Walking Goto Islands: Day 2
Travel diaries: March 3rd - unexpectedly good weather and walking to Dozaki Church.
After a good night's sleep, thanks to the absence of choppy ocean waters, my second day on the islands started with a pleasant surprise. Despite the weather forecast showing a full day of gray clouds, there were blue skies, and the temperature was also 10 degrees higher than the previous day. I trust the Japan Meteorological Agency (usually correct with their weather predictions) so blindly that I was fully prepared for a bad weather day. Oh well, no complaints.
My plan for the day was to take the 10 a.m. bus to the Fukue Port and then walk the 10 kilometers to Dozaki Church. The estimated walk time was 2 hours, and I knew there would be many photo stops.
Thanks to the owners of Te To Ba, who open the cafe as early as 8.30 a.m., I could start my morning at the cafe, having a Japanese breakfast set (rice, raw egg, miso soup), catching up with the owners and hearing the good news that their business was recovering after the devastating impact of the pandemic.
The night before I could finish the very non-Goto related book that I was reading (something about the Twitter ownership saga) and could start the Silence by Shusaku Endo that I saved to read on this trip.1
Soon, I was on my way to Dozaki Church. While there is no separate walking path other than the occasional sidewalks between Fukue and Dozaki, I highly recommend that you walk part of the route to Dozaki and not drive/ride the bus all the way. You will pass by beautiful green fields carpeted with yellow daffodils (it could also be another flower, do not trust me), and traditional Japanese houses with well-manicured but admirably natural-looking tiny gardens. The second half of the road follows the ocean, where the small fishing boats keep you company until you reach Dozaki.
Dozaki Church, while not listed among theĀ 12 Hidden Christians-related sites registered as UNESCO World Heritage, is one of the most popular among all the churches, and for all the right reasons. Located at the edge of a beautiful cove, the red brick structure of Dozaki appears almost like an oasis from afar as soon as the narrow road turns towards the cove's opening. With the blue waters and palm trees, the atmosphere feels strangely Caribbean on a sunny day.
According to the bookĀ In Search of Japan's Hidden ChristiansĀ by John Dougill, the church's location was intentional. At a time when there were not many inland roads, people heavily relied on maritime travel and traveled to the church by boat. Dozaki Church, just like Egami Church that I visited the day before, was also built soon after the ban on Christianity was lifted in Japan in 1873.
By 1970, the church became redundant due to the opening of churches in more convenient locations, and the authorities planned to demolish it. Thanks to the efforts of a priest from Nagasaki, it had instead been converted into a museum. When I first visited Dozaki in 2022, the museum was not open due to the pandemic-related restrictions. It is now open every day from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (entrance fee is 300 Japanese Yen).
Dougill, in his book, notes that many of the artecraft displayed in the museum, including medallions, rosaries, and candleholders dating to the 16th and 17th centuries, were handed over for free to the priest who put the museum together by visiting local villages one by one and asking for objects from the era of the ban. People were happy to contribute to the museum and preserve the history of their families. However, it would now be impossible to collect these objects due to the increased cultural interest and collectors market developed in Tokyo and other parts of the world focusing on the era of Hidden Christianity in Japan.Ā
Despite the occasional wind, it was a sunny day, and I would have loved to spend more time near Dozaki. But the options, as usual for rural Japan, were rather limited - one pastry shop and one very hipster-looking coffee shop that I have never seen open. So I got back to the main road and walked down to another cove, where I stumbled upon a seafood restaurant/wholesaler.Ā
Open only on weekends,Ā Okuura (å„„ęµ¦ęµ·é®®ē“売ę)Ā serves sashimi, sushi, nigiri, shellfish, and all kinds of fish - the catch of the day - along with ice cold draft beer. Each table features a grill where you can also cook your own fish. Knowing that Goto is famous for maguro (tuna fish), my favorite fish to consume as sashimi, I kept things simple and ordered a maguro sashimi set. It was delicious, very filling and cost only 800 Japanese Yen.
Having had a good walk of 3-hours, I then decided to take the bus back to Tomie and got off a little early to do some beach walking. After a short walk on the hard sand of Ohama Beach and a short chat with two young boys who traveled to Goto from Tokyo and Osaka (and who were about to have a little happy hour on the beach), I returned to my room in Ta Bi To.Ā
Thanks to the unexpectedly good weather, it was an exceptionally lovely day.
Thank you for being here and reading my travel diaries. Here is a link to the page where allĀ Goto travel diariesĀ are listed.
Endo tells the story of two Jesuit priests who traveled to Japan in search of their mentor during the period when Christianity was banned in the country.
So weird to see a church like this in Japan. But so interesting to learn about the Christians there.