Author: 雲仙市観光物産課

Carbonic acid spring

Obama Hot Springs is known for its salt springs with a high temperature of over 100°C, but the carbonic acid spring here is the only cold spring in Obama. It gushes out in a square in the back alley of the hot spring resort, making a bubbling sound. The spring water has a low temperature of around 25℃. Unlike neighbouring hot springs, it is characterised by its sulphurous smell and high iron and carbonic acid content. From the end of the Meiji period (1868-1912) to the early Shōwa period (1926-1989), it was also used as cool drinking water, with a carbonated water sensation.

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MAP

Obama Champon Noodles

Obama champon noodles are characterised by a mild soup based on pork and chicken bones, with a broth made from anchovy, a local specialty. It is a common theory that Nagasaki champon noodles were introduced to Obama and Amakusa in the Taishō period (1912-1926) and evolved in its own unique way. The name ‘Obama Champon’ was unknown for a long time, but became nationally known through the activities of the Obama Champon Lovers Association, which was formed after the Obama Champon Map was drawn up in 2007 (Heisei 19). The TV programme ‘My Father is a Champon Man’, a regional drama series broadcast by NHK in Nagasaki, was aired in 2013 and attracted a great deal of public interest.

Currently, champon is served in about 10 restaurants, mainly in the Obama hot springs area.

The Obama Champon Map can be downloaded from the official website of the Obama Hot Springs Ryokan Association:
(https://Obama.or.jp/pamphlet/)

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MAP

Sunset Square

This park contains a monument to Mokichi Saitō (1882-1953), who was a leading poet of the tanka poetry magazine Araragi, first published in the Meiji period (1868-1912). Mokichi Saitō visited Obama hot springs many times and is said to have been fond of the sunset over Tachibana Bay seen from this spot. The inscription on the monument reads: ‘I always come here to watch the falling sun, and I must not forget the falling sun of the sea’. The sunset over Tachibana Bay is one of Obama’s most famous sights, and the poem is said to have been composed in admiration of the sunset.

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Hot Footbath 105

This 105m long footbath is named after the 105℃ temperature of the Obama hot spring source. It opened on 22 February 2010 (Heisei 22). The footbath facility also includes a walking footbath and pet footbath and is busy with tourists and locals alike.

There is also a steaming oven nearby where you can use the spring water to steam agricultural and marine products. Why not try steaming eggs, vegetables or anything else you like?

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MAP

Obama Hot Springs

In the Hizen Fudoki (713), compiled in the early Nara period (710-794), it is recorded that ‘a hot spring can be seen gushing from the south-west of Takaku’s peak’. This is thought to refer to the Obama hot springs and it is said to have been used as a hot spring cure since ancient times.

Obama hot springs still boasts one of the highest heat and source temperatures in the country, with 15,000 tonnes of 100°C hot water gushing out of 30 sources in Obama Town every day.

A dip in the Obama hot springs will warm you to the core. Take a relaxing soak and relieve the fatigue of your journey.

For more information, please visit the official website of the Obama Hot Springs Ryokan Association (https://obama.or.jp/).

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MAP

Kiridoshi; Shimabara Road

Kiridoshi

This area was called ‘Kiridoshi’ and was so named as a road was cut through the hill here. Kiridoshi Castle, which once guarded the eastern side of Tsurukame Castle, was located at what is now Kojiro Primary School.

Shimabara Road

Shimabara Road was a major road that circled the Shimabara Peninsula during the Edo Period (1603-1868). The road from Shimabara Castle to Aino (North Road), which runs half-circularly along the Ariake Sea on the northern side of the Shimabara Peninsula to Aino, is still called the ‘Lord’s Road’ because it joined the Nagasaki Road at Isahaya on the way to Edo (present-day Tokyo) during the pilgrimage of the daimyo (feudal lord) to Shimabara. Heading west from Kiridoshi, the road passes through the mountain side of Sato Clinic to Nagahama and connects to the Isahaya direction. Heading east, it connects to the Shimabara area via Fuda-no-moto and other places.

