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Daisetsuzan is Hokkaido's largest national park. It preserves a densely forested, mountainous area of virtually unspoiled wilderness, which equals more than ten times the size of Osaka City. It is a paradise for hikers, outdoor lovers, deer and brown bears.
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Shiretoko National Park, located on the Shiretoko Peninsula in eastern Hokkaido, is one of Japan's most beautiful and unspoiled national parks. No roads lead further than about three fourth up the peninsula, and the northern tip can only be viewed from boats or be reached on multi day trekking tours.
The peninsula is home to a variety of wildlife, including brown bears, dear and foxes. In winter, the peninsula's coast along the Sea of Okhotsk becomes one of the northern hemisphere's southernmost regions to see drift ice.
In July 2005, Shiretoko was added to the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites for the irreplaceable value of the peninsula's ecosystem and biodiversity.
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Uchiko's name became synonymous with high quality white wax production in the late 19th century. At that time, wealthy local merchants built new homes or added to their own, resulting in beautiful streets lined with large, stylish, Meiji Period houses. The Yokaichi district has since been restored to preserve these buildings.
Yokaichi is comprised of about 90 buildings along a single street. Two of these buildings are open to the public as museums, the largest and most impressive of which is the Kamihaga Residence. A combination ticket for Kamihaga Residence, the Uchiko-za kabuki theater and the Uchiko History Museum is sold for 700 yen from any of those locations.
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The Kamihaga Residence is the former home and workshop of the Kamihaga family, a branch family of Uchiko's most influential family, the Honhaga. Located in Uchiko's Yokaichi Old Town, the large building complex consists of a spacious Meiji Period residence and a museum which documents Uchiko's wax producing history.
Uchiko wax was well regarded in Japan at the beginning of the Meiji Period, bringing modest prosperity to town residents. This was particularly true of the Honhaga household, Uchiko's main wax producers. The Honhaga and Kamihaga together produced the distinctive "Crane in the Sunrise" label, for which Uchiko became internationally known.
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In 1900, when the Honhaga family visited the Paris World Expo to showcase their goods, Uchiko's reputation for high quality wax spread to Europe and America. A new level of success was achieved with average yearly profits totaling over one billion yen in today's currency.
The Kamihaga Residence includes a well documented and informative wax museum with displays in both English and Japanese. The wax making process is detailed by entertaining miniature displays and wax products produced under the "Crane in the Sunrise" label are on show.
Besides the Wax Museum, the family residence itself is a beautifully maintained example of a prosperous family's living quarters during the early 1900s. Elegant tatami rooms with painted screens and decorative pottery are combined with Western elements that became more popular as the 20th century progressed.
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The Kamihaga Residence is located in the Yokaichi Old Town, about a 20-30 minute walk from JR Uchiko Station. It can also be reached in a short ride on the Chagamaru Retro Bus.
How to get to and around Uchiko
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| Hours: | 9:00 to 16:30 |
| Closed: | December 29 to January 2 |
| Admission: | 400 yen |
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Uchiko-za is a fully operational kabuki theater in the center of town, and a distinguishing feature and point of pride of Uchiko. The beautiful, multi-story building was built in 1916 and continues to occasionally host various events, including kabuki and bunraku performances.
Visitors can enter Uchiko-za and explore the many trap doors and hidden passageways around the stage. Kabuki stages are known for their elaborate design, allowing for sudden dissapearances, dramatic entrances and the like. At Uchiko-za, visitors have the opportunity to examine the mechanics of such stage choreography.
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Uchiko-za is located a 5-10 minute walk from JR Uchiko Station.
How to get to and around Uchiko
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| hours and fees |
| Hours: | 9:00 to 16:30 |
| Closed: | December 29 to January 2 |
| Admission: | 300 yen |
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The Uchiko History Museum, also known as the Museum of Commercial and Domestic Life, is located along the main street, outside of the Yokaichi Old Town district. The museum is compact, but enjoyable, with life-sized, automated figures arranged to show how residents of the town lived in the 19th and 20th centuries.
The displays are visually informative, making up for the lack of English translations in the written material. On the second floor, beautiful tatami rooms with sliding doors and painted screens show how the more stylish town houses of local merchant families looked like.
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| how to get there |
The Uchiko History Museum a ten minute walk from JR Uchiko Station. It can also be reached in a short ride on the Chagamaru Retro Bus.
How to get to and around Uchiko
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| hours and fees |
| Hours: | 9:00 to 16:30 |
| Closed: | December 29 to January 2 |
| Admission: | 200 yen |
