Japan Trip Day 8: Back in the Big Slope 日本旅行６月７日

My last full day in Japan on this trip was one of continually changing plans. I had hoped to see the Hanshin Tigers 阪神タイガース play the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks 福岡ソフトバンクホークス at Kōshien Stadium 阪神甲子園球場. But the Tigers are doing very well this year, and tickets for Saturday's afternoon game were already sold out when I checked at a ticket seller in Matsue 松江 on Thursday. My next idea was to walk (not bike) the Kibi Plain bicycle road 吉備路サイクリングロード, a 15-kilometer (9.3 mile) cycling route through the countryside outside of Okayama 岡山. However, I decided I had done enough walking the past few days, and I would've worked up a sweat, only to have had to return to my ryokan 旅館 to pick up my bag, and get on a late afternoon train to Ōsaka 大阪. Besides, I had already biked the route during my visit to Okayama in the mid/late 90's, and it was doubtful much had changed about the course in the ten years or so since. So, in the end, I caught an 8:30am local train out of Okayama Station 岡山駅 for the leisurely three-hour ride to Japan's second city, with the intention of doing nothing in particular for the rest of the afternoon after I got there.

While on the train, I tried to take some pictures of the Akashi-Kaikyō Bridge 明石海峡大橋, the world's longest single-span suspension bridge at 1991 meters (6532 feet), but none of the photos turned out particularly well.

After arriving back at Namba 難波 and having lunch in the bowels of the station, I returned to the Hotel Nissei ニッセイ with the intention of dropping off my bag and returning later to check in. As it turned out, they let me check in early, and so off I went on the Midōsuji subway line 御堂筋線, getting off at Yodoyabashi Station 淀屋橋駅 to take a stroll through Nakanoshima Island 中之島:

Nakanoshima serves as a gateway to the Kita キタ area of Ōsaka, and the Umeda 梅田 commercial district. It was a long walk from the island, through JR Ōsaka Station 大阪駅 to the Umeda Sky Building 梅田スカイビル. A glass elevator (not for the faint-hearted, like myself), and a long escalator ride, took me to the "Floating Garden Observatory", 170 meters (560 feet) high. The view of the city couldn't be called "beautiful" (except perhaps at night), but I thought it was fantastic, as Ōsaka and its surrounding environs spread it all directions. A few shots and a short movie:

Umeda Sky Building

After returning to terra firma, I worked my back through Ōsaka Station, and crossed the road to the Hanshin Department Store 阪神百貨店, where I picked up a couple of souvenirs for my daughter, Amber: a Hanshin Tigers mascot, and a toy bus featuring a couple of characters from her favorite NHK children's show. I then hopped back on the subway, and took the train back to Namba, picking up some takoyaki たこ焼き (fried octopus, a must when in Ōsaka) and a can of Skal, my favorite yogurt soda, which for some strange reason is hard to find in eastern Japan.

The day (nay, the entire trip) ended in fine form when I met two wonderful students of mine from my time in Yokkaichi 四日市 in Mie Prefecture 三重県, Mariko and Sachiko. They treated me to a seemingly endless round of beer and food at a branch of the Murasaki 村さ来 chain of izakaya 居酒屋. I'm afraid to tally up how much 義理 I'm in arrears to them. Perhaps one day they can visit me in Taiwan so I can pay some of that off! In the meantime, thank you once again Mariko and Sachiko - ほんとうにありがとうございました！

Japan Trip Day 7: Life is a Bitchū (or O Castle, Where art Thou?) 日本旅行６月６日

After four days in Matsue 松江, it was time to move on, so on Friday morning just before 7, I boarded another slow, local train, back across the center of Honshū 本州 and towards the Pacific Ocean side of Japan. 3 1/2 hours later, I got off the train in the small city of Takahashi 高梁 (population 50,000) in Okayama Prefecture 岡山県, and commenced another morning/afternoon of checking out the local attractions.

Takahashi is not on any of the main tourist tracks despite the area called Ishibiya-chō Furusato Mura 石火矢町ふるさと村, home to several old buildings and temples. The best of these is Raikyū-ji 頼久寺, a ten-minute walk from the train station, and home to one of the nicest small gardens I’ve been to in Japan. On this Friday morning, I was the only visitor, and I was able to sit and able to enjoy in peace and quiet, with only the sounds of bees and frogs to break the silence. One aspect of this garden that is a common feature of traditional Japanese landscaping is the use of “borrowed” scenery, in this case Mount Atago 愛宕山 in the background. I’m not much for travel cliches (you won’t find me meditating at a Zen 禅 temple, or trying to track down geisha 芸者 on the streets of Kyōto 京都, for example, or for that matter taking pictures of the cosplay コスプレ girls in Harajuku 原宿), but this was one hackneyed experience that was anything but.

