Autumn Reverie: Japans Hidden Gems

One of Japan’s best-preserved cities, Kanazawa escaped war damage and natural disasters to reward visitors with a wealth of architecture as an important clan castle town from the mid-17th century until the middle of the 19th. The mighty Kanazawa Castle did not survive intact, but its famous Ishikawa Gate, the Sunjikken Longhouse and lavish Kenrokuen Garden hint at the grandeur. Of special note are the surviving Higashi Geisha District and Samurai District streets. The Temple area holds the Myoryuji Temple with its hidden passages and secret doors giving it the nickname the Ninja Temple. The Oyamajinja Shrine is a later addition, its three-story gate with impressive stained glass windows reveal a Dutch influence. Museums worth exploring include the Kanazawa Yasue Gold Leaf Museum, with examples of the arts and crafts using the pure gold decoration for which the region is famous. Another museum celebrates the Buddhist philosopher D. T. Suzuki, credited with introducing Zen philosophy to the West, and a striking 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art. Nearby Mt. Utatsu is renowned for its Three Shrines.
VIEW CRUISES

One of Japan’s best-preserved cities, Kanazawa escaped war damage and natural disasters to reward visitors with a wealth of architecture as an important clan castle town from the mid-17th century until the middle of the 19th. The mighty Kanazawa Castle did not survive intact, but its famous Ishikawa Gate, the Sunjikken Longhouse and lavish Kenrokuen Garden hint at the grandeur. Of special note are the surviving Higashi Geisha District and Samurai District streets. The Temple area holds the Myoryuji Temple with its hidden passages and secret doors giving it the nickname the Ninja Temple. The Oyamajinja Shrine is a later addition, its three-story gate with impressive stained glass windows reveal a Dutch influence. Museums worth exploring include the Kanazawa Yasue Gold Leaf Museum, with examples of the arts and crafts using the pure gold decoration for which the region is famous. Another museum celebrates the Buddhist philosopher D. T. Suzuki, credited with introducing Zen philosophy to the West, and a striking 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art. Nearby Mt. Utatsu is renowned for its Three Shrines.
VIEW CRUISES

Located on the northernmost harbor of Japan’s main island of Honshu, Aomori is the traditional departure point for Hokkaido Island. It is famous for its summer Nebuta Matsuri festival, and has a museum that recaptures the color and pageantry for those who visit in other seasons. Explore the earliest prehistoric cultures of Japan at the Sannai Maruyama archaeological site, or visit the Aomori Museum of Art for a look at more contemporary works. Nearby Hirosaki boasts a 17th Century castle. Visit either the Auga or the Furukawa public fish market, where you can create your own version of a donburi rice bowl with pristinely fresh local seafood.

This important port on Japan’s northern Hokkaido Island was the first to be opened to European and American trade. The result of this is a trove of Western-style buildings in the suburb of Motomachi that gives the impression of a movie set. The bell of the distinctive Haristo Greek Orthodox church is designated one of Japan’s official treasured “100 soundscapes.” Hokkaido is famous for its hot springs, much beloved by the Japanese. Yunokawa Hot Spring enjoys a commanding view of the sea, and its botanical garden is home to the Japanese macaques called “snow monkeys” because of their habit of soaking in the hot springs during the northern winter. Goryokaku is a 150-year old star fortress that holds the Magistrate’s Office, an excellent example of traditional Japanese architecture. Get a panoramic view from the observation platform atop the Goryokaku Tower.

Miyako Island is 300 km south of Okinawa island, and is famous for its beaches, said to be Japan’s most beautiful. Maehama beach is for swimmers, while Yoshino has great coral reefs for snorkelers and the white-sand Sunayama has dramatic rock formations. Cape Higashi-Hennazaki is a long, narrow cape with the picturesque lighthouse at the end. The city’s Botanical Garden boasts over 1600 tropical varieties. Nakasone Tuyumya was an important leader of Miyako and the Okinawan people in the 16th century. Near the port in Hirara is memorial to him and his descendants, a designated national cultural asset. At the island’s north end, the graceful Ikema Ohashi bridge leads to the small Ikema Island.

Sprawling, semi-rural Shimizu Ward is dominated by forested coastal mountains, with hiking trails and ropeway rides to dramatic viewpoints above Suruga Bay. Miho Beach Park is popular for swimming and water sports in summer, and there are baseball and soccer fields nearby, plus an aquarium at the Marine Science Center. Busy fisheries supply sushi bars and seafood markets with local specialties like sakura shrimp.

