Research Trip looking for restaurants serving Japanese Sake (Aizu)

Good evening!
Thank you for reading this blog!

It’s been the 5th article for 5 days in a row (on the Japanese Site), and this is the longest record so far. This is because my work place is closed for holiday, and also because I’ve been packed in at home almost all day due to sick and little money to enjoy my holiday ^^;
I wish I could travel around while writing this blog….
I was thinking about something like that for these 5 days.

Now, the last time was about Ouchijuku.
My explanation was not enough at all to express Ouchijuku completely, but I think I mentioned everything I saw and felt there.
To tell the truth, I didn’t have much time to study deeper.
The reason is that I made a tight schedule after Ouchijuku; “Tou no Hetsuri”, “Iimori Mountaine”, and then Fukushima City at last. I couldn’t help it because I wanted to do as many things as possible, just in case I won’t have chance to come later again.

Yesterday’s blog was the final one of the Ouchijuku series, and today is about “Tou no Hetsuri”.

“Tou no Hetsuri” is not so far from Ouchijuku.
You get off at the next station of the Ouchijuku’s closest station “Yunokami Onsesn” of Aizu Railway Line when you use train to get there.
I drove my car from Ouchijuku, so I went to the south from Yunokami Onsen Sta. along National Route 121 following the sign boards, and “Tou no Hetsuri Station” appeared.

Doesn’t this station look very nice in this scenery?

There was a rotary when I went a bit more, and found the entry of “Tou no Hetsuri” over the rotary, and shops surrounding the area.
I was wondering where to park my car, and then a man found me and guided to a parking area of left side of the rotary.

I stopped my car, and then the man told me that the parking is free of charge. In addition, he told me the ways of the area and gave me a brief sightseeing information. At last, he said, “If you don’t mind, please come to my restaurant for lunch” and told me about his place.

I heard that “Sauce Katsu-Don” (deep-fried meat with sauce on rice) is a famous food of Aizu, and the man told me that his restaurant serves it and it’s better than other shops because they do special treatment to the meat before frying.
I was planning to go to a restaurant which likely to have Japanese Sake in Aizu Wakamatsu City, so I didn’t feel like taking his offer but I thought I could buy some souvenir from him in return of the parking. Anyway, I decided to go to “Tou no Hetsuri” first.

I show you what “Tou no Hetsuri” is like.

It is a ravine with these unique shaped rocks.
“Hetsuri” means “cliff” in the local dialect, and the rocks look as if each of them stands separately like towers (tower = “tou” in Japanese) so this place is called “Tou no Hetsuri”.
Of course, these shapes were made naturally by water and winds, and this place is designated as a national nature treasure.

You can climb up the rock over the bridge in the photo. There is…

A shrine of Kokuzo Bosatsu (a Buddhist saint). (I hesitated to take photos here.)
Kokuzo Bosatsu is a Buddha of the limitless wisdom.
I couldn’t help imagining what kind of feeling or thought made the old people enshrine the Buddha of the limitless wisdom in such mysterious unique rock outcrops.