Japan Guide
Kyūshū
The Dutch Slopes
Back at Ōura Church, take the footpath heading east through a little graveyard and along the valley side until you pick up signs to the Dutch Slopes (Oranda-zaka) and Higashi-yamate. Though it's only five minutes' walk, few visitors bother to venture into this area where several more Western-style period houses have been preserved on the terraced hillsides, which are reached by roads still paved with their original flagstones. The first group of wooden houses you see on the left consists of two neat rows: the lower row houses a photography museum (Tues– Sun 9am–5pm; ¥100) displaying fascinating early photos of Nagasaki, while the Higashi-yamate Museum (same hours; free), second building in the upper row, exhibits Japanese-language materials about the district and efforts to rescue the old buildings.