Japan Travel

Takamatsu Shopping Arcades

Within Takamatsu’s city center is a long, covered shopping arcade, stretching from Takamatsu Castleto Ritsurin Koen. Made up of various stores, restaurants and two department stores, it is claimed to be the longest covered shopping arcade in Japan with a combined length of nearly 2.7 kilometers.

The northern end of the shopping arcade near Takamatsu Castle and Mitsukoshi Department Store has recently been redeveloped into a large plaza and shopping center with upscale stores like Louis Vuitton and Coach. Lion Dori, a branch street running parallel to the main shopping street, contains mostly restaurants including those serving Sanuki Udon.

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Kanamaruza Kabuki Theater

Built in Kotohira in 1835, Kanamaruza Theater is Japan’s oldest surviving, complete kabuki playhouse. From time to time, it still stages kabuki performances.

When no shows are held, the theater is open to visitors who can explore Kanamaruza’s audience hall, stage, and dressing rooms. Be sure to check out the basement to see the workings of the human powered rotating stage and trapdoors used by actors to dramatically enter and exit performances.

Uchiko-za, a similar historical kabuki theater, can be found in Uchiko in nearby Ehime Prefecture.

Audience area of Kanamaruza

Beneath the rotating stage

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Kompirasan’s main hall

Kompirasan, formally known as Kotohiragu, is the main shrine of multiple Kompira shrines found around Japan that are dedicated to sailors and seafaring. Located on the wooded slope of Mount Zozu inKotohira, the approach to Kompirasan is an arduous series of 1,368 stone steps.

Over many centuries, Kompirasan had been revered as a mixture between Shinto shrine and Buddhist temple, until it was officially declared a shrine in the beginning of the Meiji Period during government efforts to separate the two religions. Nevertheless, the former symbiosis is still visible in Kompirasan’s architecture which displays both Shinto and Buddhist elements.

The path to Kompirasan

Stairs approaching Kompirasan’s inner shrine

Despite being one of the most difficult shrine approaches in Japan, Kompirasan is a highly popular site visited by pilgrims from across the country. The approach begins amongst a touristy shopping arcade filled with souvenir shops and Sanuki Udon restaurants, from where it is a 785 step climb (about 45 minutes) past a number of auxiliary shrine buildings and museums to the main hall of the shrine.

Next to the main hall is a viewpoint overlooking Kotohira Town, and the Ema Hall which displays plates and pictures of ships, battleships and even space rockets whose crews sought the protection of the shrine. Interestingly, a real mini submarine is also on display.

Most visitors only make it up to the main hall; however, for the adventurous it is an additional 583 steps (an additional 45 minutes) along a paved, forested path to the inner shrine (Okusha) of the complex. Those unable (or unwilling) to make the climb, can hire a palanquin (5300 yen one way or 6500 yen round trip) up to the main hall or take a bus (see details below).

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Yashima Travel

Yashima (lit. “roof island”) is a flat topped mountain just outside of Takamatsu’s city center. It was the site of an important 12th century battle during the Gempei War between the Taira and Minamoto Clans. Here the Taira were defeated in what was to be the last battle before their final destruction.

Around the flat summit are some attractions related to the mountain’s history as a battleground, including a Monument to the Battle of Yashima and Chinoike (”blood pond”), a pond which is said to have turned red with blood after the victorious Minamoto washed their swords in it.

Yashima offers great views of Takamatsu and of the Seto Inland Sea. Near the many viewpoints around the mountaintop are shops where you can buy small clay discs, which are thrown off the mountain for luck. This is meant to symbolize the victorious Minamoto warriors throwing off their headpieces after defeating the Taira.

Clay discs are thrown from the mountain for good luck

Near the summit’s parking area is Yashima Temple, the 84th of the 88 temples on the Shikoku Pilgrimage. In addition to a number of buildings, each seemingly of a different era, the temple also has a modern museum which displays artifacts from Yashima’s history.

About a five minute walk around the summit from Yashima Temple is the New Yashima Aquarium which features dolphin and seal shows. Note however, that it is a fairly small and somewhat neglected aquarium.

At the base of Yashima lies Shikoku Mura, an open air museum exhibiting traditional farmhouses, storehouses, bridges, and other structures from all over Shikoku Island.

New Yashima Aquarium

Yashima Temple

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Dogo Onsen

Matsuyama is the largest city on Shikoku and the capital of Ehime Prefecture. At the heart of the city stands Matsuyamajo, a beautiful, original castle. The castle’s hilltop vantage point offers a view of the city and a glimpse of the Seto Inland Sea.

