Chūgoku

Right in the center of Shimane Okuizumo prefectural nature park with it's amazing mountains and forests is the scenic Oni no Shitaburi Gorge. The name Oni-no-shitaburi is derived from the Izumo Fudoki ancient story: “Wani-no-shitaburu”, where a shark fell in love with the goddess of […]

Located in southern Shimane in Tsuwamo, the Taikodani Inari Shrine is one of the five most important inari shrines in Japan. It is said that In 1773, the 7th feudal lord Norisada Kamei, invited the deity spirit from Kyoto’s Fushimi Inari Shrine while building Taikodani Inari Shrine [...]

Located near Hamada city, in the southern part of Shimane prefecture, you will find in the beautiful secluded Umikurasan Ryuun Temple. Established 1382 near what was once the Misumi Castle, a district of Hamada city, the Umikurasan Ryuun Temple was later relocated to its actual location in 1441 […]

Located near Hamada City in Shimane, the Tatamigaura Rock-Flats Beach, also known as Iwami Tatamigaura Beach is a scenic area that was created around 16 million years ago when the seafloor was raised by a powerful earthquake. This beach is also known as Senjojiki or “thousand mats” [...]

The Bukeyashiki is a traditional samurai residence built after the great fire of 1733.  It is located in the center of Matsue City alongside the moat of Matsue Castle. It was occupied by successive samurai of middle rank status of the Matsue domain, who periodically had to change their residence [...]

The Miho Shrine is located at the eastern end of Shimane Peninsula in the fishing village of Mihonoseki. Built around 1500, Miho Shrine is dedicated to Ebisu the deity of fishermen, thriving business, music and dance. Being the god of music and dance, priests and locals have collected from […]

The Adachi Museum of Art is a rather recent museum.  The museum was founded and opened in 1970 by Adachi Zenko who was a successful Japanese industrialist and fascinated by fine arts and gardens. While the real treasures of the Adachi Museum of art [...]

Located closest to Matsue City on an island in the middle of Lake Nakaumi, Yushien Garden or commonly known as Yūshien or Yuushien in Japanese is a 40,000 square meter garden established in 1975.  It’s famous for its gorgeous landscape including waterfalls, streams, stone lanterns, rock-garden, a beautiful [...]

Completed in 1611 Matsue Castle, a “Black Castle” due to its dark and austere exterior is and surrounded by a gorgeous moat and thick wall. It is one of only a dozen original castles left in Japan. That means that unlike many others like Naoya Castle and Osaka Castle, […]