I went to the Enma Market (Enma-shi), a festival held every year on 14, 15 and 16 June in the Kashiwazaki shopping area.

As a naive person from and living in Niigata City, I am ashamed to say that I knew nothing about this event. When I asked someone from Kashiwazaki, he told me that it was a bad event, with stalls stretching for more than two kilometres in the shopping street.

What, two kilometres! That sounds kind of awesome. And the name 'Enma City' is awesome.

In conclusion, it is a shame that I have never been to such a great event! It was a great event.

Park your car in a nearby car park and walk down the shopping street towards the venue...

Entrance found.

あいにくの天気で空はどんよりしていますが、けっこう人がいますね。

本町通りに出ました。いいですねえ。こういう屋台がたくさん出ているお祭りって、ワクワクします。

When you stop and look out into the distance, it's amazing! It's a long way back, this one. It's a long way! The number of people is gradually increasing and it's getting chaotic. I thought it was like a Taiwanese market. Asian chaos!

The atmosphere is a bit too crowded to stop, so go with the flow. Nun.

いやーほんと、いろいろな露店が出ています。楽しい！

おお！新潟市民のソウルフードもバッチリありますね。柏崎でもお目にかかれました。けっこう並んでますね。

タイ、トルコや韓国など、非常にインターナショナルな出店もあり、一瞬どこにいるのか忘れそうになります。そして徐々に晴れ間が。

Incidentally, there was quite a queue at this takoyaki shop. You can't see it at all in the photo, but there is a queue at the back of the shop. It was on the level of a little famous restaurant in Tokyo.

(In a Tetsuya Watari-esque voice) 'Maguro!'

I know this! Bjorn! A toy that stretches. I remember getting it when I was little. I miss it!

一生懸命かたぬきに興じる小学生の姿を見て、日本の将来は捨てたもんじゃないと思いました（笑）

安定の金魚すくいも。いいですねえ。いよいよ夏って感じです。

'Enma Hall'. So the event is held over several kilometres around here. There was a long queue. Thank you, Enma.

I thought 'Enma City' was really cool. I think the Japanese sense of naming is really great.

植木や盆栽の露店もありました。かわいいサボテンを売っているお店があり、老若男女で大賑わい。

これなんかもう、アートですよ、アート。お洒落なスイーツかと勘違いしてつまみ食いしそうになりました。帰りがけに何個か買いましたが、かわいいです、サボテン。

帰る道すがら撮った一枚。快晴で雰囲気最高。人出も増え、いい感じです。

I went home while eating poppo-yaki. Well, it's like a festival in Niigata. The focus is a bit off (sweat).

summary

I went at lunchtime on the first day (14 June) and was under the impression that there were fewer people there than expected, as the weather was cloudy and it could rain at any time. However, when the weather cleared up in the afternoon, it was very crowded with visitors. I also had the impression that people in yukata could be seen here and there.

There are photos on the Kashiwazaki City website that show the atmosphere at night, but it is an unusual amount of people, people, people! I was surprised to see quite a large crowd even during the day, but it looks even more fun at night.

If you have a yukata, why not go at night? You'll get an early taste of the summer atmosphere.

Events

[Enma City.

▶ Dates 3 days from 14 to 16 June every year (4 days until 17 June for the Setomono Market and the Planting Market).

▶ Opening hours 10 am to 10 pm.

▶ Parking and traffic regulations.

■ The recommended parking area for those outside the city is the Minatomachi Seaside Park parking lot. See map information at the relevant link.