"Journeys in Japan"

"One marked feature of the city is the number of streets of dwelling-houses"

"with projecting windows of wooden slats"

"The fronts are very narrow,"

"and the houses extend backwards to an amazing length,"

"with gardens in which flowers, shrubs, and mosquitoes are grown,"

"and bridges are several times repeated,"

"so as to give the effect of fairyland as you look through from the street."

This is a merchant's residence that was built 140 years ago

in the old town part of the city of Niigata.

A British woman named Isabella Bird

wrote a detailed account of her experiences with the culture

and people of Japan's commoner class.

Traveling from the port of Yokohama, she arrived here.

On this episode, I would like you to join me

as I follow her journey from Niigata to the Yamagata Basin.

Tracing the Japan glimpsed by British explorer Isabella Bird

some 140 years ago.

The paving stones to the Kurosawa Pass start here.

The warehouse entrance is inside the house?

That's right.

On this edition of "Journeys in Japan,"

actor Akino Roza follows in the footsteps of Isabella Bird,

searching for vestiges of those early days

soon after Japan opened up to the world.

With Isabella Bird, Part 3: On the Road to Yamagata

The starting point for today's journey is Niigata,

the capital city of Niigata Prefecture,

around 250 kilometers from Tokyo.

These days, it is a major city with a large port facing the Sea of Japan.

But it started out as a small waterfront town built on a sandy spit of land,

which steadily grew over the years.

When Isabella arrived here, the city looked very different.

In fact, it was covered with water-ways such as this one.

These original water-ways are no longer around,

but this one was recreated to show

what the city might have looked like at the time.

"These water-ways are busy all day, but in the early morning,"

"when the boats come in loaded with the vegetables"

"They are bordered by trees, among which are many weeping willows;"

"and, as the river water runs through them, keeping them quite sweet,"

"and they are crossed at short intervals by light bridges,"

"they form a very attractive feature of Niigata."

During her visit, Bird stayed at the house of a missionary

who lived in Niigata.

She wrote about what the town looked like and how people lived there.

Bird's book, "Unbeaten Tracks in Japan,"

is a record of what life was like in Japan 140 years ago.

She wrote it in the form of letters home to her sister.

Isabella Bird was born in Yorkshire, in the north of England.

She was 47 when she arrived in Japan,

and later went on to travel further in Asia and the Middle East.

Setting out from Yokohama, her route took her to Nikko, Niigata,

and then Akita and Hokkaido.

Later, she also visited western Japan.

In all, she stayed in the country more than half a year.

After leaving Niigata, Bird made her way towards the Yamagata Basin.

Roza will be following that very same route.

This is where the old town used to be.

It was filled with shops that featured traditional craftsmanship.

One of the shops that Isabella likely encountered is still around today.

This is amazing!

These Buddhist altars made in the old way are gorgeous.

Yes. It would be very hard to make one on this scale now,

even if you wanted to.

I see.

Niigata has a 300-year tradition of producing "butsudan,"

Buddhist altars that people place in their homes to honor their ancestors.

This one was made by Hayashi Yoshihiro.

He's a fifth-generation butsudan craftsman

and also runs his own retail store.

They're really intricate. What makes them distinctive?

Niigata-style altars have a "crown" on top.

You don't find that in other places.

Also, they feature lots of gold lacquerwork.

Five separate processes are needed to produce a Niigata butsudan,

with different craftsmen handling each stage,

from woodworking to the final decorations.

Hayashi is a "nushi," the person who applies the urushi lacquer.

- They're very complex.
- That's right.

They can't be finished without each of the artisans.

Are they still being made?

We still make them.

But there are fewer artisans now, so it's harder.

I taught the skills of lacquering to my daughter.

I want to keep them alive for future generations.

She also makes works that are more contemporary.

This is my daughter.

Hayashi's daughter, Sato Hiromi, works alongside her father.

She also produces contemporary works of "maki-e,"

adding gold decorations to the lacquerwork.

These are small sake cups.

These are beautiful.

Is it different from the traditional methods?

Instead of using a brush to create my works,

I use tools like toothpicks or sponges.

In maki-e, lacquerware is decorated with patterns or designs made of lacquer,

then sprinkled with gold powder, which makes the design stand out.

Hayashi and his daughter have begun working on a new medium,

applying the lacquer to metal rather than wood.

The base for this is stainless steel.

Really? You're working with metal?

Yes, we apply the lacquer to the steel

and then fix it by baking it in an oven.

Did you create this new method with your father?

Yes. We worked on it together all by ourselves,

experimenting and discovering things for about 15 years.

"In the same street with these lacquer shops"

"are the ecclesiastical furniture shops."

"At the back of these one can see the whole process,"

"as described by Isaiah, of graving a god,"

"from the rude block to the last delicate touches."

