The Town
If you're in town on Sunday, head for the early-morning market beside Tsuwano Station; otherwise you should aim straight for the old streets of Tonomachi , around seven minutes' walk southeast. At the north end of the main pedestrian thoroughfare, Tonomachi-dori, pause at the small Katsushika Hokusai Museum of Art (daily 9.30am-5pm; Y500) to view its refined collection of woodblock prints, illustrations and paintings by the famous nineteenth-century artist Hokusai Katsushika. Tonomachi's streets are bordered by narrow canals, home to carp, which outnumber the town's 9000 residents by more than ten to one, and which were originally bred as emergency food supplies in the event of famine. The town's prosperity born of peace and enlightened rule by local daimyo is evident from the handsome buildings. Look out for sake breweries and shops selling traditional sweets, including genji-maki , a soft sponge filled with sweet red-bean paste. Easily spotted behind the white, tile-capped walls is the grey spire of the Catholic Church , built in 1931, which combines stained-glass windows and an organ with tatami flooring. Further along, near the banks of the Tsuwano-kawa, is the Yorokan, the former school for young samurai , now containing an uninspiring folk-art museum (daily 8.30am-5pm; Y200). Make a short detour across the Tsuwano-kawa, around which the fireflies buzz each June, to the fancifully named Musee de Morijuku (9am-5pm; Y500), a restored farmhouse fronted by raked-gravel gardens and smartly converted into a modern gallery for local contemporary artists. The museum also has a small collection of etchings by the Spanish artist Goya. Upstairs, get the attendant to show you the pinhole camera in the shoji screen, capturing an image of the garden outside. Back across the river, just west of the train tracks is the shrine Yasaka-jinja , where each July 20-27 the ancient Sagi-Mai (Heron Dance) is performed by men dressed as the white birds, complete with flapping wings and long-necked hats. Nearby, a path, covered by a tunnel of over a thousand red torii , leads uphill towards the Taikodani Inari-jinja , one of the five largest Inari shrines in Japan. The bright-red and gold shrine bustles with tourists who say prayers to the local Shinto deities outside the splendid main hall. The views of Tsuwano from the shrine's hillside location are good, but not as dramatic as those from the top of the hill where the castle Tsuwano-jo used to stand. If you fancy an energetic hike, follow the pathway leading up to the old castle grounds (around a 30min walk), or you could take the chair lift (daily 9am-5pm; Y450 return). However, due to a recent earthquake, the castle ruins themselves are out of bounds. Immediately below the bottom of the chair lift, the Tsuwano Tradition Museum (daily 8.30am-5pm; Y320) is worth a look for its collection of photographs of the town throughout the seasons, videos of local festivals and culture, and the bizarre masks and costumes worn in the heron dance. Continuing downhill, you'll find yourself at the southern end of Tsuwano. If you cross over the river and head south along the main road, you'll pass several more inconsequential museums, before reaching the Mori Ogai Kyotaku , on the right, the preserved wood and mustard-plaster home of a famed Meiji-era novelist. Personal effects of the writer, and his death mask, are displayed next door in the modern Mori Ogai Memorial Museum (daily 9am-5pm; Y500).
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