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Zao Onsen
Even if you do not have beautiful facial features, people say you’re beautiful if you have beautiful skin, right? Zao Onsen is very famous for “beauty-making hot spring.” Zao Onsen is located in the southeastern part of Yamagata City, Yamagata Prefecture, at the western foot (elevation 880m) of the Mount Zao range. It has been called “Takayu” for a long time, and it is the old hot spring with major five hot spring groups and 47 hot springs. Its history is more than 1900 years. The hot spring town of Zao Onsen has many hot spring facilities for a day trip, such as public baths and footbaths. So, even if […]
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What are the three conditions for forming Rime on trees?
Tourists come to Zao from all over the world to see Rime on trees! “Rime on trees” is the winter feature of Zao, where is located on the border between Yamagata and Miyagi Prefectures. Rime on trees is the art of nature that can be only seen in a limited area in the world such as Mount Zao, Hakkoda mountains (Aomori Prefecture), Mount Moriyoshi (Akita Prefecture) and so on in Japan. They are called “ice monsters” or “snow monsters” because the shape of trees covered with ice and snow looks like monsters. The core of the Rime on trees is a coniferous tree called “Aomori Todomatsu (Abies mariesii)”. Without this […]
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Abukuma Cave & Irimizu Limestone Cave
I went to the “Irimizu Limestone Cave” where you can explore like the Hiroshi Kawaguchi Expedition in the Wednesday Special. “Abukuma Cave” and “Irimizu Limestone Cave” are limestone caves located in Tamura City, Fukushima Prefecture. Abukuma Cave was discovered in a limestone quarry in 1969 and opened to the public in 1973. Abukuma Cave is an underground space that was created over a long period of 80 million years, the total length of the cave is about 3,300m, of which 720m is open to the public. The number and variety of stalactites created by the groundwater of the limestone cave are said to be No. 1 in the East. Water […]
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Mizukaburi of Yonekawa
The gods dressed like the bagworm with straw wrapped around his body pours buckets of water over houses! In the Yonekawa district of Tome City, Miyagi Prefecture, Hibuse (fire-fighting) event called “Mizukaburi” is held every year on Hatsuuma* day. Hibuse is a custom to ward off fire by using the spiritual power of gods and Buddha to prevent fires, in Japan, there is a legend from ancient times that if it does not rain on Hatsuuma day, there will be many fires. In the villages of the Yonekawa district, the men wearing straw clothes called “Oshime” and straw sandals, smear charcoal on their faces and sprinkle water on the roofs […]
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Basic knowledge of Gassho-zukuri houses
Basic knowledge of Gassho-zukuri houses that you should know before visiting the World Heritage “Historic Villages of Shirakawa-go and Gokayama” In the middle basin of the Sho River, the border between Gifu and Toyama prefectures, there are areas called Shirakawa-go (Shirakawa Village, Gifu Prefecture, part of Takayama City) and Gokayama (part of Nanto City, Toyama Prefecture). <Shirakawa-go / Gokayama area map> In the Shirakawa-go / Gokayama area, there are uniquely shaped thatched houses called “Gassho-zukuri” built between 100 and 400 years ago. There are no Gassho-zukuri thatched houses outside of Shirakawa-go and Gokayama. In 1995, the villages of Ogimachi in Shirakawa-go, Gifu Prefecture, Ainokura and Suganuma in Gokayama, Toyama Prefecture, […]
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Gassho-zukuri houses in Shirakawa-go
The snow-covered Shirakawa-go Gassho-zukuri village felt like going into a world of “Tales of Old Japan.” “Shirakawa-go” is in the upper reaches of the Sho River, which includes the northwestern part of Gifu Prefecture (adjacent to Toyama and Ishikawa Prefectures), the western edge of the Hida region, Shirakawa Village, and the Shokawa District of Takayama City (former Shokawa Village). Sometimes “Shirakawa-go” simply refers to Shirakawa Village. The Sho River is a steep mountainous area from the midstream to the upper stream, so it was an isolated and unexplored region with inconvenient transportation until the middle of the 20th century (1950s) when power generation dams such as the Miboro Dam were […]
