Matsumoto is a castle town in Nagano
Prefecture, home to the world-famous Matsumoto
“Black
Crow” Castle, one of Japan’s 12 original castles.
Matsumoto is the second largest city in
Nagano prefecture, situated near the entrance to the
Japanese Alps. Magnificently poised at the center of the
city is Matsumoto Castle, one of Japan’s foremost
ancient
fortresses. The castle is unique in that it was built on a
flat
plain instead of a hill or mountain. The original keep has
been standing since the early 1500s, and has survived
intact ever since. The walls paneled in black wood and
graceful wing-like slope of the roofs has given
Matsumoto
Castle the nickname “Black Crow Castle”.
Next is Nakamichi-dori, a vintage street of the city
center
featuring old, well-preserved Edo-period buildings.
These
buildings include traditional merchants’ houses,
restaurants, and ryokan. Running alongside this
thoroughfare is Frog Street, lined with a row of shops
and
cafes in old-fashioned buildings leading up to Yohashira
Shrine. Locals often stop at shops on this street to buy
various goods before going home. The street’s name is
a
pun on the similar sounding Japanese words for buying,
returning home, and frog. The entrance to the street is
protected by a frog statue.
Please see below for tours that
include Matsumoto:
