Ise City Tourist Information English Blog

On Saturday night, August 7th, Ise City will be a little brighter as the city will hold a candle festival along the Seta River. Candles will be placed along the river for a stretch of about 10 kilometers through Ise City.

Traditionally, the Seta River was a lifeline for the people of Ise City when waterways were more common modes of transportation and delivery. But after people, goods and services began using alternate methods of movement, the Seta River became a place of refuse rather than a vital part of the local economy.

In recent years, however, Ise City and a legion of volunteers have tried to get this river back its position of prominence. And it has worked! The water quality has increased and the river’s inhabitants have been flourishing. The effort to restore the Seta River continues on and on and the Candle Night event is one way people are recognizing the efforts that have been made and also part of their dream to make the Seta River a vital part of the city again.

The Candle Festival will feature all the wonderful sights, sounds, and flavors of a usual summer festival in Japan—food, drink and lots of laughs.

To take part in the celebration, head toward to Kawasaki district in Ise City (please see the map). It is only a few minutes walk from either Ujiyamada or Ise City train stations. Once you are in Kawasaki, you can’t miss it.

The candles will be lighted at 17:30 and should burn about 5 to 6 hours—plenty of time for everyone to fill their bellies and rejuvinate their spirits! Tell all your friends to join you and I hope to see you there!

There will be a firework festival in Ise City on Saturday July 17 along the Miya River. If you are visiting Ise around on Saturday, please check it out—they are usually pretty good. The details are as follows:

“58th Miyagawa Firework Festival”

Date: July 17, Saturday
(If there is heavy rain, high winds or the river is too high because of excessive rain, the festival will be postponed until July 18th or July 19th. In the case that none of these days are suitable, the festival will be rescheduled to either September 11th or 12th.)

Time: approximately 19:25 to approximately 21:15.

How to get there:
There will be a shuttle bus from both Ujiyamada Station (Bus Stop #3) and Ise-City Station (Bus Stop #2) to the festival location for ¥180 (adults) and ¥90 (kids) between 17:00 and 19:30. Return trips will run from the festival location back to both train stations beginning from 20:00. The shuttle will depart every 30 minutes.

Where to watch:
There is free space along the river near Miyagawa Tsutsumi Park where anyone can watch for free. If you are interested in watching from their special sheeted area, you need to buy a ticket in advance. For further information about that, please check this site (sorry, Japanese only).

I wish I could say, “see you there…” but sadly and Ironically, I have to be away from Ise because my dog is very afraid of fireworks!

The rainy season has officially begun. And it is around this time that we start feeling hot and humid and collectively become aware of the fact that that summer is upon us.

Being the sweet lover that I am, whenever I experience the first days of summer weather, my mind immediately wanders to the many summer treats that can temporarily beat the heat! But there is one particular seasonal sweet that stands above the rest—Akafuku Gori. This summer treat is made by the famous sweet maker, Akafuku, located near Naiku Shrine.

Akafuku Gori is made by pouring a special green tea syrup over shaved ice and Akafuku’s original Akafuku-mochi (mashed sweet beans and pounded sticky rice). The combination of flavors is the perfect remedy for the hot and humid Japanese summer!

This is one sweet that I highly recommend to try when you are visiting the Naiku and Okageyokocho area. You won’t find this treat anywhere else in Japan—this is an Ise original. It is only ¥500 and worth every bit. And it is usually big enough to share.

You can find more information about Akafuku on their English website:

http://www.akafuku.co.jp/english/akafukumochi.html

I just received some information from the Ise City government about parking and driving near Naiku and Geku during the coming Golden Week (4/29 ~ 5/5). Getting impending driving restrictions within Ise City is a pretty clear indication of what’s to come—lots of people and lots of cars! If you are traveling to Ise during the upcoming Golden Week, I highly recommend you use public transportation. But if you are traveling by car, please make sure to heed the traffic information found at the linked HP below. Many roads are going to be closed during the week within Ise-city and you need to expect long lines for parking. Here is the detailed information about traffic and parking situation during this GW week in Ise city (sorry, Japanese only):

http://www.city.ise.mie.jp/icity/browser?ActionCode=content&ContentID=1238380132496&SiteID=0000000000000