The city is also famed for being the setting of Natsume Soseki’s popular novel, entitled “Botchan”. Often read as part of the Japanese school curriculum, the novel describes Matsuyama during the turbulentMeiji Restoration. Natsume’s novel helped make the city renowned throughout Japan.

Dogo Onsen is frequently mentioned in “Botchan” and is one of Matsuyama’s main tourist attractions. Referring to both a district northeast of the city center and a specific bath house, Dogo Onsen is one of Japan’s oldest hot spring resorts.

Dogo Onsen Honkan

Dogo Onsen is one of Japan’s oldest and most famous hot springs, located to the east of centralMatsuyama. The area is popular with tourists for its beautiful bath house and many ryokan. Dogo Onsen has also been a frequent destination for Japan’s most prestigious guests, the imperial family.

The main attraction in Dogo Onsen is the Dogo Onsen Honkan, a Meiji Period wooden public bathhouse, dating from 1894. The interior of the building is a maze of stairways, passages and rooms, all of which bustle with bathers and staff. It is said to have served as inspiration for Miyazaki’s popular animated film “Spirited Away”.

Clock

Botchan Dango sweets

Four different bathing options provide visitors with varying levels of access to the Honkan’s facilities (see details below under “Hours and Fees”). At the lowest level, bathers can use the large, public bath called Kami no yu (”bath of the gods”).

At the other end of the spectrum, bathers have access to both the Kami no yu and the smaller Tama no yu (”bath of the spirits”), as well as to private rooms for enjoying a complementary post bath snack of botchan dango (Japanese sweets) and tea. Furthermore, they can take a look at the exclusive bathing facilities reserved for visiting Emperors.

In front of Dogo Onsen Honkan, a covered arcade is filled with gift shops and snack stores. It stays open late to serve ryokan guests who come out for evening walks in their yukata. Nearby, the Shiki Museum displays information on one of Matsuyama’s most celebrated figure, Masaoka Shiki, who introduced modern haiku poetry.

How to get there

Dogo Onsen is a four minute walk from Dogo Onsen Station, the terminus of three tram lines. From JR Matsuyama Station, take tram line 5 (20 minutes, 150 yen). From Matsuyama-shi Station, take tram line 3 (15 minutes, 150 yen).

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Matsuyama Castle (Matsuyamajo) is one of Japan’s most beautiful original castles. It is located on Katsuyama (Mount Katsu), a steep hill in the city center, that provides visitors to the castle with a bird’s eye view of Matsuyama and the Seto Inland Sea.

Matsuyamajo was constructed between 1602 and 1628. In 1635, the castle was assigned to a branch of the Matsudaira family, relatives of the Tokugawa, and remained in their hands until the end of the feudal era. The current three storied castle tower was constructed in 1820 after the original five storied one was destroyed by lightening.

View from the tower

Castle Ropeway and Chairlift

In spite of the castle’s steep hilltop location, a ropeway and chairlift make it easily accessible. Riding the single-chair, barrier-free chairlift is a pleasant way to ascend Katsuyama. The castle itself provides an excellent, original example of feudal castles and is one of only three that boast multiple wings. Inside, some exhibits offer information on Matsuyama’s history and the feudal period.

Ninomaru Garden lies just below Matsuyama Castle. This garden park is arranged to observe the floor plan and layout of Matsuyama Castle’s outer buildings, which are no longer standing. Many of the original castle foundations remain visible, and the former castle layout is further rendered by gardensand ponds. Ninomaru Garden can be reached in a 15-20 minutes walk from Matsuyama Castle by a walking path.

Ninomaru Garden
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Ishiteji’s Niomon Gate

Ishiteji, literally meaning “stone hand temple” due to a local legend, is number 51 of the 88 temples on the Shikoku Pilgrimage. It is also Matsuyama’s most famous temple, located near Dogo Onsen.

Pilgrims dressed in white are a frequent sight at this large temple to the northeast of Matsuyama’s city center. The sprawling temple grounds boast several different halls, a three-storied pagoda, along with various statues and small buildings on its grounds. A treasure house displays some of the temple’s most important artifacts.

Temple behind Ishiteji

Paintings in the main hall

Ishiteji is known for its Niomon Gate, a designated national treasure. The main hall and pagoda are also designated important cultural properties, and all of the structures exhibit the typical architecture style of the Kamakura Period (1192-1333).

