Kanazawa Guide Podcast by Yuri

A designer from Tokyo moves back to Kanazawa, takes over his grandmother's 50-year-old house in Higashi Chaya — and somehow ends up running a soba shop. Why soba, of all things?🥢 I sat down with Mori-san, owner of "Cha Soba Buemon," to find out. There's one ingredient hiding in his noodles that you won't find anywhere else in Kanazawa (Hint: it's usually reserved for gre...

This is Part 2 of my two-week conversation with Chef Shimizu, the master of AkameーChan in Kanazawa's Honmachi, who has been standing at his Sushi counter for 50 years.🍣 We talk about the surprising ways his international guests spread the word back home, how he breaks the language barrier by greeting every guest in their own language, and what it's like to join his hands-on sushi-making...

In this episode I visit Akame Sushi in Kanazawa's Honmachi and sit down with Chef Shimizu, who has been making sushi for over 50 years.🍣 He never actually planned to become a sushi chef — he first trained in Chinese food, udon, and cafe dishes, and only ended up behind the sushi counter because his shop needed hands. As more international guests started coming to Kanazawa, he began adapting h...

In this episode I sit down with Taka-san, a gold leaf craftsman at Kinpakuya Sakuda in Kanazawa — Kanazawais the only place in Japan that still produces 100% of the country's gold leaf. Taka-san didn't set out to become a craftsman. He originally applied for a sales position after his previous company closed, and somehow ended up training as a gold leaf artisan instead. What usually takes...

In Kanazawa's Higashi Chaya area there's a bar called "toaru." In this episode I sit down with its owner, Chihori-san.🍵🍶 We talk about her journey — studying and working in tourism in Osaka and Kyoto (kimono, tea ceremony, sharing Japanese culture), then Tokyo, and finally Kanazawa. She shares why this city drew her in: a place where nature, city life, tradition, and a warm, fa...

Before I guided travelers through Kanazawa, I was a registered nurse for 3 years. 👩‍⚕️Then I flew to Sydney to improve my English… and a broken wrist changed everything.🩼 In this episode, I share the honest story behind my career change — the setback that gave me time to rethink who I am, the moment in an Asakusa hostel when I first felt the joy of helping someone's journey, and a friend&#39...

In this episode, host Yuri shares her own story — why she became a tour guide in her hometown of Kanazawa. Before guiding, she worked as a nurse, and even trained as a student nurse in Sydney, Australia. After returning home to Kanazawa, she found her path as a tour guide. A personal look at the journey that brought her here. 📝 Listener survey: https://forms.gle/kfUzhJa5ij58apxJ8 📷 Instagram: ht...

In this episode, Yuri visits Saeki-san at his café, Tougoro Chaya Gallery , right next to Myoryu-ji, known as the "Ninja Temple," in Kanazawa's Nishi Chaya District . 🥷Saeki-san is a member of "Go West," a group working to bring new life to this quiet, atmospheric quarter. Nishi Chaya is one of Kanazawa's three geisha districts — quieter and less crowded than the more...

In this episode, Yuri and Yuuta visit Café Shami (三味) , a charming spot just steps from the Higashi Chaya District, facing Kannon-in Street. The café takes its name from the shamisen once played by the owner's mother. Over a relaxed conversation, the okami (proprietress) shares stories of Kanazawa's samurai heritage and her deep affection for machiya — the city's traditional wooden townhouses. A...