After staying at Star Hotel, my friend and I walked to the station in the early morning, while talking about where we would go next. At the time I hardly knew about northern parts of this country, so-called Tohoku area, so, my friend proposed to go to the preserved samurai town, Kakunodate. It would be almost an hour trip from Morioka city to there by taking a bullet train, and we had a free ticket. Without alternative ideas, I had no objection.
It was on Sunday, mid-June, which was considered as mid-rainy season in this country. So, it had been raining all day long.
One of my trivial memories on that day was that before getting on a bullet train, we went to a burger shop in Morioka station. In that shop, I found a croquette-burger meal on its menu and ordered it for my breakfast.
I guess that it was around 9:00 or 10:00am when we reached Kakunodate town. It was more than 10 years ago, and I guess the town just now has been re-developed to attract more tourists. But when we were there, around the Kakunodate station, there was nothing. No shop, store and restaurant. I even couldn't find a tourist information around there.
Fortunately, my friend knew the entire map of this town, especially how to reach its main street where we found several well-preserved samurai manor houses.
I say again, it was on Sunday, not a weekday. But at the time, we were maybe only two tourists who entered the quiet, beautiful samurai houses, 'cause we never met anyone, but saw only a dog wandering along with the street. Its quietness seemed to be essential for me to feel the solemnity that houses had.
By the way, just now I find the web-sites of this town, and one of the samurai-houses. Interestingly, the samurai house's HP has an English-version.
http://www.samuraiworld.com/english/index.html
http://kakunodate-kanko.jp/index.html
Here was Kakunodate town, Japan.
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