru’s last bus tour. With her usual group of three, she spent a sunny day eating, shopping and visiting Ikaho Onsen for the first time.
From haruru.1002’s account shared in January 2023, edited with permission.
Yuba in Numata, followed by a beef hotpot lunch
Their first stop was a yuba-scooping experience in Numata, where they could eat as much yuba as they liked. A beef hotpot set meal followed for lunch.
By the time they reached the strawberry-picking stop, Haruru was already full. She could not eat many strawberries after the yuba and lunch.
Strawberry picking and a brief shopping stop
The photographs record the strawberry plants and the snowy ground outside the greenhouse. The next stop was the roadside station Kawaba Denen Plaza.
They had thirty minutes there, just enough for Haruru to buy vegetables and dried flowers. She wanted more time to explore the shops and hoped to return for a slower visit.
Stone steps, a bath and tamakonnyaku in Ikaho
Ikaho was new to her. Compared with Kusatsu Onsen, it struck her as a little subdued. They climbed the stone steps and stopped at a small inn for a day-use bath.
On that visit, the inn made the bath available just for the three of them. Haruru was glad they had chosen a smaller place and enjoyed taking her time in the hot water.
Afterwards, she ate tamakonnyaku, balls of konjac. An accident caused congestion on the Kan-etsu Expressway and delayed the return, but they arrived safely. Good weather, plenty of food, conversation and laughter left her very satisfied with the day.
Sources for this account
Haruru’s past bus-tour account shared on 28 January 2023, describing Numata, strawberry picking, a short roadside shopping stop and her first visit to Ikaho Onsen.