Murakami

At northernmost Niigata, facing Japan Sea, Murakami Domain's castle town used to prosper. The samurai towns and merchant towns still keep their traditional look to this day. Castle town-like Anzen Koji is an alley lined with black walls and is called “Kurobei Dori” (Black Wall Street). A temple of important cultural property is nearby and you can feel the historic and classy ambience.

Miomote River flows through the city where the salmon swims up the stream. Salmon fishing had been a major income source for Murakami Domain since Edo Period. Sennenzake Kikkawa, a store which processes and sells salmon, is a “Machiya” structures building designated as a national registered cultural asset. A rare scene can be seen of almost 1,000 salmon hung from the beams of the ceiling.

Every March brings the “Castle Town Murakami Merchant Town Doll Tour” to the former merchant town. In this event, families display heirloom Hina dolls in their home. You can step inside the houses in Murakami where you usually cannot see.