Exploring Matsumoto Part 1 – Nawate Street and excellent fried chicken lunch

27 May 2016

We arrived at Matsumoto via train from Narai, after we had completed our planned Nakasendo hikes. Compared to the post-towns along the Nakasendo Highway in the Kiso Valley, Matsumoto is modern.

A visit to the tourist information office located inside the station was a good start to visiting Matsumoto. Maps and suggestions of a good restaurant for lunch was obtained. Special cuisine at Matsumoto was horsemeat sashimi but we told the staff we were looking for a “Matsumoto-special” but definitely not horse meat. She suggested the Matsumoto Fried Chicken instead and gave us the address of the restaurant.

Matsumoto is a compact city and most of the attractions are within walking distance from the train station. Our hotel, Richmond Hotel Matsumoto, is ideally located between the train station and the famous Matsumoto Castle.

The staff at the hotel was super friendly and eager to please. It was still too early for check-in, so we left our luggage under his care and proceeded to Nawate Dori or Frog Street for a quick visit en-route to the main Matsumoto attraction, its castle. 

Matsumoto is a “not too crowded” city with wide sidewalks and cycling paths. We could see that effort had been made to make this city more tourist friendly, with good signage for tourists in English.

A small police post called a koban and a statue of three huge frogs, crawling all over each other, and armed with samurai swords too, marked the entrance to Nawate Dori (縄手道り). Many other frog symbols could be seen on this pedestrian-only street lined with small shops selling craft, food, and pottery.

Frog sculpture at the entrance to Nawate Street in Matsumoto.

There is a history to the frog as an icon to Nawate Street. Before the Meiji era, Nawate Street was just a bank between the river and the castle. After the Yohashira Shrine was built in 1879. the river bank became an approach to the shrine. Horse carriages were not allowed to pass through and the shrine began to promote various entertainments to gather visitors and prosper.

The word kaeru has several meanings in Japanese: 買える – to ‘be able to buy’ food, drink and goods from the vendors on the street; 帰る – to ‘go home’ afterwards, safe in the absence of horses and carts; and 可得る – to ‘be accepted’ by feeling welcome in this place.

Because of the vehicle-free street, visitors at Nawate can buy (Kaeru) and go home (Kaeru) safely.  Kaeru also means frog, hence “Frog Street”.

A frog icon at Nawate Dori or Frog Street.

 

Morning at Nawate Street – not so busy and crowded

 

Yohashira Shrine.

At the side of Nawate Street is the Yohashira Shrine, well worth a look.

Yohashira Shrine.

Yohashira Shrine.

A closer look at items for sale along Nawate Street.

 

A big salted fish hanging above a table outside a restaurant along Nawate Street. Quite strange.

 

There were several eateries and restaurants along Nawate Street, but we went to look for the restaurant recommended by the Tourist Information Center. The restaurant is actually a Chinese restaurant, popular with locals, that serves excellent fried chicken along with other types of Chinese dishes. The restaurant is located two block across from Nawate Street. The restaurant’s website here.

Fusion food  - fried chicken over salad and pasta with Japanese sesame flavoured salad sauce

 

We were lucky to be first few customers. The restaurant was soon packed at lunch hour.  Re-energised after lunch, a short walk northwards brought us to Matsumoto Castle.

Part 2 – Visit to Matsumoto Castle would be the next post.