Introduction

Upon hearing the word “Iga”, most people would immediately think of the highly interesting Ninja house and museum. There are more things to Iga than just the Ninja Museum, however. Ready to delve into the mysteries of history with me?

This area was noted in the Sengoku period as one of the centers for Ninjutsu. The town developed in the Edo period under the Tokugawa Shogunate as a castle town under Iga Ueno Castle. Iga is also known as the birthplace of the famous haiku poet Matsuo Bashō and the home of the legendary Ninja, Hattori Hanzō.

With those claims to fame in its history, you can pretty much already imagine that the town itself has quite a few interesting places to visit.

Since I just came from the famed Ninja Museum, I followed the path through the woods, leading straight to the castle. The meandering path quickly opened up into a beautiful park, and the castle quickly came into view. A National Historic Site, parts of the Akira Kurosawa movie Kagemusha were filmed at Iga Ueno Castle.

Iga Ueno Castle

It was a beautifully sunny day outside, so the brilliant, white exterior caught my eye immediately.

The castle was built in 1585 by Takigawa Katsutoshi. The Honmaru has about 30m high walls, making it the tallest castle in Japan. It is also known as Hakuho, or “White Phoenix Castle”.

The inside of the castle was entirely wooden, complete with steep wooden stairs, which gives it an authentic feel, unlike many of the other castles in Japan.

The first floor contains pottery, and samurai armour displays. The most important of which is a seated model of Todo Takatora and his famous (rather imposing) hat, which is on display both as a replica, as well as the original behind a glass case.

Just in case you’re wondering, Todo Takatora is the successor of Tsutsui Sadatsugu, who made the initial modern reconstructions of the castle possible.

Also featured on the inside are many interesting displays ranging from armor to pottery, and a very interesting collection of hand paintings by famous people on the ceiling of the top floor.

Some truly amazing hand-drawn artwork on display here...

The view from up here was also quite amazing.

After making my way down from the top of the castle, I felt rather hungry and made my way to the old town. There are quite a few interesting shops and restaurants to visit, but first I needed some sustenance.

Food

One of the most famous restaurants is right next to the main bus stop in town. It’s a small place, decked out in Ninja memorabilia.

“Nikaku” has supposedly been visited by quite a few Ninja in the past (or so I was told), so it comes at no surprise that the menu features many signature Ninja dishes. Of course, there were regular dishes also on the menu, but where’s the fun in that?

I opted for a hearty Ninja Lunch Set with Tofu, Udon, Rice, Beef, and Egg.

Trust me when I say that the photo is not enough to do this delicious meal any justice... it was even better than it already looked in the picture.

After getting my nourishment, I felt refreshed and looked around town for a bit. The old, meandering streets were rather empty today (it was a Monday afternoon after all), which was actually nice, since I could enjoy the old houses and shops more - without all the usual crowds.

Of course, the usual trappings are all here - Souvenir shops, sweets shops, etc, but one caught my eye immediately. It was a combination of souvenir shop and cafe. Apparently, it is well-known in Japan... so much so, in fact, that the walls were lined with pictures of famous Japanese entertainment stars who visited the shop to try its famous wares. The store is called “Murai Bankouen”.

The menu outside showed some truly delicious-looking ice cream, but since I was a bit thirsty from walking around with a heavy backpack, I opted for the scrumptious-looking “Ninja” Matcha, which was promptly hand-made right in front of me - amazing!!!.

It wasn’t just the food that was famous here, however.... The peacefully sleeping cat just next to me is somewhat of a star in Japan, going by her stage name “Chacha” the Ninja Cat. Of course, she eventually woke from her peaceful slumber, got her costume on and posed for a quick picture.

After an interesting chat about the cat with the proprietor of this shop, who was very happy to show me newspaper and magazine clippings and stories about the store and the enigmatic cat, I had to hurry a bit since the sun was starting to set and I still had one more stop on my way.

As is tradition in Japan, you can’t go somewhere and come back empty-handed to work the next day. So, I had to get some souvenirs for my friends and co-workers. Luckily, I didn’t have to search very far, as there are many souvenir shops strewn throughout the narrow streets of Shinobu-cho (Ninja Town).

Souvenirs

T-shirts, plastic swords, shuriken (real and plastic ones), dolls, postcards, etc...

You can find a plethora of great trinkets here, so rather than bore you with details, I’ll just let the pictures do the talking.

I ended up finding some interesting gifts for friends, which concluded my day in Ninja Town.

That’s it! I had everything I needed and a memorable day exploring the birthplace of the Iga Clan of Ninja.

There’s an upcoming festival where you can dress up like a Ninja and explore the town and the Ninja Museum. Since I’ve been a big fan of the Ninja mythos since my childhood, I might just be back here for that special event.

For now, while waiting for the bus back to the Meitetsu Nagoya Bus Stop, I let the day slowly wind down with a relaxing piece of special matcha cake at a great cafe right inside the bus station. I was told is a specialty here.

Till next time! There are more adventures to come... ;)