Highlight of the year - if I have to pick only one: Uwajima Ushi-oni Matsuri!
We got noisy, we got energetic, we got spectacular, we got festive - and most importantly, we got cows! (link to the scene from Twister)
Taking place each year from the 22nd to the 24th of July, the Uwajima ushi-oni matsuri, or festival of the cow-ogre, the origins of which are disputed, is a big event in Western Shikoku. The three days include fireworks, dancing, bull sumô - in which two bulls are pitted against each other in a more gentle, tug-of-war style fight, apparently they're not supposed to get hurt -, and a big parade of cow-demons!
Around 20 huge wooden effigies start their journey in the city centre, at the foot of the castle hill, and will travel to Warei-jinja, their spiritual home. Well, I say "huge", but there is also a childrens' parade, with the cows and distance adapted to size, as they only go to the end of the covered high street. As shown in the video at the top, several cows will dance together, and all will charge at the priests' stand for blessing. All this, sometimes, with someone riding the cow!
The parade goes down the arcade, out to the station, and back around to finish at Warei park and shrine. Food stands and other amusements are available there, showing that this is a matsuri for the locals to enjoy above all. A few people did talk to me and were very friendly, offering to pose next to the effigies during a break - and possibly hoping I'd help carry them on the next leg, but in that weather, walking around was hard enough!
At the back of the parade is a more solemn procession of two cows. Priests and younger devotees in traditional kimono symbolise the return of the ushi-oni to Warei-jinja, and the closure of the festival takes place along the river at the shrine in the evening. As for the effigies, they are dismantled along the river, having done their job. I don't know if the wood joins the bonfires and new cows are built each year, or if they can be re-used. Either way, at that point I was David Attenborough-ing to myself, "and here we see the end of the ushi-oni's life cycle".
This festival was quite the experience. I had earmarked it as it was taking place while I was in Shikoku, and was not disappointed. I wouldn't go as far as saying "forget the big ones like Nebuta or Gion", as I have seen Gion matsuri and it's definitely worth seeing too, but to anyone really interested in Japanese culture, I'd recommend seeking out one of these smaller-town fetes. But be wary of the talk surrounding overtourism in some places: don't all choose the same one!
Iyo railway’s tram called “Moha 51”(built1951) at Ookaido Station in Matsuyama,Ehime,Japan :松山、大街道駅の伊予鉄市電モハ５１ por Makoto Aoki
Por Flickr:
Ricoh GXR A16 24-85mm
Continued from part 3, for which I should issue an erratum: the Yosan line doesn't split at Matsuyama, but at Iyo-shi (206 km), about 10 km further along. This is also where electrification ends.
The coastal and inland branches reunite at Iyo-Ôzu (250 km officially, using the original coastal route), and the bridge over the river Hiji offers a fine view of Ôzu castle and the hills beyond.
Ôzu castle is a remarkably recent rebuild, completed in 2004, and serves as a museum as well as a hotel. You can have the keep to yourself for a night! Unfortunately, I didn't have the time to visit Ôzu, and the next view is just as frustrating to have not stopped at.
This is Hôkezu bay, seen shortly after Shimo-Uwa (282 km). Seeing the area on the map now, it looks like a fantastic place to visit with great hiking opportunities. Just... you know, not in summer.
Uwajima (298 km) is the end of the Yosan line. There's a castle, apparently a shrine with a massive phallus... but I was there just for one day, and for a specific purpose, that has something to do with Warei-jinja, around than 500 m from the station.
Stats for the Matsuyama~Uwajima via Uchiko section: 100 km in 1 hr 20 min, average speed 75 km/h by Uwakai limited express.
Tadotsu (33 km) is where the Dosan line to the Southern city of Kôchi detaches. The Yosan line, meanwhile, gets very close to the shore, offering some wonderful views of the island-dotted Seto Inland Sea.
Tsushima-no-miya (40 km) serves Tsushima-jinja, a shrine sat on a small island connected to Shikoku by a bridge. To be precise, the station serves Tsushima-jinja's matsuri, which takes place in early August, and thus holds the distinction of being the station in Japan with the shortest opening period - just 2 days a year! The rest of the time, trains just whizz through.
Skipping quite a distance ahead to Iyo-Saijô (114 km), its Shikoku Railway Cultural Center and views of the Ishizuchi mountain range. Not the best view on the day I went, evidently, as clouds cover what I think is Kuromori-yama - at least I want to talk about Kuromori-yama, as the name means "Black Forest"! There is just no getting away from the Schwarzwald!
Nyûgawa (127 km) sees the Yosan line traverse something of a plain. Fields in the foreground, industry in the background, as we approach Imabari, the town at the Shikoku end of the Shimanami Kaidô I have already posted about.
Shimanami Kaidô: the Seto Inland Sea's cycle* route
*Disclaimer: I took the bus.
While the Seto Ôhashi opened in 1988, and is the only road-and-rail link between Honshu and Shikoku, a second road crossing was completed a decade later, between Onomichi in Hiroshima Prefecture, and Imabari in Ehime Prefecture. Unlike the Seto Ôhashi which has a rather direct, straight-line profile, the Shimanami Kaidô Expressway makes smaller hops from one island to the next, and snakes along, constantly looking for the shortest channels.
The expressway is paralleled by a 70 km cycle path, including dedicated lanes on almost every bridge. The exception is the bridge at Onomichi, hence the official Shimanami Kaidô cycle route includes a ferry crossing to Mukaishima, but from there, it's plain riding all the way to Shikoku.
As stated at the start of the post, I did not cycle this route. I planned to visit Imabari in the morning, and take the bus to Fukuyama, with a walk-around at at least one bridge along the way. I stopped at Tatara suspension bridge, on which the border between Hiroshima and Ehime prefectures is situated. There is a service station (which serves ミカンソフト - mandarin ice cream!) and an observation platform. After that, I decided to terminate at Onomichi instead of Fukuyama, getting off the bus on Mukaishima and taking the ferry. Even as an afternoon bus cruise, it was a very satisfying trip, with lots of spectacular Seto Inland seascapes to take in.
Iyo railway's trams at Dogo-Onsen Hot Spring station in the afternoon,Matsuyama,Ehime,Japan：道後温泉駅、午後の伊予鉄市電 por Makoto Aoki
Por Flickr:
GXR A16 24-85mm / This train stop,also known as the doorway to the Dogo Onsen Hot Springs,embodies all the innocent charm of the Meiji Era and stands out admirably as a landmark within the picturesque Hot Springs Resort District.
Iyo railway's trams at Dogo-Onsen Hot Spring station in the afternoon,Matsuyama,Ehime,Japan：道後温泉駅、午後の伊予鉄市電 por Makoto Aoki
Por Flickr:
GXR A16 24-85mm / This train stop,also known as the doorway to the Dogo Onsen Hot Springs,embodies all the innocent charm of the Meiji Era and stands out admirably as a landmark within the picturesque Hot Springs Resort District.
