{"id":36571,"date":"2026-04-15T16:00:50","date_gmt":"2026-04-15T15:00:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/?p=36571"},"modified":"2026-04-15T17:21:46","modified_gmt":"2026-04-15T16:21:46","slug":"field-notes-western-honshus-quiet-uncanny-corners","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/2026\/04\/15\/field-notes-western-honshus-quiet-uncanny-corners\/","title":{"rendered":"Field notes: Western Honshu\u2019s quiet, uncanny corners, by Paul Bloomfield"},"content":{"rendered":"<h4>Like this post? Help us by sharing it!<\/h4><ul class=\"wpfai-list\"><li class=\"wpfai-list-item facebook\">\r\n      <a href=\"http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.insidejapantours.com%2Fblog%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F36571&amp;t=\" title=\"Facebook\" class=\"wpfai-facebook wpfai-link wpfainw\">\r\n        <span class=\"fa-stack fa-lg\">\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-square fa-stack-2x\"><\/i>\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-facebook fa-stack-1x fa-inverse\"><\/i>\r\n        <\/span>\r\n      <\/a>\r\n    <\/li><li class=\"wpfai-list-item twitter\">\r\n      <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/share?text=&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.insidejapantours.com%2Fblog%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F36571\" title=\"Twitter\" class=\"wpfai-twitter wpfai-link wpfainw\">\r\n        <span class=\"fa-stack fa-lg\">\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-square fa-stack-2x\"><\/i>\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-twitter fa-stack-1x fa-inverse\"><\/i>\r\n        <\/span>\r\n      <\/a>\r\n    <\/li><li class=\"wpfai-list-item pinterest\">\r\n      <a href=\"http:\/\/pinterest.com\/pin\/create\/button\/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.insidejapantours.com%2Fblog%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F36571&amp;description=&amp;media=\" title=\"Pinterest\" class=\"wpfai-pinterest wpfai-link wpfainw\">\r\n        <span class=\"fa-stack fa-lg\">\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-square fa-stack-2x\"><\/i>\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-pinterest fa-stack-1x fa-inverse\"><\/i>\r\n        <\/span>\r\n      <\/a>\r\n    <\/li><li class=\"wpfai-list-item linkedin\">\r\n      <a href=\"http:\/\/linkedin.com\/shareArticle?mini=true&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.insidejapantours.com%2Fblog%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F36571&amp;title=\" title=\"Linked In\" class=\"wpfai-linkedin wpfai-link wpfainw\">\r\n        <span class=\"fa-stack fa-lg\">\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-square fa-stack-2x\"><\/i>\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-linkedin fa-stack-1x fa-inverse\"><\/i>\r\n        <\/span>\r\n      <\/a>\r\n    <\/li><li class=\"wpfai-list-item envelope\">\r\n      <a href=\"mailto:?subject=&amp;body=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.insidejapantours.com%2Fblog%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F36571%20-%20\" title=\"E-Mail\" class=\"wpfai-envelope wpfai-link wpfainw\">\r\n        <span class=\"fa-stack fa-lg\">\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-square fa-stack-2x\"><\/i>\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-envelope fa-stack-1x fa-inverse\"><\/i>\r\n        <\/span>\r\n      <\/a>\r\n    <\/li><li class=\"wpfai-list-item stumbleupon\">\r\n      <a href=\"http:\/\/www.stumbleupon.com\/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.insidejapantours.com%2Fblog%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F36571\" title=\"Stumble Upon\" class=\"wpfai-stumbleupon wpfai-link wpfainw\">\r\n        <span class=\"fa-stack fa-lg\">\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-square fa-stack-2x\"><\/i>\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-stumbleupon fa-stack-1x fa-inverse\"><\/i>\r\n        <\/span>\r\n      <\/a>\r\n    <\/li><li class=\"wpfai-list-item reddit\">\r\n      <a href=\"http:\/\/www.reddit.com\/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.insidejapantours.com%2Fblog%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F36571\" title=\"Reddit\" class=\"wpfai-reddit wpfai-link wpfainw\">\r\n        <span class=\"fa-stack fa-lg\">\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-square fa-stack-2x\"><\/i>\r\n          <i class=\"fa fa-reddit fa-stack-1x fa-inverse\"><\/i>\r\n        <\/span>\r\n      <\/a>\r\n    <\/li><\/ul><p>Award-winning travel writer (<em>Telegraph, Times, Guardian, Wanderlust<\/em>) Paul Bloomfield recently explored western Honshu with us, where history and ghost stories feel ever present. From the sinister medieval bastion of Matsue to Tsuwano\u2019s Edo-era scenes and Hagi\u2019s samurai past, he follows Yamaguchi\u2019s quieter routes, ending in Nagato Yumoto Onsen, a hot spring town where life is returning. You can read more about his trip in <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.telegraph.co.uk\/gift\/334abe5933a71946\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Telegraph<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>I didn\u2019t see any ghosts in Japan \u2013 not exactly. And yet\u2026 perhaps it was the fantasies I\u2019d nurtured of being spirited away into a Ghibli-esque world, but on more than one occasion I had a deliciously hairs-standing-on-neck feeling that some kind of spirit, wraith, echo was lurking at my shoulder.