Tsuruga

Tsuruga occupies a natural harbor on the Sea of Japan, where maritime routes meet the roads toward the heart of Japan. Its Kehi Shrine was an important sanctuary of Echizen, traditionally said to have been founded in 702. Ships connected the port with Ezo by the end of the medieval period, and its merchants continued in maritime trade during the Edo age. The poet Matsuo Bashō visited Tsuruga and worshipped at Kehi in 1689 on his journey through the north.