I follow footsteps
made by ancient masters.
I keep my pleasures
simple: good food and rice wine,
and the world is plentiful.– Sam Hamill, Ten Thousand Mirrors of Happiness
On the way back from Yamagata Prefecture, I was told to stop in Murakami in Niigata Prefecture. The specific reason to stop in the town in late autumn is the salmon harvest — it’s the time of year that the town is decorated with fish hanging outside to dry, adding to the beauty of the area surrounding the commuter train station. But there is more here than the aroma and taste of dried salmon, and I was there to discover what I could.
The hanging dried salmon is such an important part of the town that they even have toy salmon dressed as train conductors at the station. It gave me a little laugh as I asked about the next day’s schedule to get to Niigata.
When I arrived, I paid about $5 to store my luggage at the tourism office next to the station as the station storage lockers weren’t big enough. Tourism office staff spoke some English and used a translation app for the rest to give me directions and a map. I headed out to wander the streets a bit before making my way to the hotel at Senami Onsen, which had a late check-in.
There was little traffic along the roads, which was pleasant with limited sidewalks. I wandered along to the western side of town, which coincidentally is the train station entrance side, with no particular destination in mind. I didn’t want to wander too far, as I had to be back at the tourism office before they closed and find my way to the hotel. I figured I could check out the few sights in town the following day.
I found quiet streets with traditional architecture. There was what appeared to be a shop that sold manual farm tools — I wasn’t sure if it was a museum, and there was no one around to ask. I walked farther along streets without knowing where the main streets were; I wasn’t in a rush as I took in the atmosphere.
I came across Nijiya, a small coffee shop on a quiet street with more rustic architecture. The coffee shop was small enough to only have a few seats, which made it more of a relaxing stop while I considered where to walk. The owner serving the coffee was friendly and did her best to be helpful despite neither of us speaking much of each other’s language. If I was staying in town longer, this would have been my go-to coffee shop.
Murakami Salmon Museum
If you’re going to enjoy the aroma of drying salmon all about town, it’s a good idea to head over to the Salmon Museum, Iyoboya kaikan (イヨボヤ会館). I wasn’t sure what to expect, and upon arrival, I was greeted with a large, mostly empty parking lot — I wasn’t even sure I was in the right place.
Before going in, I stopped for a late lunch at Yu ru ri, a diner-like restaurant that was recommended. They had local wagyu and the local specialty of salmon roe over rice. I was unimpressed by the wagyu that was tougher than expected, and I’ve been told that just about every region of Japan has its own with varying degrees of quality. The salmon roe with sashimi was better, and it was a huge serving of salmon roe. In all it was about ¥2500. It was not light enough for a lot of walking on a warm late-October day in the sun, so I was thankful for some air conditioning upon arrival at the salmon museum.
The museum is bigger than it appears from the outside. It’s a couple of floors that provides visitors with educational information on the fishing industry, local ecology, and aquatic biology. There’s even a cartoon depicting the history of salmon harvesting and conservation in Murakami — it even has English subtitles. There were also some fun children’s drawings on display (I assume the the more interesting ones were from older students). There was also a room full fish tanks containing various species other than salmon.
On the way out, there’s a board for visitors to place stickers to indicate where they’re visiting from. I was the only sticker for “People from other countries.” I regret not buying a t-shirt because who in the New York metro area has a shirt from a salmon museum?
The park outside is a relaxing walk for visitors with a little more time to spend in the area. I took a quick lap around before heading back toward the train station. Along the way, I encountered a lot more shops with hanging dried salmon, including the largest shop with a warehouse full of them. Most of the products required refrigeration, so I couldn’t buy anything.
Sake Refreshment Stop
As I had a local SIM card delivered to my hotel in Tokyo upon arrival, I had easy access to maps to find some destinations (or at least my way back to the station). That’s what led me to Taiyo Sake Brewery (大洋酒) on the way back to the station. As I wasn’t unable to have a tasting at the brewery in Sakata because I was on a bike, I knew I’d have better luck walking into this one.
I walked in just as a tour bus was boarding for its next stop, so I ended up having the entire sake brewery tasting room to myself. Even better, the staff pouring spoke English and could explain the varieties — considering the limited sake knowledge I possess, this was a great benefit. Unfortunately, I could only taste a few of the many varieties available, but at least it gave me an idea of what to buy as a souvenir.
Because the tour was leaving as I entered, I got all the staff’s attention. I could ask questions and learn a little about the process. Neither the previous sake brewery in Sakata nor Taiyo offered tours of the actual brewery — both were small tasting rooms with displays about the brewing process and some historic documents and marketing. It was only in Niigata city that I found a brewery with a tour, for which I showed up too late.
The best sake I tasted at Taiyo was the Sake x Sake, which is a play on sake meaning salmon. It’s a sake made to pair well with the local salmon. If they made half bottles, I would’ve bought it, but I didn’t want to buy large bottles to bring home (I already had wine from Yamagata and a half bottle of sake from Sakata; I wasn’t sure how many more I would encounter that I’d want to take home). I took the second-best sake that came in a half bottle. The palate on all of them was light and clean and slightly floral.
Back at the station, I attempted a bit of Google Translate with a taxi driver to get to my hotel in Senami Onsen. A friendly man nearby overheard the attempted conversation and informed me that the hotel had a free shuttle bus that would arrive in 20 minutes that’d save me at least ¥2000 (he was going there as well). More of a coincidence is that this man lived in Kawasaki, the suburb outside Tokyo where I stayed my first two times in Japan.
