The rows of Washingtonian palm trees planted along the Nichinan coast from Aoshima to Cape Toi make this coast the West coast. I’ve never been to the West Coast. . . . Probably like this. In Japan, cars drive on the left, so it’s best to drive from north to south for a comfortable drive along the sea side. Beware of distracted driving. Here we will introduce five of the highlights, starting from the north.
1. The biggest one of Demon’s Washboards widely distributed on the Nichinan coast. If you leave Aoshima and immediately take a side street on the left from main road toward Horikiri Pass, you will find the roadside station “Phoenix” with a symbolic Phoenix trees. The view of Demon’s Washboard from here is spectacular.
west coast (1)
west coast (4)phoenix
west coast (3)mango soft serve ice cream
2. Nanatsuiwa (Seven Rocks) seen from the Inozakihana observation deck. After passing Aburatsu Fishing Port and entering a side street on a small hill, there is a parking lot that may seem a bit worrying. From here, if you continue along the sidewalk, which makes you even more worried, you will come to a wooden observation deck.
west coast (7)seven stones
hashiguiiwa in wakayama
The seven steep rocks look like the remains of magma that has erupted from cracks on the ocean floor and solidified. This is similar to Hashigui Rock at Kushimoto (Wakayama Prefecture) in the southern tip of the Kii Peninsula.
west coast (5)
west coast (6)
west coast (8)
3. The beauty of the coast seen from the roadside station Nango. No explanation needed. The handmade sweets you can get from roadside stations shop are delicious.
west coast (9)left
west coast (10)center
west coast (11)right
west coast (12)
west coast (13)road station nango
west coast (15)
west coast (14)
4. White sand beach on the Ishinami beach. It is famous as a spawning ground for loggerhead sea turtles. That’s why the coast is beautiful. Let’s watch from a distance. On the opposite shore is Kojima Island, which is home to wild monkeys.
How many Japanese people can read the kanji “Obi”? This land was the site of a dispute between the Ito clan and the Shimazu clan, both of whom were officials dispatched from the Kamakura shogunate, but it is said that after the Toyotomi administration, the Ito clan took over the land. The Ito clan is said to have immigrated from Ito City, Shizuoka Prefecture during the Kamakura Shogunate era, and took the surname Ito, so it has a really long history. That’s why a commemorative tree (Cherry Blossom) was planted in Obi Castle by Mayor Ito.
obi castle entrance
obi (2)komura jyutaro memorial hall
obi (3)castle entrance
obi (6)kuruwa for protection
obi (7)four happy cedars
obi (8)peach
obi (9)ito connection
obi (10)cherry blossoms
obi (11)
obi (15)
obi (16)
obi (17)museum
obi (18)
obi (19)
obi (23)
obi (33)clan school
obi (24)
obi (25)
obi (26)
obi (28)
obi (27)
obi (31)
obi (29)
obi (30)lord’s house
obi (32)
It was the first in Kyushu to be selected as an Important Preservation District for Traditional Buildings by Agency for Cultural Affairs. The town layout from the early Edo period remains intact, and it is one of the Little Kyotos throughout the country. The beauty of the stonework of both Obi Castle and samurai residences is unparalleled in the world. What’s more, the techniques used are too maniacal, such as stacking them in a large curve or at an angle instead of stacking them straight. The nearly 500-year history gives the moss on the stone walls a wabi-sabi feel. I have never seen such beautiful stonework. Definitely worth seeing.
obi (4)
obi (5)
obi (20)
Also, the Obi cedars, which can often be seen inside Obi Castle, are beautiful as they grow straight through a carpet of moss. There is a wonderful cedar forest on the hill at the very back of the castle ruins. Because they contain oil inside and grows quickly, it is also light, so it was valued as a material for ships and construction.
obi (12)
obi (13)
obi (14)
seated archery with cat
There is a seated archery course near the tourist information center that was popular among samurai at the time, so be sure to give it a try. 8 arrows cost 500 yen. If you underestimate them because they are close, your arrows will have a hard time hitting the target. If you miss too many arrows, the person in charge will feel sorry for you and add a few more arrows. By the way, there is a black cat living at this archery range, and he appeared on the NHK program Iwago-san’s “Cat Walks,” and when I was struggling with my bow and arrow, he came and sat behind me quietly.
obi (34)shihan-mato
obi (35)
obi (36)appeared on TV program cat walking
Detour
Miyazaki is the home of sweet potato shochu. Strangely enough, the alcohol content shipped outside the prefecture is the usual 25%, but the one distributed within the prefecture is as low as 20%. It is said that the technology for making shochu was brought to Miyazaki from Okinawa, and people who moved from Okinawa to Miyazaki after the world-war2 created moonshine with a low alcohol content, and it was legalized by setting a low alcohol tax on it. It is still distributed in Miyazaki Prefecture. There is a famous sake brewery in Nichinan City, and a dojo where young people can learn brewing techniques has opened.
