Photos

The Kintai-kyo (錦帯橋), or "Brocade Sash Bridge" in English, is what everybody comes to see in Iwakuni. The 210m long bridge was originally built in 1673 under daimyo Kikkawa Hiroyoshi, without using a single nail ! It was swept away by floods caused by Typhoon Kezia in 1950, and was almost identically reconstructed in 1953. Note that there is a ￥300 charge to cross the bridge (return).

Kintai-kyo's particularity is its five steep arches, typical of Edo era bridges. In old times, only samurai were allowed to use the bridge, leaving other people to cross the river by boat.

The old samurai houses have been integrated into Kikko-koen Park, 100m north of Kintai-kyo. The adjacent Iwakuni Historical Museum (￥500) has a good collection of samurai armours and weaponry, more likely to interest aficionados than common folk though.