Mashiko

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Mashiko (??) is a rural town in Tochigi prefecture to the north of Tokyo, Japan.

	mashiko Travel Guide : 1 Understand 2 Get in 2.1 By train 2.2 By bus 3 Get around 4 See & Do 5 Buy 6 Eat 7 Sleep 7.1 Budget 7.2 Mid-range 7.3 Splurge 8 Contact 9 Get out 10 External links

Understand

Mashiko is famous for precisely one thing: its pottery, known as Mashikoyaki (???). Simple and homely in style, brown with maybe a little red glaze, these are worlds apart from the courtly ceramics of Kyoto but yet very Japanese. Mashikoyaki dates only to 1853, when a potter discovered that the clay here was ideal, but the style was popularized in 1930 when potter Shoji Hamada was designated as a Living National Treasure.

Get in

Any way you look at it, Mashiko is quite a hike from Tokyo.

By train

The fastest route is to take the JR Utsunomiya Line from Ueno to Oyama, which takes 42 min by Shinkansen or 82 min by normal train. Change here for the Mito line to Shimodate (21 min), then change yet again to the private M?ka Railway line to Mashiko (41 min). By normal train, the total cost is ¥2360 and the trip takes around three hours one way with transfer time factored in.

An alternative approach not much different in time or price is to take the JR J?ban line from Ueno to Toride, then change to the private Kantetsu-J?s? line to Shimodate.

Note that the M?ka Railway runs steam locomotives once a day in each direction most weekends. As of February 2005, departure from Shimodate is at 10:36 and the return from Mashiko at 15:03. See the Moka Railway Fan Page 1 (http://www.itoko.net/moka/) for details.

By bus

Another alternative is to take the train to Utsunomiya and continue from there by Toya bus directly to Mashiko. The bus stops are in front of the main entrance to the train station. Look for bus station number 14 to Mashiko. Buses leave approximately hourly, take one hour and cost ¥1100.

Get around

Mashiko is small enough to get around on foot, but sufficiently stretched out to make getting around a bit of hike, especially as the train station is a little inconveniently located at the far western end of the main street. You can rent bicycles at the train station to ease the pain.

See & Do

The town consists of little but pottery workshops, kilns and retail shops. The twice-yearly weeklong Pottery Markets (??? T?ki-ichi) 2 (http://www.mta.mashiko.tochigi.jp/mta1/mashikoyaki/toukiiti/tokiichi.htm), held in April-May and November, are the best time to visit. All workshops in town set up stalls on the roadside and all stores large and small hold sales.

• Mashiko Sank?han (?????). Tel. 0285-72-5300, Sankohan-mae bus stop. Shoji Hamada's workshop and home turned museum, showcasing about 30 of his works as well as his private collection. Admission ¥800, open 9:30 AM to 4 PM daily except Monday; closed in February.

• T?gei Messe Mashiko (???????). Tel. 0285-72-7555. A museum of ceramic arts, displaying works by Shoji Hamada and other potters, not only from Mashiko but around Japan. Admission ¥600, open from 9:30 PM to 4 PM daily except Wednesday.

Buy

The only thing to buy in Mashiko is, of course, the pottery. The main street from the station to the center of town is filled with shops and boutiques offering all kinds and all price levels of ceramics.

• Mashikoyaki Ky?han Center (?????????). Tel. 0285-72-4444. A cooperative sales center that sells works by most kilns in town at reasonable prices. Open daily from 8:30 AM to 5:30 PM.
• Ikiru Kiln (????), 2858-2-2 Nanai, tel. +81-285-70-1263, email: lee@mashiko.org, 3 (http://www.mashiko.org). Pottery and woodblock print workshop by transplants from Minnesota, in the "MingeiSota" tradition. Please email or phone before your visit.
• Harvey Young Pottery (???????????), 3650-2 Oosawa, tel.0285-72-6484 (from outside Japan: +81-285-726484), 4 (http://www.harveyyoungpottery.com/)e-mail: h_young@beige.plala.or.jp A small handmade pottery workshop operated since 1984 by an American who first went to Mashiko in 1969 to study pottery making. Tableware, Kitchenware, Flower Arrangement ware. Visitors are welcome, by appointment.

Eat

Sleep

Many people make Mashiko a daytrip from Tokyo or go onto Nikko for the night, but there are also several Ryokan, Minshuku and Onsen to stay at in Mashiko.

Budget

• Tao Art Club, Potters Inn (??????? Mashiko T?gei Kurabu), tel. 0285-72-3866, fax 0285-72-4178,?5 (http://www.mashiko-ceramic.jp/minshuku.html). A traditional Minshuku style inn and also a pottery studio. Lodging only is ¥3500 a night. Studio use is extra. There are several kilns, including a wood fired noborigama. If you book during the week or "off peak" you might be able to stay in the Minka farmhouse, which has "Western" style toilets. If the Minka is full, you get placed in modern rooms. Large groups can be accommodated. It is located in a convenient spot. Fax first, Furuki-san can read English and then voice call to confirm.

Mid-range

• Minshuku Higeta Phone: 0285-72-2559
• Minshuku Furusato Phone: 0285-72-3156
• Minshuku Yamaji Phone: 0285-72-2525
• Minshuku Yamabiko Phone: 0285-72-1829

Splurge

• Okadaya Ryokan?Phone: 0285-72-2016
• Hasegawa ryokan Phone: 0285-72-2210
• Shiraume-so Phone: 0285-72-6762
• Tozan-so Phone: 0285-72-2063
• Ohkawado Kozen Spa Phone: 0285-72-4546
• Business Hotel Toyoda Phone: 0285-68-4500

The following are all onsen (hot spring) hotels.

• Kur Mashiko 21 Phone: 0285-72-8100
• Hotel Sunshine Mashiko-kan Phone: 0285-72-7777
• Mashiko Onsen HotelPhone: 0285-72-7011

Contact

Mashiko's tourism office, tel. 0285-72-8846 and open daily from 8 AM to 8 PM, is located at the train station. They can arrange pottery classes for you if call in advance.

Get out

• The shrines and parks of Nikko are within easy striking distance of Mashiko.

External links

• Mashiko Hometown Homepage (http://www.infocreate.co.jp/hometown/mashiko/mashik-e.html) (unofficial, in English)
• Mashiko Town (http://www.town.mashiko.tochigi.jp/) (in Japanese)
• Mashiko Tourism Association (http://www.mta.mashiko.tochigi.jp/) (in Japanese)

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