2012 Tazawako Kogen Snow Festival [Highlight]

The 2012 Tazawako Kogen Snow Festival took place over the weekend, February 17 – 19 at Tazawako Ski Area. Despite the uneasy weather, many people visited from far cities and enjoyed the last snow festival in Semboku City!

Let’s remember this year’s event in the photos. The followings are the highlights of each day:

Friday, February 17th

At 17:00 – The festival was started with a memorable ceremony. This year was the first held after the Great East Japan Earthquake in March 2011. To remind us of such memorable occurrence that united us all in Tohoku, a number of candles were lit in a shape of Tohoku.



Candle Lanterns in shape of Tohoku and a word of Kizuna ("Solidarity")

 

The center circle is our Lake Tazawa!

 

Hand-made with recycled cans with wishes of local residents and Miyagi students.



"Tohoku Recovery", "World Peace"





Each lantern was hand-made with recycled aluminum can by the hands of local people and Tohoku Gakuin Junior High School students from Miyagi Prefecture. They embedded special messages, especially related to the Tohoku area’s recovery and reconstruction. The Junior High School Students, later, released their kamifusen balloons with their wishes written to reaching for the sky. 

We couldn’t help but felt personal as a member of the Tohoku community!

At 18:00 – At the stage, the lighting ceremony was held, at which the snow sculptors were awarded. Also, free sake and amasake were given to the guests to commemorate the annual event.



These snowmen will be shown for 2 months on
NHK Educational Channel's popular program, Nihongo-de-Asobo! 

The first place was a team of local green tourism organization, Fureai Kyogikai.

The illuminated snow castle looked just like out of a fantasy world! Very beautiful!

From 18:00 to 21:00 – Food tents were open with lots of warm and delicious foods. These tents were open through the 3-day event.

 



Many different types of foods:
Bear soup, Stone-baked Sweet Potatoes, Spiral-shaped fried potatoes,
broiled Japanese char, Akita's signature Kiritanpo,
"Tornado sausages", Takoyaki, Yakitori, Spicy ramen noodle soup, and lottery for prizes!

Saturday, February 18th

At 13:00 – Treasure Hunt in the Snow was held for the daytime attraction! The rule was pretty simple: You choose a rope and pull when it is cued. Your treasure ranged from a pair hotel ticket, a buffet ticket, bathing powder packets, candies, and beers (lucky if you are an adult)! Not only the children but also adults participated in the game and had a great time!

The golden kunimasu fish is the first prize -- a pair hotel ticket at Kyukamura Nyuto Onsenkyo

 

Meanwhile, near the food tents, Tazawako Ski School gave a surprise mochi-pounding activity! Steamed sweet rice was pounded with traditional wooden mallet and mortar. This practice has been less commonly seen in Japan, so that many people gathered to catch a glimpse and participate in the pounding! After that, the delicious (really, mouthwatering just to think of it.) fresh mochi cakes were served in three different styles: kinako (soy bean powder), anko (red bean paste), and in a soup.

Mochi-Pounding was demonstrated.

Very soft and delicious -- Mochi with kinako (top), in soup (left) and anko (right).

At 18:00 – The evening ceremony started with a performance of Tazawako Ryujin Taiko.

Tazawako Ryujin Daiko Performance

Shortly after, the Tohoku-shaped lanterns were lit as the previous night, and sake and amazake were given to the guests. Meanwhile, Two of the traditional snow festivals in Semboku City were demonstrated. This was a rare opportunity for the visitors to see and participate in the mini-version of the traditional festivals held at different locations and days.

Kakundate Town's Hiburikamakura

Nishiki's Kamifusen


At 19:30 – Hinowa-kuguri (fire ring performance) were held by professional demonstrators and thrilled the audience.

Hinowa-Kuguri (Fire-Ring) Demonstration

Another trademark attraction of the festival is Taimatsu-kasso, a march of skiers with torches in hands, was held on the steepest Kuromori slope. This year was especially meaningful – instead of simply coming down the slope, the torches prepared in the shape of a kanji character was lit one by one. In a minute, the fire revealed a symbolic word of the past year – kizuna, meaning “solidarity,” that was used by many in hopes of Japan’s recovery.

Kizuna means Solidarity

At 20:10 – Fireworks show in the snow is the trademark of Tazawako Kogen Snow Festival. This has been what many people visit there for: Colors of fireworks are even brighter in the crisp, freezing air. The fireworks are crafted by an award-winning company in Omagari City.

Fireworks in the snow!

Sunday, February 19th

Although Day 3 is almost half-day, there were two main attractions held for family visitors.

Around noon, a rare sight of all 9 different local characters all together was on stage.  The 9 characters came from areas around Semboku City. From left, the Omotenashi 3 Brothers (Fukainda, Iyasunda, Nukuinda), Nairikkun, O-Umechan, Tsutsudon (from Daisen City), Takkochan, Donpan-Jiccha, and Sugicchi.

At 13:00 -- Treasure hunt in the snow took place as the previous day, in which many adults participated and found some treasures! Later, at 14:00, there was a stage performance of Chojin Neiga, which welcomed many kids and alike to the site. Their humorous plot entertained us all – as usual!

