Obama: Japan’s Hidden Historical Port Town | 2-Day Trip
Sushi and sashimi are popular ways to eat fish
from around Japan these days, but what do you do when you’re a hungry Kyoto merchant in the
1500s, and 50 kilometers from the sea, with no car to travel and no fridge to preserve the fish?
You head along one of the trade routes to the sea. One of those routes connecting Kyoto with Wakasa
Bay is the Saba Kaido – or Mackerel Road – named after the most popular catch that travellers would
carry on their backs across the mountain trails. But the Saba Kaido would not have existed
without the city of Obama. For Kyoto, it was the closest port on the Sea of Japan, so
it played a key role in providing the capital with seafood that differed from that
of the Pacific Coast. Because of this, it thrived as a port town, and to this day
retains much of the beauty from its heyday. Despite being a relatively unknown
spot even among Japanese travelers, it has traditional temples, a preserved old
town, and many interesting spots to explore. To get to Obama, if you’re not feeling
like walking the entire trail from Kyoto, you have several other options. The fastest
would be to board a train from Kyoto to Omi-Imazu Station, then get a direct bus to
Obama Station, which is what I am going to do. I’m Cassandra Lord, and in this video, I’ll be exploring the hidden
treasures the region has to offer. Here’s the plan: After arriving at Obama Station,
I’m going to spend two days in the area, staying at Obama Machiya Stay. On my first day I’ll cycle
around Obama and learn a bit about its history. Then, I’ll eat some of its fresh seafood and
visit an old merchant house. On the second day, I’ll take a taxi from Obama Station to the
start of my hike along the Sabakaido Trail. Day 1 To get around, I’m first renting an electric bike at the Information Center,
just in front of Obama Station. I’ve decided to go with a bike for today as
everything in Obama is quite close together. This is the starting
point of the Saba Kaido Trail. With the town built up around it, it may not
look like much of a hiking trail now, but this was once an important connection
point to the town where people would pick up seafood caught at the port and carry it all across the mountain trails. I want to really stress the importance
of this area back in the day, because Wakasa was once called a
“Food Province”, or “Miketsukuni”, and that was a name given only to three
areas providing food to the capital. So to learn more about this, I’m now heading
to the Miketsukuni Wakasa Obama Food Museum. Here, you can learn all
about the Saba Kaido Trail, as well as some information about local food
culture and Japanese food culture as a whole. But what I found most interesting here was getting
to learn more about the evolution of sushi, because it actually started not as fresh
raw fish, but as something called Narezushi, which was salted to be preserved
for a year or more. When thinking about travelers carrying fish to the
capital, that makes a lot more sense! All this talk of food has got me pretty hungry
now! Thankfully there is a restaurant right next door to the museum where I’m going to try
out some of the famous locally caught fish. I wanted to try
as much fresh fish as possible, so I’ve got the “Obama Brand Kaisendon”, which
has seven different types of fish. Of course, this is the home of the Saba Kaido,
so I had to get something that had mackerel in it. In this case it is a type
of vinegared mackerel called shimesaba. That’s very different to normal sashimi, like, the vinegar flavor really comes through but the texture is also quite different. If you want to see where everything
is caught and sold for yourself, the Obama Fishing Port is just a
few minutes’ walk from the museum, and you can join a tour bright and early
to see the fish auction in the mornings. But right now, I’m still in a cultural mindset, so I’m going to head to Goshoen, a
200-year-old merchant’s residence. Another important aspect of Obama’s
history is that it was a stop along a major shipping trade route during the feudal age. One of the successful trade route
merchants of the time set up Goshoen in 1815 to entertain people of high status.
Now, it has been renovated to entertain us with a museum, a space for relaxation,
a chopstick shop, and a coffee stand. The shop is Matsukan, one of
Obama’s historic chopstick makers. On the other side of the shop, there is
also a cozy coffee stand with hot drinks, light snacks, and the most beautiful
matcha latte I have ever seen. For my accommodation, the check-in
has to be done at a separate location, so I’ll go there first, return
my bike, and head towards it. This special type of building is called a
machiya. Machiya are traditional townhouses that, in the past, often doubled as a place
of business. Today, I’m staying in a former Japanese
confectionery shop that was built over 100 years ago. The spacious area still has some
of the traditional structures and decorations, but the modern comforts like electric heating make
it warm and inviting the moment I step inside. Near the machiya is Obama’s old town
district, perfect for a peaceful stroll. Tomorrow I have a lot of
hiking to do, so I’m looking forward to taking a relaxing bath and getting some rest
before the excitement of the Saba Kaido! Good night for now! Day 2 Before my hike, I’m starting the day with
a bakery breakfast at Boulangerie Cocoro. This atmospheric bakery is set in a former
Japanese confectionery shop from the Meiji Era, but now serves a variety of
French and Japanese baked goods. I love this antique atmosphere with the smell of freshly baked bread, I’m
so excited to eat this before my hike. And now to visit the thread tying this
all together: the Saba Kaido Trail itself. At the height of its popularity, the Saba
Kaido was a network of trails that brought economic success to Obama, but when
modern ships and railway connections made other cities more accessible, it
started to go out of use. Only sections of the Saba Kaido remain today, being
used primarily by adventurous hikers. Even without carrying mackerel with me, though,
these days getting to the entrance of the trail can be a little bit difficult. It takes
around 30 minutes by taxi or rental car, or 1-2 hours by bike. So today I’m going by taxi, stopping at a few of the historic temples and
shrines and even an abandoned town along the way. For example, Mantokuji Temple is surrounded by
around 200 maple trees, and looks particularly beautiful on this colorful autumn day, whereas
Jinguji Temple has a rare combination of both Shinto and Buddhist elements, and is
the site of the Omizuokuri ceremony. And here’s the entrance
to the Saba Kaido hiking trail! Let’s see what awaited those merchants
with mackerel on their backs. Of the Saba Kaido’s multiple trails, today
I’m on the Harihatagoe Trail, the shortest but also one of the toughest. I can certainly believe that! The paths are not well-trodden, so blend in with
the scenery, and start at quite a steep incline. Among the mountaintop scenes and woodland
trails, the first point of interest is the large rock called Gozaiwa. The rock is related
to a tale of a local deity and his elder brother. Then, along the trail there is a statue
of the Jizo Bodhisattva that watches over travelers. A bit like a modern day service
station, next to it is a simple well that collects groundwater that travelers could use. Before hiking back to Obama, I’m ending
my Fukui trip at the beautiful Onyu Pass, the last scenic point still within
the prefecture. It’s hard to imagine carrying salted fish on my back on
the mountainous Saba Kaido Trail, but I feel a little closer to the area’s
history now, and I hope you do too.
