Zodiacs! Today we got out the small boats and enjoyed a short cruise into the port of Uchiko to meet our buses for the day’s excursion. A short ride brought us to the lovely little town of Uchiko, where we explored the beautifully preserved old town, visited a gorgeous merchant’s home built in the late 19th century, and had a tour of a small Kabuki theatre, including a basement room, where performers were raised up to stage level on a small platform lifted by four strong men. In Uwajima, the highlight was a visit to Uwajima Castle, an imposing edifice on a hill overlooking the town and one of only six castles in the country that remain from the period of the Tokugawa Shogunate.
9/23/2024
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Uwajima, Japan
Yesterday, we visited Yakushima, the southernmost point of our journey, and now we head northeast into the Seto Inland Sea. Today, we visited the small town of Uwajima in Ehime Prefecture on the island of Shikoku. Uwajima is famous for its delicious seafood, such as squid, sea bream, and yellowtail, as well as its pearl farms that produce beautiful pearls with the help of local oysters. Half the day was spent in the Date Samurai Museum and on the small hilltop in the center of town which houses the impressive Uwajima Castle. Some of us visited the Doi Pearl Farm and some got to take the pearls home. The other half of our outing was spent up in the mountains of Ehime Prefecture visiting the town of Uchiko, once home to around 30% of Japanese wax production. Japanese wax is of high quality and was expensive in many countries for a long time. This led to Uchiko becoming a very affluent and prosperous town, evidenced by the impressive architecture still visible today. We leave Shikoku behind and head over to the main island, to Hiroshima and Itsukushima for our next adventures.
