Fodor's Expert Review Shikoku Mura Village
An open-air museum east of central Takamatsu, Shikoku Mura consists of traditional houses that have been relocated from around Shikoku. The park does a fabulous job of illustrating how life on Shikoku has changed throughout the centuries. You can enter Shikoku Mura by crossing a rickety vine bridge, or play it safe and use the sidewalk detour. The route through the park is clearly marked, and the information boards in English are thoughtful and thorough. The highlights include a village Kabuki theater relocated from Shodoshima Island, thatched-roof farmhouses from mountain villages, fishermen's huts, sugarcane-pressing sheds, and lighthouse-keepers' residences.
The prolific Osaka-born architect Tadao Ando designed the concrete-and-glass Shikoku Mura Gallery on-site. On a hill above the sugarcane-pressing shed, it looks as if shipped here from central Tokyo. Works by Renoir, Picasso, and Pierre Bonnard are displayed inside, but the showstopper is the outdoor water garden.
