I went to Todoroki Shrine’s Autumn Festival! |「海陽で行ってみた！」轟神社秋祭り編
Greetings, fellow festival enthusiasts, it's Tony! We’re a little late, but before Autumn wraps up (winter starts on the 22nd of December in Japan apparently!), I’d like to share my second experience at this year’s Todoroki Shrine’s annual Autumn festival!
こんにちは、トニーだよ！ちょっと遅くなってしまったけど、秋が終わる前に(日本では12月22日から冬が始まるだと聞いた！）今年の轟神社での2回目の体験、秋季例大祭をお届けしたいなと思います！
Last year, the Global Kaiyo team got ahead of the crowd and waited at the main waterfall. This time around, I shadowed the carriers and mikoshi, tracing their path from behind. I was able to see the full route they took before making their way to the waterfall!
去年は、グローバル海陽チームは人ごみを抜けて本滝で待っていたが、今回は担ぎ手と神輿の後ろからその道を追いかけてみたんだ。滝に向かうまでの行程を見ることができたよ！
From the base of the monumental stone staircase, the carriers took a left and headed down toward the quaint bridge leading to the main parking lot.
石段のふもとから担ぎ手たちは左に進み、駐車場へと続く橋に向かって下っていったよ。
On the way back up, they traversed narrow, unpaved paths absent from the shrine grounds map, which was totally unexpected. The challenging walk from the parking lot and up the stone staircase to the shrine itself was already enough to leave me breathless, so I gained a profound admiration for the determination exhibited by the carriers involved as they triumphed over slippery surfaces and slopes while being showered by sake.
帰りは、神社の地図には載っていない狭くて未舗装の道を通ったけど、それがまったく予想外だったんだ。駐車場から石段を登り、神社に到着するまでの道のりだけでも息が切れるのに、お神酒を浴びながら滑りやすい路面や坂道を乗り越える担ぎ手の姿に感心して、すごいなーと改めて思ったよ。
As the carriers approached the waterfall, the scene unfolded differently than last year. The crowd surpassing the previous festival's attendance formed a human tide, making it impossible to breach the torii gate.
担ぎ手が滝に近づくと、去年とは違った光景が展開された。去年の祭りを上回る人出で、鳥居をくぐることすらできなかったよ。
Although I missed the front-row spectacle, the view from behind was also great in its own way, and I managed to stay dry as well!
滝の近くで見ることはできなかったけど、後ろから見た景色も素晴らしかったし、なんとか濡れずに済んだよ！
In retrospect, choosing to see the festival from a new perspective revealed the challenges of the journey faced by the carriers, and added a unique flavor to my second festival experience. I wonder what path I’ll take next time to savor the festival’s delights?
振り返ってみると、新たな視点からこの祭りを見たことで、滝までの道のりで担ぎ手たちが直面する苦労がよく伝わったよ。このお祭りを訪れたのは２回目だったけど、１回目とはまったく異なる独特な経験だったね。次回はどんな道を選んでお祭りを楽しもうかな？