Also, I am really happy to share that some of my friends will have an open house at an atelier (Neo Umeda, a picture above) in the Kawasaki area during Golden Week. They will be welcoming anyone who is looking for more information about Ise and the surrounding area. They describe themselves as a kind of unofficial Ise tourism information spot where they will be looking forward to meeting some travelers and locals alike to share and exchange local knowledge about what they feel are some of the underrated local spots in Ise. Food and drinks won’t be served, but you are welcome to take along your own food and drinks if you like. Some local souvenirs and goods will be sold. And I just bet you will encounter some of very interesting people, which would be the ultimate souvenir when visiting Ise.

Place: Neo Umeda, Kawasaki, Ise-city
Open: April 29 & 30, and May 1 through 4
Time: 10:00~17:00 (.. though, we may not be around all the time.)
Map:

For more detailed information, click here (Sorry, Japanese Only):
http://takeshinakatani.jp/umeda/newsplan/sakasa.html

This shot was taken this morning (April 6) looking toward the Oharai-dori and Okage-yoko areas, near Naiku. The Sakura (cherry blossom) is a day or two past peak but are still very beautiful! I personally like this part of the season because the blossom petals fall from the trees like snowflakes.

If you are visiting the Naiku area and if you have time, I recommend going after sunset since some of the area is illuminated and very pretty. Nighttime offers viewers a cozier and more festive experience, since at night, the area is a bit livelier with many vendors selling drinks and snacks.

If the weather is nice in the coming days, some of the blossoms might last another week or so.  Wherever you are in Japan, I hope you are enjoying this beautiful season.

If you are visiting Japan in the springtime, you may be lucky enough to visit during cherry blossom season, the annual and somewhat unofficial symbol of spring. I don’t know the exact reason why, but traditionally, Japanese people go a little crazy around sakura season. We love to see cherry trees, photograph them, have parties under them, buy things that have cherry blossom pictures pasted on them and even take long journeys to discover them.

If you have visited Japan in the springtime or if this spring marks your first visit, you will find a huge array of goods and meals that are packaged in pink, the color that represents the sakura blossoms. We just go crazy about anything and everything related to sakura and if you have been here in the spring before, you know what I mean.
Ise, of course, is no exception. There are many of these annual works of art along the Isuzu River if you are visiting Naiku. Or if you are traveling by car, another wonderful place is along the Miya River near Miyagawa Tsutsumi Park (宮川堤公園). I will post a link to an Ise City map that can help you with specifics and for more detailed information, I recommend a google or yahoo map to really zoom in on where to go.

http://www.ise-kanko.jp/english/html/map/map.html

Many of the shops and restaurants in Ise offer special goods and meals for this season. The Okage-yokocho area near Naiku usually closes down by 5 o’clock in the evening but during this season and, perhaps, until the middle of April depending on the weather, some areas along the Isuzu River are lighted in the evening giving visitors the chance for some beautiful viewing after sundown. The following link is in Japanese, but you can see a few images in order to get a better understanding of what I am writing about!

http://www.okageyokocho.co.jp/html/sakuramaturi.html
Some of cherry blossoms in Ise have already bloomed but we are certainly not at the peak just yet. If you are visiting Japan or hopefully Ise in the next few weeks, please enjoy this beautiful and very “Japanese” season! I hope to post more sakura pictures in the coming days.

If you find yourself looking for a good bowl of Japanese soba (buckwheat noodles) in the Okage-yokocho area near Naiku Shrine, I highly recommend “Saiya” for a great lunchtime or early evening meal. They offer a handful of different soba dishes to choose from but if you are like me, they all will look good. I have many favorites and it is always hard for me to choose when I make the trek for lunch.

Saiya’s menu is only in Japanese but if you like tempura and soba, I recommend, “Tenmori-Seiro” which comes with a seasonal fried fish and cold soba noodles. Or, if you want something a little lighter, I recommend, “Seiro” which is cold soba noodles served with wonderfully rich stock to dip your noodles in.

Of course, if you are traveling with someone with Japanese ability, there are a variety of delicious dishes to choose from and from my own experience, all are good. And I’m not the only one that finds Saiya appealing and because of that, it is usually filled with locals and visitors alike so I recommend getting there as early as possible since they close up shop when they are out of stock.