The real adventure came after leaving Raikyū-ji. Bitchū Matsuyama-jō 備中松山城 has got to be the most unusual castle in Japan, hands down. One of the dozen original castles still standing in Japan, it’s no doubt the hardest to reach, and not just because the city of Takahashi is somewhat off the beaten track. The castle sits on top of Mount Gagyū 臥牛山, 430 meters (1411 feet) high. In fact, Matsuyama-jō is the highest castle in Japan. Whereas most castles were situated on low hills in the centers of towns, serving as symbols of power, while allowing the daimyō 大名 to keep an eye on their holdings (and having the surrounding town buildings act as a defensive perimeter in case of attack), Takahashi’s castle can’t even be seen from the city. By car, it takes 3.2 kilometers (2 miles) on a winding road to reach. On foot, it’s only half as far, but the trail is all uphill through a forest, and it took me about an hour to get to from Raikyū-ji. You can read about the castle here.

 

The sushi bentō 寿司弁当 I bought in Takahashi, and had for lunch on the castle grounds. The pieces shifted somewhat in my backpack during the long hike up the mountain!

So was Bitchū Matsuyama-jō worth all that effort? Despite its small size, and lack of interesting displays, I would have to say yes. One of my guidebooks suggests not paying to go inside (while still recommending the walk up), but to me it seemed a shame not to complete the journey. After all, the relative inaccessibility helps limit the crowds (even from the parking lot, it’s still a 15-minute walk uphill), and the views of Takahashi to be seen on the descent were magnificent in places.

Back down from Mount Gagyū, I paid a visit to another Buke-yashiki 武家屋敷. This one was much more interesting than the samurai house in Matsue because a.) you could take off your shoes, and walk through the different rooms; b.) you could visit two homes with one ticket; and c.) I got to chill with the samurai 侍, his wife and son.

Before returning to Bitchū-Takahashi Station 備中高梁駅, I checked out the Local History Museum 郷土資料館, housed in an old, wooden elementary school building that dates from the Meiji-era 明治時代. Often such museums aren’t very interesting, but this one had a lot of neat stuff on display – lots of old appliances from earlier times, interesting photos of how Takahashi looked long ago, and these dancing doll models made from cigarette packets (it seems there’s a Japan Tobacco 日本たばこ産業, aka JT, factory in town).

I left Takahashi on the 3:48pm local train, and was in Okayama 岡山 an hour later. Okayama is noted for its famous garden, Kōraku-en 後楽園 (one of the big three in Japan, the other two being Kenroku-en 兼六園 in Kanazawa 金沢, and Kairakuen 偕楽園 in Mito 水戸), and a castle 岡山城 (though mostly a reconstruction), but as I had spent several days in the city back in 1996 or ’97, and had seen all the sights there (plus Kurashiki 倉敷 and Kojima 児島), this time it was to be just an overnight stop on my back to Ōsaka 大阪. After checking into my accommodation (the Matsunoki Ryokan まつのき旅館, which gave me a tatami 畳-mat room larger than some apartments I’ve lived in!), I went out after dinner in search of a place to have a drink. I walked around in vain looking for a branch of the Hub chain of pubs, vaguely remembering I had drunk at one in Okayama the last time I was there, but either my memory wasn’t as good as it used to be, or the place was long gone. In any event, I ended up instead at an establishment called the Aussie Bar オージーバー, an expat pub run by one Jason Scott Hunt from Down Under. Jason was very friendly, and a great bloke to chat with (as was his friend Rick, a regular who originally hails from Canada). I would’ve liked to have stayed late, but I had plans to get up early the next morning, so several draft beers later, I staggered out into the streets of Okayama, and found my way back to my ryokan, and after a long, hot bath, into my futon 布団.

Japan Trip Day 6: Matsue ah! (with apologies to Bashō) 日本旅行６月５日

 

The Matsue City Hotel 松江シティホテル

Back in early 1989, I moved to Tōkyō 東京 and soon found myself working as an English teacher. One day, a student of mine returned from a visit to Matsue 松江, population 194,000 and the capital of Shimane Prefecture 島根県, bearing English-language brochures and maps of the city, and suggesting I should check it out. 19 years later, I finally got around to doing so. Better late than never, I suppose.