nichinan city (1)
nichinan city (2)sake brewery
nichinan city (3)shochu production training center
Udo Shrine is called “Jingu,” so it has a high status among shrines. The myth is a continuation of the story of Aoshima Shrine, where Yamasachihiko, who had a great time at the Sea Palace, formed a vow with the daughter of the Sea God. The origin of Udo Shrine is said to be that a birthing house for his wife was built in a cave that was created when the strata rose diagonally.
udo shrine (1)
udo shrine (2)
udo shrine (9)pocket monster
udo shrine (19)
udo shrine (20)
The name Udo was given because its roof was covered with cormorant feathers, and since the rabbit, which has the same zodiac sign as the pronunciation of cormorant, has been worshiped as a messenger of the Gods, rabbit figurines have been donated everywhere in the shrine. Japanese people really like playing with words. At temples, for example at Zenkoji in Nagano, there are statues “Nade-botoke”(Buddha being stroked) who heal people’s diseased parts by be stroked on the same parts of them, but this is the first time I’ve seen statues “Nade-usagi”(Rabbit being stroked) moreover at a shrine.
udo shrine (3)sculptures rabbit donated
udo shrine (4)please give me
udo shrine (11)rabbit being stroked
Now, the famous attraction here is the luck ball toss. If you can toss and place an unglazed ball into a 60cm square hollow on the back of a stone resembling a turtle at the bottom of a cliff, your wish will come true. If that’s the case, why do people visit shrines? Moreover, women are told to use their right hand and men are told to use their left hand. Although it doesn’t say that left-handed men should throw with their right hand. This is complete sexism. Who decided that? That’s strange!
udo shrine (16)luck ball thrown
udo shrine (17)goal
udo shrine (18)
By the way, the luck ball that goes into the hollow is later collected by the shrine staff, placed in an amulet bag, and sold for 500 yen. They charge you 200 yen for throwing balls, and sell them for an additional 500 yen, so you’re paying double. If someone does not realize this and is making a fuss and throwing luck ball, please think carefully about what he is doing.
geibikei senryutan
geibikei throwqing stones for lucky
geibikei stones
By the way, there is a similar attraction as above at Geibikei Gorge in Iwate Prefecture where you throw a luck ball into a hole in a cliff. There is no right or left hand restriction here. I got in 3 out of 5 times. Each ball you throw has a different letter engraved on it, which is supposed to help you read your fortune, but I completely forgot to check what was engraved before I threw it.
udo shrine (12)concr etion
Another highlight is the concretions, which are spherical calcified bodies of dead jellyfish and other creatures trapped in the sandstone, which can be seen all over the cliffs. The water that permeates through the ground contains lime and falls into the cave as water droplets, creating a structure similar to a limestone cave. Although it does not have icicles like a limestone cave, from a distance, the water droplets look like a mother’s nipples, and there is an explanation that says that these are the milk for the baby born in the birthing center. At shrines, these water droplets are collected and sold as milk candy.
udo shrine (10)
udo shrine (14)tits
udo shrine (15)mother’s milk of earth
The concretion at Udo Shrine is broadcast on the NHK program Buratamori, and the details are written on a signboard inside the shrine grounds. It’s in Japanese though.
Immediately after the low-pressure system passed, strong winds blew away the leaves of the Washingtonian palm trees planted along the road, but the 20 meter tall trunks remained motionless. It is said that the founder of Miyazaki Kotsu Co.,Ltd. started planting trees as a tourist attraction, but pruning businesses in Miyazaki City now use cranes to carry out the heavy maintenance work. Nevertheless the work can’t keep up, chunks of skin are falling all over the town.
aoshima shrine (1)
The Nichinan Coast, which is lined with Washington palm trees, is made up of layers of hard sandstone and soft mudstone that rise diagonally and have been washed by waves for long time. As a result, there are many landforms where only sandstone layers appear stacked up like plates. Due to its size, it is called the demon’s washboard, but it is a long time ago that laundry was scrubbed with a washboard by hands to remove dirt, and in the era of fully automatic washing machines, very few people were aware of this. Probably not. I think it might be a good idea to come up with a new name to replace the demon’s washboard.
aoshima shrine (8)
aoshima shrine (21)
aoshima shrine (4)soil of aoshima
There is a theory that in Aoshima, seeds that washed up from the Pacific Ocean germinated on the small amount of soil that had accumulated on this demon’s washboard, and subtropical plants flourished there. Aoshima Shrine is enshrined surrounded by these subtropical plants, and the vivid vermilion of the shrine, the vibrant deep green of the subtropical plants, and the blue of the sea that can be seen from the shrine create a color collaboration. This combination is special.
