Matsue...

...has one of the twelve original castles left in Japan, although it was extensively restored in the 1950's.  Because it's a wooden building, they effectively took it apart, threw away the bad bits and rebuilt in the traditional way.  Anyway, at five stories high

and all wood

it's very impressive, as lots of Japanese tourists who were there today could tell you.  Hardly any foreigners here, though.

It is also the adopted home of Lafcadio Hearn, an Anglo-Irish-Greek who came here in the 1890's as a journalist but decided to teach English instead.  He wrote several books about Japan and is allegedly much revered by the Japanese.  Tourism here revolves around him a lot.

We ambled past several temples and shrines including one full of foxes, 

mostly alongside canals as Matsue is on the coast and at the mouth of two rivers.  All very lovely.

Have decided to miss Kyoto, which was the capital before Tokyo, and go instead to Nara, the capital before Kyoto!