Today is the last day with our agent , so with the Nogyosai show tomorrow and traveling back to Tokyo on Monday , this will be the last day of buying like mad ! Today we started at Marasaka , this farm does mainly metalics and doitsu , there were many small nisai of fantastic quality , but unfortuanetly it was mostly koi that we had already bought . Out side there were many sansai at a very affordable price , buy again varites we had already purchased . Our next appointment was at NND , but on the way we had a quick look at Yagenji , as i had a customer that needed a larger kikisui. They had some very nice ones , But we couldnt bowl them as we had to get to NND for an appointment . One koi really stood out and i was hoping that it would still be there later , fat chance as there was a few people in the farm when we left . On our arrival at NND we were made very welcome by the owners , and shown round and given prices . I was looking in one pond , and if im honest i was not seeing koi anymore , it can happen when looking for koi day in and day out , Oomo started bowling some sankes and i wasnt very intereasted , i heard the word recomend , so i looked to be polite and wow there was a sanke with a kind of Maruten , three step going on .It really grew on me , and by the time he had finsihed talking i had already in my mind bought the koi , then Tanaka San , pointed at the koi , sorry , i think its a customer koi , aready sold .A real shame as i wanted to buy somthing form this farm to leave in Japan . But there are plans to do this may be later after i return to the UK . A quick phone call to us revealed that Maruhiro had left his work at the show ground to help us finish off sales at his farm and sort out the azukari fish to ship and to leave . On arrival at his farm we set about bowling chagois and some fair priced go sanke , a box was soon made and the customers who had finished buying wanted the rest of the afternoon driving round while we finished up with Maruhiro . We then set about getting loads of bowls full of koi , too many to mention here , but sansai hi utsuris , tanchos of all varietys , kogani ochiba , go snake and gin rin go sanke of all qualitys and all budgets . Great way to spend an afternoon with some one who ive grown to call a friend ! A great conversation was had about how serious we were about the azukari project , it was decieded that although we still might have a gamble , it was time to up this anti at this farm as well , on going through the koi we had harvested HInori san was brutal , as i wanted him to be , ship this , leave that , shouldnt have bought that ! This was another step in cementing how are two companys would work closer in the future ! After agreeing to see him at the show tomorrow we parted comany and headed up to Yagenji via Sakai to get a kiksui . Sakai was in good form and again another discussion on the koi we had at the farm took place ,and when the rest were being harvested , it was decieded what was to be left and another discusion took place on how we wanted to work closer with his farm , all going in the right direction and ill say what koi we are leaving later on . As we drove up to Yagenji i really hoped that the big kikisui had nt sold , as i had broken my golden rule , buy it when you see it ! On arrival she was still swimming round the pond so i got the koi bowled with a few others . The box ended up with two shiros and a kikisui . Discusions then took place on leaving a koi in Japan , a stunning gin rin kindai showa was in one of the big ponds and the breeder said it was female , so in the bowl it went with the intention of leaving her for one year , the brother checked the koi over and said it was male , so no go on the azukari , which was a shame as it was my kind of koi , but you cant win them all ! The brothers then took us to another fish house where we were shown two more koi , a sansai and nisai kohaku with intentions of may be leaving them in Japan , they were both stunning but a lot of money , so im thinking it over . So they day ended on visiting three of my favourite breeders and couldnt have rounded the buying off any better ! Tomorrow we will be visiting the Nogyosai show , one of my favourites as it the biggest annual show in Niigata ! Pics are just some of Maruhiro nisai and sansai we purchased today , last three are Yagenji nisai shiro utsuri , and Kiki sui sansai , all female .