1698年，日本著名的徘句诗人松尾芭蕉在《奥的细道》里说，他在奥羽狭窄或根本无路可循的“路上”，徒步游历5个月，历尽千辛万苦，他感叹：“我不如到世界的尽头！”
　　受到芭蕉的启示，2006年仲夏时节，我们在日本罗森公司安田勋先生的陪同下，驾车在奥羽地区兜了一圈，行程2000多公里。
　　奥羽地区在日本本州岛东北，包括青森、岩手、宫城、秋田、山形和福岛6个县。这里巍峨的奥羽山脉纵横全境，形成一条火山脊柱，险峻的峡谷、飞泻的瀑布、翻腾的急流、美丽的火山湖、天然的温泉、传统的文化，古朴的景色。在总面积67000平方公里的土地上，分布约1000万人口，相对来说这是日本发展较慢的地区。我们曾在日本工作多年，但从未游历过奥羽，这次抱着猎奇心情，想在这“世界的尽头”看个究竟。
　　
　　米泽秀美大庭园
　　6月15日，多次访问过奥羽地区的安田先生，驾驶配有卫星定位导航装置的银色小汽车从东京出发，经琦玉、枥木、福岛3个县，抵达了面向日本海的山形县。经过最上峡时，我们眺望了晶莹透亮的白丝瀑布，静听绿荫深处潺潺的流水声；在平坦的公路两旁，又观赏了米泽盆地上的大片西洋梨和樱桃树。安田说，这里不仅出产上好的大米，水果也极丰富，樱桃产量占日本第一、葡萄第二、苹果第三；啤酒花与红花产量也居日本第一位；米泽虽是座10万人口的小城，却素有“日本人心中的故乡”之称，每年迎来400多万游客。最上川是日本国家级的观光地，芭蕉名句中描绘“五月雨蒙蒙，朝游最上川”。
　　米泽市这个历史悠久、景色秀丽的城市，是日本家喻户晓的米泽藩主上杉鹰山的故乡。上杉城堡庞大的建筑群是米泽市的中心，四周的寺院为防御的据点，放眼望去，古城原貌尽现：街道上有白色库房与带有防风雪围墙的店铺和作坊，不远处用茅草盖顶的房子鳞次栉比，绿油油的五加树形成天然篱笆，小道幽径蜿蜒曲折。街道耸立的石碑上刻着上杉公的诗：“霜满军营秋气清，数行过雁月三更；越山拚得能州景，遮莫家乡忆远征。”这首七律再现了昔日米泽城堡的烽火。
　　安田要我们去品尝与日本神户牛肉、松坂牛肉齐名的米泽牛肉，这美味得益于这里的气候、土壤、水质和饲养方法。米泽牛肉名不虚传，鲜美香嫩，但价格不菲。安田介绍说，明治初期一位在米泽当教师的英国人达拉斯回横滨时，深感这里的牛肉味鲜美，于是带去一头米泽牛供朋友们品尝，大家对这美味赞叹不已。
　　
　　山崎净土海岸情
　　我们在日本著名渔港北山崎领略了被誉为“日本最美的海岸”风光。那波澜不惊的海水浩淼无垠直上云天，海岸青松翠柏风光无限，那太平洋怒涛雕凿成的岩礁和洞穴，是大自然的杰作。最让人惊叹的是这里连绵8公里的悬崖断壁，它犹如一幅宽银幕似的壮丽画卷，被人们称为“海上阿尔卑斯山”。
　　从北山崎向南沿海岸公路前行，我们到达了名闻遐迩的“净土之滨”，它在日本本州岛的最东端。300多年前日本名僧灵镜称赞这里是“极乐净土”。乘游览船沿海岸航行，只见白森森、亮晶晶的粗面岩石，像恐龙牙齿般此起彼伏地裸露在海边的小岛上。在净土之滨的白色沙滩上，满眼是翠绿树林、湛蓝海面，那追逐游轮飞舞和觅食的海鸥，构成了一幅和谐、圣洁的风景画。
　　从宫古岛向南行驶，我们到达了与天桥立、宫岛齐名的“日本三景”之一的松岛。这里自古以来就是日本的旅游胜地，它有大鹰森的“壮观”、富山的“丽观”、扇谷的“幽观”和多闻山的“伟观”，有雄岛夕照、瑞严晚钟、霞浦归雁、盐釜暮烟等“八景”引人入胜。芭蕉诗人曾在这里流连忘返，赞颂松岛是“扶桑第一好光风”。
　　
　　
　　温泉魅力健身心
　　泡温泉是日本旅游的重要项目，在奥羽的7天旅程中，我们在5处各具特色的地方洗了温泉浴。
　　第一天夜宿古色古香的日式泷波宾馆，这里有已经开发了900多年的赤汤温泉。这浴室是用天然素材木石建造的，池内有小巧玲珑的木枕，人们可以舒适地躺在室内的泉水里泡浴，也可以上露天浴池。露天浴池是由一整块巨石凿成的，人坐在温泉中，可以尽情享受这份柔情似水的静谧。这里的温泉有丰富的矿物质，水稍带咸味，这对治疗肠胃病、皮肤病、神经痛很有效。
　　第二天夜泊志户平，这座别致的旅馆在绿树成荫的山麓小溪边，服务小姐轻声慢语笑脸相迎，听说秋田出美女，这些典雅的服务员还真是秋田人，温柔又漂亮。日高见汤温泉池中，歌声婉转飘荡，人们在咕咕泛着气泡的按摩池里尽情泡浴，真的好舒心！
　　6月18日，在净土之滨的白滨旅馆投宿，宽敞的日式套房，给人以许多温馨和舒适。晚餐后，在卧室外濒临大海、绿树围绕着的露天风吕（浴池），我们便又在温泉池中戏耍，享受着闲云野鹤般的潇洒。
　　第五天住在松岛好风亭旅馆，透过明亮的窗户，松岛湾美丽小岛一览无余。晚餐后，我们又去小松好风亭大浴场。安田先生告诉我们：700多年前京都就有大众浴室，400多年前东京也有了。当时日本男女同在一个大众浴池里洗澡，直到1870年日本颁布了全国混浴禁止令，才结束历史悠久的混浴习俗。但在露天风吕，仍有男女一起泡温泉的浪漫。
　　第六天住在饭坂的聚乐饭店，在洋溢着淡淡硫磺味的露天温泉泡浴，疲劳很快消失。在室内人造的苍翠似伞的“温泉森林”里，真是心旷神怡。正在此时，突然一束耀眼的闪电、一阵轰隆的雷声从温泉顶袭来，大家一惊，仿佛自己即将置身于狂风暴雨之中。然而这是一场虚惊，原来这是饭坂庭园温泉室内“人工雷电”的杰作。
　　
　　Ou Mountains:Japanese End of the World
　　By Zhu Ronggen, Zhao Ruiyun
　　
　　
　　In 1698, the famed Japanese haiku poet Matsuo Basho roamed in the Ou Mountains for five months. He was both intoxicated with the breathtaking sceneries in his adventures and tortured by the desolate wilderness in the mountains. Mentioning the grueling hiking on trails and pathless wilderness in an essay later, the poet sighed with feeling: “I’d rather go to the end of the world!?Inspired by the haiku poet’s masterpieces about the mountain area and this particular comment, we traveled across the Ou Mountains in the summer of 2006. The 2,000-kilometer-long car journey took us through Aomori, Iwate, Miyagi, Akita, Yamagata