12 Honmachi-dori, Chuo-ku, Niigata City, known as Shimohonmachi shopping street.

This area retains the scenery of a good old shopping street and is also known by the nickname 'Fresh Honmachi'. On 28 September last year, the 'Niigata Shitamachi Monogatari Honmachi Night Illumination' was held in this area. The event was a collaboration between the shopping arcade and students, and was a sequel to the Tanabata event held in July. We covered the event.

Now it's time to go to 'Fresh Honmachi'.

Arrival time is 16:00. The weather is very pleasant, with a clear autumn sky. Quite a large crowd already present.

Near the entrance to the shopping street. Oh, what is this... Numbers? Is this also related to the illumination?

In the vicinity, people are working on something. When I asked, "What are you doing?" I asked, "It's a secret! You'll have to wait and see later!" They replied, "It's a secret! I see.

As you walk in, you will find one of the most fashionable corners of the building. Outside, there is a sign that reads.

Oh, wow...! What is this place...? When we were overwhelmed by the stylish space that suddenly appeared, a student staff member approached us. It seems to be a project called the 'SHIMOMACHI POSTCARD PROJECT', and this is the exhibition space for the project.

We were able to hear very detailed stories and thoughts from the students who run the place, which we will discuss in more detail in the sequel!

Walking further in, children were queuing up. At the reception area beyond, the words 'sparkler competition' and 'glowing target' were written.

There were so many children, and I wondered why they were running around with glowing balls... but the mystery was all solved. (Incidentally, I was attacked by a group of boys who had too much energy and made me the target of a glowing ball... lol). Combined with the retro shopping street scenery, it was somewhat relaxing. I also felt nostalgic, thinking about how there used to be festivals like this in my home town when I was little.

This is a booth where badges are made. The staff, of course, are students, and they make six different types of original badges by hand on the spot. There were many families visiting, each having a different badge made, or making pairs of badges.

You can make them one by one with a 'gashon'. Handmade is nice...

It's ready to go. I got this cat badge, which is cute! Come to think of it, Shimohonmachi is also famous for its many cats. When you walk around, you are sure to meet one somewhere (and I think the percentage of good-looking ones is high, too). (And I think the percentage of good-looking men is high. lol).

In the meantime, it was getting dark. Night is just around the corner. We wait for it to get dark as we walk.

Finally, the illumination is switched on.

It's this dark in a few minutes. Oh! Beautiful lights are starting to come on everywhere!

The glowing objects were illuminations made from processed lanterns! Depending on the object, they rotate or emit light in various colours.

This scene continues all the way along the shopping street.

Huh! I noticed a huge crowd! The area became very crowded, especially with families!

The sparkler competition, which the children had been looking forward to, also started! Everyone, adults and children alike, were very serious as they competed to see how long their fireworks would last. The winners were awarded at the end of the festival.

Mu? A group of glowing letters just next to where the sparkler display is taking place.

I see! The psylliums the students were making in the evening were for this?

It is slightly difficult to see in the picture, but if you go to a specific location and look at it, the words "Shimohonmachi Night Illumination" will appear! The children in the foreground are saying, "Oh! I can see the letters from here! The children in the foreground were excited.

Appealing to young people and foreigners with a shopping street x student sensibility to the attractions of the downtown area.

The staff who set up the above series of events were students from Niigata Prefectural University and Niigata Seiryo University. They did almost everything, from traffic management to everything else. When we spoke to a local resident, he said, "It's interesting that young people bring in their ideas. We would never come up with something like this." It's fun to have so many young people here." They were all in a welcoming mood. Everyone seemed to be having a good time. We don't get a chance to talk to young people very often, so we are grateful for this opportunity. It's not often you get a chance to talk to them naturally." Some elderly people said. I was also able to learn about the history of Shimomoto-cho while chatting with them in a natural and enjoyable way.

It was also interesting to note the presence of foreigners. According to one of the organisers, Professor Sekiya of Niigata Prefectural University, 'This event was aimed at communicating the downtown area to foreigners'. 'This whole area, centred around the Shitamachi district, is an area that preserves old-fashioned scenery, which is rare in the region. Foreigners are more interested in historical townscapes and culture than Japanese people. That's why we want to promote the places where such things remain. Chochin (paper lanterns) and bonbori (paper lanterns) seem very new to foreigners. They are attracted by the fact that they are carefully crafted one by one by artisans and that they are mobile (!) and can be folded. The lantern illuminations are also used as a way of displaying the lights. The lantern illumination was created one by one as a 'Japanese illumination', mainly by students, in reference to such feedback. There were quite a few, so it must have been hard work to make them...

The event was a collaboration of projects unique to the students, such as artistic illuminations and exhibits, while retaining the scenery of such old-fashioned festivals, with children running around energetically and calling out to each other, young and old. I thought it was amazing that we were able to invite so many people to the event despite the short preparation time, including the event itself. We would like to thank all the students and the shopping association for their hard work!

Events

Niigata Shitamachi Monogatari Shimohonmachi Night Illumination