It must be wonderful to do such a creative job.

Yes, I enjoy it a lot.

I'm doing these new things to preserve our legacy.

I hope it will draw attention to our Niigata butsudan.

I have arrived at the beach.

Isabella was supposed to board a ship here,

but ultimately, according to her book, she was unable to do so.

"My plans for the rest of the summer have been decided by finding"

"that there is no steamer for Yezo for nearly a month."

"The land journey is about 450 miles,"

"and I can learn nothing about the route I wish to take."

As it turns out, perhaps it was for the best

that Isabella wasn't able to board the ocean liner.

After all, it did leave us with a very detailed and interesting record of

the foods she encountered while she was here in Niigata.

In particular, one of those foods,

the Japanese pickled radish or "takuan."

This was a food that both she and other foreigners seemed to not like.

On the other hand, the cucumber, she praises as a delicious treat.

Me myself, I quite like the takuan, and can eat it quite a lot.

Some 65 kilometers north from Niigata City lies Sekikawa,

a village that Bird also passed through.

The Arakawa River which runs through the village,

is known for the clarity of its water.

To the south, the Iide mountain range is visible,

rising to around 2,000 meters.

Now, do you see those mountains over there?

Isabella made her way around those mountains,

to where I'm standing now.

From here, she continued her perilous journey

on another difficult mountain pass.

Jusan Toge is an ancient route

connecting Niigata with Yamagata Prefecture.

It's a strenuous trail,

climbing to 13 separate passes over a distance of 70 kilometers.

The route was used not only by travelers

but also porters carrying heavy loads

said to weigh from 40 to 60 kilograms.

"Truly 'in the sweat of their brows'"

"they were eating bread and earning"

"an honest living for their families!"

"Suffering and hard-worked as they were, they were quite independent."

Across the border in Yamagata lies Ogunimachi.

In the old days, this town flourished as a stopping point

around halfway along the Jusan Toge route.

We've arrived at one of the passes of the Jusan Toge.

From here, I'll be traveling down the Kurosawa Pass.

To help us navigate,

I've asked a local resident, Okamura-san, to be our guide.

Good morning. I'm Okamura. Nice to meet you.

Okamura Toshiharu was born and raised in Ogunimachi.

He likes to show visitors along the route through the Kurosawa Pass.

- It's lovely.
- It is!

In the time before Japan modernized,

many kinds of goods were carried through this pass.

Salt and fish from Niigata.

Rice and tobacco in the other direction, from Yamagata.

The paving stones of the Kurosawa Pass route start here.

In all, there are 3,600 of them.

In those days, the road was paved with stones.

In just 1.7 kilometers, it rises 426 meters.

This used to be an important route used by the feudal warlords.

But from the mid-19th century,

it gradually was abandoned after a main road was built along another route.

It's so beautiful up here.

The moss is so pretty.

Simply wonderful.

Until 40 years ago,

the old paving stones were hidden under a layer of soil.

The road was restored by local volunteers

who wanted to save it for future generations.

It took five years,

but the stones have now regained their former beauty.

I guess you can't walk the Jusan Toge route in a day.

No. It's 70 kilometers long.

It would take you three days and two nights. Just like Isabella Bird.

Now, when Isabella first started making her way through the Jusan Toge,

she started on foot.

And then, she switched to horseback.

However, for the Kurosawa Toge part of her journey,

she traveled on the back of a cow.

"A steed with a pack-saddle was produced for me"

"in the shape of a plump and pretty little cow"

"I was glad to get shelter with a number of coolies by a wood fire"

"till another pack-cow was produced,"

"and we walked on through the rice-fields"

"and up into the hills again to Kurosawa."

Roza, the top is in sight now.

It didn't take long.

No. The breeze feels good.

Yes, suddenly I can feel the wind.

This is the Kurosawa Pass.

We've climbed 426 meters.

Amazing.

Having walked it myself, it's been such a great experience.

That's great.

This is a historic road and a valuable cultural asset.

Each year more than 100 people turn out to help maintain it.

It's our wish that many visitors come here.

We hope they feel the splendor of this mountain.

After considerable effort, Bird made it through the 13 passes

and reached a major post town called Kamikomatsu,

where she stopped to rest.

Let's go in and take a break.

Looks like this is a traditional Japanese sweets shop.

Here you go.

"Yokan" is a traditional confection made from red azuki beans,

which is still popular in Japan.

Bird writes that she, too, was given some black beans to eat

at a village shortly before Kamikomatsu.

This is just what I needed after my long walk today.

You can really taste the little bit of salt in the yokan.

In the old days, this shop was actually a salt wholesaler.

It changed to making traditional confectionery about 100 years ago.

