Samurai Road, Garden, and Dessert
Nagasaki Prefecture
Have you ever relaxed in a garden while listening to a funny storyteller. Shimabara City, a beautiful city surrounded by water located in Nagasaki prefecture, is the place for you! Our journey to this magnificent city was a breath of fresh air. Shimabara city had various experiences for the whole family to enjoy and best of all, everything is a couple of blocks away from Shimabara Castle. Continue to read on and find out what fun and thrilling activities we did this time around on our trip to Nagasaki prefecture. Lastly, whenever you get a chance, you must try the water !
About a 15 min stroll from Shimabara castle lies a beautiful preserved town with buildings dating back to the Edo period. When you enter the alley of Japanese traditional houses, you go back in time and sort of just gaze in the distance in awe of what lies in front of you. There is a stream of the clearest water that comes right through the middle creating a division of sides from the row of houses. Each house was use respectively during the Edo period. There are many buildings to peruse through and the best part of it all is that information on each of the properties are available in English, Chinese, and Korean languages.
Now we get to one of the best experiences of this trip, Shimeiso Spring Garden. There is a pond that is surrounding half a Japanese traditional house which is being taken care of by the sweetest elderly lady in the world.
She is a storyteller! You can drink tea, while hanging your feet on the edge of the house. Your feet are just above enough to not bother the coy fish that are swimming happily in the pond. A rush of cool breeze kisses your legs as you realize that life is as perfect as it could be in that moment. Then you hear a lady say with a stern but cheerful voice. “Welcome to Shimesio Spring Garden.” She entertained us for about 10 minutes, telling us stories about Shimabara city and answered any questions we had without any hesitation. She definitely knew how to make people laugh and feel relaxed at the same time. I would definitely recommend you come here if you are into photography or relaxing.
Have you heard of the Yellow Train in Japan? It’s a train that was inspired by the internationally known yellow handkerchief symbol of peace. It runs all throughout the city so spotting the yellow train is not difficult at all. The yellow handkerchief was made popular because of the Japanese film, “shiawase no kiroii hankachi,” in 1977. Oomisato train station has lines of yellow handkerchiefs that can be purchased by a coin vending machine. You can write your thoughts of peace and hang it on the rack for all to see it. This station is also known for it being the closest station to the ocean. If you aren’t careful you can fall and take an involuntary dip in the ocean.
Another great part about this station is how the tracks are positioned. You can be on two different tracks at the same time! You also need to walk over the railroad tracks to get to the other side. Something that was new for our group.
The last stop of the day was in the next building over where you can make your very own Shimabara’s famous “Kanzarashi sweets.” Basic gummy-like dough balls put in a special liquid that contains Shimabara’s famous clean water and honey. The combinations makes for an extremely delicious light dessert. It only took about 15 min to make and you get to eat it in a Japanese traditional room overlooking another beautiful garden. The soothing noise of small bamboo fountain makes for the best rest area you can ask for.
Shimabara city has all you need: walking, beautiful scenic routes, delicious food, and lots of places to relax. Perfect for your next date or a family getaway!
Shimabara Yusuikan
LOCATION: 2-122 Shin-machi, Shimabara city, Nagasaki prefecture
OPERATING HOURS: 8:30 - 17:30 | 6 times a day
(1)10:00- (2)11:00- (3) 13:00- (4)14:00- (5)15:00- (6)16:00
CLOSED: N/A
PHONE: +81 957-62-3986
URL: https://shimabaraonsen.com/en/sightseeing/archives/6
