Kishima-gun (杵島郡)
Ariake (有明町)
Ariake is located right on the gata, a term used to describe the more-mud-than-water sea, and nestled in between Kashima and Shiroishi. Off the dam, you can enjoy a beautiful sunset or fireworks at night. Near the middle school is Sky Park Fureaikyou (ふれあい郷). For 500 yen, you can use the training room, swimming pool, sauna, jacuzzi or massage beds for two hours. In the back is a beautiful and spacious park. Open everyday until 9 p.m.. Golf in Japan isn’t cheap, but relatively speaking, Ariake Town’s Mutsugoro Country Club is about as cheap as they come for a round of 18 holes. We’re not sure if they offer club rentals, but for green fee and mandatory cart rental you can expect to pay around 10,000 yen on weekends and holidays. I have heard that weekdays are about half the weekend fee.
On the web
Kitagata (北方村)
Kitagata is like a suburb of Takeo, which is in turn like a suburb in search of a city. Ide Champon, a family champon restaurant that has been known to give away free drinks to gaijin, is worth a stop. Also, the park on the border with Omachi is great for in-line skating or loitering.
On the web
Kohoku (江北町)
Kohoku is the self-described “belly-button” of Saga-ken, even going so far as naming its new community center and gymnasium “Navel.” This odd nickname might be attributed to the Hizen-Yamaguchi Train Station (肥前山口駅) in town. Hizen-Yamaguchi connects western Kyushu (Nagasaki, Sasebo and Imari) with the rest of Saga. Assumptions aside, Kohoku is located on Route 34 and is bordered by a number of towns: Omachi, Fukudomi, Shiroishi, Taku, Ashikari and Ushizu. Despite it only being home to about 10,000 citizens, its close proximity to these towns allows it to give service to a Jusco shopping center and a Sekibunkan Video Rental that offers a wide selection of Western titles foreigners are familiar with. Rentals are half price on the 10th, 20th and 30th of every month. Behind the Wonderland pachinko parlor there is a market offering discount prices on a wide selection of groceries. Behind the Dynamo pachinko parlor and the rear Jusco shopping center parking lot there is a delicious okonomiyaki restaurant. Across the street (Route 34) from Jusco is an udon restaurant that offers quality food and service at affordable prices.
On the web
Omachi (大町町)
Despite Omachi literally meaning “big town,” there isn’t a whole lot this small town has to offer. Omachi has an excellent yakitori-ya in Matsufuji (松藤). It’s good quality, a lot of choice and really cheap. Omachi is also good for hiking because dividing it from Taku is Mt. Ohinohana (鬼の鼻山). In classic Japanese style, at its peak there is a plastic slide in the shape of a devil’s nose. Omachi’s annual festival, Kagokaki, takes place the second weekend in November.
On the web
Shiroishi (白石町)
Shiroishi is located one stop after Hizen-Yamaguchi station on the Nagasaki train line. It has lots of small, family-run shops, mediocre Japanese restaurants, cake shops and snack bars notorious for their Filipino hostesses offering “special” services. There is also a fabulous “bring-your-own-booze” karaoke box called Shiroishi Karaoke Mura (白石カラオケ村), complete with a massive selection of English songs. The main tourist attraction is Hizen Inuyama Castle (肥前犬山城). More of a lookout than a castle really, the view of Saga Plain and the Ariake Sea is great. There’s also a nice park, adventure playground, grass sledding and camping in summer. This park is at its best during azalea season.
On the web
Fukudomi (福富町)
A small town of about 5000 people, Fukudomi doesn’t have a lot to offer the outsider. If it wasn’t for the restaurants, we’re not sure why people would want to stop here other than as a rest stop on the way to somewhere else. Located along Route 444 and bordered by the Ariake Sea, Ashikari, Kohoku and Shiroishi, Fukudomi is most known for its insipidness. Like every town bordering the Ariake Sea, it is flat as a pancake and its main industry is farming. Fukudomi is known for its onions, rice paddies, strawberries, and lotus root (renkon, れんこん).
