Ise Kawasaki Shōninkan, building in Ise, Mie Prefecture, Japan
The Ise Kawasaki Shōninkan is a historic house museum in Kawasaki built with traditional Japanese architecture and wooden construction. The building contains living spaces, a kitchen area with earthen flooring, a Japanese-style room resembling a tea room, and storage warehouses constructed during the Meiji Period.
The house originates from the Edo Period when Kawasaki was an important trading port supplying pilgrims with food and goods on their way to the Ise Jingu shrine. Later during the Meiji Period it was modified and expanded, with warehouses added that reflect the growing merchant activity in the region.
The name Kawasaki referred to what locals called "Ise's Kitchen" because merchants supplied food and goods to pilgrims heading to worship. Walking through the rooms, you notice how spaces were arranged for both work and living, with simple furnishings and layouts that show how traders organized their daily routines.
The building is open to the public and located in a quiet area with easy access from nearby train stations. A visit allows you to observe practical details like sliding doors and traditional room layouts that reveal how people organized their daily routines.
The house contains a room modeled after a famous tea room from Kyoto, showing how guests were once received and entertained. Near the main building stand about twenty small shops selling handmade items, antique decorative objects, and traditional beverages.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 60,000 contributors worldwide.
