Nagamachi, west of castle ruins, is an old samurai quarter with cobbled, winding streets and many well-preserved residences protected by tile-roofed, earthen walls.
Of particular interest is the Nomura Samurai House. The district is also home to the Yuzen Silk Center, where the whole process of dyeing silk for kimono is painstakingly performed in fromt of the visitors.
Teramachi 寺町
The Teramachi ("temple town") area, south of the Sai river, was the external limits of the old city. Temples were set at the city's gate to deter invasions.
The Myoryu-ji Temple (妙龍寺), built by the Nichiren sect in 1643, is also refered to as "ninja temple" and played an obvious role in defending the city. The temple was build in a maze of corridors, secret passages, concealed chambers, trick doors and traps. It even has a lookout tower. Ninja once practiced their art ("ninjutsu") there or got rid of undesirable intruders.
North of the Asano river, the Higashi geisha district (ひがし茶屋街). Although geisha are now gone, the tea houses atmosphere is preserved and some places are open to the public, like the Shima house.
New town
Positioned between the Kenroku-en and the Sai river, the Katamachi district is where the restaurants and shops are to be found. It has three department stores : Daiwa, Atrio Shopping Plaza and Korinbo 109. Katamachi is a good place to sample the local seafood speciality or international cuisine.
