Matsudo: The City That Forgot to Update Its Sign
it's raining. not the romantic kind. the kind where you forget your umbrella and the wind turns it inside out. the weather report says it's 10.03°c, feels like 9.54°c, humidity at 94%. perfect for wandering into a random noodle shop and pretending you meant to get soaked. i just checked and it's basically soup weather right now, hope you like that kind of thing.
matsudo isn't exactly tokyo, and that's the point. it's the kind of place where the train station still has a vending machine that sells canned coffee from 2005. i heard that the locals call it "the forgotten suburb," but i think that's generous. someone told me that the best ramen in town is at a place called *menya haruki, but honestly, i got lost and ended up at a konbini eating onigiri out of a plastic wrapper. still good.
if you get bored, kashiwa and abiko are just a short train ride away. not that you'll get bored. there's a park near the station where old men play shogi under a gazebo that looks like it survived a typhoon. i sat there for an hour pretending to read my book while eavesdropping on their trash talk. one of them said, "your strategy is as weak as your tea." classic.
i tried to find a coffee shop that wasn't a chain. failed. ended up at starbucks because the Wi-Fi is reliable and the barista didn't judge me for ordering a matcha latte. i know, i know. but sometimes you just need something green and sweet to survive the existential dread of a rainy afternoon.
here's the thing about matsudo: it's not trying to be anything. no curated hipster cafes, no artisanal donut shops, no influencers posing in front of murals. just regular people living regular lives. and honestly? that's kind of refreshing.
i walked past a sento (public bath) that looked like it hadn't changed since the 80s. the sign was hand-painted and peeling. i almost went in, but i was wearing my least waterproof shoes and didn't want to track mud into the sacred waters. next time, maybe.
if you're into vintage stuff, there's a tiny recycle shop near the station that sells everything from old sake cups to broken game boy cartridges. i bought a furoshiki cloth for 300 yen because it had a cool pattern. no idea what i'll do with it, but it felt like the right thing to do.
and then there's the river. the edo river, i think? it's not exactly scenic, but it's wide and quiet and perfect for a contemplative walk. i saw a guy fishing with a pole that looked older than he was. he didn't catch anything, but he didn't seem to care.
the train back to tokyo was packed. salarymen in suits, high school kids gossiping, a woman folding origami cranes with the precision of a surgeon. i stood by the door, watching matsudo disappear into the rain. it's not a city that demands your attention, but it rewards it if you give it a chance.
would i go back? probably. not for the sights, but for the feeling. the feeling of being somewhere that doesn't need to prove itself. somewhere that just is.
links:*
- menya haruki on tabelog
- matsudo station info
- edo river walking trail
- recycle shop near matsudo
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