aoshima shrine (7)
aoshima shrine (9)
aoshima shrine (10)
aoshima shrine (11)
aoshima shrine (16)baseball team Giants prayer for victory
aoshima shrine (12)subtropical plants
aoshima shrine (15)
aoshima shrine (13)find special shell
aoshima shrine (14)matchmaking paper twist
aoshima shrine (17)
aoshima shrine (18)
aoshima shrine (19)
aoshima shrine (20)tuk tuk
The myths surrounding Aoshima Shrine were written in the oldest classic, the Kojiki. Yamasachihiko, who borrowed a fishing hook from his brother Umisachihiko, dropped it in the sea and ended up at the Sea Palace looking for it. After living a rich life there for three years, he came back and returned the fishing hook to Umisachihiko, but the relationship between the two did not go well and there was some quarrel. However, it is a story that doesn’t quite make sense. Most Japanese myths don’t have a punch line, so you might be left with a feeling of being empty. Similarly, Rakugo, which tells a comic story just by copying the form of the voice, has a punch line at the end of the story, but it’s not as interesting as the middle of the story.
aoshima shrine (2)
aoshima shrine (6)slab eroded as skeleton
The only thing here is to enjoy the creations of nature, not myths. To do this, check the low tide time in advance and go sightseeing around that time. Otherwise, the demon’s washboard would be submerged in the sea. Some of the sandstone slabs have structures that make you wonder how they were eroded to form such patterns. However, when I look at the neatly lined sandstone slabs, am I the only one who notices that they look like mahjong tiles stacked on top of one another?
aoshima shrine (5)sandstone slabs
Detour 1 (Botanic Garden)
aoshima botanic (3)
On the way from the parking lot to Aoshima inland, we passed a subtropical botanical garden. It really makes you feel like you’re in a tropical country. Admission is free.
aoshima botanic (9)
aoshima botanic (4)
aoshima botanic (2)
aoshima botanic (6)
aoshima cafe life (1)
aoshima cafe life (2)
Detour 2 (Chicen dishes)
Miyazaki’s specialty is chicken dishes. Charcoal-grilled chicken is cooked over a strong fire until it is charred and eaten with wasabi. Addictive taste. On the other hand, fried chicken “Nanban” is on the menu at all times of the day, and depending on the restaurant, different parts of the chicken are used, such as breast, thigh, or chicken fillet. The chicken fillet is the most recommended. Eat with special homemade tartar sauce. This makes it even more delicious. Please enjoy Miyazaki night!
miyazaki night (3)charcoal-grilled chiken with wasabi
A sake brewery in Daigahara, a post town on the old Koshu Highroad, produced a famous sake called Shichiken. The brewed water in the backyard that you can drink freely is soft and delicious. There is also sake that is similar to champagne. Would you like to eat koji(malt) dishes at the attached restaurant, or have cold soba noodles at the soba restaurant across the street? In either case, good water is the deciding factor.
shichiken3 pine tree
shichiken2 inside
shichiken4 restaurant
shichiken6 lunch
shichiken5 natural water
soba kubota
Whiskey brewing and tasting
suntory3 tasting
Japanese Sake is not the only type of brewing that uses delicious water. The Suntory Hakushu factory is located towards Kobuchizawa from the post town. You can tour here, but the most fun part is the tasting. Advance reservations are required to tour, but be sure to take advantage of the hourly free shuttle bus from Kobuchizawa Station. Drivers are only boring. In case of the Suntory Yamazaki factory in Osaka, it is near the station, so you can easily go for a tasting. The founders of both Suntory and Nikka Whiskey were closely related.
If you follow the JR Chuo Main Line further upstream, you will see a particularly huge cherry tree, the Kanda Oito Cherry Blossom (Edohigan Cherry Blossom), standing like a giant with Yatsugatake in the background. The tree is currently being treated to restore its vigor.
kanda2 cyuoh line
kanda5 with yatsugatake
kanda4
The cherry blossoms at the place where Dososhin, the road god at the entrance of the village, is located overlooking the Oito cherry blossoms are also spectacular.
kanda1
kanda6
kanda7
kanda9
kanda10
Detour (Nagasaka Ushiike Pond)
Nagasaka Town is located across the Kamanashi River, which creates a deep valley. Just one step away from the main road in the middle of town, cherry blossoms are planted surrounding Nagasaka Ushiike Pond, which was built for irrigation purposes, and the Southern Alps appear to be looming in the background.
nagasaka ushi pond1 left
nagasaka ushi pond2 right
Sakura needs no explanation. I missed the famous cherry blossoms along the JR Chuo Line. This is a lone cherry tree in Wanizuka, Nirasaki City, just before Hokuto City. The cherry blossoms reach full bloom earlier than the cherry blossoms in Hokuto City, so pay attention to the timing.
