So that Basho haiku is from the Oku-no-hosomichi where he toured across the Tohoku. That one specifically is about a visit to Hiraiizumi, (recently listed as World Heritage), the site of a ruined capital that briefly rivalled Kyoto in wealth and power. Only a couple of temples remain.
The poem is also used after the climactic final race in Initial D which is a moment that hits hard but is also so goofy