For such a small population, there is no short supply of good eateries in town. If good sushi is your forte, there are two excellent, although expensive, sushi restaurants in Fukodomi: Okinazushi and Darumazushi. Okinazushi is located right on Route 444 and is a white building just before the crosswalk light in front of the junior high school. If you turn down the street at this same light, as soon as you go over the bridge there is Darumazushi on your left. There is a cute little porcelain tanuki outside standing by the door. There are also four yakitori restaurants in town and two ramen shops. The hardest to find yakitori restaurant, Kusaba Shokudou, is probably the best. Heading towards Saga City on the 444 turn right at the 7-11 v-intersection. It’s on the right-hand side of the road. There is also a homely yakitori restaurant in town called Hanagushi (花串) that sells a decent pizza. The master there is a young, nice guy, who speaks a little English. It is right before the Sugiya grocery store.
On the web
Yamauchi (山内町)
On the web
Kashima (鹿島市)
The quiet town of Kashima-shi is situated in the southeast of Saga Prefecture, boardering the towns of Shiota, Ariake, Ureshino and Tara, home to thirty-five thousand people and almost as many rice patties.
Getting there
Kashima (or Hizen-Kashima as it is known in train terms) is on the Kamome Hakata-Nagasaki express line. Nagasaki is an hour and half journey away, while Saga is twenty-five minutes and the bustling city of Fukuoka (Hakata) will take an hour to reach. Trains are frequent, with two express trains per hour. There’s also a local train line, which passes, on its way to Saga City, through Hizen-Ryou (Ariake), Hizen-Shiroishi (Shiroishi), Hizen-Yamguchi (Kohoku), Ushizu, Kubota and Nabeshima. These trains usually run from Nagasaki to Tosu. Any train bound for Tara or Hizen-Oura will also pass through Hizen-Kashima. The last local train from Saga to Kashima is just before eight, while the last express train leaves Saga station at 22:44. The last train from Hakata to Nagasaki is at 22:08.
It has been heard of for many new-comers to lose their way and end up in Takeo instead of Kashima, and vice versa. The thing to remember is that all Kamome express trains go from/to Nagasaki to/from Hakata, passing through Hizen-Kashima, while the Midori and Huis Ten Buis trains go to/from Sasebo from/to Hakata, passing through Takeo.
If trying to get home from Hakata, sometimes it can be deceptive as the Midori/Huis Ten Buis (Sasebo-bound) train is attached to a Kamome (Nagasaki-bound) train as they both go as far as Hizen-Yamaguchi (Kohoku). Just make sure you are on the Kamome train.
History
Kashima has always flourished as the centre of the Fujitsu district ever since ancient times. For a long time the Fujitsu family governed the area until their fall in the Heian period.
The city of Kashima figured prominently in the history of Saga-ken as the home of part of the ruling class before the Meiji restoration in 1868.
By defeating a rival clan in 1584, the area came under the control of Nabeshima Naoshige, who had established his daimyo in Saga City. In 1601, his second son, Tadashige, returned from Edo and was given the Kashima area as his own daimyo and began to construct Kashima castle. It was abandoned in 1807 because of flooding problems, and a new castle was constructed near what is now Kashima High School. The castle was destroyed during the Saga Revolt in 1874. All that remains of the castle is the gate, which stands at the entrance of the school, and fragments of the wall that protected the samurai houses. The grounds of the castle are encompassed in Ashigaoka park, which includes the Matsukage Shinto Shrine to the Kashima daimyos. A statue of Nabeshima Naoyoshi also stands in the park.
The last daimyo of Kashima was Nabeshima Naoyoshi. After the abolition of the fiefs during the Meiji restoration, Naoyoshi entered the political arena and was elected governor of Saga prefecture in 1951. He was made senator in 1967 and appointed to the cabinet of Prime Minister Sato. He died in 1981.
The modern city of Kashima was formed in 1954. Today Kashima city has a population of approximately 35,000. Much of the land was reclaimed from the Ariake Sea over hundreds of years. It has a total of seven elementary schools, two junior highs and two high schools.
Things to see
There are essentially two things you need to know about Kashima: it is home to one of the three largest Inari shrines in Japan, the Yutoku Inari Shrine, and every May, when the tidal flats are just right, it plays host to a frenzy of athletic competitions and untidy recreation called the Gatalympics. Look for posters around the prefecture or contact a Kashima ALT to be a part of the fun (and also see Aine Flynn’s review of the Gatalympics on this site).
Beyond these, Kashima also plays host to a number of festivals throughout the year. The area boasts a couple of good spots for viewing cherry blossosms and other flowers. Kashima residents dance through the streets in August during Odori. September brings mask dancing performances. And late in the year, Kashima holds two fire festivals: the bamboo fire festival in November and the Ohitaki festival at Yutoku Inari Shrine in December.
