Sightseeing in Kanazawa: The Nomura Samurai Family Residence - 野村家屋敷跡
Wednesday, June 28, 2017
In an area of Kanazawa called Nagamachi (長町) you can visit the Nomura Residence, also known as the “Samurai House” and home to the Nomura clan for as many as 10 generations. Most of the original samurai houses have either been destroyed or commercially developed, so it is quite unique to have the chance to visit a samurai house in its original shape. Even if you're not interested in samurais you can still enjoy the sight of the well-preserved Edo architecture and not to mention the beautiful Japanese garden.
Above: Walking through Nagamachi on the way to the Samurai House
The house is open for the public and can be visited between 08:30-17:30 all days a week. Just notice that in the period October to March it closes one hour earlier. In order to get to the house you can take the local bus to Korinbo and walk from there, a trip that would take around 10 minutes from the bus stop.
Above: An authentic Samurai battle outfit on display by the entrance
The house was originally built in 1843, and although it has been reconstructed it still holds the same well-preserved Edo atmosphere. Inside the house you can even enjoy paintings on the sliding-door panels by the family's personal painter, Senkei Sasaki.
The house was originally built in 1843, and although it has been reconstructed it still holds the same well-preserved Edo atmosphere. Inside the house you can even enjoy paintings on the sliding-door panels by the family's personal painter, Senkei Sasaki.
Below: Notice the beautifully painted sliding-door panels
Inside the residence you can enjoy the artistic Japanese architecture and not to mention a tranquil and majestic Japanese garden that you can gaze upon from inside the residence. The perfectly landscaped garden has a small pond with Koi fish swimming around, and like most Japanese gardens you can see carved stone lanterns almost hidden between the trees.
The garden was ranked as Japan's 3rd best garden in the American magazine "Journal of Japanese Gardening", and has also been awarded two stars in the French magazine "Michelin Green Guide Japon".
On the second floor of the residence there is a room where you can experience a small tea ceremony for 300 yen extra. We didn’t try the tea ceremony this time, but were still aloud to take a look at the rooms and the view of the garden from the second floor windows.
Lastly we visited a room in the residence where there was a small display of family artifacts including samurai swords, old coins and letters to the Nomura family from a number of important historical figures.
The whole residence was almost like a small museum, and we especially enjoyed spending time in the tranquil Japanese garden. The area also has a lot to offer so you have time to stop by it is absolutely a good idea to combine a visit to the Nomura family residence with a stroll in the cozy streets of Nagamachi.
■ Basic Info
- ・Place: The Nomura Samurai Family Residence - 野村家屋敷跡
- ・Address：〒920-0865 Ishikawa-ken, Kanazawa-shi, Nagamachi, 1 Chome−3−3-32
- ・Homepage: http://www.nomurake.com/ (Japanese only)
- ・Entrance fee: 550 yen/adult, 400 yen/high school students, 250 yen/children
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Anette