Are you going to Japan soon, but sceptical of the overcrowding of tourists? Maybe you want a place a bit less known, but still has the beautiful and traditional charm as Kyoto. Then I have the place for you.
Kanazawa which lays on the east coast of Japan is the gold leaf capital of Japan, has a long samurai history and you can find practising geishas there. This is where you want to go for your Japan trip.
How to get there
It is very easy to get to Kanazawa from Tokyo or Osaka.
From Tokyo: Get on the Joetsu Shinkansen where you will change at Takasaki station to the Hokuriku Shinkansen. From there on you will travel directly to Kanazawa.
From Osaka: There is no direct line from Osaka (or Shin-Osaka), but they are building one. However take a train to Tsuruga and change to Hokuriku Shinkansen there.
From Kyoto: Kyoto is the same route as if you were travling from Osaka.
Long Samurai History
Kanazawa has a long samurai history and the city was ruled by the Maeda clan. The clan trace back to 1531 and was founded by Maeda Toshimasa, but it rose to power under his successor Maeda Toshiie which is the person that built Kanazawa Castle in 1580. The Maeda clan was one of the wealthiest and most powerful clans during the Edo period.
What to do and see when you visit Kanazawa
1. Kanazawa Castle
When visiting Kanazawa, this is a must place to visit. The grounds outside is free to walk around, but you can also buy a ticket to enter the castle.
There are differnt routes to come to the castle, I took one with staires and got a view of the castle from above before I explored the grounds.
The castle has been restored many times through out history, due to fires, the most recent one is in 1881. Even so, it has kept the Edo period look it had from when it was originally built.
2. Edomachidori Avenue
As old as the castle and once bustling with life of samurai recidents and trade shops. It is right behind the castle, just cross the bridge towards Kenroku-en and you will see it right by the road.
Now it is the perfect place to sit down for lunch or an ice cream, there was also a souvenir shop there when I went.
This became one of my favorite places and it was very few people here. I will admit, I wish the road beneath it was not there.
3. Kenroku-en
This garden is known as Japan´s most beautiful garden and I can definitly say it is stunning. It is also considered to be one of the Three Great Gardens in Japan. Though the park is smaller than the castle grounds, it will make you forget that you are in a city.
The garden was founded by the Maeda clan and it is most famous for the Kotoji-toro lantern (pictured on the right). The garden is beautiful in all seasons, so whenever you are going to Japan it is worth the visit.
4. Higashi Chaya District
This is the geisha district in Kanazawa and was established in 1820 with entertainment purposes. This is one of the few cities in Japan where the geisha traditions are still practiced. Kaikaro teahouse is one of the places you can visit to experience it, but be aware that you might have to book a table in advance. There are also other shops in the district such as matcha or gold leaf shops.
My personal favorite was probably the ice cream store I went to, which had a cute design and a mochi detail.
5. Omicho Market
Eat your way through Omicho Market or buy with you fresh products to bring home and cook. They mainly sell seafood and has a great variety in it, but a few places also sell meat or desserts. If there is something you want to test in small portions most vendors sell skewers or different sized portions.
I personally tried sea urchin for the first time here, but they have a great variety. If you are wondering, I really liked it. There are also some restaurants on the first floor and even more on the second floor if you want to sit down and eat a bigger meal.
6. Myouryuji (Ninja Temple)
Sorry to disappoint you, but there were actually no ninjas in the temple. However it was designed with traps, secret passages and defensive mechanisms.
The temple was built by the Maeda clan and discuised itself as a Buddhist temple, but was secretly a defensive stronghold.
There are guided tours you can take, sadly they are only in Japanese, but you will be provided a information sheet in English.
7. Nagamachi Samurai District
This is where the high-ranking samurai of the Maeda clan resided during the Edo period. The buildings in this area carry significant history, as they are built with thick, earthen, and muddy walls designed to protect against the heavy snow that Kanazawa experiences.
There is also a Samurai Weapon Exhibit in this area that is worth checking out and I later learned that there are one home that a solidier lived in that has been preserved. I was bummed when I learned about it, but now you can go and see how the lower ranked solidiers lived then.
8. Morihachi
I was adviced to go here. It is the oldest Japanese sweet shop in Kanazawa and dates all the way back to 1625.
The shop specializes in traditional sweets from Kanazawa and Japanese people visiting the city often comes here to shop.
There is a main store which has a tearoom where you can relax, if not there are stores around the city. So if you see it, make sure to stop by.
9. Tsuzumi-Mon Gate
This wooden gate is placed outside the railway station welcoming the travelers. It is an iconic landmark to Kanazawa and is hard not to spot when you visit the city.
The gate was built in 2005, so it is fairly young, but the designers wanted to incorporate modern design with the more traditional. This design now represents Kanazawa and their traditions as well as the modern day.
10. Gold leaf history and usage
It was the Maeda clan that encouraged artists to develop high-quality art and what they came up with is the thin gold leaf. Because of Kanazawa´s perfect climate for producing it, they currently produce 99% of Japan´s gold leaf. I am not sure where the last 1% comes from, but when you are in Kanazawa it is easy to spot it in arts, food, drinks, desserts and even fashion. It is used in a variety of traditional and modern ways, among others are architecture.
Another way to learn more about the gold leaf in Kanazawa is to visit a gold leaf workshop or visit Kanazawa Yasue Gold Leaf Museum.
10.5 Taste the gold leaf
How I went about the gold leaf production in Kanazawa was to eat it. There are a lot of different ways to eat it, but I found this cute store on my way to Higashi Chaya District from Edomachidori Avenue.
There are lot of other stores that sells similar desserts in Kanazawa, but I randomly chose here. While you are visiting, I think this is a sweet way to go about indulding in culture, history and food. (Eating it as a sweet, I mean).
These were my suggestions to your visit in Kanazawa. I do highly recommend that if you want to visit a city with less tourism, that you visit here. It is just as magical as Kyoto, even though it is not the former capital of Japan, but it produces 99% of the gold leaf and has had one of the richest samurai clans living here. In other words, it´s worth the visit.
Food
Since Kanazawa is near the coast it has great access to seafood and is known for food such as snow crab. It is also known as one of the cities that serves the best sushi in Japan.
Since my hotel was right by Omicho market, I kinda lived on the food there. Jibuni is Kanazawa´s signature dish and is a hotpot stew from the Edo period. I am a poor planner when it comes to food, so I did not taste it. I mostly enjoyed the mazing seafood that I came across. I even found a miso soup with snow crab in it, which was amazing.
Seafood lover or not, this place is amazing and even though I have been to Japan a lot of times it is my first time here. My only regret is that I did not come here sooner.
I wish you a great time in Japan, even if it is not in Kanazawa.
Rover Saga 