Strolling through Matsuyama to visit the French-style villa, Bansuiso

After visiting Matsuyama Castle, one of Japan’s Top 100 Castles and a designated Important Cultural Property, our next stops are the nearby Bansuiso Villa and the Saka no Ue no Kumo Museum. The area is bustling with shops to explore. Taking a turn onto the main street, we even passed by the Matsuyama Mitsukoshi Department Store, conveniently located just across the street.

Walking in a U-shaped route, we arrived at the Saka no Ue no Kumo Museum. However, we planned to buy tickets and explore it later. First, we decided to visit Bansuiso to admire its renowned French-style architecture. Bansuiso escaped wartime destruction due to its location near the mountains, where dense vegetation made it difficult for aircraft to spot and target.

Bansuiso is only about 200 meters from the Saka no Ue no Kumo Museum. Although the road is somewhat narrow with occasional passing vehicles, it’s an easy walk with just a bit of caution.

Turning a corner, we spotted Bansuiso, which appears to be well-maintained and occasionally hosts exhibitions. Since tickets were required for entry, we opted to admire its exterior architecture from the outside. Nearby stands a storage building, which looks like a standard warehouse but is also three stories tall.

Bansuiso is a well-preserved and precious historical structure, designated as a Tangible Cultural Property by Ehime Prefecture. Later, in 2011, it was recognized as a National Important Cultural Property. The villa regularly hosts exhibitions, and the building itself is exquisitely detailed, surrounded by lush greenery that keeps it well-protected.

While passing through the courtyard, we noticed a rickshaw available for visitors to sit in, likely for display purposes. We attempted to take a frontal photo of the building, but due to limited space at the front, we could only take side shots from either side. After taking our photos, we planned to buy tickets and visit the Saka no Ue no Kumo Museum.

The area around Bansuiso features a pavilion, a pond, and stones perfect for resting. We also discovered an unusual rock inscribed with poetry. After some research, we found it to be a haiku monument by Takahama Toshio, titled Hometown My Father Missed. The surroundings are thoughtfully planned, and even in summer, the area remains pleasantly cool.