Travel Features : The Best of Kumamoto
Ancient warriors lay siege to an impregnable fortress, travelers drink from the magical waters of a sacred garden, and a colossal volcano spits ash and sulfurous fumes into the sky. These scenes may seem sound familiar, especially to fans of Lord of the Rings, but they are not from Middle Earth or any other fictional land. The magnificent Kumamoto Castle, Suizen-ji Garden and Mount Aso can all be found in southern Japan. They may have been the inspiration for novels and movies, but sometimes reality is more impressive than fiction.
Kumamoto Castle
The Uto Turret at the northwest corner of Kumamoto Castle is an important cultural property. It is the only tower that survived the destruction of the castle during the Satsuma Rebellion.
The Nagabei Wall, a national cultural property, stretches for 242 meters along the southeast side of the castle.
When the great warrior Kato Kiyomasa built Kumamoto Castle he designed it to be impregnable. It took 7 years to construct, with 13 kilometers of outer walls, 5 km of inner walls, a vast keep and 49 turrets. Unlike the more decorative Himeji Castle, a large amount of strategic foresight was put into its design including walls that curved outwards to stop them from being scaled, while trees and wells within the castle walls could provide a supply of food, firewood and water. The castle was completed in 1607, but it wasn’t until nearly three centuries later that the defensive design was truly tested and shown to be highly effective.
In 1877, an army of rebel samurai (the inspiration for Hollywood’s Last Samurai) laid siege to Kumamoto Castle. The Imperial Army troops within the castle although outnumbered were able to hold out for 50 days until reinforcements arrived and the samurai were finally forced back. Unlike in the movie, the defeat of the samurai was not due to superior modern weaponry, it was the result of the design features incorporated into the castle 270 years earlier.
Most of Kumamoto Castle was destroyed by fire during this siege, however, the Uto Turret remained standing and is now recognized as an important cultural property. In 1960, the main keep was rebuilt, and from 1998 to 2007 extensive restoration of castle buildings took place to mark the castle’s 400th anniversary.
Kumamoto Castle Inari Shrine
Just outside the eastern wall is the castle’s Inari shrine. Like many other Japanese shrines, a large vermilion torii gate marks the entrance. One interesting aspect of Inari shrines is the number of fox statues and fox shaped prayer tablets you can find there. Inari is the Shinto god of fertility, agriculture, industry and also foxes. The white foxes were Inari’s messengers and visitors often make offerings to the fox statues so that their prayers will be answered by Inari.
Former Residence of Hosokawa Gyobu
A short walk to the northwest of the castle is the former residence of the samurai lord Hosokawa Gyobu. The home has been restored to its former glory and is now a superb example of traditional shoin-zukuri construction. It is easy to imagine Hosokawa entertaining important guests, kneeling on the tatami matting of the tea room. In warmer months the sliding paper screens that make up the outer walls would have been opened revealing the immaculate Japanese garden.
Mount Tatsuda & Mount Hanaoka
For a bird’s eye view of the city head to the higher ground at Mount Tatsuda or Mount Hanaoka. The Mount Tatsuda nature park is on the east side of the city and a great place to take a quiet stroll. You won’t find many tourists here, just local students, families and the occasional jogger enjoying the outdoors.
Mount Hanaoka in the west part of the city offers a fantastic vista of Kumamoto. The white dome of the Busharito Monument at the summit is in memory of Kumamoto Band Hokyo, a group of early Japanese Christians. The view is usually best in the late afternoon, while visitors in early April will have the added bonus of numerous cherry trees blossoming overhead.
Suizen-ji Garden
Kumamoto is known as the city of water. In fact, natural underground springs provide drinking water to all of Kumamoto’s 670,000 residents.
In 1636 feudal lord Hosokawa chose the spring-fed pond at Suizen-ji to be the site of his new tea house. The cool waters would produce fine tea, but it was also thought the purity of the water would act as an elixir, extending the life of the drinker. The landscaped garden surrounding the central pond and tea house took 80 years to complete. It was designed to reproduce the 53 stages of the Tokaido Road that linked Edo (Tokyo) with Kyoto. Visitors can stroll along the circular path that rings the pond in much the same way that guests of the Hosokawa clan have done for centuries. The conical shape of a miniature Mount Fuji is the most distinctive marker on the route.
In 1878 Izumi Shrine was built in recognition of the “cultural, moral and intellectual leadership of the successive Hosokawa rulers.” At the same time a Noh theater was built and this still holds performances in the spring and fall.
Mount Aso
Mount Aso is not just the largest active volcano in Japan, but has one of the largest calderas in the world. A caldera is formed when the magma chamber inside a volcano empties causing the volcano to collapse in on itself forming a vast cauldron-like structure. In the case of Mount Aso the caldera has a diameter of up to 25 kilometers and a circumference of 120 kilometers. Inside the caldera there are secondary volcanoes including the smoke belching Mount Naka, and amazingly the town of Aso.
A road and a cable car run up the side of the active Mount Naka so that visitors can peer down the throat of the volcano. You are hit by the smell of sulfur and can see steam billowing out of a pool at the center of the crater. The levels of toxic gases are constantly monitored so that if the wind changes and starts blowing sulfuric steam towards the viewpoint, the road and cable car will be closed. At the crater’s edge there are a few vendors selling postcards and chunks of sulfur, but it is the reinforced concrete bunkers that are a clear reminder that the volcano is capable of spewing out far more deadly projectiles than steam.
The area is popular for hiking, but apart from mid summer, the summit of Mount Aso is still bitterly cold. However, if you’re feeling inspired by the exploits of a couple of hobbits, trekking across a desolate landscape to reach a formidable volcano would certainly be a memorable experience.
When to go
Kumamoto Castle is a great place for cherry blossom viewing. The exact timing varies from year to year, but the blossoms will usually peak sometime during the last week of March and the first week of April. Yabusame (horseback archery) takes place at the castle’s autumn festival. It is an impressive display of skill as mounted archers gallop along the side of the castle wall firing arrows at small targets. During spring and fall Noh performances are held at Suizen-ji garden.
Getting There
Kumamoto has its own airport just 16 kilometers outside the city. There are direct flights from Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya and Okinawa.
Kumamoto is located roughly in the center of Kyushu. Kagoshima is 1 hour to the south by train while Fukuoka’s Hakata Station is 1hour 14 minutes to the north. From Fukuoka you can connect with the shinkansen bullet trains to reach the major cities on Honshu.
Getting Around
Street trams connect Kumamoto Station with the castle and the main shopping areas then continue on to Suizen-ji. Express Buses and trains connect Kumamoto with Aso Station (65 minutes by limited express train, 1hour 40 minutes by local train). From Aso Station take the local bus to Asosannishi – the base station of the cable car.
Where to stay
Unlike other cities where it is often best to stay near the train station, in Kumamoto base yourself near the castle and the center of city, as there is a far better selection of hotels and restaurants.
For people wanting to explore the Aso caldera the Aso Youth Hostel is a popular place to stay, just 20 minutes walk uphill from the Aso station.
View all Kumamoto images at Alamy.com
