Kakunodate

Throughout my time at AIU, there were three different bus trips the college provided for students if they paid for them. The first of these was the one that excited me the most, a trip to a nearby town with a long samurai history, Kakunodate. At ten in the morning, those of us who had bought tickets lined up in front of the AIU cafeteria, checked in, were handed brochures for Kakunodate, and then went to get on the buses. My friends and I got on the first bus and had what must have been the best bus ride I have ever been on in my life. The seats were incredibly soft and comfortable; there was a lot of legroom, and the sights on the way to Kakunodate were beautiful. The countryside of northern Japan was quite similar to Maine, with lush green forests, large farms, and the occasional deep blue lake. One difference that stuck out to me, however, was that in the small towns we passed by, many of the houses looked almost stitched together and disheveled, some one bad day away from falling apart. I had heard in videos before coming to Japan about the troubles that small towns in Japan had been dealing with, but seeing it was still a shock, and put a slight damper on my mood for the ride over to Hakodate.

After a short stop for a bathroom break and a chance to buy snacks, we were back on the road, and the entire rest of the way my eyes were glued to the brochure we had been provided, trying to figure out with my friends the route we would take. When we had finally arrived, I could scarcely keep myself from rushing off the bus, and with a festival ongoing and the cherry blossom trees lining the path along the riverbank, it was like a dream come true. We began our exploration of Kakunodate by walking along the cherry blossom-covered path, occasionally ducking our heads beneath the trees to avoid low-hanging branches. When we had gone down the path and taken our photos, we began our time in the city in earnest, starting at the local art museum, which was full of beautiful traditional works of Japanese art. The majority of these were made in Ukiyo-e style, and were painted onto various objects such as folding screens and Fusuma (a type of Japanese sliding door found in noble homes). Unfortunately, due to a mixture of anxiety and hunger, I didn’t take the time to appreciate the art museum as much as I feel I could, and should, have. This anxiety came from wanting to explore the samurai houses before they closed, as the time when we arrived was around late noon, and the houses closed in the early evening.

The inside of the samurai houses was amazing; it was easy to tell how much effort was put into every room I walked through, and in most of the houses there was either a tour guide (one such tour guide was a descendant of one of the samurai families) or there were brochures to explain the different rooms of the house and what they were used for. I even walked through one alone, as none of my friends wanted to come with me for what would have been our third, and none of the Japanese tourists appeared interested in it either. It was so quiet I felt like a ghost might manifest at any moment. In a way, I suppose they did, as it was very easy to imagine the families living out their lives in the building, from the signs explaining the rooms, but drawing from what I imagine I would do to have fun in such a house as a child. There were also a surprising number of hiding places, but at the same time, despite the various dips and walls of the house, it was still very easy to move around. If there weren’t complex laws surrounding the houses, and their designs weren’t centuries old, I think I’d like to live in a house like that someday…but with modern upgrades for central heating and an air conditioner.

I had so much fun and was so enraptured while going through Kakunodate, I ended up spending all the money I had brought with me on the houses and souvenirs. I barely had enough money to buy myself lunch near the end of our trip!

Kakunodate was an amazing experience despite my initial hanger (hunger-induced anger) and anxiety, and it’s a town I would love to explore again when I visit Japan again in the future, especially since I didn’t get to visit the nearby castle ruins.