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Various islands on the
Seto Inland Sea - Little Kyoto of the San-in region that still
embraces storehouses with walls covered with square tiles jointed with
raised plaster
Yamaguchi is situated on the westernmost tip of the Japanese main
island. Because of its geographical location and ocean current, it has
long had cultural exchanges with the Korean Peninsula. Boyo Islands
that string out between Yamaguchi and Ehime belong to Seto-Naikai
National Park. Various islands on the moderate inland sea and coast of
various curves, white sand, and green pine trees are mingled among
terraced fields and houses creating attractive scenery. Hagi that
overlooks the Japan Sea is a castle town established in the early 17th
century and also known as "Little Kyoto" of the San-in region (The
Japan Sea Coast), and the city still embraces ancient paths and
storehouses with namako, walls covered with square tiles joined with
raised plaster.
Yamaguchi City is situated in the center of the prefecture. Since it
imitated Kyoto, the then capital of Japan in the mid-14th century, it
was called "Kyoto of the West" and prospered. Every summer, the
Yamaguchi Gion-matsuri Festival that echoes Kyoto's Gion-matsuri
Festival is held. Shimonoseki that is situated on the westernmost tip
of the prefecture faces Kyushu's Moji Port with the Kanmon Strait in
between, and is connected by the 780-meter long Kanmon Tunnel.
Getting there
An hour 45 minutes from Tokyo Haneda Airport to Yamaguchi Ube
Airport. Thirty minutes from Yamaguchi Airport to Ogo-ori Station by
bus. Five hours 35 minutes to Ogo-ori Station, with a change at
Hiroshima Station, from Tokyo Station by the JR Tokaido-Sanyo
Shinkansen Line; 2 hours 30 minutes from Shin Osaka Station by the JR
Sanyo Shinkansen Line. Twenty-three minutes from Ogo-ori Station to
Yamaguchi Station by the JR Yamaguchi Line.
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Akiyoshi-dai Plateau
and Shuho-do Cavern
The largest karst plateau in Japan, and the most spacious limestone
cavern in the Orient
Located within Akiyoshi-dai Quasi-National Park, Akiyoshi-dai is
the largest karst plateau in Japan, a designated natural monument
together with Shuho-do Cavern. The karst topography of Akiyoshi-dai
was created through the process whereby about a 300 million-year-old
underground coral reef was pushed up to the surface by the
displacement of the earth's plate, turned into a mountain by
diastrophism and eroded by rainwater. There you can see limestone in
a variety of forms on the green plateau, like the innumerable
limestone columns "karenfelt," sinks "dolines" and a limestone basin
"uvala" formed with a bunch of sinks. From the round-shaped
Akiyoshi-dai karst observation spot, you can get an extensive
360-degree panoramicview of the natural beauty.
The Shuho-do Cavern is the Orient's largest limestone cave, located
about 100 meters under ground. This huge cave, which took 300,000
long years to be formed into what it is, by limestone dissolving
away in the ground water, extends about 10 kilometers overall
according to the latest survey. Now, about 1 kilometer of the cave
is open to the public as a sightseeing course, in which you can
enjoy varieties of fantastic sights, like ao-tenjo (blue ceiling)
and hyakumai-zara (100 plates). The temperature inside the cave is
always about 17 degrees centigrade, so you need clothes with long
sleeves even in the summertime.
Getting there
An hour 45 minutes to Yamaguchi-Ube Airport from Tokyo Haneda
Airport. Thirty minutes from Yamaguchi-Ube Airport to Ogo-ori
Station by bus. Five hours and 35 minutes to Ogo-ori Station, with a
change at Hiroshima Station, from Tokyo Station by the JR Tokaido-Sanyo
Shinkansen Line; 2 hours and 30 minutes from Shin-Osaka Station by
the JR Sanyo Shinkansen Line. Forty-three minutes from Ogo-ori
Station to Shuho-do Cavern by bus.
