Naruko
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Mori-no-Yu outdoor bath at dusk
Naruko (鳴子) is a town in Miyagi, Japan.
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Geography
Nestled in the mountaineous backbone of Tohoku, Naruko is located entirely within the Kurikoma Quasi-National Park. Haiku poet Matsuo Basho passed through the area on the trip that became his masterwork Oku no Hosomichi.
Tourism and Sightseeing
The volcanically active area is famous for the Naruko Hot Spring Villages (鳴子温泉郷), a cluster of five villages -- Naruko, East Naruko, Takayamadaira, Kawatabi and Onikōbe -- with abundant hot springs. The reputed curative properties of the springs make them especially popular with people in ill health. Several ski resorts also operate nearby in the winter.
Naruko is one among many places to claim to have originated the kokeshi, a cylindrical wooden doll emblematic of Tohoku. The Japan Kokeshi Museum is located in Naruko, and some 80 craftsmen work full-time at the art today.
Transport
Naruko is accessible by train on the JR East Rikū-Tōsen Line, some 40 minutes from Furukawa, an interchange station with the Tohoku Shinkansen line. National Highways 47 and 108 also pass through the area.
External link
- Wikitravel: Naruko (http://wikitravel.org/en/article/Naruko)