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Gassho-zukuri houses in Gokayama
Gokayama may give you the impression of a peaceful and original Japanese landscape, but it was actually a military base where gunpowder was produced under the floors of Gassho-zukuri houses! “Gokayama” is a deep and rugged mountainous region located in the middle reaches of the Sho River, at the southwest tip of Toyama Prefecture (the border between Gifu Prefecture and Ishikawa Prefecture). Gokayama is a general term for 40 small villages and it is called Gokayama because it has 5 valleys (“go” means five and “yama” means mountain in Japanese). In Gokayama, there is a legend (end of the 12th century) that Heike refugees who were defeated by Yoshinaka Kiso […]
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Cormorant fishing
I don’t know how the cormorants feel, but I think they probably enjoy catching fish. Rather, humans are more attentive so that the cormorants can catch fish comfortably. Cormorant fishing is a traditional fishing method that uses trained cormorants to catch river fish such as sweetfish (ayu). Cormorant fishing is called “Ukai” in Japanese. Cormorant fishing has a long history, with clay figures depicting cormorant fishing excavated from ancient tombs in Gunma Prefecture dating back to the 5th and 6th centuries. Cormorant fishing is mentioned in Japan’s oldest history books, “Kojiki” and “Nihon Shoki”, and in the Chinese history book “Suishu (Book of Sui)” (7th century), cormorant fishing in Japan […]
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Cormorant fishing on the Nagara River.
Nobunaga Oda, Ieyasu Tokugawa, Basho Matsuo, and Chaplin praised cormorant fishing on the Nagara River. From May 11th to October 15th, cormorant fishing, a traditional fishing method that has been practiced for over 1,300 years, is held on the Nagara River in Gifu Prefecture every year. Cormorant fishing on the Nagara River takes place at two locations, Cormorant fishing in Gifu City is called “Nagaragawa Ukai (Nagaragawa Cormorant Fishing)”, and cormorant fishing in Seki City is called “Oze Ukai (Oze Cormorant Fishing)”. Cormorant fishing is called Ukai in Japanese. Nagaragawa Ukai and Oze Ukai are the only cormorant fishing in Japan that is used by the Imperial Family. The 8 […]
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Gifu Castle on Mt. Kinka
From Gifu Castle, I looked at the beautiful scenery that both Nobunaga Oda and Dosan Saito might have seen. Gifu Castle, located in Gifu City, Gifu Prefecture, is on the top of Mount Kinka (329 meters above sea level). It is a mountain castle with a history dating back to the Kamakura period (13th century) and was once called Inabayama Castle. During the Warring States Period (16th century), the castle was the residence of Dosan Saito, known as the “Mamushi of Mino.” In 1567, Nobunaga Oda conquered Inabayama Castle of the Saito family, and when he conquered this area, the name of the place was changed from “Inokuchi” to “Gifu.” […]
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Hanibe Gankutsuin
Any business owner having trouble attracting customers should visit Hanibe Gankutsuin! The business sense of the second-generation abbot who transformed it from an earnest temple praying for world peace into an odd tourist attraction! Hanibe Gankutsuin, located in Komatsu City, Ishikawa Prefecture, is a cave temple famous for its giant Buddha head and the hell tour in the cave. This unique cave is built from 1951 by two generations of sculptors (father and son). The cave itself has been recognized as a “Japanese Heritage” by the Agency for Cultural Affairs, partly because it was a valuable stone quarry during the Edo period. The cave is approximately 150 meters long. Inside […]
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Masuhoura Beach with the World’s Longest Bench
After picking up cherry shells at Masuhoura Beach in Ishikawa Prefecture, sit on the World’s Longest Bench and watch the beautiful sunset. About an hour and a half from Kanazawa toward Noto, Masuhoura Beach is located in Shika Town, Ishikawa Prefecture, which is called Nishi-Noto on the Noto Peninsula. It is also known as a scenic spot called Noto Kongo, created by the rough waves of the Sea of Japan, a beach with beautiful sunsets, and a beach with the “World’s Longest Bench.” Along with Yuigahama Beach in Kanagawa Prefecture and Wakaura in Wakayama Prefecture, Masuhoura Beach is also famous for the many small shells that wash up on the […]