and Fukushima, the six prefectures spreading across the mountain range. We witnessed the breathtaking beauty of the volcano peaks, precipitous valleys, cascading waterfalls, sparkling streams, crater lakes, hot springs, and cultural sites. The 67,000-square-kilometer area, home to more than 10 million people, had maintained its ancient beauty and culture and less developed. Though we had worked in Japan for years, we had never visited the Ou Maintains. Our purpose was to satisfy our curiosity about the poeticized end of the world.
　　
　　Guided by Mr. Yasuda who had visited the mountains several times before and a GPS-navigation system, we set out from Tokyo. Since the modern means of transportation saved us from hiking hardships the poet had experienced centuries before, we enjoyed the long journey.
　　Our first stop was Yamagata Prefecture facing the Japan Sea. The prefecture is a major fruit producer of Japan and we saw fruit trees along the highway. Yonezawa, capital city of the prefecture and home to a population of 100,000, is regarded as the spiritual hometown of all Japanese. It attracts 4 million visitors a year. The Uesugi clan which ruled the city for 270 years and brought prosperity there had a castle in the city’s downtown. The castle was surrounded by temples which once served as fortresses guarding the castle. A visit to the castle and the temples brought us back to the past glory of the clan. The Mogami River is a state-designated tourist destination of Japan. Matsuo Basho wrote a poem eulogizing the rainy scenes of the river he witnessed in an early morning. The beef in the city is delicious. For many tourists a beef dinner is a must.
　　
　　Kitayamazaki boasts Japan’s most fascinating coastline. The day we were there, we saw the sea stretching toward the clouds and sky at the horizon. Verdant pine forests shone charms along the coast, where reefs and caves, sculpted by the seething tides of the Pacific Ocean, highlighted the wonders of nature. The most spectacular beauty, of course, was an 8-kilometer-long wall of towering craggy cliffs. Like a grand picture, the cliffs are famed as the Alps on the Sea. Driving south from Kitayamazaki to the easternmost tip of Honshu Island of Japan, we reached the Pure Land, a place named by an accomplished Japanese monk more than 300 years ago. The name fits and clings. Taking a dreamlike cruise along the coast, we saw glistening white rocks featuring themselves like dinosaurs?fangs. The Pure Land presented a holy picture of white beaches, lush woods, azure sea and sea gulls circling tourists?boats.
　　Bathing in hot springs is always an attraction in tours around Japan. We bathed in five hot springs during our seven-day journey in the Ou Mountains. Every bathing we took was an education about the country’s luxury, folk style, and history.
　　(Translated by David)