Heading straight west, the Kojirokuji area has been selected as an Important Preservation District for Groups of Traditional Buildings and was a samurai town of the Kojiro Domain of the Saga Clan. The area still retains its Edo Period layout, with samurai residences and other buildings preserved.

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Place

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Kunimi Walking Map

Awashima Shinto Shrine

The shrine was constructed in 1812 during the reign of Nabeshima Shigeyasu, the 10th Lord of Kojiro Nabeshima. When it was first built the original kanji characters used for ‘Awashima’ meant ‘millet island.’ Although the shrine name retains the same pronunciation ‘Awashima,’ the kanji has now changed to mean ‘faint’ or ‘pale’ island.

The current shrine building was rebuilt in March 1992. Like other Awashima shrines around the country, it is believed to be beneficial for ‘matchmaking’ and ‘easy childbirth,’ and is particularly revered as a guardian deity for women.

It is also known for its cherry blossoms, and usually attracts large crowds in April, when a flower festival is held and performances are dedicated. On the occasion of the festival’s anniversary, folk performing arts such as ‘Furyu’ and ‘Gishi Odori‘ are also performed.

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Place

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Kunimi Walking Map

Daimon Bridge; Yakushido

Daimon Bridge

Daimon Bridge, about 40m east of Yakushido, is a bridge over the Kojiro River, the boundary between the Shimabara Clan and the Kojiro Nabeshima territory. A stone bridge without railings used to be located 30m uptown from the present site, in a key shape against the entrance to the Kojiro territory. The bridge was destroyed in a major flood in 1957 and replaced in its present location.

Yakushido

The Yakushido enshrines the Yakushi Nyorai (Bhaisajyaguru), Jizo Bosatsu (Ksitigarbha) and the Hattengu. Yakushi Nyorai is a Buddha who helps people suffering from illness. Jizo Bosatsu is a bodhisattva who is said to have saved sentient beings from the death of Sakyamuni until the appearance of Maitreya Bodhisattva, and was built in 1723 and 1757. Hattengu, a god of fire prevention, was re-enshrined from Tanakayama in Shimokoga in 1960 due to a series of fires in the Daimon area.

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Location

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Kunimi Walking Map

The Ito Family

The Ito Family has been a family of doctors from the Edo Period (1603-1868) to the present day. Although the residence does not remain, large trees over 200 years old, such as a magnolia tree, remain. The Ito Family was founded by Shinzaemon, the 1st generation of the Family. The 3rd generation was taken on by the Christian feudal lord Arima Harunobu as a doctor and married a daughter of the Christian warlord Yuki Yaheiji

The Ito Family moved to Hijikuro village in 1668 in their 4th generation and opened ‘Hiundo‘, where they provided medical treatment. During the Shimabara Earthquake of 1792, records show that the 7th generation of the Ito Family treated the injured and others who were forced to evacuate due to tsunami damage and other problems.

Yuki Yaheiji was from Mino (Gifu Prefecture), and served as lord of Yabe Castle when Konishi Yukinaga entered Uto Castle in Higo (Kumamoto Prefecture).

After the Battle of Sekigahara (1600), he was welcomed by Arima Harunobu as lord of Kanayama Castle. Kanayama Castle was locally known as Yuki Castle and the ruins of the castle remain.

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Location

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Kunimi Walking Map

Fuda-no-moto; Guard Station Ruins

Fuda-no-moto

This crossroads used to have an official governmental bulletin board defining local laws and was called Fuda-no-moto. When the lord used the port of Hijikuro to travel to and from Edo (present-day Tokyo), he used to pass through these crossroads. In one corner of the intersection, a signpost erected in 1890 still remains, inscribed East (Shimabara), West (Nagasaki), South (Unzen) and North (Prefectural Road), respectively, indicating that this was a major crossroads in the past.

Guard Station Ruins

A guard station was established in the Edo Period (1603-1868). Guard stations were set up at important traffic points to keep an eye on passers-by, inspect shipments and collect taxes. A stone wall with a key-shaped entrance used to stand here, but was demolished when the road was widened.

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Location

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Kunimi Walking Map