Matsue

Our cousin Lara was our excuse for visiting Japan. She was wrapping up a contract with the JET program, so Monica and I knew if we wanted to visit, summer 2017 was the time. For the past two years, Lara had taught English in Matsue. It's located in Shimane prefecture, directly north from Hiroshima, on the Sea of Japan. Shimane is Japan's second-least populated prefecture and doesn't get many visitors from overseas.

We'd planned our visit for a holiday weekend so that we could spend more time together. It also happened to be the weekend of Monica's and my birthday (we were born on the same day, nine years apart). However, about a month out, Lara got some bad news - she'd be required to teach a special English camp class that Saturday. It was a bummer, but we'd still have two evenings with her, as well as Sunday and Monday.

Because Matsue isn't on the typical tourist trail, and because the entire country is trying to drum up interest in tourism before the 2020 Olympics, Shimane prefecture offers lots of great deals for international guests. The first of these was our bus fare - normally Y3500, a one-way trip from Hiroshima was discounted to Y500 ($5 USD) after filling out a short survey.

After our three-hour drive through the mountainous spine of the country, we arrived in Matsue and Lara picked us up at the bus terminal. It was so good to see her! We threw our bags in her leased car, drove to her apartment (adorable and larger than I'd expected), and then went out for some really amazing ramen. We stopped for a not-quite-sunset view of Lake Shinji.

 

Lara's map and Shimaneko - Shimane's cat mascot

The following morning, Lara left us a map of the city with a highlighted route and suggestions of things to do and see, even calling us a cab when we were ready to get started. The cabbie dropped us off at Matsue Station, where we struggled to find tickets for the Lakeline bus. Eventually, we figured out we needed to buy passes on the bus. We took it to our first stop, an art gallery Lara had recommended. It was actually several galleries, built around and in an old post office. I bought a few cute postcards that illustrated the legend behind the pink post office box located on site, which I've since framed. We missed the next bus by seconds, and walked the short distance to Matsue Castle.

It was starting to get hot as we hiked up to the castle. We passed a family posing for pictures with guys dressed up like ninjas, and a tour group with a very animated guide. We popped into the gift shop for a sec before tackling the stairs that led up the castle hill. At the top was a Western plantation-style house, incongruous with its surroundings, yet totally fitting in somehow. We went right, toward the castle. Two guys dressed as ninjas asked if we wanted a picture. We turned them down, being sweaty and suspicious - later Lara told us pics would have been free, so I wish we'd done it despite looking gross. Like most sites, the castle entry was half-off for foreign tourists.

We entered, starting with the basement keep (the oldest section left, dating back to 1611). Matsue Castle is one of only twelve original castles left in Japan, which is pretty cool. I'd been expecting the inside to be empty, so the small displays on weapons and armor were a neat surprise. We climbed about five flights of stairs. The steep wooden steps reminded me of climbing up the final flight of a lighthouse. The views of the city from the top were great, plus there was a cool breeze, so we stayed for a while.

 

After climbing down, Monica and I walked around the back of the castle, past a few ponds. We came across a medium-sized Inari shrine with a marker in English. I'd never heard of Lafcadio Hearn before coming to Matsue, but apparently, he was one of the first Westerners to really assimilate into Japanese culture and to translate or retell Japanese tales in English. He lived in Matsue, which is one of the city's claims to fame in Japan. This shrine was one he wrote about and visited often.

We continued on over a bridge, following alongside the canal. A traditional boat floated by, filled with tourists listening to a singing guide. Monica and I were parched, so we stopped by a small shop and bought some mulberry cider. It reminded a little of a less sickly sweet raspberry cordial and really hit the spot.

From there, we walked past Lafcadio Hearn's house. There's an old samurai residence next door that we we interested in visiting, but it was closed for restoration. Instead, we headed up the hill behind in search of Meimei-an teahouse. The teahouse was built in 1779 by Lord Fumai. Both the architecture and landscaping of the grounds, and the style of the tea ceremony that Lord Fumai planned, became influential in Edo-era Japan.

You can pay to look around the grounds or to have tea as well (which we did, again at the discounted foreign tourist rate). It was more formal than our experience in Tokyo, prepared in front of us and served by an older lady in kimono. The woman explained how to hold the tea cup with the decorative part facing out. The sweets that came with our tea weren't as pretty as the ones in Tokyo, but the flavors ended up being really good with the bitter matcha. They are the same wagashi Lord Fumai dictated be used in the 18th century.

We made it down the hill in time to catch the bus to our last stop, the Shimane Art Museum. After enjoying the AC while browsing the gift shop, we agreed it wasn't a must-do for either of us, and walked around back to check out the sculptures Lara had mentioned. There was a really neat line of running rabbits by sculptor Yabuuchi Satoshi. It doesn't quite work in pictures, but walking by them has a similar effect to watching "Sallie Gardener at a Gallop", the world's first (sort-of) film, creating a unique sense of engagement with the artwork.

The sculpture area behind the museum led directly to the walkway along Lake Shinji. We continued on - the weather was still hot, but the spray from the choppy waves helped. We passed a island shrine, not far from shore, and the stone Jizo that watch over it. Then we returned to Lara's and got ready for dinner. One of her adult students had offered to host us. It was a lovely evening with amazing food and fun conversation - a wonderful birthday treat to feel so welcomed in this lesser-known corner of Japan.