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-36589\" src=\"https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1952-Matsue-Castle.jpg\" alt=\"Matsue castle on a clear day\" width=\"819\" height=\"614\" srcset=\"https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1952-Matsue-Castle.jpg 2400w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1952-Matsue-Castle-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1952-Matsue-Castle-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1952-Matsue-Castle-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1952-Matsue-Castle-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1952-Matsue-Castle-2048x1536.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1952-Matsue-Castle-1200x900.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1952-Matsue-Castle-900x675.jpg 900w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1952-Matsue-Castle-720x540.jpg 720w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1952-Matsue-Castle-1440x1080.jpg 1440w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1952-Matsue-Castle-390x293.jpg 390w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1952-Matsue-Castle-780x585.jpg 780w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1952-Matsue-Castle-510x383.jpg 510w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 819px) 100vw, 819px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/self-guided-japan-holidays\/i-whw\/west-honshu-wonders\/\">Explore our West Honshu Wonders trip idea<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Japan has a long tradition of ghost stories, of course. <em>Y\u014dkai<\/em> \u2013 a diverse cadre of supernatural entities \u2013 haunt countless tales and films. I was reminded of that heritage in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/japanese-destinations\/matsue\/\">Matsue<\/a>, a lakeside city guarded by a suitably sinister medieval bastion, recalling a description that\u2019s still apt well over a century after it was penned: \u201cSolid as when first built four hundred years ago, a vast and sinister shape, all iron-gray, rising against the sky from a cyclopean foundation of stone. Fantastically grim the thing is, and grotesquely complex in detail\u2026\u201d Those are the words of Lafcadio Hearn, a Greek-Irish writer who lived for a time in Matsue and found renown translating and publishing traditional ghost stories recounted by his Japanese wife. A visit to his former home and neighbouring museum reveal the respect in which he\u2019s still held by many Japanese today \u2013 in fact, he\u2019s the subject of the latest hugely popular <em>asadora<\/em> morning TV serial.<\/p>\n<p>Today, aside from the castle and the compact samurai quarter in its shadow, Matsue is largely a bustling modern city where such superstitions seem a little out of place. But in quieter spots farther west in Honshu, it can feel as if only a diaphanous veil separates this world from the living past.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-36592\" src=\"https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1760-Taikodani-Inari-jinja-Shrine-Tsuwano.jpg\" alt=\"Man walking under red torii gates\" width=\"819\" height=\"614\" srcset=\"https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1760-Taikodani-Inari-jinja-Shrine-Tsuwano.jpg 2400w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1760-Taikodani-Inari-jinja-Shrine-Tsuwano-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1760-Taikodani-Inari-jinja-Shrine-Tsuwano-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1760-Taikodani-Inari-jinja-Shrine-Tsuwano-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1760-Taikodani-Inari-jinja-Shrine-Tsuwano-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1760-Taikodani-Inari-jinja-Shrine-Tsuwano-2048x1536.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1760-Taikodani-Inari-jinja-Shrine-Tsuwano-1200x900.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1760-Taikodani-Inari-jinja-Shrine-Tsuwano-900x675.jpg 900w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1760-Taikodani-Inari-jinja-Shrine-Tsuwano-720x540.jpg 720w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1760-Taikodani-Inari-jinja-Shrine-Tsuwano-1440x1080.jpg 1440w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1760-Taikodani-Inari-jinja-Shrine-Tsuwano-390x293.jpg 390w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1760-Taikodani-Inari-jinja-Shrine-Tsuwano-780x585.jpg 780w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1760-Taikodani-Inari-jinja-Shrine-Tsuwano-510x383.jpg 510w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 819px) 100vw, 819px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Take <a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/japanese-destinations\/tsuwano\/\">Tsuwano<\/a>. Judged just on its many historic sites, this peaceful castle town set amid forested mountains is a treat to visit. Its Taikodani Inari-jinja Shrine is accessed via a tunnel of dozens of vermilion <em>torii<\/em> (gates) weaving up the hillside, much like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/japanese-destinations\/kyoto\/\">Kyoto\u2019s<\/a> Fushimi Inari Shrine but without the Instagram-following crowds. The old centre itself boasts temples, centuries-old <em>sake<\/em> breweries and a well-preserved samurai district through which flow little canals stocked with carp, introduced to provide food in case of siege.