There are no unsophisticated people who come to the Seto Inland Sea and travel by land from Onomichi to Tomonoura. On the way of sea, you can see a large suspension bridge, a shipyard, and Kannon who prays for maritime safety. However, please note that this cruise ship makes two round trips a day only on weekends and holidays.
Crusing from Onomichi to Tomonoura
cruising1
cruising3 shimanami kaido
cruising4 fishing boat
cruising5 shipyard
cruising6 shipyard dock
cruising7 utsumi ohashi
cruising8 abuto kannon
cruising10
cruising11
cruising12 goal
Well, Tomonoura is located right in the middle of the Seto Inland Sea and was a port of waiting for the tide in the age of ships that depended on the wind and currents. The high tide coming from the east and west channels of the Seto Inland Sea collides offshore, and the force is used to enter the port. When leaving the port to advance offshore, it uses the power of the ebb tide that pulls it to the east and west .
The place where the Korean envoys stopped by still remains, and it is also the place where Japan’s first maritime casualty negotiations occurred between steamships on the late Edo period. Here is the site of a true story in which the Kishu Domain (almost Wakayama prefecture), which was under the control of the shogunate, was defeated by the Kaientai led by Ryoma Sakamoto, according to the World Public Law.
It’s fun to take a leisurely stroll through the nostalgic port town. This is the stage of “Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea” produced by Studio Ghibli. Furthermore,‘Hohmeishu’, sweet sake with Japanese herbs, is famous, but you should also try original sweet sake ‘mirin’ which enhances the flavor of the dish.
tomonoura1 fukuzenn temple
tomonoura2 hohmeishu sake of life
tomonoura3
tomonoura4 allnight lighthouse
tomonoura5 meien temple buddha birthday decoration
It is said that Takehara began when Shimogamo Shrine in Kyoto developed the land based on the law of the Nara period that allowed the land that was cultivated by oneself to be owned by oneself. This law was the beginning of the manor system, and wealth was concentrated in those who had the financial power to cultivate the land by themselves, and it triggered the collapse of the world centered on the emperor.
takehara1
takehara9
takehara8
takehara2 chosei temple
takehara12 golden tree
takehara11
takehara16
Anyway, Takehara has a connection with Kyoto and still retains a townscape called Little Kyoto. Incidentally, the Kamo River, which has the same name as Kyoto, runs through the center of the city. Also, like Kyoto, sake brewing is thriving, and one of its descendants founded Nikka Whiskey in Japan.
takehara13
takehara4 takezuru sake brewery
takehara5 frontier of japanese whisky
takehara6 massann and lita
A feature that is completely different from Kyoto is salt making in salt fields. At that time, 80% of the salt produced in Japan was produced in Hiroshima Prefecture.
Akita is a rice-produching region. Kanto lanterns shining in the night sky represent a bountiful harvest of rice in coming Autumn and praying for an end of epidemics like that Gion Festival in Kyoto prays. It is interesting that many festivals both in Japan and abroad, now and in the past, are held to pray for the warding off of epidemics.
akita kanto1 ready
akita kanto8 music
akita kanto4
akita kanto3 pose
akita kanto2
The kanto hand over the pillars to the next person while adding a piece of pillars, showing an exquisitely balanced pose each time. The completed kanto reaches 12 meters high and weighs 50 kilograms, and the pillars are largely bent. “The boughs that bear most hang lowest.” This really embodies the proverb.
akita kanto7 a child who take out something decoration when the pose is decided
If you want to see Kanto at night, you should reserve a seat in the front row of the median on the main street. It is so powerful that the lanterns collapsing in front of you.
Discover a genius boy mixed with adults! As soon as he strikes an exquisitely balanced pose, he pulls out various projectiles such as fans from his chest and enjoys everyone around him.
During the daytime, the festival holds competition to compete in techniques to support the Kanto in various positions(one hand, forehead, sholder, waist !). Even at night, you should look down, not up.
akita competition2 judge
akita competition9 next players waiting
akita competition3 penalty if the foot is out of circle
akita competition4 experts only move their heels
akita competition6
akita competition7 change position each 30sec
akita competition5
akita competition10
akita competition8 change music also each 30sec
akita competition11 curve max
akita competition12 at least break
Let me briefly explain the rules. use only one hand. Do not go beyond the 6m diameter circle. Change technique according to the signal (every 30 seconds). If playing an instrument, change the tune. In my opinion, good athletes keep their balance by slightly shifting their heels. If you can’t afford to stay overnight in Akita, I recommend you watching the daytime competition.
Lotus flower (Junsai is one of familly) around Akita Castle
Detour
Make sure you have something to eat in advance for a long enjoying. There is a market near the station where you can eat rock oysters from the Oga Peninsula. You can also choose Akita’s famous sake from the list pasted on all over the wall. The fact that “junsai” can be eaten with sake is proof that the water is delicious. “Inaniwa udon” (Japanese noodles), which is eaten in the middle of summer, cools down to the core and releases the summer heat.
