Yumen Onsen Festival – Bon dance with 60 years of history

Summer Nights at Misumi Yumen

On Saturday, August 4, the Yumen Hot Springs Festival, a long-time summer festival in the Misumi area, was held around the Yumen Fureai Center in Misumi Yumen, lit up by the setting sun.

The festival opened with a performance by "Misumi Seifu Taiko" and its children's group "Dohzumi. The powerful sound of the drums echoed through the hall, making the audience feel excited that the festival was finally about to begin.

The venue was filled with a variety of summery stalls set up by local residents, including yo-yo fishing and goldfish scooping. Some children were seen jumping for joy with assorted sweets that were prizes for the "Gara-pon" game.

Of course, there is plenty of food to go around. Yakitori, an essential part of Nagato's events, is carefully grilled one by one over charcoal.

Yakisoba noodles cooked on a hot iron plate and cold drinks to quench your thirst in the hot venue. The festival is supported and enlivened by everyone's hands.

A yukata dressing corner is set up at the venue, and visitors can also enjoy visiting the stalls in yukata.

Meanwhile, the stage was enlivened by a performance by the band "Graduates (Lemon)," hula dancing by "Team Hula OKD," and a brass band performance by "Rakurakudan.

The Murata Seifu was born in what is now the Asada area." ○ or ×?" (Answer is X. The correct answer is Sawae district.)

The "Misumi X-Quiz" is another annual event, with children cheering each time the answer to a question is announced.

Then, when it was getting dark, the Bon Odori dance began.

Every year, two songs, "From Ougiyama (sung by Noboru Kirishima and Kikue Hanamura)" and "Yumen Kouta (sung by Chiyoko Shimakura)" are played at the venue.

The first one is "Ougiyama kara," in which the dancers dance in a circle with kasa (bamboo hat) in their hands.

Adults and children, staff and visitors alike, enter the circle one after another.

The next song was "Yumen Kouta.

The singing continued from the light prelude to the fourth number. The dancers danced in a circle, occasionally showing off their jumpy movements.

These two songs were created 60 years ago in 1958. The lyrics of "From Ougiyama" are interspersed with words related to Misumi, such as tangerine, sweetfish, Yumen, and Matsushima, as well as a tribute to the achievements of Murata Seifu.

"Come, come, come to the town of hot spring."
"Once you've come, how can you forget?"

The phrase "Yumen Kouta" is repeated over and over again, and I find myself humming it every year. These two songs, which unite the entire venue, are the treasures of the Misumi district.

When the Bon Odori dance is over and the sun has completely set, the festival comes to a finale.

The back of the fan with "Yumen Kouta" on it is used as a raffle ticket.

Starting with meal coupons, gift certificates, and Yasuo Kouzuki goods in the Misumi area, the final prizes were game consoles and travel coupons. Whenever a number was read out, visitors were delighted, excited, and shouted, "That was too close! and "It's too close!

It was an exciting evening until the very last moment.

On this day, the Yumen Fureai Center offered a flat rate of 100 yen for bathing for one day only. Some visitors took this opportunity to enjoy the hot spring baths during the festival.

In addition, the Yasuo Kozuki Museum of Art, located near the venue, extended its opening hours until 8:00 p.m. to welcome visitors.

The museum is currently holding a special exhibition, "My Siberia, Each Siberia. This is an exhibition that allows visitors to experience the "Siberian Internment" in three dimensions by combining works created from Yasuo Kozuki's experiences of military service and internment in Siberia with materials from the collection of the Peace Memorial Museum and Archives.

One of the attractions of Nagato City is that each community holds its own colorful Noryosatsu (summer evening dance) events. The "Yumoto Onsen Noryo Bon Dance Festival" is scheduled for Saturday, the 11th of this month, the "Aburaya Summer Festival" on Tuesday, the 14th, and the "Tawarayama Onsen Noryo Festival" on Wednesday, the 15th.

Please come to the festival to make memories of summer evenings.

Related Links

Nagato Summer Festa 2018
Yumen Onsen (Yumen Fureai Center)
Seifu Murata Memorial Museum
Yasuo Kouzuki Museum of Art