WHAT trees are those?

That is the first thing I ask as I stand in the little backyard of my log-house-like cottage looking up, awestruck, at the lush carpet of greenery that seems to slope towards the sky.

'Japanese cedar', is the reply from my host, Mr Roy Nakagawa, whose family owns the Misugi Resort where my friend and I are on holiday.

It is uncharacteristically sunny for a November afternoon. There is absolute silence all around, save for the slight hissing of the water from the private onsen, or bathing area, which is carved into the ground at our feet.

'There is absolutely no one and nothing up there in the mountains, so the water we get is pure,' adds Mr Nakagawa.

Still, the Nakagawas filter and treat the mountain water for, as he puts it, 'the added safety of our guests'.

It is the breathtaking view of the mountains and its clear spring water that draw tourists to this charming resort, perched on the fringes of what is known as Fire Valley in the Ichishi district of Japan's Mie Prefecture.

Sandwiched between the bustling cities of Osaka and Nagoya (where last year's World Expo was held), Mie is definitely the road less travelled, even in the midst of the current craze for holidays in Japan.

More than three-quarters of the prefecture is forest, mountains, rivers or agricultural land, and the entire population of Misugi Village, where the resort is located, is just 6,000.

'What are you doing in Mie? Even I haven't been there,' says my bemused Japanese friend in Tokyo, when I call her to arrange dinner once my friend and I return to the Japanese capital.

Indeed, Misugi Village may be just slightly more than five hours from the capital city, but it seems a world away from all the latter's frenzy.

On a busy Monday morning, we rush like madmen through the city's subway system to catch the bullet train to Nagoya, where we then board a special shuttle bus to the resort.

But as the bus winds its way carefully down impossibly narrow valley roads, which run parallel to a rocky, gently flowing stream, the hustle and bustle of the morning is left behind and we feel time start to slow down.

The slowness and tranquillity of Fire Valley was what inspired Mr Nakagawa's grandfather to set up the Misugi Resort about 70 years ago, with each succeeding generation growing the resort bit by bit.

Today, the resort boasts four different types of accommodation scattered throughout the small village.

For starters, there is a lodge for student hikers and a hotel for budget travellers.

But the resort's centrepieces are the seven-storey Hotel Annex (which has both Japanese and Western-styled rooms) and a series of 16 stand-alone cottages, each with a private outdoor onsen.

As we walk around the sprawling grounds, more evidence emerges of the Nakagawas' quirky vision. Guest facilities of all sorts pop up in a surprising pastiche that is both quaint and bewildering.

Down the road from the cottage we stayed in, for example, is a little brook where guests can engage in a spot of fishing and watch fireflies in the summer.

Across the brook is a little pony-riding area and farther on, a cottage where, in one morning, guests can learn such skills as baking bread.

Elsewhere in the resort, guests will find a mini water amusement park (complete with loopy rides), a micro-brewery (the resort brews and bottles its own Fire Valley beer) and, incomprehensibly, a branch of the famous United States barbecue chain, Chicago for Ribs.

Food, I learn, is a great Nakagawa passion and is one of the key reasons for the resort's popularity.

A Japanese dinner is included as part of the night's stay. Guests can opt either to have it buffet-style or to get the spread laid out on giant tables in their rooms.

When the food arrives, you just do not know where to start.

For sashimi lovers, there is fresh lobster and tuna. Top-grade Matsusaka beef - from the neighbouring region's cows - goes into the sukiyaki.

Fresh fish makes the shabu shabu light and refreshing, whetting your appetite for the prawn tempura and the special rice steamed with rare homegrown Matsutake mushrooms.

According to the Japanese, there is nothing more relaxing than a dip at the onsen after a big dinner.

My friend and I do this twice - once at the Hotel Annex's large onsen pools in the basement, and then another at midnight in the privacy of our cottage's onsen.

In the morning, we head down the valley to the village's town area, as it were, for a walk.

The trip is well worth it, for I get to see a side of rural Japan I had previously glimpsed only in Hayao Miyazaki cartoons such as My Neighbour Totoro.

Here resides the village's barber, there the village dentist.

Farther on, a little hut serves udon, next to an open area where huge chunks of timber lie waiting to be auctioned.

There is a little rocky river with a bridge over it. There is also the classic little railway track, and we pose excitedly for pictures under its signal box.

But if you are looking for a polished, glamorous and impeccably planned onsen experience, then be warned - the Misugi Resort is probably not for you.

Its buildings are ageing and there is no cable television or broadband to be had.

The rooms, while spacious, are quite spartan, and there is no world music or scented candles to go with your massage.

But you might be surprised to find how fondly you will remember your 24 hours in the heart of the Japanese countryside.

I know I do.

Getting there: A NIGHT'S stay at the Misugi Resort is commonly offered to overseas travellers as an optional add-on to a tour package to Osaka.

In Singapore, Japan Air Lines Select (www.jalselect.com.sg) offers a four-day- three-night package starting at around $1,300 per person, which includes airfare, one night in Misugi and two nights at the Osaka New Hankyu Hotel.

Prime Travel (tel: 6221-4250) offers the same deal but on a Singapore Airlines flight.

For those travelling to Japan on their own, shuttle buses to Misugi leave from Osaka New Hankyu Hotel at 10am daily and from the Nagoya Meitetsu Bus Centre at 10.30am daily.

You can reserve seats on the shuttle bus by calling the resort on (059) 272-1155.