Furumachi Donden is a major event held every spring and autumn on Furumachi Dori, a busy street in Niigata. The festival event was held on 10 and 11 May, when Furumachi was crowded with many stalls and stage events. We went to play on Saturday 10 May, a weekend blessed with good weather.

Arrive a little before 12:00 noon. Furumachi Domen is a festival held by five shopping streets from Furumachi 5 to 9 together. The entire shopping street, which stretches about 1 km, was festive.

古町9では、フリーマーケットが開催。それ以外ではそれぞれステージが開設されイベントや沢山の屋台が出ていました。

As it was lunchtime when we arrived, the stalls were in full swing.

イワナの塩焼きやカニ汁といった料理から。

Food stalls and shops, such as the popular fried chicken restaurant Torikan in Gosen City.

Various mobile shops were also here.

A glimpse of some customers are wearing yukata. Are they students from a vocational school? Their yukata attire added to the festive atmosphere.

There is also a Furumachi Sweets Sale, which is only available in Furumachi.

ところで、「今日は陽射しが気持ちいいなぁ」と思いながら歩いていたのですが、ふと見上げるとなんとアーケードの屋根が開いている！まさかこれ開くものだと思っていなかったので驚きました。商店街に陽射しが差し込んで、すがすがしいですね。

Each mall has its own simultaneous stage events.

Music stages for children and

「相川瞳」さん

'Yucca' has a three-octave singing voice. Many audience members applaud.

Among those who were busy with the venue were that idol unit born in Furumachi.

「RYUTist（りゅーてぃすと）」です。

Powerful singing and dancing, and calls from the audience! I was deeply impressed that they are loved by their fans. By the way, while watching this RYUTist, I was wondering about their shoes. I thought they were wearing cute shoes, but they were more like functional athletic shoes. And they are quite well used. Idols may look fluffy, but their dancing is quite intense and requires steady training on a daily basis, and I could feel that kind of hard work from their shoes. Keep up the good work, RYUTist!

In addition to the stage, there were several interesting booths.

昔この辺りにあった「お堀」を再生しようと取り組むNPOのパネル展。昔の古町の様子が写真で張り出してありました。お堀は風情がありますよね。

In the basement of the former Daiwa Depa, there was a flea market for antique items, called the 'Mino no Ichiba'. Very retro atmosphere.

あと、古町のイベントではよく見かける気がする「にいがた組み木の会」さん。

工作体験ができるブースをやっていました。

面白かったのが、「養蜂」をしている団体が2ブースくらいあったこと。ひとつは実際にミツバチを置いており、子どもたちが興味津々で覗いていました。

落書きコーナーもあったりと、本当にいろいろなブースが目白押しで、多世代が楽しんでしました。

Personally, I had a good encounter with this booth, which came from Aga.

「阿賀の木毛玉（こけだま）」。苔を丸めた玉の上にいろいろな植物が植えられているインテリア植物。その可愛らしい見た目と、管理のしやすさで東京や大阪のロフトでも販売しているほど今大人気なのだとか。新潟県内ではこうやってイベントに出て手売りするのがほとんどだそう。

あまりにも可愛かったので、我が家にも迎え入れることにしました。ケヤキちゃん。かわいい。ほんとかわいい。

These unexpected encounters are the attraction of shopping street events.

Of course, we also enjoyed the food.

古町どんどんラーメン。

五泉市の人気店「とりかん」さんの、唐揚げ。おなじみのカレー味。

Carrot puffs made by Maruya Honten from Furumachi Sweets. The idea for these came from local schoolchildren. It was so delicious that I asked the vendor if I could buy it at Maruya Honten. I asked the salesgirl if it was available at Maruya Honten, but she said it wasn't on the regular menu. Hmmm, too bad.

I really wanted to eat a bit more from different restaurants, but I went alone and I was too full to give up. Next time I want to go with a big group.

Furumachi Domen is held by five shopping streets from Furumachi 5 to 9 together. This event offers a variety of fun for adults and children alike. The next event will be held in autumn. What will the theme be? What kind of stage events will there be? And what kind of stalls will there be? I'm looking forward to it.