Tsuwano-cho (津和野町) is a town in Kanoashi District, Shimane Prefecture, Japan.  As of April 1, 2012, the town has an estimated population of 8,118 and a density of 26.4 persons per sq. km.  The total area is 307.09 sq. km.     Tsuwano is remotely located and surrounded by hills.  Though geographically closer to Yamaguchi, the capital of Yamaguchi Prefecture, it is situated in Shimane Prefecture.  A train trip to Matsue, Shimane’s capital, takes as long as four hours.  Due to its proximity to the border to neighboring Yamaguchi, many tourists who come to Tsuwano also visit Hagi on the Sea of Japan and Yamaguchi at the same time, and Tsuwano is often mistaken as being located in Yamaguchi prefecture for this reason.     Popularly called the "Little Kyoto of San-In," Tsuwano is known for its picturesque mainstreet, "Tono-machi" (殿町), which is lined with Edo-era buildings and Koi (鯉) ponds.  It also boasts one of the oldest still in use "Yabusame" (流鏑馬; horse back archery) ranges in all of Japan, and its annual Yabusame festival is a large tourist draw for the San-In region.  On September 25, 2005 the town of Nichihara (日原町) was merged into Tsuwano.     Tsuwano is somewhat unusually home to two Catholic churches.  The Catholic church in Tsuwano itself is dedicated to Saint Francis Xavier, who visited Japan as a missionary for over two years between 1549-1551, and is located on its mainstreet.  The church at Otome Pass (乙女峠) is part of a memorial for Christians persecuted and tortured in Tsuwano by the government during the Edo and Meiji periods.     Other notable locations and tourist attractions within Tsuwano include the ruins of Tsuwano-jo Castle (津和野城), where the Kamei clan once ruled the Tsuwano fiefdom from the 17th through mid 19th-centuries, and the famed mountainside Taikodani Inari Shrine (太皷谷稲成神社) with its "1000 vermillion torii gates."  In 1773 Tsuwano's seventh generation feudal lord Norisada Kamei (亀井矩貞) had Taikodani Inari built to enshrine a share of the spirit worshipped at the Fushimi Inari (伏見稲荷) in Kyoto.  This shrine was built to pray for the safety of Kamei's castle and peace among his people.
  Novelist Ogai Mori (森鴎外) was born in Tsuwano into a family of doctors, and the house of his birth is preserved.  Mori studied medicine in Germany and led the adoption of German medical practices into the Japanese military.  In commemoration, Tsuwano became a sister city of Berlin's central ward under an agreement signed August 25, 1995.  His tomb is located in Yomei Temple (永明寺) in Tsuwano, which was built in 1420 and is known as one of two great Soto-shu (曹洞宗) sect temples, the other being Daijo-ji Temple in Kanazawa city.   Philosopher Amane Nishi (西周), another leader of Japan’s modernization in the Meiji period, was also born in Tsuwano.  His ancestors were physicians for the daimyo of the fief.  (Extracted from the site of "Wikipedia")

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JR Tsuwano Station

JR Tsuwano Station (JR津和野駅) is located at Ushiroda, Tsuwacho-cho, Kanoashi-gun, Shimane Prefecture (島根県鹿足郡津和野町後田). This is the last station for the SL Yamaguchi (SLやまぐち号), a popular steam train operates on the line between Shin-Yamaguchi, Yamaguchi and Tsuwano on weekends.

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(Thursday 15 March) JR Tsuwano Station, Ushiroda, Tsuwacho-cho

Rental Cycle Kamai

Rental Cycle Kamai (貸自転車かまい) is located at i-49-6 Ushiroda, Tsuwano (津和野町後田イ49-6) or just in front of JR Tsuwano Station. Mr. Kamai is a very nice man. Highly recommended.

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(Thursday 15 March) Rental Cycle Kamai, i-49-6 Ushiroda, Tsuwano

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(Thursday 15 March) These are presents from Mr. Kamai: A local sweet "Genji-maiki" (源氏巻) and "Nigori-zake" (にごり酒; unfiltered sake). In fact I rented a bicycle with a gearshift, a raincoat and winter gloves (because it snowed the previous day) for 4 hours. I paid him only 500 yen in total and he gave me these souvenirs with his smile, saying "You have come here from afar!"