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Hagi
A castle
town sitting on the delta of the Abu-gawa River, with well-preserved
traditional buildings
Located in the middle of Yamaguchi along the coast of the Japan
Sea, Hagi is a castle town sitting on the delta of the Abu-gawa
River surrounded by mountains on three sides. Its coastal part
belongs to Kita-Nagato Kaigan Quasi-National Park. Early in the 17th
century, Mori Terumoto, a then samurai ruler, built the Hagi Castle
at the foot of Mt. Shizuki-yama at the northwest of Hagi, and this
place had been the seat of the Yamaguchi prefectural government
until the administration was moved to the city of Yamaguchi in the
middle of the 19th century. At the transition stage of Japan late in
the 19th century, Hagi produced many capable men who played leading
roles in the construction of modern Japan, including Takayoshi Kido
and Hirobumi Ito.
The site of Hagi Castle, on which some portions of castle walls and
stonewalls remain, is open to the public and today called Shizuki
Park. If you go east of the Hagi Castle's outer moat where the
castle town once stood, you can see old-time alleys and white
storehouses with namako walls (covered with square tiles jointed
with raised plaster). The area containing three parallel-running
bystreets, Edoya-Yokocho, Iseya-Yokocho, and Kikuya-Yokocho, where
old-time residences are open to the public, is listed as a national
historic site as the castle town of Hagi. Horiuchi, east of the
remains of the outer castle moat, is an area where high-ranking
samurai lived and designated as an Important Preservation District
for Groups of Historic Buildings. Also, when you visit Hagi, known
for Hagi-yaki pottery, you cannot miss the Ishii-Chawan (bowl)
Museum exhibiting masterpieces of Ko-Hagi (old Hagi) ware together
with about 130 pieces of bowls and works of contemporary ceramic
artists.
Getting there
An hour and 20 minutes to Iwami Airport from Tokyo Haneda
Airport. An hour and 15 minutes from Iwami Airport to Hagi Bus
Center by bus. Five hours and 35 minutes to Ogo-ori Station from
Tokyo Station, with a change at Hiroshima Station, by the JR Tokaido-Sanyo
Shinkansen Line. Two hours and 30 minutes from Shin-Osaka Station.
An hour and 26 minutes from Ogo-ori Station to Higashi-Hagi Station
by bus.
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Hofu
Tenman-gu
Shrine sacred to the god of learning - A mild region on the Inland
Sea Coastline
Situated in the south of Yamaguchi, Hofu faces the Suo-nada (the
Sea of Suo) in the Inland Sea of Japan. Until the end of the 19th
century when Yamaguchi was still divided into Suo and Nagato, Hofu
had been the center of the Suo area. The region is blessed with a
mild climate, and has prospered since the 7th century. The Hofu
Tenman-gu Shrine, founded in the 10th century and dedicated to
Sugawara Michizane who was a scholar and a politician and familiarly
known as the god of leaning, is the oldest of Japan's three Dai-Tenjin
(the grand shrines sacred to the deified spirit of Michizane).
Within the pale of the shrine is the Hofu Tenman-gu Historical
Museum, in which treasures including eight important cultural
properties are on display.
On the east of the Tenman-gu sits the Suo Kokubun-ji Temple built in
obedience to the Emperor Shomu's wish in the 8th century. Its main
hall, Kon-do, now under repair until 2004, is what was rebuilt by
Mori Terumoto, a ruler of the region from the 16th century to the
17th century. The Mori family ruled over the region for generations
and had its residence and garden built early in the 20th century
with the best building-construction techniques available in those
days. The residence is located in the northwest of Suo Kokubun-ji
Temple, with the Mori Museum standing in a corner, and the garden is
designated a scenic spot.
Getting there
n hour and 45 minutes to Yamaguchi-Ube Airport from Tokyo Haneda
Airport. Thirty minutes from Yamaguchi-Ube Airport to Ogo-ori
Station by bus. Sixteen minutes from Ogo-ori Station to Hofu Station
by the JR Sanyo Main line. Five hours 10 minutes to Tokuyama
Station, with a change at Hiroshima Station, from Tokyo Station by
the JR Tokaido Shinkansen Line; 2 hours and 30 minutes from
Shin-Osaka Station by the JR Sanyo Shinkansen Line. Twenty-six
minutes from Tokuyama Station to Hofu Station by the JR Sanyo Main
Line.
