Warming up in Ryotsu and Minato-cho.
Hachiman-Wakamiya Shrine's torii inside the preschool playground!
Chochin Kobo (paper lantern factory) staff Eitaro Hoku.
Kamo Lake peeks through the alley.
After arriving in Ryotsu Harbor's Sado Ferry's terminal, go directly to Sado Tourism Association office. Rent an electric bike there, and you're ready to go.
The charm of cycling isn't just about feeling Nature next to your skin. By making frequent stops, you can really experience the small towns on the island. Pick up a "Walking Map of Ryotsu and Minato" from the tourist association office, and you're ready to start your adventure of Minato Honmachi Street where a taste of a good old Showa Era's fishing town can still be had!
If you bike up Route 350 away from Ryotsu Harbor towards Kamo Lake, you'll see a restaurant-lined street on the left hand side. One street past that street is Minato Honmachi Street. You'll see Shokoji, Myokoji, and En-namido to your right, and next to it is Minato Preschool. There's a torii (shrine gate) in the preschool yard?! The torii belongs to Hachiman-Wakamiya Shrine known for Ryotsu-Minato Festival held on May 5th every year. When Wakamiya Street was created next to Honmachi Street on the Kamo Lake side, the torii was moved to its current location, and later the preschool was built on the same site. The mikoshi parade (a parade of palanquin-like portable shrines) that takes place in front of the torii in the preschool yard is a must see.
Birthplace of Ikki Hoku, a great thinker of the early Showa Era.
The fukusuke doll, the mascot of Fukusuke Restaurant, sits in front of the restaurant.
Wooden signage adorns the office of the non-profit organization Minato Showakan.
Tsukamoto Kojiya's miso storehouse is located along an alley towards Kamo Lake.
Tsukamoto Kojiya's "Fuki Miso" (Japanese butterbur pickled in miso) is 275 yen for 200grams.
Passed the second street Omiya Koji, you'll see the sign for Chochin Kobo, a paper lantern factory. Eitaro Hoku greeted us as we opened the door. Just past the factory is the birthplace of Ikki Hoku, a philosopher known in the 2-26 Incident (a coup d'etat that took place in 1936.) "Hoku" is a surname that is commonly found in Minatomachi. Chochin Kobo is operated by Minato Showa-kan, a non-profit organization established in 2005 to rebuild the town to the greatness of Showa Era. Hoku-san, a retired fisherman, is restoring paper lanterns (chochin) with four or five other members of the group to help with the town redevelopment project. The factory is open for tours, too, if a staffer happens to be there. (Reservation required for groups.)
A little further on, I found a banner for ohban-yaki, a cake-like crust filled with sweet azuki bean paste called anko. The lady of the Japanese sweets wholesale shop Kuwazaki Kashiho talked to us. "We make these oban-yaki on the 13th of every month for Minato Market." The local specialty manju (a type of Japanese cake filled with anko) are flavored with brown sugar, mugwort, etc. and are very popular at the gift shop at Ryotsu Terminal. "We use azuki beans from Hokkaido for our anko. That's why they're so good," she said. You can also reserve them by phone. (Tel: 0259-27-2560)
Passed the area where many fish shops are found, a wooden signage of "Minato 2-chome 2-bangumi" and the letters for "Kojiya" jumped out at me. I started towards the miso storehouse with the owner Kenji Tsukamoto through the shop built in the Machiya Style and over one more street. There we saw old-fashioned barrels made of kiri (paulawnia.) The scent of miso was grounding. "We take these kiri barrels very seriously. When you use kiri barrels in miso making, the miso stays alive. During the dry season, the moisture in the wood goes into the miso, and when it's humid the wood absorbs the extra moisture from the miso. In this way koji (the fungus used to ferment miso) and kiri breath together and the miso gets cured very nicely."
Tsukamoto-san is also a member of Minato Showakan. He explains, "The reason we feel nostalgic about Showa Era is because we lived in a spirit of cooperation when times were hard. Minatomachi still retains a lot of the good things about Showa. Those qualities are treasures that we need to protect with the help of the community." Good old Showa still lives on in the souls of the people of Minatomachi.
Kenji Tsukamoto reminisces the words spoken by his father.
Walking Map -- Ryotsu / Minato Edition
The easy to read illustrated map showcases Ryotsu and Minato, a fishing town with a lot of local flavor. It includes descriptions of the town and events as well as types of fish in season. Mano Edition, Ogi / Shukunegi Editions are also available. The maps are available free of charge at the Sado Tourism Association Office at Sado Ferry Terminal.