 Last additions - Little Edo Hikone Castle Festival Parade 小江戸彦根の城まつりパレード |
Mar 27, 2010
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Chrysanthemum looking like Hiko-nyan.Mar 27, 2010
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Before or after the castle parade, you might as well see the chrysanthemum exhibit at Gokoku Shrine (護国神社), a shrine dedicated to Shiga's war dead.Mar 27, 2010
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Shishimai lion danceMar 27, 2010
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Dragon danceMar 27, 2010
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Foreigners carry the shishimai lion heads, but they did not perform with it.Mar 27, 2010
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Sarugaku is a centuries-old form of entertainment and a precursor to Noh and Kyogen.Mar 27, 2010
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Sarugaku entertainers from the Omi Sarugaku Taga-za troupe. 猿楽Mar 27, 2010
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Fireman's ladder acrobaticsMar 27, 2010
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Fireman's acrobatics is a crowd pleaser.Mar 27, 2010
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They hoist up the ladder for someone to climb up.Mar 27, 2010
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Fireman's ladderMar 27, 2010
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FiremenMar 27, 2010
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Hikone Traditional Fireman Preservation GroupMar 27, 2010
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Sitting like royalty, local politicians such as the mayor sit in a special stand on the right in front of the horse stable. The rest of us stand and watch like peasants.Mar 27, 2010
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Hiko-nyan is Hikone's official mascot. A white cat wearing a samurai helmet modeled after Ii Naomasa.Mar 27, 2010
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The matchlock guns make a huge bang.Mar 27, 2010
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Hiko-nyanMar 27, 2010
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They fire their matchlock guns.Mar 27, 2010
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The Hikone Gun Battalion in formation for a firing demo.Mar 27, 2010
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Ii NaotakaMar 27, 2010
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Ii Naomasa (井伊直政) (1561-1602 ) was the first lord of Hikone from 1600. He was a general under Tokugawa Ieyasu whom he helped to win the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600. He was rewarded with the fief of Omi (now Shiga) and built Hikone Castle.Mar 27, 2010
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Ii clan warriorsMar 27, 2010
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Banners with the crest of the Ii clan.Mar 27, 2010
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Ii Clan's "Red Devil" samurai vassals wearing their trademark red armor.Mar 27, 2010
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Soldiers from the Ii clan.Mar 27, 2010
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Katsugi veiled kimono worn by the nobility in the Muromachi Period.Mar 27, 2010
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Shirabyoshi dancers from the Heian Period.Mar 27, 2010
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Kamakura Period (1185–1333) women wearing veiled straw hats called ichime-gasa. 市女笠Mar 27, 2010
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Dancers from Muromachi Period (1337-1573)Mar 27, 2010
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Shrine maidens from IzumoMar 27, 2010
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Samurai wivesMar 27, 2010
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A daimyoMar 27, 2010
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Chief retainer who started the construction of Hikone Castle upon the wishes of Ii Naomasa. 家老の木俣守勝Mar 27, 2010
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Samurai laborers carrying luggage for a traveling daimyo.Mar 27, 2010
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A few foreigners too.Mar 27, 2010
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Heian Period (794-1185) women wearing veiled straw hats called ichime-gasa. 市女笠Mar 27, 2010
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Next are groups wearing period costumes. They are junior high schoolers.Mar 27, 2010
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Ii Naosuke (井伊 直弼) (1815-1860) as the Tokugawa shogunate's Chief Minister (Tairo) who favored and concluded commercial treaties with the Western powers and thus broke Japan's isolation from the world.Mar 27, 2010
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Ii Naosuke is portrayed by an actor.Mar 27, 2010
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Little Edo Hikone Castle Festival ParadeMar 27, 2010
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Ii Naosuke processionMar 27, 2010
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Hikone Gun BattalionMar 27, 2010
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Hikone Gun Battalion whose members are licensed to fire matchlock guns.Mar 27, 2010
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Hikone Gun Battalion dressed like Ii Clan samurai with their trademark red armor nicknamed "Red Devils."Mar 27, 2010
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Asahinomori Elementary School in Hikone.Mar 27, 2010
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Kawase Junior and Senior High School band.Mar 27, 2010
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Miss Hikone CastleMar 27, 2010
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Miss Hikone CastleMar 27, 2010
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Tourist Site Clean CampaignMar 27, 2010
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Flags from sister cities.Mar 27, 2010
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Miss Plum Blossom from Mito, Ibaraki Pref. Mito's connection with Hikone lies in the radical samurai who assassinated Ii Naosuke near Edo Castle.Mar 27, 2010
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Castle parade route to Hikone Castle.Mar 27, 2010
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Dream Ambassador from Takamatsu, Kagawa Pref.Mar 27, 2010
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Military bandMar 27, 2010
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Start of the Hikone Castle Parade on Nov. 3. Boy Scouts help out by carrying signs.Mar 27, 2010
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These photos were taken on Nov. 3, 2009.Mar 27, 2010
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The parade has children and adults dressed in historical costumes, especially the red samurai armor which was the trademark of the Ii clan. Even a modern samurai needs a cell phone. Mar 27, 2010
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The main highlight of the festival is the Hikone Castle Festival Parade held in the afternoon of Nov. 3 (national holiday called Culture Day).Mar 27, 2010
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Nicknamed Little Edo (Koedo), the castle town of Hikone holds the annual Little Edo Hikone Castle Festival Parade on Nov. 3 from 1 pm to 3 pm.Very elaborate costume parade of mainly kids dressed as samurai and Edo-Period ladies. Highlights include the Hikone Gun Battalion giving a matchlock gun demo (in front of Horse Stable), Ii Naosuke played by an actor on horseback, fireman acrobatics, and Sarugaku dancers. The parade route starts from Joto Elementary School and proceeds along the road to the castle and passes in front of the Umaya Horse Stable. Short walk from JR Hikone Station. Parade route map:
http://www.hikoneshi.com/jp/event/articles/c/parade
Photo: Statue of Lord Ii Naomasa in front of Hikone Station. Mar 27, 2010
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