Not far from Yunogo, you will find the
birthplace of the samurai Miyamoto Musashi, one of the most intriguing characters in Japanese history. There you will be treated to an iaido (sword drawing) demonstration and talk on the spirit of samurai by Trevor Jones. Around this area, you can see the Musashi birth home, grave and memorial shrine, a museum, dojo and budokan (martial training halls) and a restaurant where you can try a journey meal served to warlords 300 years ago. A 5-minute drive to the north takes you to the historical preservation area of the old town, an official travel route during the Edo period. The 200 year-old travel lodge for warlords there is one of the few honjins (inn for government officials) that are still preserved to this day. An ideal place for a coffee break is Nambatei, a recently renovated wealthy merchant's home where you can also try a natural dye activity using local Japanese cypress tree bark among other materials unique to the area.