Tazawako Kogen Snow Festival takes place annually in late February!

This signals the end of snow festivals in Semboku City.

What’s coming next? – Spring!

Come to Tazawako Plateau Snow Festival on Feb 17-19 !!!

DETAILS IN ENGLISH IS DOWN BELOW.

Tazawako Plateau Snow Festival is an annual event held at Tazawako Ski Area. The 3-days event welcomes approximately 20,000 visitors every year. The festival is known for the beautiful fireworks, snow statues, and a demonstration of local traditional snow festivals!

During the day, the Neiga Show, a stage performance by Akita’s popular superhero group, is scheduled as expected, as well as Treasure Hunt in the Snow, a new game that will replace the Kecchizori Contest, a butt-sliding contest, of the previous years!

Unfortunately, we do not have Kecchizori Contest this year, for the committee’s decision to carry it out every two years. But the Treasure Hunt will be full of surprises – We promise you a memorable time for both children and adults.

At night there will be a free sake and amazake (non-alcoholic unfiltered sake). The snow statues will be illuminated and there will be a memorial illumination with about 20,000 candle lanterns made of recycled cans – like this one.

The tentative schedule is announced as follows:

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 17.

17:00 – 21:00 Recycled Can Candle Lanterns Lighted.

18:00 – 21:00 Illumination Ceremony

                       Sake and Amazake Service

                       Snow Statue Contest Awarding Ceremony

18:00 – 21:00 Food Tents Available

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 18.

10:00 – 21:00 Food Tent

13:00 – 14:00 Treasure Hunt in the Snow

17:00 – 21:00 Roadside candles lighted.

17:30 --         Illumination Ceremony, Sake and Amazake Service

18:00 – 18:30 Hiburi Kamakura Demonstration

18:45 – 19:30 Kamifusen-Age Demonstration

19:30 – 20:00 Torch March and Fire Ring Performance by the ski instructors

20:10 – 20:30 Firework Show

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 19.

10:00 – 15:00 Food Tents Available

13:00 –14:00 Treasure Hunt in the Snow

14:00 –15:00 the Neiga Show

*The schedule may change without a notice due to the weather condition.

MORE INFO: Tazawako Tourist Information Center FOLAKE 0187-43-2111

Meet the Local Superhero: Chojin-Neiga Show in Tazawako

Chojin-neiga （超神ネイガー） was the main event held on Day 3 of Tazawako Snow Festival.

Chojin-neiga is very popular superhero in Akita Prefecture. The group was established by a local gym manager and a former professional wrestler and have been gaining popularity from children to adults, with their meticulously localized contents in the language, plot, and stage props.

The dialogue is heavily in Akita dialect, which also employs concepts based on Akita’s local culture. Chojin-neiga refers the protagonist characters and dajagu-kumiai ("Evil Union") is the antagonists. Chojin means “super-god” and Neiga derives from a famous line uttered by Namahage (an ogre that appears in a traditional festival in the Oga peninsula), “naguko-wa-inega” (is there anyone crying?)

The costumes also represent Akita's specialties: Kiritan-sword (of Kiritanpo), Buriko-gun (that shoots sandfish roe), and Kamakura-knuckle (a igloo-shaped glove)

Chojin-neiga  (超神ネイガー）Show

The Chojin-neiga has appeared in TV/radio shows and comic books. It also has been introduced on a nationwide variety show as a prefectural stereotype: Chojin-neiga is Akita people’s common obsession and “their TV show drive people out of the streets.”

The show is humorous and also has a moral teaching! That is why it is popular for both adults and children!

Fireworks at Tazawako Snow Festival 2011

When you ask us what would be the best feature of Tazawako Snow Festival, firework show is probably the first thing to come to our mind. It is designed by award-winning firework craftsmen from Omagari City, which is known as the mecca of fireworks in Japan. It seems that the cold, clear winter sky makes the fireworks even more beautiful!

Firework show followed after the exciting fire-ring show by professional performing group.

This year the fireworks was the best ever! Fish-themed fireworks were shown to celebrate the discovery of kunimasu, which is still a hot topic in Tazawako! Its beauty is really hard to capture in pictures or videos, but we hope you enjoy!

Butt-Sliding Contest 2011 at Tazawako Snow Festival

Tazawako Kogen Snow Festival was held on February 18th- 20th, 2011. The newest highlight of the event is Kecchi-zori Taikai (“Butt-sliding Contest”), in which participants use plastic bags of fertilizers to slide down the courses. This event has just initiated last year for a trial and has come back on the event line-up after reputation of so much entertainment!

The contest had two categories: downhill and slalom. Special courses are designed for this contest on the steepest slope at Tazawako Ski Area. In the form of downhill (Day 1), racers do not make any turns and try to maintain the highest speed as sliding down the hill.

Downhill on Day 1

On the other hand, the slalom (Day 2) requires turns in between poles. This one is more about the technique to shift your balance, so you wouldn’t stop in the middle of the course.

