Aizu Festival and Nishiaizu Nostalgic Car Show

Yesterday I went to two events in the area. The first was the Aizu Festival. Or, rather, what was left of it. Apparently there was a children's parade on Saturday on the main street just south of the post office that I was unaware of. However, the demonstration at the Tsuruga-jo castle grounds had not happened yet. That was scheduled for yesterday, so that's where I went.

I arrived just as the ceremony was about to start. I parked at the Fukushima Prefecture Museum next door and made my way across the street as the historical reenactors were entering the area. They were of all ages and genders, dressed in similar clothing that would've been worn during the Boshin War almost 150 years ago. The first half hour of the ceremony involved a small shrine established, complete with Shinto priests. Seated in front of this shrine were various politicians and business moguls who went to press F to pay their respects one at a time at the altar. While that was going on, people were assembling in the main stage area, so I headed there next.

Can't you feel the enthusiasm?

After the ceremony, the VIPs were shuffled over to the tents nearby the main stage, and then a historical reenactor took to the stage alongside a sign language interpreter to kick off the event. As he was talking, and the crowd was busy chattering, an elderly man tried to get my attention. He wanted me to look at something, but I couldn't tell what. Finally, he told me to move over. I did, and standing on top of one of the portions of Tsuruga-jo was an archer. I turned around to thank the man, but he had disappeared back into the crowd and I couldn't find him.

Poor guy actually fumbled with the arrow a bit. Hope he didn't kick himself too hard afterwards.

The reenactor on the stage would call in various units to proceed into the area over fusion-style Japanese classical music, and these units would line up single file in front of the stage while the unit "'leaders" assumed seats either on or directly in front of the stage. After everyone was brought in, the units took their seats on the grass, being sure to lay down their plastic sheets first. (So authentic!) There were a few lengthy demonstrations from some student groups, and a pair of fake cannons were fired. Also taking the stage somewhere in between was an actress named Haruka Ayase, who starred in an NHK drama a few years back that featured the Battle of Aizu in its plotline. As she stood on the stage, various security guards and event staffers circled the perimeter holding signs that forbade photography. I can tell you right now that no one listened to them.

With the ceremony now over, I went back to my car and set off for the next stop of the day. However, as I was driving up National Route 118 to get to my destination, the police redirected traffic off the road. As it had turned out, there was also a parade going on yesterday as well. Figuring that I shouldn't miss it, I found a nearby Family Mart two blocks away from the parade route, bought a drink inside to justify parking in the lot, and walked over to the parade area.

I made it just as the parade was starting. As it had turned out, the parade's contents were the same reenactors that I had just seen earlier. However, these groups actually did more than just file in and stand in a spot for an hour and a half. Some of them actually did some reenactments, like wave swords or chant battle slogans. I stuck around about an hour for the parade, and then headed back to the car to continue my journey.

The second event that I went to was the Nishiaizu Nostalgic Car Show. This was a car show that had a bunch of classic cars. Some of them, like the Mach 1 Mustang, were imported. Others, like the older Subaru Sambars, were originally from Japan and for the Japanese market, in the days when the kei car was still making its roots in the country. I walked the whole rows in astonishment over the fact that these cars are being maintained, and in that good of a condition. You see, there is no "antique" class of cars in Japan, where after 25 years from the date of production you can claim that the car is an antique and therefore be exempt from other regulations like emissions inspections. There is no such thing here. You go through shaken every two years and pay yearly road taxes just like everybody else, and if the car is too dirty, you can't drive it on public roads.

The first car I saw when I got out of mine. I nearly messed my pants.

During a quick lunch from the nearby food stalls, I walked along a line of "itashas", and then checked out the auto memorabilia stands nearby. The goal was to look for a diecast or small-scale Eunos Roadster so that way I can make inside jokes on another continent. I was actually having a hard time finding one. After combing through at least four different stalls, I finally managed to get my hands on one. The price was 8200 yen. Needless to say, the search continues.

Every wondered what an engine looks like when it's running? Well, here you go. There were plenty of these displays.

heh

~~~imports~~~

As I was heading back to my car, I decided to continue looking at the various cars in the regular parking lot. Towards the back of the lot, parked next to an Autozam AZ-1, was a red Eunos Roadster, with the same aftermarket wheels that I had. The car was in beautiful condition; the paint looked fresh and the soft top was perfectly black. The Autozam was also red, but its body was in rougher shape overall. The sad thing is that if both of these cars were to sell as-is tomorrow, the Autozam would fetch a higher price. Such is life, I suppose.

Now here's a person with good taste!

I took a bunch of pictures at the event. You can view the full album here.

-wp