Things to do
If an afternoon in one of Kashima’s many pachinkos isn’t your thing, the city has various other activities to offer. As with any Japanese town, there are plenty of classes you can take from flower-arranging (ikebana) to traditional Japanese sword mastery. The location and timing of these classes varies, but with a little investigation, you are sure to find something which suits you.
Kashima, thanks to its proximity to Tara, has a mountainous hinterland and is a great spot for an afternoon’s hiking. Locals and expats are a good source of information.
An afternoon’s hiking will leave you pining for a hosing-down in Kashima’s Yutoku Onsen, which opened about four years ago, much to the pleasure of communal spring bath lovers. One of the nicer onsens of the region, you can partake of both its indoor and outdoor pools for 600yen (a little extra for a towel).
Unfortunately Kashima doesn’t have a gym or public swimming pool, but there is a 25-meter pool and small training room in Ariake, on the 207, which you can reach by bike or by local train. There is also a small gym in the newly built community hall in Shiota town.
Restaurants
- Izakaya MATOI. Across from Takara no you (Yutoku hot spring). The owner serves sushi and his son serves yakitori and other dishes. Try the karubee (yakiniku). It’s best to make a reservation at the weekends. Phone 0954-63-0013.
- La Pomme. Near police box in Shin-Machi, off Sky Road. A “French�? restaurant which serves lunch for 1000 yen. There are various dinner sets which start at 3000 yen. You need to make a reservation for dinner. Phone 0954-62-5602.
- Yaneura no nezumi. Across from “M’s�? boutique on Sky Road, on the second floor. The door is at the back of the building. This is Kashima’s cocktail bar which also serves food such as pizza, pasta and cheese plates. There’s a service charge. Phone 0954-63-5085.
- Begin. Behind Best Denki. This is a western style restaurant which serves quite good desserts. Phone 0954-63-5085.
- Chuou. Next to La Pomme, which is just off Sky Road, next to the police box (koban). This restaurant’s champon (600 yen) and tempura (1500 yen) comes highly recommended. The owner, Yusuke, is a kendo boy and very nice. Open 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. weekdays, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturdays, Sundays and holidays 11:00-22:00. Closed Wednesdays. Phone 0954-62-2125.
- Isakaya Hama-Noren. On Route 207, just after you pass Ringer Hut in the direction of Nagasaki, on the right-hand side. This serves good Japanese food for reasonable prices. Open 5 to 10 p.m. Closed Sundays. Phone 0954-63-0777.
- Rakuno-Sushi. On Sky Road, near the central koban. This is a sushi restaurant, but they also serve other Japanese dishes such as sashimi and tempura. The restaurant’s takezaki (crab) and syumai (crab) are well known. It’s possible to do take-out from here. It’s a little expensive, but not any more expensive than other sushi restaurants. A regular meal of sashimi is 1500 yen. Open 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Phone 0954-63-1795.
- Kokoro. This is also located on Route 207, near the station and also close to Hama-Noren restaurant. This is a japanese restaurant which serves sushi, sashimi, tempura and grilled fish. They also have a lunch menu of sushi, tempura or rice omlette which is very reasonably priced (650 yen). Open 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 5 to 11 p.m. Closed Mondays. Phone 0954-63-0510.
- Chikage. Near Morinaga supermarket. Japanese-style food, reasonably priced. Owner is a former sumo wrestler, so there is plenty of related memorabilia throughout the restaurant. Open 5 p.m. to midnight. Closed Mondays. Phone 0954-62-2333.
- Merushi Boku: On Route 444. One of Kashima’s more popular restaurants, and for good reason. Serves an excellent Osaka-style okonomiyaki (Japanese omlette), yakisoba and various other Japanese dishes. The butchered French name is due to the fact that the owner’s brother married a French lady. If you’re only stopping once in Kashima, stop here. Open 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 5 to 10 p.m. Closed Mondays.
- Shogun. On the junction where Route 444 meets Route 207, at the gas station, four doors down from Ringer Hut. This is definitely one of the better, if not the best, yakitori restaurant in town, which does a delicious agadashi tofu (deep-fried tofu) and grilled fish. The owner’s wife speaks excellent English and is more than helpful. Open 5 to 11 p.m.