<\/p>\n<p>But what really sets Tsuwano apart is the Hyakkeizu \u2013 a collection of 100 pictures of the town and surroundings, capturing intimate insights into places, activities, events and daily life of the feudal Edo era. Thanks to the superb heritage centre displaying these images, and accompanying route guides, it\u2019s possible to step back in time and explore in the spectral company of Kakusai \u2013 the name adopted by samurai retainer Kurimoto Satoharu, who sketched the Hyakkeizu. Better still, join an e-bike tour led by a passionate local to roam the streets and shrines, temples, fields and waterfalls, seeing how much \u2013 or, in many case, how little \u2013 has changed over the past 160 years.<\/p>\n<p>Some sites are quite different. The castle, first built on Mount Shiroyama in 1295 to defend against invasion by Kublai Khan\u2019s Mongol army, was dismantled in 1874 after the fall of the shogunate during the Meiji Restoration. But many other places are much the same as in Kakusai\u2019s day. Youmei-ji Temple still stands, housing fascinating relics and an atmospherically mossy, lichen-splashed cemetery. Local people still forage for Matsutake mushrooms in the woods, don costumes for the annual Sagi-mai heron dance at the Gion Festival, and compete in Yabusame (horseback archery) at Washibara Hachimangu Shrine. Most deliciously, the local treat Genji-maki \u2013 freshly cooked pancakes rolled around sweet red-bean paste \u2013 is still prepared daily at Ganso Genji Maki Sohompo Soke, the ideal post-cycle pick-me-up.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-36598\" src=\"https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1553-Hagi-from-castle-Mt-Shizuka.jpg\" alt=\"View over Hagi coastline\" width=\"819\" height=\"614\" srcset=\"https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1553-Hagi-from-castle-Mt-Shizuka.jpg 2400w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1553-Hagi-from-castle-Mt-Shizuka-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1553-Hagi-from-castle-Mt-Shizuka-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1553-Hagi-from-castle-Mt-Shizuka-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1553-Hagi-from-castle-Mt-Shizuka-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1553-Hagi-from-castle-Mt-Shizuka-2048x1536.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1553-Hagi-from-castle-Mt-Shizuka-1200x900.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1553-Hagi-from-castle-Mt-Shizuka-900x675.jpg 900w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1553-Hagi-from-castle-Mt-Shizuka-720x540.jpg 720w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1553-Hagi-from-castle-Mt-Shizuka-1440x1080.jpg 1440w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1553-Hagi-from-castle-Mt-Shizuka-390x293.jpg 390w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1553-Hagi-from-castle-Mt-Shizuka-780x585.jpg 780w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1553-Hagi-from-castle-Mt-Shizuka-510x383.jpg 510w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 819px) 100vw, 819px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>More evocative glimpses of the past await less than two hours to the west, in the coastal city of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/japanese-destinations\/hagi\/\">Hagi<\/a>. Like Tsuwano, it\u2019s a former domain capital where the <em>daimyo<\/em> (regional lord) built a mighty hilltop fortress, now largely in ruins. But Hagi\u2019s extensive castle town and Edo-era merchant district offer different kinds of insights into both life in the samurai period and the seeds of the revolution that toppled the shogun and brought what was effectively a medieval country into the modern industrial age in 1868.<\/p>\n<p>Though the once-imposing keep has gone, the burly stone outer walls and moats of the castle are still largely intact, enclosing a lovely park where plum trees and camellias bloom. And a stiff 20-minute haul up Mt Shizuki through lush forest brought me to the site of the former lookout post. Though only skeletal castle remains survive, the 360-degree views are as spectacular as ever, across the glorious golden beach and old town occupying the delta island between two rivers to the foothills beyond, and along the gloriously craggy coastline to the southwest.<\/p>\n<p>In the town itself, ebullient local guide Aki led us around the grid-like street plan that can still be navigated using Edo-era maps, so little has it changed in form over several centuries. \u201cHagi is renowned for four Ss,\u201d Aki smiled: \u201cSamurai, seaside, summer oranges and \u2018still secret\u2019 \u2013 it\u2019s little known by international visitors.\u201d Certainly, trees laden with hefty citrus fruits are everywhere, mostly planted after the end of the shogunate when orange trees were seen as providing alternative income.