{"id":73310,"date":"2020-10-21T19:49:09","date_gmt":"2020-10-21T10:49:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/voyapon.com\/?p=73310"},"modified":"2020-10-21T19:49:12","modified_gmt":"2020-10-21T10:49:12","slug":"joge-historical-country-town-hiroshima","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/voyapon.com\/joge-historical-country-town-hiroshima\/","title":{"rendered":"Joge: A Historical Country Town in Hiroshima Prefecture"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Joge<\/strong> (\u4e0a\u4e0b \u753a, Joge-cho) is a small town in Hiroshima Prefecture (\u5e83\u5cf6\u770c). In feudal times, the \u201cGinzan Kaido\u201d (\u9280\u5c71\u8857\u9053), the Silver Road<\/strong>, passed through it. This road served as a path for transporting silver between the Iwami Ginzan mines, in Shimane prefecture (\u5cf6\u6839\u770c), and the port of Kasaoka, in Okayama prefecture (\u5ca1\u5c71\u770c).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nowadays, many vestiges of this glorious past remain in Joge<\/a><\/strong>. The main street, lined with white-walled houses, seems to prepare visitors for a trip back in time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Japanese
The countryside landscape around Joge are breathtaking.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The surroundings of the city are also beautiful, perfect for a drive. You can go through the rice fields or have lunch in the middle of the mountains with the sound of a stream nearby as your only distraction. By staying at Joge, one can reconnect with yourself while enjoying the tranquillity of the Japanese countryside.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Joge, Rural Post Town on the Silver Road <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

As part of a trip to prepare for our next Peko Peko Box<\/a><\/strong>, I traveled to Joge to curate the best souvenirs to put in the box. Most tourists visiting Hiroshima Prefecture tend to head to Hiroshima City<\/a> and Miyajima Island<\/a>, or even the small port town of Onomichi<\/a> for a more adventurous trip outside of the main tourist spots. There are few to go inland in the heart of the prefecture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Street
The streets of Joge are lined with traditional white-walled houses.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Today, Joge looks like a small dot on the map. But the city had some glorious days. It is said that in the 16th century, the Iwami Ginzan mines<\/strong> (\u77f3\u898b\u9280\u5c71) in Shimane Prefecture (\u5cf6\u6839\u770c) produced nearly a third of the world’s silver.<\/strong> Silver was transported on the Ginzan Kaido to Kasaoka Port (\u7b20\u5ca1), in Okayama Prefecture, as well as to Kyoto (\u4eac\u90fd) and Osaka (\u5927\u962a). From the 17th to the 19th century, an administrative office of the Iwami Ginzan mine opened in the town of Joge. As a stopover town on the Silver Route, the town became quite prosperous until the Meiji era.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Getaway in the Japanese Countryside, Near Hiroshima and Kyoto<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

After a short trip by Shinkansen<\/em> to Fukuyama, I choose to rent a car and drove to Joge to make the most of the magnificent landscapes of the Japanese countryside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Rice<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

After passing through beautiful rice fields, I arrived in the main street of the city and its white-walled houses<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"View<\/figure>\n\n\n\n