Of further interest, Ishiteji hosts a curious looking temple located through a cave behind the main hall. Visitors who follow the dimly lit tunnel will find an overgrown, untended, dome-shaped temple. The building and statues here reflect a very different style than those on the main grounds. The tunnel itself is interesting as well. It branches off in two directions, and houses many statues and carvings.

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Sunport Takamatsu

Sunport Takamatsu is the name of the recently redeveleloped, business and shopping district around JR Takamatsu Station and Takamatsu Port. Takamastu Castle and the terminal station of Kotoden Railways, Takamatsu-Chikko Station, are also nearby.

Takamatsu Port used to be the main entry point to Shikoku until the opening of the Seto Ohashi Bridge in 1988. Today, the port continues to offer ferry connections to Kobe and some nearby islands, including Shodoshima and Naoshima.

Symbol Tower on the left

Takamatsu Harbor area at night

Since the dramatic drop of car ferry traffic in 1988, the area around the port has been redeveloped with a pleasant waterfront promenade and a large pedestrian plaza, flanked by JR Takamatsu Station, ANA Hotel Clement and the Symbol Tower.

The tallest building of Sunport Takamatsu, the Symbol Tower is a 30 story office building with a shopping center on its lower floors and an observation deck and several fine dining options on its top floors, including two restaurants by former Iron Chefs from the popular TV cooking show of the same name.

View over Takamatsu from the Symbol Tower with Yashima in the distance

How to get there

Sunport Takamatsu is just outside of JR Takamatsu Station and is across the street from Takamatsu Castle. It is also served by Kotoden Takamatsu-Chikko Station.

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Shikido: replication of Shiki’s childhood home

Matsuyama is a city rich in literary talent and history. The 20th century in particular saw Matsuyama rise to prominence in Japan’s literary realm. Three important writers were either born in the city, or chose it as home for themselves and their characters.

The first is a poet, Masaoka Shiki (1867-1902), born and raised in Matsuyama. He adopted the name Shiki, (meaning “blood”), after contracting tuberculosis as a young man. Shiki was an advocate of modernizing the old Japanese poetic forms, and he eventually introduced Haiku and Tanka for this purpose. The Shikido Memorial replicates his former home, with the additional display of Matsuyama’s former steam train. Shiki Museum commemorates his life and poetic achievements.

The second major figure in Matsuyama’s literary trio is Natsume Soseki (1987-1916), a prolific Meiji Period novelist and friend of Shiki’s. He is best known for a novel entitled “Botchan”, set in Matsuyama and featuring locations around the city. “Botchan” follows the life of a young teacher who moves to Matsuyama as Meiji Period reforms sweep the country.

Statue of Shiki as a boy

Haiku inscribed stone monument

“Botchan”, written in 1906, is now often read as part of the Japanese school curriculum. As a result of the novel’s wide readership, Matsuyama and its sights are well known across Japan. While the novel depicts Matsuyama as a small, backwards and insignificant town, it is very fondly regarded by residents of the city.

There is an exhibit on “Botchan” in the Shiki Kinen Museum, and the Dogo Onsen Station was rebuilt to resemble the novel’s, complete with a Botchan train (traditional steam locomotive) that operates along the tram lines.

Finally, there is Ryotaro Shiba, a novelist born in 1923 who often wrote about the Edo and Meiji Periods. One of his later novels entitled “Saka no Ue no Kumo”, or “Clouds Over the Hill” features Matsuyama City and includes both Shiki and Natsume as characters. The recently opened Saka no Ue no Kumo Museum commemorates the novel.

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Shikoku Mura (Shikoku Village) is an open air museum situated at the base of Yashima. This pleasant hillside park preserves and exhibits traditional buildings and structures that have been relocated here from all over Shikoku Island.

Among the exhibited buildings, which mainly date from the Edo and Meiji Periods, are a number of farmhouses and storehouses, as well as various traditional workshops that produced goods such as sugar and soya sauce.

Kabuki Theater

Sugar cane press

Other structures exhibited include bridges, a lighthouse and a kabuki theater which occasionally hosts performances. One of the most popular attractions is a vine suspension bridge, made similarly to the ones found in the Iya Valley (Tokushima Prefecture) out of vine and wood (and reinforced by steel cables).

Shikoku Mura also has a small art gallery showing paintings and sculpture by modern artists from around the world. The gallery has a nice view over the surrounding city and occasionally holds live performances and special events.

Sugar processing buildings in the park

Information by http://www.japan-guide.com