Kagoshima ist die Hauptstadt der südlichsten japanischen Präfektur und liegt an der Kinko-wan-Bucht und dem aktiven Vulkan Sakurajima. Bereits seit dem frühen 7. Jahrhundert, als der Hafen von Bounotsu ein Zentrum des Warenhandels mit China und anderen asiatischen Nationen war, hat Kagoshima eine wichtige Rolle in der japanischen Geschichte gespielt. Die vormals Satsuma genannte Region wurde vor der Meiji-Restauration im Jahre 1867 ganze 29 Generationen lang vom japanischen Adelsgeschlecht Shimazu angeführt. Zwischen dem 9. und 15. Jahrhundert war Satsuma ein wichtiger Hafen für den Handel mit den Ländern Ostasiens, aber auch mit Europa. Der Hafen von Satsuma war damit einer der ersten Berührungspunkte von Japan mit dem Westen.

Nagasaki ist an der Westküste der Insel Kyushu in einer malerischen Bucht gelegen. Da es am dichtesten am asiatischen Festland liegt, war es schon immer ein wichtiges Handelszentrum und ist stark von der chinesischen Kultur beeinflusst. Als Japan Mitte des 17.Jahrhunderts beschloss, sich für 200 Jahre vom Rest der Welt abzuschotten, war Nagasaki der einzige Hafen, in dem es bestimmten westlichen Schiffen gestattet war einzulaufen. Nach dem Opiumkrieg in China war der japanische Kaiser gezwungen, zusätzliche Häfen für ausländische Waren zu öffnen. Im Jahre 1846 zwang der Kommodore Matthew Perry mit seiner Marineflotte Japan dazu, sich für den Handel mit den USA zu öffnen. Bald darauf schlossen auch andere Nationen ähnliche Verträge und beendeten somit die selbst auferlegte Isolation Japans. Kurz vor Ende des Zweiten Weltkrieges wurde Nagasaki zur zweiten Stadt nach Hiroshima, die von einer Atombombe zerstört wurde.

Die Insel Jeju (Cheju) wird dominiert vom Vulkan Halla-san (Halla-Berg), der mit 1.950 Metern der höchste Berg von Südkorea ist. Die gesamte Insel entstand erst durch einen Vulkanausbruch vor etwa 2 Mio. Jahren. Aufgrund der relativen Abgeschiedenheit der Insel haben die Bewohner von Jeju eine sich vom koreanischen Festland unterscheidende Kultur und eine Sprache entwickelt. Das hervorstechendste kulturelle Artefakt ist der allgegenwärtige „dol hareubang“ („steinerner Großvater“), eine aus einem Lavablock gefertigte Skulptur. Der Name der Insel bedeutet übersetzt „Insel der Götter“ und hätte – bedenkt man all der wunderschönen Strände, Wasserfälle und Vulkansteinformationen – kaum treffender gewählt worden sein.

Hiroshima means “wide island” in Japanese. The city was established in the 16th Century on Japan’s largest island, Honshu, and grew into an important shipping center and prefecture capital, boasting a fine castle. Although it was an important city in Japan throughout the imperial period, its reputation in the greater world was burned into history when it became to target of the first atomic bombing of a civilian target in August of 1945. The United States airplane Enola Gay dropped a nuclear device nicknamed “Little Boy” on the city that morning, obliterating everything within a two-kilometer radius and directly killing 80,000 people. Approximately 70 percent of Hiroshima’s buildings were destroyed. Within a year, injury and radiation illness had killed an additional 90, 000 to 116,000 citizens. The attacks on Hiroshima and nearby Nagasaki quickly led to the surrender of Japan and effectively precipitated the end of World War II in Asia. Within a few years, Hiroshima had begun to rebuild, and the city became the focus of an international movement to eliminate nuclear weapons from future wars. Relics of its past such as the impressive Hiroshima Castle and the tranquil Shukkeien Garden were rebuilt, and the city undertook the construction of a Memorial Peace Park, which today attracts visitors from around the world. The park, which holds a museum and a memorial “Atomic Dome” constructed on the closest remaining building to the blast site, is a moving and impactful place of pilgrimage in this re-born City of Peace. One notable feature is a colorful memorial to Sadako Sasaki, a young woman whose dying wishes for world peace were recounted in the story A Thousand Paper Cranes.

Japan’s Shikoku island is a popular place of pilgrimage among Japanese Buddhists. Kochi has three of the 88 temples on the route. Chikurinji Temple, with its five-story pagoda, is one of them. Located on Mount Godaisan, it also features an adjacent botanical garden. The town is most famous for its castle, originally built in the early 17th century, but largely rebuilt following a fire in the mid-18th century. It is one of only 12 existing feudal-period castles in Japan. South of the town, Katsurahama beach is a popular destination, although swimming is not allowed due to strong currents. A picturesque shrine located on a high point overlooking the sea is the perfect postcard image of rural Japan. The beach is also a good spot to enjoy Katsuo no Tataki, the traditional local dish of lightly grilled and seasoned bonito tuna.