Castles and cold noodles – a weekend in Matsumoto!

Matsumoto-castle

I’ve always loved the architecture of Japanese castles – the contrast between their simplicity and magnificence. So naturally, from the moment I set foot in Japan I couldn’t wait to visit a castle or two. And a trip to Matsumoto quickly made it to the top of my destination list.

A lot of the castles in Japan are replicas which have been re-built, but Matsumoto castle is largely still the original building. Rising out of its moat and against a blue sky perfectly studded with fluffy clouds, its majestic yet beautiful structure meant I just wanted to sit and soak it all in

Matsumoto

And take just a few photos (obviously!)

Matsumoto-castle2

Matsumoto is famous for its soba noodles so we also timed our visit to the castle so it coincided with the annual soba festival.  

Matsumoto-soba-man

With endless stalls set up in the castle grounds and a very big crowd of hungry locals and Japanese tourists alike, the festival added a real buzz.

Watching the noodles being made was fascinating, and whetted our appetites enough to stand in a very long queue (something it turns out is standard when it comes to Japan and food!) for a bowl.

Matsumoto-soba-maker

Until now I’d been merrily boiling pre-packaged soba noodles (sacrilege I know!) but the freshly made soba noodles we sampled converted my from my philistine ways.

Matsumoto-soba

If you can time a visit to co-incide with the festival I definitely would as it really added to our trip.

Matsumoto-soba-flyer

I’ve visited a few castles in Japan since, but I think that Matsumoto remains my favourite. And while it’s often left off the ‘best’ lists (in my view because its a bit out of the way) its definitely worth a visit.

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