<\/p>\n<p>Several residences are now museums imbued with the spirits of samurais and wealthy merchants from two centuries ago. Typically fronted with <em>yakisugi<\/em>, charred-looking wood providing protection from salty sea air, houses such as the former Kikuyu and Kubota residences were built be merchants who grew wealthy from trading sake, kimonos or the four \u2018white items\u2019 for which Hagi became known: rice, paper, salt and candle wax from the sumac tree.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-36604\" src=\"https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1488-Hagi-yaki-potter.jpg\" alt=\"A man working at a pottery wheel\" width=\"410\" height=\"546\" srcset=\"https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1488-Hagi-yaki-potter.jpg 2400w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1488-Hagi-yaki-potter-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1488-Hagi-yaki-potter-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1488-Hagi-yaki-potter-1152x1536.jpg 1152w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1488-Hagi-yaki-potter-1536x2048.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1488-Hagi-yaki-potter-1200x1600.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1488-Hagi-yaki-potter-900x1200.jpg 900w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1488-Hagi-yaki-potter-720x960.jpg 720w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1488-Hagi-yaki-potter-1440x1920.jpg 1440w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1488-Hagi-yaki-potter-390x520.jpg 390w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1488-Hagi-yaki-potter-780x1040.jpg 780w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1488-Hagi-yaki-potter-510x680.jpg 510w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 410px) 100vw, 410px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Another treasure for which Hagi was \u2013 and still is \u2013 famed is the distinctive high-grade pottery known as Hagi-yaki, introduced by artisans brought from Korea in the early 17th century. Even today, it\u2019s prized for <em>chawan<\/em>, matcha tea bowls. And visitors are welcome to learn the technique \u2013 as I tried, working clay under the gentle guidance of craftsman Taikei Higuchi. My efforts were, it\u2019s fair to say, rudimentary, serving only to underscore the expertise and artistry of the potters who still produce exquisite pieces epitomising concepts of <em>nanabake<\/em> \u2013 the \u2018seven transformations\u2019 that these ceramics undergo over time.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/2026\/02\/19\/on-the-trail-of-the-samurai\/\">Read more: On the trail of the samurai<\/a><\/p>\n<p>An hour farther west is a place that looked not so long ago as if it might become a ghost town \u2013 but today is looking to a bright future. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/japanese-destinations\/nagato-yumoto-onsen\/\">Nagato Yumoto Onsen<\/a> is a hot-spring resort strung along the Fukawa River, sandwiched between verdant ridges. Like so many similar spots in Japan, there\u2019s a wonderful legend linked to the <em>onsen<\/em>. Six centuries ago, it\u2019s said, the sea deity Sumiyoshi Daimyojin directed a priest from nearby Taineji Temple to the source of healing waters. Certainly, for many years people bathed in these naturally hot and mineral-rich pools \u2013 and over time, hotels sprang up to cater for visitors eager to enjoy treatments. But in recent times, the town fell out of favour, and the public <em>onsen<\/em> and lovely riverside walk became neglected.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen I was a boy, my friends and I would swim in the river in summer, then go to the <em>onsen<\/em>,\u201d recalls Kazuhiro Otani, owner of Bettei Otozure Ryokan. \u201cBut by 20 years ago, that never happened \u2013 and I wanted to change that.\u201d A few years ago, he became the driving force behind the revitalisation of the town, starting with the public <em>onsen<\/em>, Onto, now completely reimagined and a popular hub for both residents and visitors. New hotels have opened; the funky Soil, where I stayed, also offers a lengthy menu of activities enabling guests to discover local artisans and authentic experiences, from exploring a historic soy-sauce brewery to meeting award-winning potters and e-bike trips through neighbouring Nagato town to the dramatically craggy island of Omijima, where black kites amass above and waves crash onto rock stacks and arches.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-36616\" src=\"https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1088-soba-Nagato.jpeg\" alt=\"Noodles, beef and eggs on a rooftree dish\" width=\"819\" height=\"614\" srcset=\"https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1088-soba-Nagato.jpeg 2400w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1088-soba-Nagato-300x225.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1088-soba-Nagato-1024x768.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1088-soba-Nagato-768x576.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1088-soba-Nagato-1536x1152.