Read more about Obama and the Sabakaido: https://www.japan-guide.com/ad/saba-kaido/
On this two-day trip, we will explore the historic port town of Obama in Fukui Prefecture, and delve into the rich history of the ‘Mackerel Road,’ an ancient trade route where merchants once carried salted mackerel to Kyoto during Japan’s feudal era.
*Video Credits*
Host: Cassandra Lord
Videographer: Charles Sabas
Produced by: Stefan Schauwecker
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*Chapters*
00:00 Intro
01:55 Arriving in Obama
03:05 Food Culture Museum
03:48 Lunch
04:49 Merchant’s Residence
05:56 Accommodation
06:58 Breakfast
07:39 Hiking the Sabakaido Trail
10:25 Outro
22 Comments
Thank you for the video and the recommendation. Obama is such an underrated destination. We visited the food museum last year and was looking forward to having wakasa Guji only to find out we had to make a reservation. We also missed out on Hanashiki as they closed at 2pm. I would love to visit the merchant house and the old town if I knew about them. Alas, the person at the Obama tourism info centre never made that recommendation. We did eventually manage to have our Guji in Fukui city, searching high and low for a restaurant serving it. It was worth the effort. We would love to return and spend 2 days and 1 night in Obama, and Fukui prefecture in general.
I like Obama.
Obama slogan: Yes We Can
Wow, she is a transplant from Tokyo Cheapo #2 after Aimee.
I remember she hosted a few videos with Aimee a few years ago.
I was impressed by how calm and professional she sounded.
It is nice to see her on this channel.
By the way, carrying mackerels over a mountain road reminds me of a very famous old folktale that a man was attacked by a Yokai called Yamanba, a super strong and mean old woman, when he was carrying lots of salted mackerels on the back of a cow over the mountain.
Thank you for showing us covered places in Japan ❤ 🇯🇵 Added to my map
Hey japan guide
Its an amazing video specially with the new host, she's really good
My suggestion for videos
1) Best scenic road trips
2) Best scenic train routes
3) Most beautiful villages of japan
Thanks for your amazing video's
Lots of love from india 🇮🇳❤️
I always say to people i know who will travel to japan GO AS FAR AS YOU CAN IN JAPAN DONT JUST STAY IN TOKYO, KYOTO OR SHINJUKU OR OSAKA GO TO THE RURAL AREAS YOU WILL DISCOVER MORE AND LEARN MORE
Amazing production! the places look magical
Wow! Looks like Japan Guide landed another fantastic member!
Cassandra spun that story like the best of them, I couldn’t stop watching!
Welcome Cassandra & thanks for another beautifully shot video JG team!
New member alert!
Can also recommend Fukui and Kanazawa!
Pace of storytelling is very good
Hi Charly!
Ha ! Didn't know about Obama has these sides hihi… and I'm feeling like a dumb kid giggling any time she says the word Obama hihi… Thanks for sharing and showing us cool places as always !!!
lovely 💕 trip,
i had never heard of Obama before .. and this is so amazing place .. epic spot .. 🍃
thanks for sharing and showing .. .. and greetings from 🇮🇩 Indonesia
10:44
Thanks, Obama!
Extraordinary filming quality and editing. I just subscribed.
Thank you. Very interesting travel.
And new lady correspondent 😸
I hope you will come to Kyoto on this road
Looks awesome!
Wow, I'm a citizen of Obama! 🇯🇵
My house is in the cityscape at 0:46. It's a very surreal feeling!
I'm so proud that you showed us the history of the Saba Kaido.
I sincerely look forward to your
success!
As a former Fukui resident, I found this really great. I hope you all come back next time and highlight the Rainbow Line and the excellent crafts of Echizen City. Goshoen is an incredibly special spot and also the only coffee shop in Fukui I've seen run by an all-women team. It was my favorite place to go whenever I visited Obama, and I'm so happy you all highlighted this spot. Obama, Mikuni, Echizen, Katsuyama, and Ono are all worthwhile destinations in Fukui, and thank you so much for highlighting them.
Obama is a wonderful place and a great cycling destination from Kyoto, if you don't mind climbing a few mountain passes. 😂 It's definitely worth visiting and spending a night or two. The food museum has a terrific hot spring bath on the roof. A memorable coastline cruise is also worth checking out. Excellent video.