A trio of historic castle towns on the lower end of Japan's Hokuriku region, Fukui, Maruoka and Ōno lie on the northern end of rainy, mountainous Fukui Prefecture. The capital of Edo-period Echizen province, Fukui city was heavily bombed in 1945 and then flattened by an earthquake in 1948. Now an important textile center and rail hub, it is mostly used as a staging post for visiting tourists, though its 2.2km-long row of cherry blossoms along the Asuwa-gawa attracts many visitors in spring. Maruoka - recently absorbed into greater Sakai city - is the site of one of Japan's few remaining original castles, considered by some to have the oldest wooden donjon in the country. Ōno lies an hour's train ride into the mountains southeast of the capital, with an intriguing morning market, reconstructed castle, and atmospheric temple district. Last on my visit in April of 2008 was the eerie basalt cliffs of Tōjinbō, likely the most famous of Fukui-ken's attractions (along with the Zen temple of Eihei-ji) and still a famous site for suicides.