Page 241 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Japan

beautifully preserved, and the
Lafcadio Hearn Memorial
Hall displays Hearn’s manu­
scripts, desk, and pipes.
Matsue Castle
" ⌂ 1-5 Tonomachi
@ Kencho-mae stop § (0852)
21-4030 # 8:30am–6pm daily
Buke Yashiki
" ⌂ 305 Kitahoricho
§ (0852) 22-2243 # 8:30am–
6:30pm daily (to 5pm Oct–Mar)
Meimei-an Teahouse
" ⌂ 278 Kitahoricho
§ (0852) 21-9863 # 8:30am– Rock formations in the Akiyoshido Cave
5pm daily in the Akiyoshi-dai Tablelands
Tanabe Art Museum
" ⌂ 310-5 Kitahoricho 24 Izumo Taisha Grand Shrine,
§ (0852) 26-2211 # 9am– one of the most revered and
5pm Tue–Sun Akiyoshi-dai oldest Shinto shrines in the
Tablelands country. It is dedicated to
Lafcadio Hearn Residence 秋吉台 Okuninushi­no­Mikoto, a
" ⌂ 315 Kitahoricho ! B5 ⌂ Yamaguchi deity who is closely associated
§ (0852) 23-0714 Prefecture @ From Yama- with agriculture and medicine,
# 8:30am–6:30pm daily as well as marriage – the latter
guchi n At bus stn; (0837) explaining the popularity of
62-0305
Lafcadio Hearn the shrine for wedding
Memorial Hall Akiyoshi­dai is a plateau of ceremonies. The entrance
" ⌂ 322 Okudanicho grass land and rocky outcrops, to the shrine, through 11
§ (0852) 21-2147 # 8:30am– which tour buses pass on their torii (gates), is impressive.
5pm daily (to 6:30pm Apr–Sep) way to Akiyoshido Cave, one Unusually tall, the Honden
of the largest limestone grottos (Main Hall) is not open to
in Asia. The cave is 6 miles the public, although the
23 (10 km) deep, only half a mile Treasure House can be
visited. The shrine’s environs
(1 km) of which is open to the
Yamaguchi public. Passageways are well are sacred and therefore
山口 lit, and a clear map is provided. ecologically pristine, with
towering cryptomeria
! B5 ⌂ Yamaguchi Akiyoshido Cave
Prefecture £ n Yamaguchi trees surrounding the
Stn, 1st floor; www. " § (0837) 62-0115 main com pound. Just east
# 8:30am–5:30pm daily
of the shrine are a number
yamaguchi-city.jp/w/en/ of old houses occupied by
index.html
priests who serve here.
Laid out in the 14th century, 25 Note the traditional clay
Yamaguchi was modeled on and stone walls.
Kyoto. When the Jesuit Francis Izumo Just past the shrine, on
Xavier visited here in 1550 he 出雲 Route 431 to Okuni, there is
found a city of great wealth ! C5 ⌂ Shimane Prefecture a monument to a nun who is
and sophistication; the Xavier said to have danced on the
Memorial Chapel, built in 1952, k £ n At Taisha-mae Stn; banks of the Kamo River in
(0853) 53-2298
marks the 400th anniversary Kyoto to raise money for
of the priest’s stay. The painter Alive with myths, legends, the shrine. The dance was
Sesshu (1420–1506) designed and tales of the supernatural, developed into the Kabuki
a garden for the tem ple of Izumo, known until the 3rd theatrical form (p115).
Joei­ji’s, while Ruriko­ji has a century as the “eightfold­
Japanese cypress­wood, five­ towering­thunderhead land,” Izumo Taisha Grand Shrine
story pagoda. Nearby is a set has an enthralling heritage. " ⌂ 195 Taishacho
of tombs belonging to the The town is well known Kizukihigashi § (0853)
influential Mori clan. throughout Japan for the 53-3100 # Daily
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