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1088-soba-Nagato-2048x1536.jpeg 2048w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1088-soba-Nagato-1200x900.jpeg 1200w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1088-soba-Nagato-900x675.jpeg 900w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1088-soba-Nagato-720x540.jpeg 720w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1088-soba-Nagato-1440x1080.jpeg 1440w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1088-soba-Nagato-390x293.jpeg 390w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1088-soba-Nagato-780x585.jpeg 780w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1088-soba-Nagato-510x383.jpeg 510w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 819px) 100vw, 819px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>In Nagato Yumoto itself, once-empty shops, cafes and restaurants are reopening. At Kawarasoba Yanagiya, we feasted on the buckwheat noodles typical of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/japanese-destinations\/yamaguchi\/\">Yamaguchi<\/a> province, served with beef and eggs on a hot black rooftree and dipped in rich sauce; the bar above serves superior cocktails in a chic space overlooking the river. At Sakura Shodokou, we indulged in tender chicken <em>yakitori<\/em> skewers and flapping-fresh <em>sashimi<\/em>. At Oto Cafe &amp; Pottery we savoured coffee served in beautiful Hagi-yaki cups, before popping across the road to the 365+1 craft brewery to pick up some citrusy pale ale. And, of course, we simmered in the waters of Onto, before strolling to Taineji Temple, past phalanxes of red-capped, lichen-mottled jizo sculptures to roam the hauntingly beautiful cemetery where generations rested. There I mused how, in Nagato Yumoto, vibrant life is returning, rubbing shoulders with the ghosts of the past to create something new, yet rooted in ancient traditions.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-36622\" src=\"https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1170-Tainei-ji-temple-Nagato-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"Tainei-ji temple\" width=\"400\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1170-Tainei-ji-temple-Nagato-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1170-Tainei-ji-temple-Nagato-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1170-Tainei-ji-temple-Nagato-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1170-Tainei-ji-temple-Nagato-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1170-Tainei-ji-temple-Nagato-2048x1536.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1170-Tainei-ji-temple-Nagato-1200x900.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1170-Tainei-ji-temple-Nagato-900x675.jpg 900w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1170-Tainei-ji-temple-Nagato-720x540.jpg 720w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1170-Tainei-ji-temple-Nagato-1440x1080.jpg 1440w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1170-Tainei-ji-temple-Nagato-390x293.jpg 390w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1170-Tainei-ji-temple-Nagato-780x585.jpg 780w, https:\/\/insidejapan.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_1170-Tainei-ji-temple-Nagato-510x383.jpg 510w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Explore: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/self-guided-japan-holidays\/i-whw\/west-honshu-wonders\/\">West Wonshu Wonders trip idea<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Read next: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/2016\/01\/26\/appreciating-countryside-rural-yamaguchi\/\">Appreciating the countryside in rural Yamaguchi<\/a><\/p>\n<p><em>Paul Bloomfield is an award-winning travel, history and wildlife writer who contributes to the Telegraph, Times, Guardian, Wanderlust, BBC Wildlife, HistoryExtra and many other broadsheets and magazines. He&#8217;s also the host of the History&#8217;s Greatest Cities podcast, featuring episodes on Tokyo and Kyot<\/em>o.<\/p>\n<h4>Like this post? 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Help us by sharing it! Award-winning travel writer (Telegraph, Times, Guardian, Wanderlust) Paul Bloomfield recently explored western Honshu with us, where history and ghost stories feel ever present. From the sinister medieval bastion of Matsue to Tsuwano\u2019s Edo-era scenes and Hagi\u2019s samurai past, he follows Yamaguchi\u2019s quieter routes, ending in Nagato Yumoto [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":174,"featured_media":36637,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_sitemap_exclude":false,"_sitemap_priority":"","_sitemap_frequency":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-36571","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36571","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/174"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36571"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36571\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":36670,"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36571\/revisions\/36670"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36637"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36571"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36571"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.insidejapantours.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36571"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}