Western-Style Houses of Nagasaki

The hillside streets of Nagasaki have a character quite different from Onomichi. Climbing the stone-paved roads, you encounter a townscape where Japanese, Western, and Chinese influences coexist. Near the entrance to Glover Garden, Western-style houses dot the slope overlooking the harbor.

Glover House is the oldest surviving Western-style wooden building in Japan. Standing on its veranda and gazing over Nagasaki Port, you can imagine the era when foreign traders bustled through this very spot in the final days of the shogunate. The garden also houses Ringer House, Alt House, and others, each built in a different architectural style.

Leaving the garden, head down the Dutch Slope. This gentle brick-walled lane leads to the cluster of Western buildings in the Higashiyamate district. Walking past the red-brick Kwassui Gakuin building, you reach the road that continues to Dejima. Walking through this city where the lines between East and West blur, you can feel the layers of history Nagasaki has accumulated.