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(Thursday 15 March) These are presents from Mr. Kamai: A local sweet "Genji-maiki" (源氏巻) and "Nigori-zake" (にごり酒; unfiltered sake).

Ogai Mori Memorial Museum

Ogai Mori Memorial Museum (森鴎外記念館) is located at i-238 Machida, Tsuwano-cho (津和野町町田イ-238). Ogai Mori (森鴎外, February 17, 1862 - July 8, 1922) was a Japanese physician, translator, novelist and poet. Gan (雁; The Wild Geese, (1911-1913) is considered his major work. Mori was born as Mori Rintaro (森 林太郎) in Tsuwano, Iwami province (present-day Shimane prefecture). His family were hereditary physicians to the daimyo of the Tsuwano Domain. As the eldest son, it was assumed that he would carry on the family tradition; therefore he was sent to attend classes in the Confucian classics at the domain academy, and took private lessons in rangaku (蘭学; Dutch studies), and in the Dutch language. In 1872, after the Meiji Restoration and the abolition of the domains, the Mori family relocated to Tokyo. Mori stayed at the residence of Amane Nishi, in order to receive tutoring in the German language, which was the primary language for medical education at the time. In 1874, he was admitted to the government medical school (the predecessor for Tokyo Imperial University's Medical School), and graduated in 1881 at the age of 19, the youngest person ever to be awarded a medical license in Japan. It was also during this time that he developed an interest in literature, reading extensively from the late-Edo period popular novels, and taking lessons in Chinese poetry and literature. After graduation, Mori enlisted in the Imperial Japanese Army as a medical officer, hoping to specialize in military medicine and hygiene. Mori was sent by the Army to study in Germany (Leipzig, Dresden, Munich, and Berlin) from 1884-1888. During this time, he also developed an interest in European literature. As a matter of trivia, Ogai Mori is the first Japanese known to have ridden on the Orient Express. Upon his return to Japan, he assumed a high rank as a medical doctor in the Japanese army and pushed for a more scientific approach to medical research, even publishing a medical journal out of his own funds. Meanwhile, he also attempted to revitalize modern Japanese literature and published his own literary journal Shigarami-soshi (『しからみ草紙』1889-1894) and his own book of poetry Omokage (『於母影』 1889). In his writings, he was an “anti-realist”, asserting that literature should reflect the emotional and spiritual domain. Maihime (『舞姫』; The Dancing Girl, 1890), described an affair between a Japanese man and a German woman. In 1899, Mori married Akamatsu Toshiko (赤松登志子), daughter of Admiral Akamatsu Noriyoshi (赤松 則良), a close friend of Amane Nishi (西周). He divorced her the following year under acrimonious circumstances that irreparably ended his friendship with Nishi. At the start of the First Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895, Mori was sent to Manchuria and, the following year, to Taiwan. In 1899, he was appointed head of the Army Medical Corps and was based in Kokura, Kyushu. In 1902, he was reassigned to Tokyo. In 1907, Mori was promoted to Army Surgeon-General, the highest post within the Japanese medical corps. On his retirement in 1916 he was appointed director of the Imperial Museum. Although Mori did little writing from 1892-1902, he continued to edit a literary journal Mezamashi gusa (『めさまし草』1892-1909). He also produced translations of the works of Goethe, Schiller, Ibsen, Hans Christian Andersen, and Hauptmann. It was during the Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905) that Mori started keeping a poetic diary. After the war, he began holding tanka writing parties that included several noted poets such as Yosano Akiko (与謝野晶子). His later works can be divided into three separate periods. From 1909-1912, he wrote mostly fiction based on his own experiences. This period includes Vita Sexualis, and his most popular novel, Gan (『雁』; The Wild Geese, 1911-1913), which is set in 1881 Tokyo and was filmed by Shiro Toyoda (豊田四郎) in 1953 as The Mistress: Wild Goose(『雁』) . From 1912-1916, he wrote mostly historical stories. Deeply affected by the seppuku of General Nogi Maresuke (乃木希典) in 1912, he explored the impulses of self-destruction, self-sacrifice and patriotic sentiment. This period includes Sansho Dayu (『山椒大夫』), and Takasebune (『高瀬舟』). From 1916, he turned his attention to biographies of late Edo period doctors. As an author, Mori is considered one of the leading writers of the Meiji period. In his literary journals, he instituted modern literary criticism in Japan, based on the aesthetic theories of Karl von Hartmann. A house which Mori lived in is preserved in Kokura Kita Ward (小倉北区) in Kitakyushu (北九州), not far from Kokura Station. Here he wrote Kokura Nikki (『小倉日記』; Kokura Diary). His birthhouse is also preserved in Tsuwano. The two one-story houses are remarkably similar in size and in their traditional Japanese style. One of Mori's daughters, Mori Mari (森茉莉), influenced the Yaoi movement in contemporary Japanese comics. Mori's sister, Kimiko (森喜美子), married Koganei Yoshikiyo (小金井 良精). Hoshi Shinichi (星 新一) was one of their grandsons. (Referred to the site of "Wikipedia")

