|
| |
|
YAMAGUCHI |
| |
|
|
| |
Yamaguchi-ken is perhaps Chugoku's most appealing prefecture, but
the coastal route further west from Iwakuni is undeniably blighted by
heavy industry. Better to head inland to the hills, where an old-world
atmosphere hangs over the sleepy prefectural capital, YAMAGUCHI , cut
through by the narrow scenic river, Ichinosaka-gawa. It's a modern city,
but one can see why it's also known as the "Kyoto of western Japan." The
local highlights are the beguiling temple garden of Joei-ji , designed
by the fifteenth-century artist and priest Sesshu; the handsome five-storey
pagoda at Ruriko-ji ; and the recently reconstructed St Francis Xavier
Memorial Cathedral , an ultra-contemporary church commemorating the
first Christian missionary to Japan.
Many of the temples spread around Yamaguchi, not to mention its artistic
sensibilities, date from the late fifteenth century, when war raged
around Kyoto, and the city became an alternative capital for fleeing
noblemen and their retinues. The tolerant ruling family of Ouchi Hiroyo
, who settled in the area in 1360, allowed the missionary Francis Xavier
to stay in Yamaguchi in 1549. By the Edo period, the Mori clan had
gained power over the whole of western Japan and several of the Mori
lords are buried in Kozan-koen, including Mori Takachika, who was a key
figure in the overthrow of the Tokugawa government in 1867.
The closest of the surrounding attractions is the hot-spring resort Yuda
Onsen , just one train-stop to the west of Yamaguchi, and practically a
suburb of the city. Some 20km northwest are the intriguing caverns and
rocky plateau of Akiyoshi-dai quasi-national park. The SL Yamaguchi-go ,
a highly popular steam train service, also passes through the city on
its way to the delightful castle town of Tsuwano .
The City
The first place to pause on your bike tour from the station is the
modern St Francis Xavier Memorial Church , whose twin towers are easily
spotted atop Kame-yama-koen on the northwest side of the city. It was
named after the pioneering Spanish missionary Xavier, who, having
already had success in Goa and Malacca, landed in Japan on August 15,
1549, and in the following year was granted leave to preach in Yamaguchi.
When he left, the city had a community of more than five hundred
Christians, many of whom later died for their beliefs under the less
tolerant Tokugawa government.
In 1991, the original church, built in 1951 to commemorate the
four-hundredth anniversary of Xavier's visit, burnt down. It has
recently been completely replaced by a striking contemporary structure
incorporating a pyramid-like main building, and twin square towers
topped by metallic sculptures, one hung with nine bells.
A more traditionally Japanese place of worship is the charming temple
and park of Ruriko-ji and Kozan-koen , in the foothills around 1km north
of Kame-yama-koen. The temple dates from the high point of the Ouchi
clan's reign and epitomizes the Kyoto style of the Muromachi era
(1333-1573). Its highlight is a beautifully preserved five-storey pagoda
made from Japanese cypress and picturesquely sited beside an ornamental
pond. Beside the temple is a small exhibition hall (daily 8.30am-5pm;
¥300), containing a diverting collection of model pagodas, photographs
of the other 53 pagodas scattered around Japan, and strange masks.
Next to Ruriko-ji, the park Kozan-koen , with its peaceful and
atmospheric graveyard, is the last resting place of the daimyo Mori
Takachika and his offspring. Takachika was one of the prime movers in
planning the overthrow of the Tokugawa government at the end of the Edo
era, and there are a couple of old wooden houses preserved in the park
where he secretly met with fellow plotters. The closest bus stop to
Ruriko-ji is Kimachi.
Some 2km east of the park, along the major road Route 9, is the
enchanting Sesshu-tei garden at the temple Joei-ji (daily 8am-5pm;
¥300). The priest and master-painter Sesshu, born in Okayama-ken in
1420, settled in Yamaguchi at the end of the fifteenth century. After
travelling to China to study the arts, he was asked by the daimyo Ouchi
Masahiro to create a traditional garden for the grounds of his mother's
summer house. Sesshu's Zen-inspired rock and moss design remains intact
behind the temple and, if you're fortunate enough to avoid the arrival
of a tour group, you'll be able to sit in quiet contemplation of the
garden's simple beauty, looking for the volcano-shaped rock that
symbolizes Mount Fuji. The surrounding forest, and the lily-pad pond,
add brilliant splashes of colour, particularly in autumn, when the maple
trees flame red and gold. Orimoto, the closest bus stop to Joei-ji, is
around ten minutes' walk south of the temple.
On the way back to the city centre, follow the meandering path of the
Ichinosaka-gawa , a pretty stream crossed by pedestrian bridges. The
cherry trees along the riverbanks turn candy-floss pink each spring,
while in early summer fireflies ( genji botaru ) buzz around the azaleas
and reeds.
One train station before Yamaguchi or a short bus ride south of the city
centre is Yuda Onsen , easily spotted by the cluster of large (and not
particularly attractive) hotels. A cute legend about a white fox curing
an injured leg in the natural springwater explains both how the onsen
and the town's mascot, immortalized by an eight-metre-high cartoon-like
fox statue beside the station, developed. Onsen no Mori (daily
10am-midnight; ¥1000), a modern spa complex about ten minutes' walk
north from Yuda Onsen Station, has several different Jacuzzi baths, a
sauna and a rotemburo (an outdoor pool) and you're given towels to use
when you enter.
|
| |
|
