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Kurashiki
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At first sight,
KURASHIKI
, 26km west of Okayama, looks like just another bland identikit Japanese town with a recreation of Copenhagen's Tivoli Park tacked onto one side. But ten minutes' walk south of the station, the modern buildings and shops are replaced by a delightful enclave of black and white, walled merchants' homes (
machiya
) and storehouses (
kura
) dating from the town's Edo-era heyday, when it was an important centre for trade in rice and rush reeds. The compact
Bikan
historical area, cut through by a narrow, weeping-willow-fringed canal, in which swans drift and carp swim, is endowed with museums and galleries, the best of which is the excellent
Ohara Museum of Art
, containing four separate halls for Western art, contemporary Japanese art and local crafts. Hugely popular with tourists, Kurashiki can get very busy during the day; to appreciate its charm most, stay overnight and take an early-morning or evening stroll through the Bikan district, or visit on Monday, when most of the museums and galleries are shut. Other useful information
for tourists (each section contains more specific sub-sections): |
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Japan,
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