Once upon a time, safflower was a big trade product for lipsticks and dyes. Yamagata was famous as a production center, and the decoration of the cap of the Hanagasa Ondo (dance) is safflower. However, the southern part of Miyagi Prefecture was also a safflower production area, and Murata Town became a trading center. Then the merchant who made the fortune set up the warehouse. Historical warehouses remain miraculously because the main railway and road has passed another route.
kenkon-ichi murata
One of these warehouses is now my favorite sake brewery. It was a pity that the day I visited to buy something it was close.
Detour (Togatta Hot Spring overlooking Mt.Zao)
zao mountains from togatta hot spring
There are many really good hot springs around Mt.Zao, Togatta, Aone, Gaga, etc. You can feel free to use the public bath to ease the fatigue of your trip.
aone hot spring on the way to togattaGo back to itinerary
There are a lot of histrical warehouses in Kitakata City. Normaly they are used for storage but here in Kitakata the situation might be different. Warehouse is a living space and a status symbol.
preparation tank of sake
Recently many sake breweries in Aizu have got prizes of sake every year, especially in Kitakata. You can visit and enjoy factory tour, tasting and walk in the garden there. Find your favorite sake in case you are not a driver, otherwise you need a capable navigator of not driving but tasting.
yamatogawa sakebrewery tasting
Floor heating system for winter
melting snow system like floor heating
I happened to see a construction site of a snow melting system for winter. It’s like a floor heating system for a house.
When I got off the approach from Shiogama Shrine, I saw a large warehouse of sake brewery. Since it was founded nearly 300 years ago, it is a company with an even longer history than Kamei, which I visited earlier.
Everywhere Shrines and sake breweries have existed as a pair for a long time, but due to advances in brewing technology, the sake brewery entered a period of great competition, which is a great story for sake lovers. The taste of Daiginjo, which produces a refreshing taste by polishing sake rice to the extreme to remove miscellaneous tastes, becomes similar among any sake brewery without fear of misunderstanding. Therefore, I think that Junmaishu, which does not polish so much rice, represents the taste of the brewery.
Sake production is a complicated process in which a two-step process of saccharification of rice starch with koji and alcoholic fermentation of sugar with yeast is carried out in one barrel. Sufficient alcoholic fermentation of sugar results in dry sake, its current fashion, but it does not retain the umami(rich taste) of rice. On the other hand, sake which often wins the gold medal in the world is not suitable for in-meal liquor because its umami is so distinctive. This balance is difficult, and the true sense of Toji(Master of sake in each brewery) is questioned.
Although wine and sake are common in that they are not distilled, the wine is only fermented of its sugar, so the performance of the grapes harvested is the most important. So vintage is everything. On the other hand, sake is all about delicate manufacturing methods.
If you go back to Uragasumi Sake Brewery, you can buy a small glass, and with this you can have 3 kinds of tasting, so please find the one you like and buy it. However, buying a full bottle here will affect later actions.
Japanese sweets and tea utensils
There is another well-established store here that I want to stop by. It is a Japanese confectionery shop “Tanrokuen” that sells Shihogama. When you put it in your mouth, it melts and you can feel the scent of salt and perilla. As before, shrines and Japanese confectionery shops are paired everywhere. However, it seems that it has made history by changing the industry since the beginning. Speaking of Japanese sweets, Japanese tea is always associated with it, and it is clear that tea utensils are now sold mainly there.
Detour for lunch (Le Nid d’hirondelle in Higashi-Matsushima Town)
Higashi(East)-Matsushima Town has the same place name as “Matsushima”, but because it is off Matsushima Bay with a lot of small islands as a breakwater, it was directly affected by the tsunami of the Great East Japan Earthquake. Although the coastal land became salty and therefore not suitable for cultivation, private company KDDI Evolva, contact center services for telecommunication business, is taking on the challenge of smart agriculture such as high quality tomato production by hydroponics, land restoration and employment of people with disabilities. They are really working on making the situation plus rather than returning it to zero from minus in Nobi district !
A new town is being rebuilt on the opposite bank of the Nobi district, and there is a restaurant worth a detour in it. That is “Le Nid d’hirondelle“.
Since the air base is located in Higashi- Matsushima Town, you could see Blue Impulse training flights sometimes near here.
Crusing from Onomichi to Tomonoura
The place where the Korean envoys stopped by still remains, and it is also the place where Japan’s first maritime casualty negotiations occurred between steamships on the late Edo period. Here is the site of a true story in which the Kishu Domain (almost Wakayama prefecture), which was under the control of the shogunate, was defeated by the Kaientai led by Ryoma Sakamoto, according to the World Public Law.
