Akita: Third Port Stop
In order to get into town, I purchased a shuttle ticket through the ship “Shore Excursion” department. With a little research, I learned that there is really nothing to do in the immediate port area. The shuttle purchase made perfect sense. Dropped off at the Castle Hotel, I walked across the street and followed the sounds of music and people talking on the microphone. Decorated with strings of red lanterns, this festive event had dancing, food booths and unique arts and crafts.
Across the street from the colorful event, was Senshu Park. Located just outside the park, this moat is filled with lotus flowers in the summer and frozen solid in the winter. Considering I am visiting at an in between time, the lotus are not present. Still beautiful, the high rises in the back are a stark contrast to the lush greenery on the outskirts of the park.
With a goal of supporting artistic expression, the Akita City Cultural Creation Centre serves as a hub for programs, workshops and spaces for community engagement. On this particular day, the grounds of the centre offered a venue to celebrate the culture of Japan. Officially, the holiday is in two days but there have been pockets of festivals all around this area.
Open to tourists and locals, a booth was set up selling tickets for an opportunity to balance the Kanto (large lantern structures). Officially lifted with the palms, foreheads, shoulders or lower backs, each row of lanterns has a special meaning.
The Kanto pictured is a youth sized that is easier to balance. With 24 lanterns, this size is easier to balance and often used for teaching or giving people the experience. The official Kanto is nine tiers with 46 lanterns.
Top Level (The Spiritual Focus)
The Gohei: At the very apex of the 12 meter bamboo pole sits strips of paper called Gohei, which serves as traditional Shinto offerings to the Gods
The Balancing Point: This top tier is where the sashite (the performers balancing the poles) fix their eyes to guage wind resistance and maintain the center of gravity
The First Tier of Lanterns (The Celebrations)
The Second Tier of Lanterns (The Heritage)
The Lower Tiers (The Harvest and Prosperity)
When traveling, it’s always fun to wander upon an unexpected special moment or event. On this day, I got to see the Kanto balancing AND taiko drumming. The history of the drumming stretches back over 700 years! Initially, drums were used to replicate the sound of thunder… hoping God would please God and bring rain during severe droughts.
The booming vibration was also used to scare away birds, insects and wild animals from the community’s vital crops. Eventually, the beating of drums became a competition. Another interesting tidbit… Many Japanese explain the rhythm of a taiko drum mimics the very first sound a human ever hears.. the steady thumping of a mother’s heartbeat while in the womb. This is why the sound often feels comforting, primal and deeply moving.
Another type of lantern is the “Stone Lantern”. This one is found inside the Senshu Park. Initially a castle was built on this land by a Samurai clan. That explains the moat around the outside… it protected the castle. Long gone, there still stands a watch tower and a museum. The park includes many artifacts and foliage.
The grounds of this park… nothing short of stunning. A Japanese flair in the landscaping design. This was another day of expected rain that actually ended up clear. Thank goodness because it was so relaxing to stroll throughout the park. Though I am exploring alone, I do not feel lonely in the least. There is so much to see and the experience uses all the sense. Smelling the foods, the flowers and city scents. Obviously, visual is a big part of this. Feeling, tasting… it’s just a special day!
Akita Prefecture is the birthplace of the Akita Inu, one of Japan’s most loved dog breeds. The Akita is the only large-sized dogs of the native breeds. There are four distinct colors of this beautiful furry dog: the most common is red with white markings, next is the “Brindle” which is striped patterns that look kind of like a tiger. My favorite is the pure white and elegant! There is also the “Sesame” which is red with black shading. This one is quite rare… I almost got to see one, but it was in the back play area.
The breed was near extinction during World War II because of food shortages. Because of their loyal and dignified demeanor, an effort was made to preserve the breed. From only 40 dogs to 40,000 in the seventies, the population is once again declining with only 1,800 registered Akita.
Senshu Park is well manicured with pathways and benches throughout. There is a wide-open grassy area right in the middle. The trees were bursting with fall colors. Walking down the lane, I decided to stop and take a selfie to show that I was really in Akita, at the Senshu Park. :-)
Here is the same area without me blocking the view!
After strolling through the park for several hours, I crossed over the moat and back toward the city. This is such a Shangri-La in the middle of a busy city. Many of the local people enjoy nature… sitting on the benches. Some are deep in thought, others read and just enjoy the beauty and serenity.
Taking a closer look at the colors, it is just beginning to turn. Because we are circling Mainland Japan, we will experience the changing colors at all different stages. This cruise is called the Grand Circle Fall Foliage tour. Despite its name, it seems we have missed the peak color splashes. With creating these itineraries so far in advance, it is difficult to predict when the changing season will occur. However, so far, this has been an amazing experience… one I definitely want to do again!
On the right bank sits the Akita Senshu Museum of Art. I’ll have to explore that on my next visit. The outdoors was too enjoyable to spend hours indoors. That should be saved for a rainy day!
Time to head back to the ship. Across the pond and street is a building with flags in front. This is where I catch the ship shuttle bus. So easy! Not sure what I was nervous about… traveling alone has been quite easy so far! Although, I am looking forward to doing this with Barry and friends in the future. It is too special to be missed! Sayonara Akita!
