Makinohara Things to Do

Ocha-no-sato was built in the extensive Makinohara green tea field near Shimada, shizuoka prefecture as a place to promote the culture and industry of tea

There ia a tea museum ( the grey looking building)with interesting display of teas of the world, where you can taste them, there is also a rebuilt tea ceremony house ( the funny little straw house) , where you can drink tea with an extra fee and a garden of Enshu Kobori, a great tea artist in the 17th Century

You can experience and learn the HISTORY (click) and culture of tea, by seeing various aspects including the cultivation of Makinohara, the most important place of tea production in Shizuoka Prefecture

.... it will take about 45 minutes to fully enjoy it...

If its a clear day you will be able to see MT fuji too

admission : Adults: 600 yen
Combination ticket with tearoom: Adults: 1000 yen

Closing Days
Dec 29 - Jan 1,
1st and 3rd Tue of Feb,
Mar, Jul, Sep, Oct and Dec

OPEN from 9am to 5pm

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The tea ceremony house Shoumokurou combines the best feature of ENSHU Official residence in Fushimi near Kyoto and the Takinomoto-bou, the residence of a priest at IWASHIMIZU-HACHIMANGU SHRINE (click) architectural style of the 1624-44....

The tea house is located in the garden area..The 2 most important rooms are the RINSUITEI room which was built in 1625, in here look for the elaborate shelves and the red walls which illustrate ENSHU'S unique design..

He designed the TAIUNKAKU room after his close friend priest around 1633...which are replicas of the shrine in Kyoto...Look for the RANNA, wooden panels with carvings that act as a decorative crossbar..This and the shelves were all the designed by ENSHU...

The little extention which is better appreciated from the garden is the KOUHOUKYO...this building is part of a nobleman's residence ...(794-1183) In those days, Izumidono was used as a place to hold poetry-reading parties and other forms of entertainment.....

You will be guided by a lady in kimono to the room which you will be serve the tea and sweets....please look at my OKABE (click) page where I explain all about the tea ceremony

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What you will see at the top and all around the area are rows and rows of green tea field...

Nice part of this area is that on a clear day during the winter there is a great view of Mt fuji...

Take a close look at my second pic....the kanji CHA for o-cha (tea in japanese) is planted with green tea in the shape of the kanji..;)..

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The garden at Ocha no sato is a reconstruction of the original works of KOBORI ENSHU, renowend magistrate and tea master..

Its actually a restored version of the EAST garden of the Sentogosho Palace (click) in Kyoto which ENSHU also designed...

The Palace in Kyoto was the residence of EMPEROR GOMIZUNO after he abdicated the throne in 1629....

Walk around the garden then take the little side door to the back and you will find yourself crossing over 8 slender bridges....Each one has a name and are suppose to represent YATSUHASI BRIDGES in the TALE OF ISE, a famous lyric poem from 794-1183...

" Yatsuhashi means "eight bridges." It is named for a location on the Azuma River , where the water branched into eight channels, each with its own bridge.

...Just walk them over and see if you can spot Mt fuji.....

The garden is best viewed in the spring with the cherry trees..or summer when its green...winter is not as pretty...but then you wont see Mt fuji as beautiful...:).

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In this part of the museum you will be able to learn about the history of the tea....from its birth in the mountains of the southwestern part of China, the spreading of the tea drinking culture among the ordinary Chinese people to its current status as a popular beverage all over the world.

Also in this part , you will see a replica of one of the oldest tea trees in the world from Yunnan , china...."the mother of all green tea trees..:).."..

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The second room is the replica of The Huxinting tea Room in Shanghai, China...

...."The original tea room is located in the Yu yuan garden, a typical Chinese garden created in 1959 during Ming period......where chinese people are seen enjoying oolong and green tea that has been roasted in an iron pan..

The next room..is a Turkey restaurant style room, just for display..You wont be able to drink tea here.....

In this room they talk about how in Turkey, the place where European and Asia cultures meet......Tea is made using a Russian style kettle known as Samovar...

Sweet tea is served in a glass helps liven the conversation among Turkish people..

The Tibetan room is a nother interesting room...explaining how peole who live in Katmandu at the foot of the Himalayan Mountains drink a butter tea made by boiling salt and butter...

the tea provides nourishment for the people living in the severe environment of the highlands