Saiya is located on Route 23 in Ise City near the Naiku-mae bus stop (please see the map) and is open from 11:00 to 17:00. But please note, they are closed every Wednesday and the last Tuesday of each month.

They do have a website but it’s only in Japanese. However, if you take a look, you could get a better feel of the restaurant.

http://www.amigo2.ne.jp/~saiya/

I hope you enjoy it.

I purchased and watched a great DVD this week that focuses on the philosophy of sustainability that is practiced within Ise Jingu and by many of the people in the local community. The customs and traditions of Ise Jingu have been consistently followed for at least 2000 years. This is an amazing fact and definitely something you don’t see in many other places around the world.

The DVD has English subtitles and some English voiceover so English speaking viewers can definitely understand the message throughout the 30 minute movie. Besides beautiful scenes of Ise Jingu and the surrounding natural landscape, the DVD talks about how Ise Jingu started and how people have continually carried out the traditions and culture of sustainability within the shrine.

The DVD is available at “Circle K” convenience stores in Ise City for 500 yen. Also, the DVD is region-free, so it would make a great souvenir to remember your time in Ise City.

The following pictures are just a sampling of what you can see at Kawasaki Shoninkan in the Kawasaki district of Ise City. In addition to the things in the pictures, visitors can see traditional living spaces and private storage where you can really get a feeling of how wonderfully vibrant this place used to be. I highly recommend taking a tour with a guide. When I visited last week, a sweet young lady, Yuka Sugiki showed me around and her English and her information was great! So if you need English translation, please ask for her when you request an English guide!

This is one of their patios:

This is the view from their tea room:

The factory area, which is now used as a museum:

This is a seasonal display called Hina Ningyo, traditional dolls displayed to celebrate girls festival on March 3rd.

Here again, is some information about their hours and pricing;

The museum is open daily from 10:00 AM through 5:00 PM with the exception of Tuesday (or Wednesday when Tuesday is a public holiday). The cost is 300 yen for adults, 200 yen for college students and 100 yen for primary and middle school students. There is a volunteer guide service (Japanese and English) available but must be requested in advance. For more information, please give them a call at 0596-22-4810 or e-mail to machishu@e-net.or.jp.

Ise Kawasaki Shouninkan (pictured by Yuka Sugiki) is a historical structure built about 100 years ago that now holds the somewhat tucked away Kawasaki museum located about 10 minutes north of Ise and Ujiyamada train stations by foot.

Ise Kawasaki Shoninkan, once called Ogawa Saketen, was a liquor wholesaler established about 300 years ago and continued to do business up until 1999. Along with several other wholesalers in Kawasaki, their businesses were driven by Kawasaki’s prime location next to the Seta River. At one time, Kawasaki was a thriving port city, welcoming ships carrying all kinds of goods from all over Japan.

Ise was once filled with wholesalers and wholesalers’ storehouses, filled with goods and provisions that supplied the local area. However, after World War II, transportation methods moved away from traditional waterway shipping and moved toward more modern ways, namely roads. This spelled the ultimate downturn for Kawasaki’s influence as a port city.

In 1999, Ogawa Saketen, closed its doors after over 300 years of doing business in Kawasaki. In the wake of the closing, plans were drawn up to knock down the traditional building that housed the business for generations.

However, not wanting the building fall to the wrecking ball, Ogawa Saketen donated the building and the city of Ise city bought the land it sat on in order to restore the old buildings and turn it into a museum of Kawasaki and its shining port city past.

In 2002, that plan was realized when Kawasaki Shoninkan opened it’s doors and now stands as the symbol of Kawasaki. Rich in local history, it’s a local jewel—a place where you can get a great sense of how Ise used to be.

The museum is open daily from 10:00 AM through 5:00 PM with the exception of Tuesday (or Wednesday when Tuesday is a public holiday). The cost is 300 yen for adults, 200 yen for college students and 100 yen for primary and middle school students. There is a volunteer guide service (Japanese and English) available but must be requested in advance. For more information, please give them a call at 0596-22-4810 or e-mail to machishu@e-net.or.jp.