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(Thursday 15 March) Ogai Mori's Childhood House, i-238 Machida, Tsuwano Town

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(Thursday 15 March) Ogai Mori's Childhood House, i-238 Machida, Tsuwano Town

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(Thursday 15 March) Ogai Mori's Childhood House, i-238 Machida, Tsuwano Town

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(Thursday 15 March) Ogai Mori Memorial Museum, i-238 Machida, Tsuwano Town

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(Thursday 15 March) Bust of Ogai Mori Memorial Museum, i-238 Machida, Tsuwano Town

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(Thursday 15 March) Bust of Ogai Mori Memorial Museum, i-238 Machida, Tsuwano Town<

Amane Nishi's Old House

Amane Nishi's Old House (西周旧宅) is located at Ushiroda, Tsuwano-cho (津和野町後田). Amane Nishi (西 周, March 7, 1829-January 30, 1897) was a philosopher in Meiji Era Japan who helped introduce Western philosophy into mainstream Japanese education. He was a relative of Ogai Mori.

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(Thursday 15 March) Amane Nishi's Old House, Ushiroda, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Amane Nishi's Old House, Ushiroda, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Amane Nishi's Old House, Ushiroda, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Amane Nishi's Old House, Ushiroda, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Amane Nishi's Old House, Ushiroda, Tsuwano-cho

Washihara Hachiman-gu Shrine

Washihara Hachiman-gu Shrine (鷲原八幡宮) is located at i-632-2 Sagihara, Tsuwano-cho (津和野町鷲原イ632-2). It was reportedly founded in the Tenryaku Era (天暦年間; AD 947-956). It enshrines Homutawake-no-mikoto (誉田別尊; 応神天皇), Tamayori-hime-no-mikoto (玉依姫命) and Okinagatarashi-hime-no-ikoto (息長足姫尊; 神功皇后). It is famous for its annual festival on the second Sunday of April, especially the yabusame (流鏑馬; the art of shooting arrows on horseback; horseback archery).

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(Thursday 15 March) Washihara Hachiman-gu Shrine, i-632-2 Sagihara, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Washihara Hachiman-gu Shrine, i-632-2 Sagihara, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Washihara Hachiman-gu Shrine, i-632-2 Sagihara, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Washihara Hachiman-gu Shrine, i-632-2 Sagihara, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Washihara Hachiman-gu Shrine, i-632-2 Sagihara, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Washihara Hachiman-gu Shrine, i-632-2 Sagihara, Tsuwano-cho; the Worshippers' Hall

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(Thursday 15 March) Washihara Hachiman-gu Shrine, i-632-2 Sagihara, Tsuwano-cho; the Worshippers' Hall

Taikodani-inari-jinjya Shrine

Taikodani-inari-jinjya Shrine (太皷谷稲成神社) is located at 409 Ushiroda, Tsuwano-cho (津和野町後田409). It enshrines Ukano-mitama-no-kami (宇迦之御魂神/稲荷神) and Izanami-no-mikoto (伊弉冉尊). It was founded by 7th Kamei lord Norisada Kamei (亀井矩貞) in 1173 (安永2年).