But it kept its original logo, a cross-sign signifying the number ten.

What's the significance of your shop's logo?

In the old days, ships carried salt to the port of Niigata.

They used to dock in the No. 10 wharf.

That's why we use the kanji character for "ten."

I see. And the salt was carried along the Jusan Toge route?

That's what I've been told.

This must have been a thriving town.

I expect it was.

From Kamikomatsu, Bird passed through the Yonezawa Basin,

where she discovered more than 50 small villages.

She observed people tending silkworms and watched local festivals.

This is where she wrote the best-known passage in her book.

Look at this breathtaking view.

Can you imagine what it must have looked like when she visited here?

"The plain of Yonezawa,"

"with the prosperous town of Yonezawa in the south,"

"and the frequented watering-place of Akayu in the north,"

"is a perfect garden of Eden"

"A smiling and plenteous land, an Asiatic Arcadia."

Moving 50 kilometers further north,

you reach the northern section of the Yamagata Basin.

Bird also passed this way.

The land is fertile.

In the Edo period people cultivated safflower here.

Later, they turned to sericulture.

These days they grow fruit, such as cherries and apples.

Hello. Could I ask you something?

What are you all doing?

We're removing the leaves.

So the apples get more sunlight and turn red.

Their color will change?

Yes, they'll turn red.

It's hard work.

Did you do this kind of work when you were a child?

I just helped out a bit.

- You helped?
- Yes.

The present-day inhabitants are carrying on the farming tradition

on this "plenteous land" that Bird observed.

The Yachi district is located close to the fruit orchards.

In the old days,

the streets here were lined with wealthy merchants' houses.

Here, you can look inside a house of the type

that Bird might have seen while she was in Yamagata.

Please come this way.

The warehouse entrance is inside the house?

That's right.

This was the Horigome residence.

He was a safflower merchant in the late Edo period.

The main house is connected to the warehouse.

Inside, it's been converted into a living space.

Amazing.

In the old days people built fireproof warehouses,

known as "kura" for storing their valuables.

In this area, the merchants who grew wealthy from safflower

remodeled their kura into traditional living rooms,

and they became known as "zashikigura."

Safflower was highly prized for use as a dye or as rouge.

Its value was said to be 100 times greater than rice

and ten times that of gold.

It brought great riches to the people in this area.

Why did they convert their kura into rooms?

The ground floor was for greeting their guests.

And upstairs was for storing their valuables.

So their treasured guests stayed here.

That's right.

Wonderful!

"My accommodation is unique- a kura, or godown,"

"in a large conventional garden"

"I am lodged in the lower part, but the iron doors are open,"

"and in their place at night is a paper screen."

"A few things are kept in my room."

"Two handsome shrines from which the unemotional face of"

"two Buddhas looked out all night,"

"a fine figure of the goddess Kwan-non,"

"and a venerable one of the god of longevity suggested curious dreams."

When Isabella Bird was in Yamagata 140 years ago,

it seems that she saw a lot of sericulture.

At that time, the safflower industry had become unviable for various reasons.

In fact it was the master of this house

who urged people to switch to sericulture and tea production.

I see.

Later, silk-making took the place of safflower production.

Many silk-reeling mills were built

and raw silk became the main industry in the Yamagata Basin.

So that was the connection between safflower and silk.

Exactly.

We have arrived at a shrine that is two kilometers from the kura residence.

In her writings, Isabella mentions that

she saw quite a few "matsuri" while she was here in Yamagata.

Today, we will see this one.

And the best part is that we can see the traditional dancers

in their traditional garb that was dyed with "benibana."

For 350 years,

the Donga Festival has been held at Yachi Hachimangu shrine.

Even today, it still feels little changed from the days of Isabella Bird.

"In every one there are two poles over 30 feet high for white bannerets,"

"which are inscribed with the name of the village god,"

"and are put up on his matsuri or festival day,"

"and from the number of these visible among the trees,"

"it seemed as if half the villagers were keeping holiday."

"The monotonous sound of drumming filled the air,"

"the girl children were all much painted."

The highlight of the festival is a dance known as "Hayashike Bugaku,"

which is performed as a religious rite.

This tradition originated in China

and has been preserved in Japan for more than 1,500 years.

The gorgeous silk robes were dyed with safflower.

They draw the spectators back to a time that is long past.

Isabella spent months traveling through Japan's summer in her tweed suit.

Though she was physically weak at home in Britain,

she came alive through her explorations.

I think this is a brilliant example of the possibilities

that can arise when one has the courage to face what is the unknown.

Thank you for joining me on this journey.

I hope to see you again.

To reach Niigata Station from Tokyo,

it takes about two hours by Shinkansen bullet train.

From there, you can transfer to local trains and buses

to continue to other destinations.