Second Day in Murakami
I took the last shuttle from the hotel in the late morning — it was just the friendly man from Kawasaki and me again. I again stored my luggage at the tourism office and rented a bike for the day to cover more ground and enjoy the pleasant weather. The plan was to see Murakami Castle ruins first to avoid the midday heat and then bike along the touristy streets and stop for a tea ceremony that my friend recommended.
The bike would’ve been a much better idea on the first day, especially as there isn’t much for sightseeing outside the town center and the seaside onsen resort area. The town center is where visitors encounter traditional architecture and crafts. Outside of those blocks in Murakami, it’s mostly functional residential and commercial buildings that hold little interest. With the knowledge I had of the town, I headed for my sightseeing destinations before I had to catch the train.
The bike was much better than the one I had in Sakata, though not free. Once on the side of town for the castle ruins and the main tourist street, the bike felt more a burden as I stopped to park and lock it every few minutes.
Hiking the Ruins in Murakami
I parked the bike in the lot and went on the way up the hill on that warm, sunny afternoon. As I looked around the trailhead, a group of Japanese tourists descended the steps — it was a pleasant hint to show the way I should go, though the stairs along the hillside were a good indication.
It was a winding way up the hill on those stairs, and there wasn’t much to see along the way. It was, however, quiet and peaceful with a few people heading up or down (mostly on the way down as they had an earlier start). And I noticed the same behavior of hikers everywhere — polite greetings as they pass, though in Murakami everyone greeted me in Japanese, forcing me to respond with the same (at least I know that much Japanese).
Farther up the hill, which felt longer than the 135 meters, there were a few historical markers for the remains of the castle. There was a wall, but not much else other than scattered stones. There were also fewer people at this time of day. It was quiet and relaxing to walk around without encountering other humans.
The quiet hike was what I had looked forward to having — after an evening on the seaside with an onsen, this made the trip even more enjoyable. And then I arrived at the scenic view above the town.
There were only a few others atop the hill, all quietly admiring the view. The clearest view was to the west toward the Sea of Japan. The high clouds and sun highlighted verdant mountains surrounding the town. It was yet another peaceful view to enjoy on the trip in Japan.
Back Through Town
After the hike, I hopped on the bike and headed for the main tourist street in town, which is Kanmachi. I had only caught a glimpse of it the previous day while wandering and wanted to see what it had to offer. I was not disappointed. This is a beautiful town. The main road is wide, which is great for biking, though the large shoulder is where cars park. Along the way through the shops, I was guided to a little restaurant down the alleys for lunch.
Chidori (割烹 千渡里) is a small, family-owned restaurant. The mother and daughter running the place spent time living in Canada and were happy to have an opportunity to speak English with someone (they even dusted off a translated menu). I was a bit tired and hungry after the hike, and currency conversion wasn’t easy at that point, so I ordered a set meal with miso soup, salmon, sashimi, and vegetables. It was a rejuvenating meal that boosted my energy for a bit more biking around town.
The next main stop on the tour was Sennen Salmon Kikkawa, which is the best place to go for dried salmon and related products. The store itself isn’t big — a little larger than many shops in town — but there is more to it. They offer a lot of salmon products, but many of them require refrigeration, so they’re sold more to domestic tourists. I picked up a package of sake-cured salmon jerky, which didn’t have as much flavor as expected.
Visitors are invited to check out the back storeroom where they hang all the salmon to dry. While I had seen plenty around town, this was something different. It was a large room full of whole dried salmon hanging from the rafters. The midday light shone off the dried skins, creating a beautiful atmosphere for photography. I took my time.
Nearby, I stopped in a shop full of carved lacquerware, a local specialty called kibori tsuishu. They sold everything from chopsticks to bowls to furniture. The craftsmanship was impressive, but I couldn’t bring myself to spend about $40 for a single set of chopsticks. I do regret not taking pictures of the more impressive pieces for sale.
I was told to get tea at Fujimien, which is around the corner from Taiyo Sake Brewery. The previous day I stopped in a different teahouse that had a beautiful interior courtyard and dining area. Unfortunately, the tea ceremony took about an hour, and I only had 45 minutes before the tourism office closed with my stored luggage. Fujimien wasn’t as attractive, but it was an enjoyable bit of tea in a private space.
This is how I learned that Murakami is known as the northernmost green tea growing region in Japan. The tea has a slightly more earthy flavor than I was used to, but the overall flavor was lighter than many other green tea varieties. I was welcome to sit and drink tea as long as I pleased, but I was only allowed to choose one of the tea snacks (but they were extra nice and gave me a little green tea ice cream at the end).
With a bladder full of multiple pots of green tea, I headed back down the main street toward the train station with plenty of time to spare, knowing that there was a restroom available at the station while I waited for the next train.
I arrived at the station more than a half hour before my train to Niigata, but wanted to ensure I had time to return the bike and retrieve my luggage before the tourism office closed. There’s not much else around the station, so I stopped in the convenience store for onigiri and a little bottle of sake (I did not expect the cheap sake to come with its own cup disguised as the bottle cap).
I relaxed on the steps outside the station, looking out at the town and contemplating how much I’d like to spend more time there.
