When it comes to Japanese castles I’ve said many times that they’re all quite similar in terms of white colour, style and appearance but there are some which look a little different, and I was lucky enough to find time in my busy schedule to see one of them on a recent trip to the Chubu region of Honshu; the largest of Japan’s four main islands.

Visiting some train stations may have been my main reason for taking an impromptu day trip to Nagano prefecture, but I couldn’t pass up the opportunity of visiting one of Japan’s premier castles which is a 15-minute walk north of Matsumoto station. Time was fairly limited though.

The imposing Matsumoto Castle is known for its black walls which make it stand out from the many other white castles in the country. This historic 16th century castle features exhibits of historical weapons not that I saw them as I didn’t enter as I’ve basically retired from going inside such places! The 1200-yen entry fee wasn’t too appealing and besides I didn’t have time anyway!

These days I’m more than satisfied with just the castle exteriors, and this one is very impressive due to its closeness to the surrounding moat as it’s a castle built on plains rather than on a hill or mountain. The red coloured Uzumi Bridge sadly can’t be used but it still makes for a nice contrast in the foreground of the black fortress.

This was not actually my first time to see the castle as I saw it for an equally short amount of time twenty years ago when my then-girlfriend and I had a quick look around the city on the way back from a night in Kamikochi. Located between the station and the castle is a very cool sculpture known as gamasamurai which is a much-loved symbol of the area.

It’s basically a funny-looking pair of frogs which was donated by Tokyo University of the Arts in 2005

Nawate-dori shopping street runs off from the sculpture and was a nice-looking wander into yesteryear. It’s supposed to have a great vibe but many of the souvenir shops, cafes and snack stalls were all closed.

The Metoba River runs parallel to that shopping street and was a very pleasant looking area fringed by the mountains and bright blue sky.

Back near the station there was another statue called ‘Flute’ from 1993 which is to do with the city having some sort of musical background. He seems to have forgotten to put on his clothes though!

Put it away will ya!!

After that there was one more stop at Chino station to see what some have labelled as the world’s most dangerous buildings. More details here.

Prior to my time in Matsumoto city, I had visited a very remote and predominantly unused station with some wonderful views of the surrounding green mountains. More details here.

Nagisa station was along the same line and just as small and isolated but the waiting room and surrounding area were not on a par with the one I’d just been to.

My time in Nagano had actually begun a few hours earlier with more geeky train station content at Okaya station which possesses a platform zero.

There are three such stations in Nagano, and the second one wasn’t too far away at Tatsuno.

It was finally time to head to Matsumoto after that but there was the bonus sighting of Ono station which is interesting for me (only me??) as it sounds like “oh no”.

The third and final stop on my platform zero quest of Nagano was at Matsumoto itself. More details here.

Going to a place for just a day via anything other than regular local trains is not something I make a habit of but I decided to treat myself to this overelaborate trip in the wake of very few travel opportunities this year.

Click here to read ‘Is This Really The World’s Most Dangerous Teahouse?’

Click here to read ‘TF Flashback: Kamikochi & Matsumoto (2005)’

Click here to read ‘Inside The Castle Grounds Which Featured In Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins (2021)’

Click here to read ‘A Trio of Japanese Castles In 3 Different Prefectures In 3 Days!’