Near Jisso-ji Temple, there is a row of Sanehara cherry trees planted by the pioneers of this area. It is said that when they first settled in this area, they had great difficulty cultivating it due to lack of water.
sanehara3 kai komagatake
sanehara4
sanehara5
sanehara6
sanehara7
sanehara12 edohigan cherry
sanehara13
sanehara14
sanehara15
sanehara16
The rows of cherry blossom trees, which have watched their work over the past year, will be in full bloom again this year with Mt. Kai-komagatake in the Southern Alps in the background and will give them courage.
Aiming for Jissoji Temple in Hokuto City. Many cherry blossoms are carefully managed at this temple. The garden in front of the precincts has a 3D composition, with a field of daffodils surrounded by cherry blossoms in full bloom and the snow-capped Southern Alps in the distance.
photographers over the fence
When I actually went there, I found out that this composition was achieved by the photographers uniformly standing over the fence with their backs stretched out. Space cherry blossoms that have sprouted after returning from an eight-month stay in zero gravity on the space station are also blooming in the grounds.
jissoji4
jissoji5
jissoji7
jissoji9
jissoji8
jissoji10
jissoji11 kai komagatake
jissoji12
yamataka jindai cherry blossom2
As you enjoy the cherry blossoms in the precincts, you will find the Yamataka-jindai cherry tree, which is said to be 2,000 years old, located in the back. This is probably the guardian deity that local people have respected for generations. The presence of this single cherry tree is amazing. It is said to be one of Japan’s three major cherry blossoms, along with Miharu Takizakura in Fukushima Prefecture.
When Katsushika Hokusai was nearly 90 years old, he was invited to stay in Obuse four times by a patron from Obuse whom he met in Edo. He was said to have walked 250km one way in 8 days, so even though he was almost 90 years old, he had great physical strength to walk 30km a day. That’s probably why the paintings had such power. The last ceiling painting in his later years is in Gansho-in Temple. In addition to Hokusai’s paintings, it is also famous as the place where the haiku poet Issa Kobayashi wrote a haiku about frogs, and the mausoleum of Masanori Fukushima, a man of great service in establishing the Toyotomi government, who was demoted to Obuse by Tokugawa Ieyasu. During the off-season, community buses are not running, so you have no choice but to walk towards the mountain.
obuse gansho-in (2)famous for Hokusai ceiling painting
obuse gansho-in (1)
obuse gansho-in (4)mausoleum of Masanori Fukushima
obuse gansho-in (3)famos for Issa haiku
An old guide with a strong voice explains that the phoenix drawn is a symbol of longevity, and that is why plants such as pine trees drawn on its body were growing. The paintings were drawn directly on 12 cypress boards and pasted together on the ceiling, and since they used a lot of gold leaf and pigments ordered from Edo, the patron must had been very wealthy. When I sat in the recommended sitting position, the phoenix’s eyes looked extremely sexy. This must be a picture drawn by an old man who was almost 90 years old !
ceiling paint by hokusai (Source: Gansho-in Temple website)
There is also the Hokusai Museum in town, where paintings drawn on the ceilings of festival stalls are on display.
Although it has nothing to do with Hokusai, there is Jokoji Temple, which has a beautiful thatched roof, near Gansho-in Temple. This temple is famous for its slackline club. That’s why the World Cup of slackline was held in Obuse for the first time in Asia.
When we arrived at the center of Obuse town, a large group of young tourists got off the large bus. It seemed like they were on a graduation trip, but it’s rare to see so many young people coming together in groups at tourist destinations in Japan. Japan’s tourist spots are now filled with energetic old people or foreigners who have benefited from the weak yen. This site, however, is disseminating information to non-Japanese people.
obuse scenery (4)
obuse scenery (5)
obuse scenery (6)
The first thing I noticed in Obuse was that each house and plot of land was large, and it was far more spacious than in Tokyo. Also, since there is no shopping street itself, there are no shuttered streets that are often seen, and there are no abandoned houses. Perhaps because of this, it has the feel of a rich country town. This area is also an alluvial fan, and fruit trees such as grapes and chestnut trees are cultivated on the farm.
obuse scenery (2)
obuse scenery (20)
obuse scenery (3)
This town does not give the impression of being depopulated or deserted at all. Although it only has a population of 10,000 people, it is famous as a chestnut production area that has continued since the Edo period. During the chestnut harvest season, long lines form in the morning for the seasonal fresh chestnut sweets, but you can enjoy chestnut sweets all year round along with delicious Italian cuisine at Evolve, which is a sister store to the famous store.
evolve lunch (1)entrance
evolve lunch (2)
evolve lunch (3)
evolve lunch (4)
evolve lunch (5)
evolve lunch (6)
evolve lunch (7)
evolve lunch (8)chestnut sweet
There are sweets shops all over the place, and you can enjoy all kinds of chestnut sweets. I wonder if the young group who got off the large bus came looking for these or rare sake from this region, but I couldn’t trace them after that.