The primary sightseeing attraction is Matsue-jō 松江城, a five-story wooden castle dating from 1611. Japan is full of concrete reproductions of feudal-era castles, but there are only about a dozen original structures still standing, and I was to visit two on this trip. Matsue-jō is now the centerpiece of a park called Jōzan-kōen 城山公園, and is located near the prefectural government building. Inside are displays of armor and weapons, and the original shachi 鯱, auspicious mythical dolphins that were often placed on castle rooftops.

The top floor of the castle provides a 360-degree view of the city. Nearby is the Matsue Historical Museum 松江郷土間, a two-story mansion built in 1903 in the hope that the emperor 天皇 would stay there on a visit (it never happened). The Meiji era 明治時代 was an exciting period for Japan in terms of architecture, and it's a pity there aren't more buildings from that time still in existence.

After visiting the castle and the historical museum, I walked through the park, exited Jōzan-kōen on its northwest side, and entered Shiomi Nawate 塩見縄手, an era of old samurai 侍 houses, many of which are now museums, restaurants and teahouses. The first two buildings I stopped in at were related to Lafcadio Hearn 小泉八雲, one of the first Western writers to introduce Japan to Western readers. I've long been interested in Hearn's fascinating life story, and read his "Kwaidan" 怪談 during my early years in Tōkyō. First stop, therefore, was the Lafcadio Hearn Memorial Museum 小泉八雲記念館, containing many items from Hearn's daily life in Japan, and a detailed chronology of his life. Then it was on to Hearn's Old Residence 小泉八雲旧居, where the writer lived for six months in 1891. The front and back gardens of the house are still very similar to how Hearn described them in his essay "In a Japanese Garden", and it was easy to see how and why he fell in love with Japan soon after arriving in the country.

Two other places I visited in Shiomi Nawate included the Buke-yashiki 武家屋敷, the largest remaining samurai house in Matsue, and the Meimei-an teahouse 明々庵. It was while I was at the latter that I had to take refuge from the rain for the only time during my trip.

I'd like to pause for a moment to note that many of the attractions in Matsue, including the castle, Lafcadio Hearn Memorial Museum, Buke-yashiki and the moat ride, all offered substantial reductions in entry fees for foreign visitors. The staff at the tourist information office near the train station were also incredibly helpful, pointing me in the right direction as to where I could try to buy tickets for a Hanshin Tigers 阪神タイガース baseball game (sold out, alas) and suggesting several places where I could check my email. Clearly, Matsue is a city that welcomes the visitor from abroad, and I wish more localities in both Japan and Taiwan could do the same.

Meanwhile, back on the tourist trail, I was feeling pretty hungry. If there was one complaint I had with Matsue, it was that it was often difficult to find a reasonably-priced place to eat. In the end, however, and for a nice change of pace, I had a Southeast Asian-style fried chicken in lemon sauce lunch, washed down with a Chang Beer from Thailand, at a small cafe down the road from Shiomi Nawate. Feeling fortified, I next ventured to the Karakoro Art Studio カラコロ工房, on the site of a former bank that has now been converted into galleries, craft shops and a cafe, the latter from which I bought a cup of chocolate ice cream, and relaxed in the courtyard of the complex. If only I could be financially secure enough to live like that every day! Then it was time to get on one of the boats that takes tourists around the castle moat and canals. What was great about these boats (other than the 40% gaijin 外人 discount, of course) was that I had it all to myself, and you could get off at different points, and re-board later. Which is what I did, by paying a visit to the Matsue Horikawa 堀川 local beer hall to sample one of the microbrews 地ビール on offer, a very good pale ale.

I would've liked to have sampled some more, but it was getting on in the afternoon, so I got back on the boat and completed the journey around the moat.

I spent the rest of the afternoon on errands (the aforementioned tracking down of baseball ticket availability, and locating access to the Internet), and then headed down to the shores of Lake Shinji 宍道湖, the 7th-largest in Japan. The lake is noted for its spectacular sunsets, and on this day I wasn't disappointed. The view of the sun going down over tiny Yōme-ga-shima island 嫁ヶ島 was one of those moments best left to poets to express. I, on the other hand, savored the experience afterwards over a tonkatsu 豚カツ dinner, washed down with a draft beer 生ビール, at a Gusto ガスト branch conveniently located nearby.