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(Thursday 15 March) Taikodani-inari-jinjya Shrine, 409 Ushiroda, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Taikodani-inari-jinjya Shrine, 409 Ushiroda, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Taikodani-inari-jinjya Shrine, 409 Ushiroda, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Taikodani-inari-jinjya Shrine, 409 Ushiroda, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Taikodani-inari-jinjya Shrine, 409 Ushiroda, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Taikodani-inari-jinjya Shrine, 409 Ushiroda, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Taikodani-inari-jinjya Shrine, 409 Ushiroda, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Taikodani-inari-jinjya Shrine, 409 Ushiroda, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Taikodani-inari-jinjya Shrine, 409 Ushiroda, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Taikodani-inari-jinjya Shrine, 409 Ushiroda, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Taikodani-inari-jinjya Shrine, 409 Ushiroda, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) A view from Taikodani-inari-jinjya Shrine, 409 Ushiroda, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) A view from Taikodani-inari-jinjya Shrine, 409 Ushiroda, Tsuwano-cho

Kakuo-zan Yomei-ji Temple

Kakuo-zan Yomei-ji Temple (覚皇山永明寺) is located at 107 Ushirodakuchi, Tsuwano-cho (津和野町後田ロ107). It was founded by Tsuwano Castle Lord Yorihiro Yoshimi (吉見頼弘) in 1420 (応永27年). It belongs to the Soto-shu (曹洞宗) sect of Buddhism. It enshrines the image of Sakyamuni Buddha (釈迦牟尼佛).

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(Thursday 15 March) Kakuo-zan Yomei-ji Temple, 107 Ushirodakuchi, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Kakuo-zan Yomei-ji Temple, 107 Ushirodakuchi, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Kakuo-zan Yomei-ji Temple, 107 Ushirodakuchi, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Kakuo-zan Yomei-ji Temple, 107 Ushirodakuchi, Tsuwano-cho: the Signpost of the grave of Ogai Mori

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(Thursday 15 March) Kakuo-zan Yomei-ji Temple, 107 Ushirodakuchi, Tsuwano-cho: the grave of Ogai Mori

Otome-toge

Otome-toge (乙女峠; lit. Pass of the Virgin) is located in the north of (behind) JR Tsuwano Station: about 20 minutes' walk from the station or 10 minutes' walk from Kakuo-zan Yomei-ji Temple. In 1948 (昭和23年) Priest Yujiro Okazaki (岡崎祐次郎) of Tsuwano Catholic Church built a chapel in the middle of the path for the repose of the souls of the 36 martyrs who were sent from Uragami, Nagasaki and tortured to death in the late nineteenth century. Now it is called the Maria Chapel (マリア堂/乙女峠マリア聖堂). There were 153 crypto-Christians who were sent here (the Korin-ji Temple [光琳寺] site) from Urakami Village, Nagasaki from 1868 (明治初年) to 1873 (明治6年). They spent the tortured four years here until 54 finally apostatize their faith. 36 were tormented to death. The rest could manage to come back to Nagasaki remaining their faith in 1873 when the Japanese government finally abolished the 259-year-old Prohibition of Christianity starting from AD 1614 (慶長19年). See also the "Juan Goto and Crypto-Christians" page, the Nagasaki City page and the Hagi City page.

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(Thursday 15 March) Otome-toge, Ushiroda, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Maria Chapel, Otome-toge, Ushiroda, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Maria Chapel, Otome-toge, Ushiroda, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Maria Chapel, Otome-toge, Ushiroda, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Maria Chapel, Otome-toge, Ushiroda, Tsuwano-cho: Martyr Yasutaro (安太郎) in the 3-foot jail (三尺牢屋) seeing the Virgin Mary during the torture from January 7 to 19, 1869 (明治2年) as he told before his death.

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(Thursday 15 March) Maria Chapel, Otome-toge, Ushiroda, Tsuwano-cho: Martyr Yasutaro (安太郎) in the 3-feet jail (三尺牢屋) seeing the Virgin Mary during the torture from January 7 to 19, 1869 (明治2年) as he told before his death.

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(Thursday 15 March) Maria Chapel, Otome-toge, Ushiroda, Tsuwano-cho: the mural dedicated to the 36 martyrs

Grave of the 36 Martyrs

The Grave of the 36 Martyrs of Otome-toge (乙女峠の殉教者36人の墓) is located at 66-7 Ushirodakuchi, Tsuwano-cho (津和野町後田ロ66-7), or far behind Kakuo-zan Yomei-ji Temple. It is also called the Monument of the Beatitude (至福の碑).