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Iwakuni
A castle town looking out upon the Aki-nada (the Sea of Aki) to
the east - Kintai-kyo Bridge ranking among Japan's three great
bridges
Iwakuni is situated in the easternmost part of Yamaguchi and on
the west coast of the Aki-nada in the Seto-Inland Sea. Iwakuni
Castle was built by a warlord in the Kikkawa family early in the
17th century and then demolished under order of the Tokugawa
Shogunate seven years later, but it was reconstructed in the middle
of the 20th century. The castle houses a historical museum inside,
and you can enjoy a panoramic view of Iwakuni from the observation
deck in the castle tower. The Nishiki-gawa River running through the
city is spanned by the Kintai-kyo Bridge, the symbol of Iwakuni.
Measuring about 200 meters in length and 5 meters in width, this
wooden quintuple arched bridge is a unique non-nailed assembly of
timbers and known as one of Japan's three great bridges.
Kikko Park, the site of the feudal lord Kikkawa's residence, is
dotted with ditched, plaster-walled and mud-fenced buildings that
show you how samurai houses of those days looked. In the park is the
substantially built Iwakuni Historical Art Museum. Also worth
visiting is the Iwakuni Choko-kan Museum, built during World War II,
in which exhibits, artifacts, and papers that are connected with the
Kikkawa family are on display. Iwakuni is known as the habitat of
rare white snakes, a natural monument of Japan. You can see them in
the White Snake Park about 10 minutes' walk from the Kintai-kyo
Bridge.
Getting there
An hour and 10 minutes to Hiroshima Airport from Tokyo Haneda
Airport. Forty-eight minutes from Hiroshima Airport to Hiroshima
Station by bus. Five hours to Shin-Iwakuni Station from Tokyo
Station, with a change at Hiroshima Station, by the JR Tokaido-Sanyo
Shinkansen Line.
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O-mi-jima Island
An island known also as "Sea Alps" with a chain of bluffs and
fantastically shaped rocks eroded by the sea
O-mi-jima is an island sitting in the Sea of Japan off the
Senzaki Bay in the north of Nagato in Yamaguchi. This island, which
is about 40 kilometers round and linked to Senzaki by the O-mi-jima
Grand Bridge and the whole of which is designated as a natural
monument, is called the "Sea Alps" and is a representative place of
scenic beauty in Kita-Nagato Kaigan Quasi-National Park.
The northern coast of the island has many caves, bluffs, and queer
looking rocks eroded by the sea, and there are the sheer-rising
Juroku Rakan rocks said to look like sixteen rakan (Buddhist monks
who reached the top stage of Buddhist discipline), the Shimami Gate
rock hole, the O-mon Rock, towering about 40 meters high, and many
other caves and rocks of fantastic shape. You can enjoy the view of
these caves and rocks from an observation spot on the O-mi-jima
Shizen-Kenkyu-Ro, a promenade overlooking the sea from Shizu-ga-ura
nearly in the center of the island. If you want a closer look at the
bluffs and fantastically shaped rocks from the sea and go into the
caves, an O-mi-jima sightseeing boat is available. The O-mi-jima
sightseeing boat makes a round of places to see in about an hour and
30 minutes, starting from the O-mi-jima Grand Bridge and returning
to the Senzaki Port by way of the west and north seaside.
Getting there
An hour and 20 minutes to Iwami Airport from Tokyo Haneda
Airport. Fifteen minutes from Iwami Airport to Masuda Station by
bus. An hour and 25 minutes from Masuda Station to Senzaki Station
via Nagato Station. Six minutes from Senzaki Station to O-mi-jima by
bus. Five hours to Shin-Shimonoseki Station, with a change at
Hiroshima Station, from Tokyo Station by the JR Tokaido-Sanyo
Shinkansen Line. Two hours and 20 minutes from Shin-Osaka Station by
the JR Sanyo Shinkansen Line. Eleven minutes from Shin-Shimonoseki
Station to Shimonoseki Station by the JR Sanyo Main Line. Two hours
and 36 minutes from Shimonoseki Station to O-mi-jima by bus.
