IWATE, Oct. 4 – “Chagu Chagu Umakko” is a traditional event to appreciate farm horses in Iwate Prefecture. For the past two years, it was canceled due to Covid-19, leaving a heavy burden on the horse owners. However, the event returned this year backed by a crowdfunding (CF) platform. “With or without the festivals, we must feed the animals. It costs 200,000 yen per month to feed one, and some colleagues had no choice but to sell the horses,” said Noboru Otsubo, an 84-year-old owner of 14 horses in Takizawa City. For every horse owner, it’s an honor to have his/her horses participate in the event, but the number of … Continue reading →

OKAYAMA, Oct. 3 – The city of Maniwa in Okayama Prefecture is known as Japan’s largest breeding area for Jersey milk cows, raising 2,000 such cows, about 20% of those reared nationwide. Brown cows can be seen grazing peacefully in the 40-hectare pastures in the Hiruzen Highlands, located in the northern part of the city at an altitude of 550 to 650 meters. The Jersey is a breed of dairy cattle from Jersey, the largest island of the British Channel Islands. They have brown hair and are characteristically friendly. Because Jerseys are smaller in size than Holstein cows and produce less milk, they are rare in Japan, occupying less than … Continue reading →

HIROSHIMA, Sept. 27 – “Mibu no Hana Daue (Taue)” in Kita Hiroshima, Hiroshima Prefecture, was inscribed in 2011 on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. About a dozen cows powerfully help plow a rice field while a dengaku troupe with traditional musical instruments and saotome rice planting maidens perform the ancient rice planting rite. Usually, over 6,000 people gather to see the event. However, the locals decided to have it without spectators this year. “We could lead the cows safely, although we couldn’t practice enough due to the COVID-19,” Mitsugi Shiramasa, the 53-year-old head of Oasa-kazari-ushi Hozonkai (a local group for preserving the rite), said. … Continue reading →

KAGAWA, Sept. 23 – Hyoge Matsuri, a festival to give thanks for the blessing of water and pray for a rich harvest, was held in the Asano district of Takamatsu, Kagawa Prefecture, in mid-September. Around 160 local residents, wearing eccentric makeup and dressed as vegetables, paraded for some 2 kilometers in the district. The festival, named after a word “hyogeru” from the local Sanuki dialect which means to clown around, has a history of more than 300 years. It was resumed this year after being canceled two years in a row due to the spread of COVID-19. The event had been organized by a preservation group made up of local … Continue reading →