Matsumoto and Takabocchi highlands with exchange students | News & Events

With the start of the fall semester (September 2025), our university welcomed five exchange students from partner institutions in China, Taiwan, and South Korea. This time, a field trip to Matsumoto area and Takabochi highlands was organized by three exchange students and three buddy students.

In the morning, we experienced making soba (buckwheat) noodles at Fureai Yamabe-kan in Matsumoto City. We started by making the dough, adding water to the soba flour. There's a knack to mixing the soba flour and water, requiring arm strength. It took about an hour to finish the dough making process. Even with the same ingredients, the consistency of the dough varies depending on how it's mixed and the amount of water added. We could see the differences very clearly, trying to touch each other's dough.

The next step is rolling out the dough. Firm dough requires considerable strength to roll, but we persevered, looking forward to the reward of delicious soba noodles with a firm bite. Once rolled, it's time to cut the soba using a specialized knife. The thickness of the noodles reveals individual character, and even with the same ingredients at the beginning, the consistency and the thickness would let us enjoy different tastes of each soba.

The finished soba noodles were packed into bags for everyone to take home. A sense of accomplishment was evident on the faces of all who had completed the soba-making experience. When they returned home, the students should have enjoyed the taste of their handmade soba noodles, made from scratch.

After the soba experience, we headed to Ishii Miso in Matsumoto City. We had a tour of this traditional miso brewery, established in 1868, and enjoyed lunch there. Having a seat in front of the large wooden barrels, we were given a guide of how their miso is made. The wooden barrel is where the miso is naturally fermented for three years, which is famously known as their “Shinshu Three-Year Miso”. Approximately half of all miso productions in Japan comes from Nagano Prefecture, and among this, miso made through “natural fermentation” accounts for less than 1% of the total, making it highly valued. We thoroughly enjoyed our lunch featuring the traditional taste of this miso.

Our stomach was satisfied with the delicious lunch, then we headed towards Matsumoto Castle for a stroll. Though the air was chilly, the weather was splendid, and the castle reflected beautifully on the water's surface. We took a commemorative photo at a spot where the contrast between the castle and the bridge stood out attractively. Afterwards, we walked along Nawate Street, enjoying some taiyaki, fish-shaped pancake filled with red bean jam. It was a lovely day to see the autumn leaves with the clear autumn skies.

Our final destination was Takabocchi highlands. In the mountains, it snowed on the previous day, and we could still see some snow on the road. When we arrived, it was just before sunset. The view stretched out in front of us was a breathtaking panorama of the sunset and snow-capped mountains. The exchange students and the buddy students couldn't stop exclaiming, ‘Beautiful!’. Walking from where we parked to the summit, we were rewarded with a breathtaking view where Lake Suwa and Mount Fuji were faintly visible. One of the exchange students exclaimed, ‘It’s the location in the animation film “Your Name (Kimino Na wa)”!’ Unexpectedly, we could see the lake said to have inspired the film. Though the cold was biting, we savored the view from the summit until sunset.

The field trip provided an opportunity to engage with Nagano's specialties, such as experiencing soba noodle making and observing miso production, whilst deepening bonds between students under Nagano's clear autumn skies. We hope it proves a cherished memory for both the exchange students and the buddy students.

◆About ”Buddy” students
They are international student supporters to help inbound exchange students adjust smoothly to life and studies at the University of Nagano.

◆Information for student exchange program is available here.