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Shimonoseki
The westernmost city on Honshu facing the Kanmon Strait - A tunnel
that takes you to Kyushu on foot
Located at the western extremity of Yamaguchi, Shimonoseki faces
Moji Port in Kyushu across the Kanmon Strait. Under the Kanmon
Strait runs the 780-meter Kanmon State Highway Tunnel, through which
about a 15-minute walk takes you to the Mekari-jingu Shrine in Moji.
The Kanmon Strait is known as the scene of an ancient battle leading
to the fall of the Heike Clan (or Taira family). Dan-no-ura contains
the whole area on the north shore of the rapid-tide Hayatomo-no-Seto
Canal, where the Emperor Antoku, eight-year-old grandson of Taira-no
Kiyomori, the warlord who fled to Dan-no-ura, took his own life by
drowning himself. The Dragon's Palace-styled Akama-Jingu Shrine,
located to the north of Dan-no-ura, is consecrated to the tragic
young emperor and has the Emperor Antoku's tomb in its precincts.
In the east of Shimonoseki lies the 268-meter tall Mt. Hi-no-yama.
There is the Hi-no-yama ropeway up to its summit, on which Hi-no-yama
Park is located. The park is a first-rate beauty spot, from which
you can enjoy an extensive view of everything from the Kanmon Strait
to as far as the Genkai-nada (the Sea of Genkai) from the
observation spot. To the southeast of Shimonoseki Station is the
Kaikyo-Yume (dream strait) Tower complex housing permanent
exhibition and international conference halls. From the observation
deck of the complex, you can get a 360-degree view of the whole city
and beyond.
Getting there
An hour and 45 minutes to Yamaguchi-Ube Airport from Tokyo
Haneda Airport. An hour and 25 minutes from Yamaguchi-Ube Airport to
Shimonoseki Station by bus. Five hours to Shin-Shimonoseki Station,
with a change at Hiroshima Station, from Tokyo Station by the JR
Tokaido-Sanyo Shinkansen Line; 2 hours and 20 minutes from
Shin-Osaka Station by the JR Sanyo Shinkansen Line. Eleven minutes
to Shimonoseki Station by the JR Sanyo Main Line.
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Yamaguchi City
An ancient city called "Kyoto of the west" dotted with temples and
shrines designated as important cultural properties
Yamaguchi City is located nearly in the center of Yamaguchi
Prefecture and is the center of local administration and economy.
Built in the middle of the 14th century by a warlord in the Ouchi
family in imitation of Kyoto, then the capital of Japan, the city
was called "Kyoto of the west" and prospered. The Goju-no-To of the
Ruriko-Ji Temple in Ko-zan Park, a 31.2-meter tall five-story
national treasure pagoda built in the 15th century, is a reflection
of the Kyoto culture taken after Kyoto by the warlord Ouchi. At the
Yasaka-jinja Shrine, erected in the 14th century as a branch of the
Yasaka-jinja Shrine in Kyoto and relocated where it is now in the
middle of the 19th century, the Yamaguchi Gion-matsuri Festival
modeled after the Gion-matsuri Festival in Kyoto is staged every
summer and the Sagimai Shinji (a ritual heron dance) is dedicated to
the shrine.
Besides Ko-zan Park, there are historic buildings, like the Rosan-do,
a bower built for the Mori family that ruled this area in the middle
of the 19th century, and uguisu-bari, the singing stone pavement
that sounds to foot steps in the whole neighborhood. Next to the
park is the To-shun-ji Temple with the graves of the Mori family.
The Ima-hachiman-gu Shrine, said to be an ancient shrine already in
existence before the Ouchi family arrived to rule Yamaguchi,
features the architectural style peculiar to the Yamaguchi region
with the entrance gate, front shrine and main shrine standing in a
beeline, and is designated as an important cultural property of
Japan.
Getting there
An hour and 45 minutes to Yamaguchi-Ube Airport from Tokyo
Haneda Airport in Tokyo. Thirty minutes from Yamaguchi-Ube Airport
to Ogo-ori Station by bus. Five hours and 35 minutes to Ogo-ori
Station from Tokyo Station by the JR Tokaido-Sanyo Shinkansen Line.
Two hours and 30 minutes from Shin-Osaka Station. Twenty-three
minutes from Ogo-ori Station to Yamaguchi Station by the JR
Yamaguchi Line.
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Information
provided by Japan National Tourist Organization.