Shinji-ko sunset 

So, was it worth going to Matsue after waiting all these years? Hell, yes! I would even wager that Matsue would be a nice place to live. Not the most exciting, perhaps, but pleasant enough, and close to both the mountains and the sea. I don't remember the name of the student who first told of this city, but I would like to thank her for the suggestion nonetheless.

Japan Trip Day 5: Top of Chūgoku Ma! 日本旅行６月４日

One neat thing about staying at the Matsue City Hotel 松江シティホテル was the free breakfast bentōs 弁当 they provided. Every morning from 6:30, they were placed out on a table by the elevator on the floor I was staying on, and the guests could help themselves. Though small, they were surprisingly filling, containing rice, fish, vegetables and a side of miso soup 味噌汁. However, on this particular morning, I missed out on the breakfast treat as I was up at 5, at Matsue Station 松江駅 in time to catch the 6:23 train to Yonago 米子, and finally the 7:40 bus to Daisen 大山, arriving there around 8:30. The purpose was to climb the highest mountain in the Chūgoku 中国 region, and the day I had chosen to do so was going to be the sunniest, according to the TV weather reports I had been tracking since my arrival in Japan on Sunday.

So naturally it was drizzly on the train/bus rides from Matsue to the village of Daisen, at the foot of the mountain. The rain, however, had turned into a fog/mist by the time I got off the bus, and I set out on the 2.8 kilometer (1.7 mile) hike up the mountain.

As you can see from the photo above, I wasn't going to be alone on this hike. As it turned out, there were 5th-graders from six different schools in Shimane Prefecture 島根県 out to tackle the mountain this morning, plus a number of other hikers. Here in Taiwan, the idea of climbing up the mountain while trying to pass several hundred kids would have been an ordeal, a terrifying run (or hike) through a gauntlet of taunting brats, with the adults either doing nothing to reign them in, or even worse, encouraging their charges to torment the foreigner (respect for one's elders in Chinese society apparently only applies to elders who are ethnically Chinese). These kids, however, were very different. As I passed them on the way up (and again on the way down), I was respectfully greeted with "Konnichi wa's" こんにちは and "Ohayō gozaimasu's" おはようございます, plus a few "Hello's" in English, but no smirks or obnoxious comments. Which all showed how, in general, Japanese society operates on a level of basic civility a couple of steps higher than in Taiwan. Time and again, cars (taxis included) would let me cross the road (unheard of where I live in Taiwan), and I almost never heard the sound of cell phones ringing as most people kept their keitai's on vibrating mode. And the majority of people, too, just seemed much more aware of what was going on around them, more so than most Taiwanese, which made walking around much easier.

But I digress. The first part of the trail was through beech forest, shrouded in fog, but after only a few minutes, I had to shed the jacket I was wearing due to the sweat I was working up.

Halfway up, the sun broke through the clouds, and the eastern slope of Daisen could be seen. I would cross it later on the trail I took down. Soon, however, as I got closer to the top, the fog rolled in, the wind rose up, the temperature dropped and the jacket came back on. The trail also narrowed to the point that it would've been a long drop had I been too careless in some way.

Finally, after 2 1/2 hours of walking, I reached the top, 1710.6 meters (5612 feet) above sea level (the actual summit is a little further on, at 1729 meters, or 5673 feet, but is too dangerous to hike on). The fog completely obscured any views of the countryside far below, but I relished the moment, and had a lunch of Calorie Mates カロリーメイト (I've got to see if they have these here in Taiwan!), Pretz プリッツ and soft, shredded squid, while talking with a couple of other hikers relaxing at the top. After 30 minutes or so, just as the first group of school kids was arriving, I ventured back down into the fog.

While descending, the ground below was visible at times through breaks in the cloud cover:

The local insect life was also on display:

I chose to take a different route back to the village of Daisen, 2.3 kilometers (1.4 miles) down to Daisen-ji Temple 大山寺. Crossing over a rocky river basin, the eastern slope was partially hidden in the clouds.

After another 2 1/2 hours of walking, the trail led to the back of Ōgamiyama-jinja shrine 大神山神社, the oldest wooden building in western Tottori Prefecture 鳥取県. I also visited Daisen-ji before finally boarding the bus, and returning first to Yonago, and then to Matsue, arriving back before 6pm. After dinner at the station, I returned to my hotel exhausted, but excited, over what has been the highest hike for me so far (other than Mount Fuji 富士山, of course).