Hofu Tenmangu Mitokuji temple Izumo Taisha Omori Silver mine Xavier memorial church peace memorialpark miyajima sanctuary_outline Shukkeien Adachi garden Ikouji Rurikouji temple Amida-ji Sourin-ji Kourakuen Japanese trad.Garden_outline Matsue Yonago Shimonoseki Okayama Hiroshima HAB CITY_outline TSUYAMA TSUWANO MATSUE CHOFU IWAKUNI HAGI SAMURAI towns_outline ONOMICHI YANAI TAKEHARA KURASHIKI TOMO SHIMOKAMAGARI Xavier Cathedral SHIMONOSEKI Washi Touken Bizen Pottery Hagi Pottery & Kilns Japanese trad.artcrafts Experience-outline GEGEGENO Kitaro Matsuda museum Naval Base of Kure MAZDA,Hofu plant Modern Japan-outline Kirin beer Park in Okayama Tottori sand dune Mt.Fuji of Sanin DAISEN SHINJI Lake Iwami coast Oki Hagi coast Nagato SANIN COAST-outline SHUHODO Trail to Hikimi Hiruzen Highland Kibi Highland Tsuyama Travel with Stream locomotive Deep Inland Tour-outline SETO-OHASHI Seto-inland seas OANORAMA view Tiboli Park Tokiwa Park Inland-sea-outline List of Japanese terms Bathing in Japan 7seafood of the Lake Shinji Blow fish Stone fish Show Crab Oysters Buchwheat Noodles Peach and Other fruits Okonomiyaki
 
   
 
Hagi was the seat of power for Mori Terumoto, who built his castle here in the early 1600s. The ruins of the castle still stand today, and visitors can walk among them, seeing the layout of the grounds,(Shigetsu kouenn ) the moat and the various gardens and buildings that remain inside. You can get a cup of green tea (served in a local hagiyaki ceramic cup) in Mori's old tea house, see the building where his retainers lived (which still have some of the original panels intact from the 1700s) and view the "dragon's head" garden outside the teahouse.

Immediately outside the castle walls is the samurai town, which was originally built for Mori's retainers and followers. This “castle town”, as well as other places throughout Hagi, has many buildings of historical interest, as people from Hagi played some of the most important roles in the Meiji Restoration of 1867. Old residences and schools abound; there is a graveyard and many of the watchtowers and so on are still preserved.

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Hagi is famous for its pottery, known as hagiyaki. This pottery traditionally was made with a chip broken from the base. While there are various stories about why this was so (the most prosaic one is that it made tying the cups easier during shipping), my favorite is the one that says that with the “flaw” in place, no ceramic piece could be given to anyone else as it was no longer perfect.

This prevented people from overtly coveting the beautifully lacquered pieces. If you like to try your hand at making hagiyaki, there are places to do so.

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  Near the castle is a long curving stretch of gorgeous beach. Protected by an isthmus and looking out over the Sea of Japan, the water has a placid and inviting aspect to it and local families make good use of it during the summer. There is an admission fee, but if you stay in one of the hotels along the strip it may be included in your room charge  
     
 
Away from the city, on the isthmus, there is a dormant volcano. Although it is somewhat removed from the samurai town and castle (about a 15-minute ride by cab), it is worth the trip. On the summit is a scenic lookout that shows a beautiful view of the six low-lying islands that surround Hagi in the Sea of Japan. The volcano (Kasa-yama)also has a large amount of area that tourists can trek along, including some gardens and a descent into a crater from which one can see actual lava within the volcano. (This may be the only place in Asia where one can do this.)

There is another spot at the base of the volcano where you can stop and have some food in a cavern-like area. The grotto is kept cool even on the hottest summer days from air wafting up from underground and covered as it is with leafy trees and located next to a large pond(Myoujin-ike) - is a great place to relax after seeing the rest of the area. 		 
     
 
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