Lafcadio Hearn Memorial Museum — Attraction in Matsue

Despite knowing a bit about Hearn already and having read some of his work, I was going to skip this museum. There are a lot of other places in Matsue to get to! But another reviewer mentioned it was more engaging than they thought it would be and that just piqued my interest and I am very grateful to that reviewer. This is a great museum! So well-laid out, so organized and so much helpful signage in English. I especially enjoyed learning at length about the contributions of Koizumi Setsuko, Hearn's wife and partner. I went on a busy, rainy festival weekend but it wasn't too crowded. And it's located right near Matsue Castle. Spend...

My family and I are from Ireland and we were very curious to visit the museum. It is a beautiful museum and the displays were as interesting as the story they were telling. We learned so much about Lafcadio Hearne, the layout of the museum ensures there is a lot of information, pictures and drawings on display. I loved to hear about Japanese writers and international figures who were influenced by him. My kids (9 & 11) loved it too, especially the drawings of some Japanese ghost stories! Upstairs some local school children had completed a project about Ireland and it brought a year to my eye!...

This museum was way more engaging and interesting than I thought it would be. As an English teacher in Japan, it was very fascinating to learn about Lafcadio Hearn’s experience teaching in Japan so long ago. There’s a lot of English information, so even if you can’t read Japanese, this museum will keep you busy for some time. Plan at least a half hour here. You can examine old newspapers. There was also a display detailing people who were influenced by Hearn’s life and works. I would come back here. It was very inspiring for me on how to live a life doing lasting and...