Bashoen Garden

In this garden stands a stone monument inscribed with a copy of the entirety of the text of famed poet Matsuo Basho’s “Ginga no Jo” (“Preface to the Milky Way”) written in his own hand. A line from this poem, composed in 1689 while making the journey he would ultimately describe in his “Narrow Road to the Interior,” is particularly famous: “turbulent ocean / extending out to Sado / the Milky Way.” The monument as well as a statue of Basho stands on the grounds of a residence which once belonged to the Torii, a family whose members served as town elders in Izumozaki. Various sights connected to Basho, including the birth home of Ryokan, a priest and poet Basho greatly respected, are located in the area, and even today many amateur haiku lovers make their way here. There is a mailbox in the garden which visitors can use to submit haiku poems; once a year, the best are selected for compilation into a collection.