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(Thursday 15 March) The Grave of the 36 Martyrs of Otome-toge or the Monument of the Beatitude, 66-7 Ushirodakuchi, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) The Grave of the 36 Martyrs of Otome-toge or the Monument of the Beatitude, 66-7 Ushirodakuchi, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) The Grave of the 36 Martyrs of Otome-toge or the Monument of the Beatitude, 66-7 Ushirodakuchi, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) The Grave of the 36 Martyrs of Otome-toge or the Monument of the Beatitude, 66-7 Ushirodakuchi, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) The Grave of the 36 Martyrs of Otome-toge or the Monument of the Beatitude, 66-7 Ushirodakuchi, Tsuwano-cho:

Sekishu-kan Shin-kan

Sekishu-kan Shin-kan (石州館新館) is located at 87-2 Ushirodakuchi, Tsuwano-cho (津和野町後田ロ87-2). Not bad.

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(Thursday 15 March) Sekishu-kan Shin-kan, 87-2 Ushirodakuchi, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) My lunch at Sekishu-kan Shin-kan, 87-2 Ushirodakuchi, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) My lunch at Sekishu-kan Shin-kan, 87-2 Ushirodakuchi, Tsuwano-cho: Aburi-inari-zushi (炙りいなり寿司)

The Dance of Eagles

The monument of Washi-mai (鷲舞; the dance of eagles) at the entrance of Tonomachi-dori Street along the Tsuwano River (津和野川). The Washi-mai sacred dance is annually permormed at Yasaka-jinjya Shrine (弥栄神社) on 20 & 27 July. The dancers carry the crane-like (somehow not eagle-like) long heads upon them, and flap their wings with their arms in order to purify the evils to make way for the shrine procession. Honestly, I had thought that it must be the dance of cranes.

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(Thursday 15 March) The monument of the Dance of Eagles at the entrance of Tonomachi-dori Street along the Tsuwano River

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(Thursday 15 March) The monument of the Dance of Eagles at the entrance of Tonomachi-dori Street along the Tsuwano River

Tonomachi-dori Street

Tonomachi-dori Street (殿町どおり), Tsuwano-cho, is the most attractive historical street for tourists.

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(Thursday 15 March) Tonomachi-dori Street (殿町どおり), Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Tonomachi-dori Street (殿町どおり), Tsuwano-cho: Famous for beautiful carps.

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(Thursday 15 March) Tonomachi-dori Street (殿町どおり), Tsuwano-cho: Famous for beautiful carps.

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(Thursday 15 March) Tonomachi-dori Street (殿町どおり), Tsuwano-cho

Tsuwano Catholic Church

Tsuwano Catholic Church (津和野カトリック教会) is located at Tonomachi, Tsuwano-cho (津和野町殿町). Father Schafer (from Germany) built this church in 1931 (昭和6年) wishing no more tragedy such as the 36 Martyrs of Otome-toge happens.

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(Thursday 15 March) Tsuwano Catholic Church, Tonomachi, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Tsuwano Catholic Church, Tonomachi, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Tsuwano Catholic Church, Tonomachi, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Tsuwano Catholic Church, Tonomachi, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Tsuwano Catholic Church, Tonomachi, Tsuwano-cho

Takatsu-ya Ito Hakuseki-do Drugstore

Takatsu-ya Ito Hakuseki-do (高津屋伊藤博石堂) is located at 231 Ushirodakuchi, Tsuwano-cho (津和野町後田口231). This drugstore was founded in 1798 (寛政10年). Their most famous drug is a stomach medicine called Ittogan (一等丸) which was favored by Ogai Mori.

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(Thursday 15 March) Takatsu-ya Ito Hakuseki-do Drugstore, 231 Ushirodakuchi, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Takatsu-ya Ito Hakuseki-do Drugstore, 231 Ushirodakuchi, Tsuwano-cho

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(Thursday 15 March) Takatsu-ya Ito Hakuseki-do Drugstore, 231 Ushirodakuchi, Tsuwano-cho

Katsushika Hokusai Museum

Katsushika Hokusai Museum (葛飾北斎美術館) is located at 254 Ushirodakuchi, Tsuwano-cho (津和野町大字後田ロ254). This museum was built here by a local researcher in Tsuwano-cho to commemorate the fact that the first print of Hokusai Manga was discovered here.

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(Thursday 15 March) Katsushika Hokusai Museum, 254 Ushirodakuchi, Tsuwano-cho

        

Copyright (c) 2012 Eishiro Ito.  All rights reserved.