 Most viewed - Little Edo Hikone Castle Festival Parade 小江戸彦根の城まつりパレード |
Ii clan warriors365 views
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Hikone Gun Battalion dressed like Ii Clan samurai with their trademark red armor nicknamed "Red Devils."357 views
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Little Edo Hikone Castle Festival Parade320 views
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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.286 views
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Hiko-nyan is Hikone's official mascot. A white cat wearing a samurai helmet modeled after Ii Naomasa.224 views
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221 views
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The matchlock guns make a huge bang.216 views
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Fireman's ladder acrobatics210 views
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Chrysanthemum looking like Hiko-nyan.192 views
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Hikone Gun Battalion145 views
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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.144 viewsVery 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.
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Hikone Gun Battalion whose members are licensed to fire matchlock guns.140 views
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Miss Hikone Castle135 views
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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).131 views
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Miss Hikone Castle125 views
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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.123 views
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Next are groups wearing period costumes. They are junior high schoolers.120 views
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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.118 views
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Ii Naosuke procession115 views
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Asahinomori Elementary School in Hikone.114 views
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Hiko-nyan107 views
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Military band106 views
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Ii Naosuke is portrayed by an actor.103 views
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Fireman's acrobatics is a crowd pleaser.103 views
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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. 102 views
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Kamakura Period (1185–1333) women wearing veiled straw hats called ichime-gasa. 市女笠102 views
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These photos were taken on Nov. 3, 2009.95 views
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Dream Ambassador from Takamatsu, Kagawa Pref.95 views
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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.94 views
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A few foreigners too.90 views
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Samurai laborers carrying luggage for a traveling daimyo.90 views
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Sarugaku is a centuries-old form of entertainment and a precursor to Noh and Kyogen.90 views
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Foreigners carry the shishimai lion heads, but they did not perform with it.90 views
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Flags from sister cities.87 views
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Dragon dance86 views
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Heian Period (794-1185) women wearing veiled straw hats called ichime-gasa. 市女笠85 views
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Firemen85 views
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Castle parade route to Hikone Castle.83 views
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Kawase Junior and Senior High School band.83 views
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Shrine maidens from Izumo83 views
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They fire their matchlock guns.83 views
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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81 views
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Fireman's ladder80 views
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They hoist up the ladder for someone to climb up.80 views
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Tourist Site Clean Campaign79 views
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Samurai wives79 views
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Shirabyoshi dancers from the Heian Period.79 views
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Katsugi veiled kimono worn by the nobility in the Muromachi Period.79 views
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Banners with the crest of the Ii clan.79 views
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Start of the Hikone Castle Parade on Nov. 3. Boy Scouts help out by carrying signs.78 views
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Dancers from Muromachi Period (1337-1573)78 views
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Soldiers from the Ii clan.78 views
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Ii Naotaka78 views
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Ii Clan's "Red Devil" samurai vassals wearing their trademark red armor.77 views
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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.76 views
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Hikone Traditional Fireman Preservation Group76 views
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Shishimai lion dance76 views
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Sarugaku entertainers from the Omi Sarugaku Taga-za troupe. 猿楽73 views
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A daimyo71 views
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The Hikone Gun Battalion in formation for a firing demo.70 views
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