Slalom on Day 2 : Groups of Taiwanese TV company GTV joined us!

The rules are 1) to use the provided fertilizer bag under your bottom; 2) no waxing agent allowed ; and 3) have only a single “run”.

The contest has been named “international,” hoping that would invite participants from other countries and make it an opportunity for all the people to meet. This year, on our second try, we welcomed participants from Germany and Taiwan! Arigato, Dankeschön, and 謝謝 (xie xie) to you all!

Although it was only the second year, the good reputation of the contest has been catching attentions from international media! Taiwanese TV crew joined us for  a documentary travel program on broadcasting company (GTV) !

The kecchizori racers ( "zorist" ) came from far: Iwate, Tokyo, Kobe, and Okinawa!

Outstanding zorist individuals and groups were awarded with Y160, 000-worth rice coupons, hotel tickets, restaurant meal tickets, boxes of candies, and many other prizes. With all generous corporations from the local business, everyone was given at least one prize!

The ceremony was full of laughter and cheers! What makes this contest most unique is the welcoming atmosphere! All the people are there to have fun. Who would participate in a butt-sliding contest, if he or she didn’t know how to have fun!?

Preparing the Giant Paper Lanterns for Tazawako Snow Festival

Tazawako Kogen Snow Festival （田沢湖高原雪まつり）is a great chance for you to see some of the traditional new year festival of Semboku City at one time!

One of the highlights is Kamifusen-age （紙風船上げ）from Nishiki Area, in which giant lanterns with colorful paintings and written wishes are lit inside and released up to the sky, and Hiburi-kamakura （火振りかまくら） from Kakunodate town.

Tazawako Kogen Snow Festival will be held next weekend (February 18th- 20th). (See the schedule. )The lanterns are being prepared by many local community groups. This is what we have been working on this week.

The lantern is made of a bamboo loop and four sheets of washi (Japanese papers). The first step is to draw images on the paper with a pencil and paint with some acrylic paints distilled with water and vinegar. Here is what we have worked on yesterday!

Today  the papers have been dried. In a few days, it will be combined with three other sheets and fixed with a steady bamboo loop. On the festival day, it will have a ball of fabric in the center of the loop, lit with fire, and released up to the sky.

The original Kamifusen-age festival will be held tonight in Nishiki Area from 15:00 to 20:30.

Tazawako Snow Festival 2010

Tazawako Snow Festival 2010 has ended as a big success, bringing about 26,000 people to Tazawako Area. Thank you to all those people who traveled from in and out of Akita prefecture!

(''Welcome to Tazawako''.. with a wish to bring many people from everywhere!)

(Many people look forward to seeing the snow statues and kamakura. )

This year we had added a new event on our list of regular event menu…. Yes, of course、we did have the snow statues and fireworks along with the Yatai, foodstands with various kinds of hot foods. Those are not what I’m talking about here, but who would expect to have a butt-sliding contest, especially designed for adults like you!　

First, if you haven’t gotten the idea, watch this youtube preview..

''Ketchi-zori Taikai'' (The Butt-sliding Contest)

YES it's the butt-sliding that you have enjoyed or at least dreamed about as a child!  That was a great opportunity to show off your sliding skills, acting like a child, screaming and shouting. This is a valid excuse  for you to be doing this again! We all know that is purely for "a contest to win some cash for the family, you just had to do it" .....

Those who pre-entered to this contest were fathers and future-fathers along with some university students and alike who used to be children not so long ago. About 40 people had signed up in advance, but the anouncement had been spread and had brought almost triple of new-entries on the following day.

The photos could capture only the moments, but just imagine how much fun we have had!!!

(The children-at-heart waiting to show off!)

(Steep enough to get you thrilled?)

(So the race begins..)

(''Win some cash, Buddy!'')

(The time was measured by the professional and hard-core... machine!)

(Tadah!!!)

(''Go Daddy Go!'', his kids were cheering.)

 (This guy in business suit won the first place in the individual race!)

The real-time kids!

 

 

Big children!

More !

The awarding ceremony was held in the evening. The first prize was more than 160,000 yen (about $1700) in cash! There were some special prizes for the costumes, cheerfulness, and ''akita-bijin'' (Akita's beautiful girls), and so on.

(Awarded by the City Mayor, Mitsuhiro Kadowaki.)

The team who won the first place! Congrats!

The weather condition wasn’t the best, but luckily, we were able to see occasional blue skies and beautiful clouds. We had to cancel the hot-air balloon due to the risk by the strong winds, but we were able to have some up on the following day.  We hope to have a good weather next year!!

Here are some more photos of other attractions.

(Yatai, foodstands.)

(They were selling dishes with wild boar meat.)

(And some bear meat...)

Restaurant ORAE's Food Tent

 

There was a show performance of the local superhero characters, Chojin Neiga, which is extremely popular among children in Akita. It was one of the highlight of the day and gathered more than a hundred children and parents.

The main character, Neiga.

Perhaps the parents are more enthusiastic??

 

We hope everyone enjoyed the event as much as we did! Next year Tazawako Snow Festival is going to be more exciting and bring more and more people!!