Wednesday, February 14, 2024
The 3rd Hokuryu Town Ice Candle 2024 was held at Sunflower Park Hokuryu Onsen for two days on February 10th (Sat) and 11th (Sun). Approximately 400 ice candles were lit up, creating a fantastical glow.
- 1 3rd Hokuryu Town Ice Candle Festival 2024
- 1.1 Icicle art and Swedish torch lighting
- 1.2 Organized by: Sunflower Park Hokuryu Onsen
- 1.3 Ice candles handmade by elementary and junior high school students lined up
- 1.4 Planning: Hokuryu Town Regional Revitalization Cooperation Volunteers Nobuyuki Murakami and Yui Sasaki
- 1.5 Sweet potato potage and roasted sweet potato: Made with sweet potatoes grown by the female farming group "Uzura"
- 1.5.1 Members of the female farming group "Uzura"
- 1.5.2 Hot roasted sweet potato
- 1.5.3 Melty sweet potato potage soup
- 1.5.4 Sweet potato chip topping!
- 1.5.5 The sweet potato potage is seasoned with "Yonago-chan, the source of Nigohachizuke (pickled sweet potato) from Imobegyu"
- 1.5.6 I'm in a great mood because my grandpa bought it for me!
- 1.6 Swedish Torch: Log bonfire by Tatsuya Uei (representative of the self-logging forestry company "Shizenshita")
- 1.7 Roasted marshmallows: Roasted marshmallows over the flame of a Swedish torch
- 1.8 Frozen Flower: Original work by Yumi Komatsu
- 1.9 Icicle art: Made with large icicles hanging from the roof of Sunflower Park Hokuryu Onsen
- 1.10 A warm light glitters softly amid the softly falling snow.
- 2 YouTube videos
- 3 Other photos
- 4 Articles related to Murakami and Sasaki
3rd Hokuryu Town Ice Candle Festival 2024
Icicle art and Swedish torch lighting
Organized by: Sunflower Park Hokuryu Onsen
- Organizer:Sunflower Park Hokuryu Onsen
- plan:Hokuryu Town Regional Revitalization Cooperation Volunteers Nobuyuki Murakami and Yui Sasaki
- cooperation:Hokuryu Town Sunflower Tourism Association, Hokuryu Town Board of Education, Hokuryu Town Hokuryu Junior High School, Hokuryu Town Shinryu Elementary School, Hokuryu Town Chamber of Commerce and Industry Youth Division, Women's Farmers Group "Uzura"
- Children up to junior high school age will receive a free candy!!!
Ice candles handmade by elementary and junior high school students lined up
Prior to this event, on Thursday, February 8th, 200 handmade ice candles made by students from Hokuryu Town Shinryu Elementary School (Principal Kamata Sadao, 62 students) and Hokuryu Junior High School (Principal Uesugi Akihiro, 34 students) were lined up along the road.
These ice candles were brought to Sunflower Park Hokuryu Onsen on February 10th, where they brightly lit up the area in front of the hot spring entrance.
Planning: Hokuryu Town Regional Revitalization Cooperation Volunteers Nobuyuki Murakami and Yui Sasaki
This project, now in its third year, was organized by Hokuryu Town Regional Revitalization Cooperation Team members Murakami Nobuyuki and Sasaki Yui.
A story by Nobuyuki Murakami
"The highlight of this event is the 'Swedish Torch', which will burn for about two hours on a log bonfire.
And we are setting up icicle art.
This year, about 120 people, including elementary and junior high school students and local volunteers, helped make the ice candles.
In addition to the ice candles, we also made about 30 snow candles, so we have set up about 400 candles in total.
My work as a Hokuryu Town Regional Revitalization Cooperation Volunteer will end in March of this year. Thanks to everyone's support, this ice candle project has become widely known thanks to the cooperation of many townspeople. I have worked hard every time with great enthusiasm.
I love Hokuryu Town, so I would like to continue supporting it in some way in the future."
The story of Yui Sasaki
"We are currently in discussion with everyone about how to continue this event in the future.
We have been able to continue for three years now. The number of people helping us has been increasing little by little, and I hope we can continue in a good way.
We enjoyed the delicious roasted sweet potatoes provided by Uzura, a group of female farmers who supported us in participating in this event. I hope that this connection will lead to other opportunities for further exchange in the future."
Sweet potato potage and roasted sweet potato: Made with sweet potatoes grown by the female farming group "Uzura"
This year, the female farming group "Uzura" will be selling a limited quantity of 50 servings of "sweet potato potage" and "roasted sweet potatoes" made from sweet potatoes grown by them per day!
The sweet potato potage soup is made with carefully grown sweet potatoes, soy milk and milk, and seasoned with "Yonago-chan," a 258 pickle made in Imobeushi Town!
Members of the female farming group "Uzura"
Hot roasted sweet potato
Melty sweet potato potage soup
Sweet potato chip topping!
The sweet potato potage is seasoned with "Yonago-chan, the source of Nigohachizuke (pickled sweet potato) from Imobegyu"
I'm in a great mood because my grandpa bought it for me!
Swedish Torch: Log bonfire by Tatsuya Uei (representative of the self-logging forestry company "Shizenshita")
The Swedish Torch, which was introduced for the first time this year, is made from logs of fir trees that were cut down in the mountains of Hokuryu Town owned by Tatsuya Kamii (representative of the self-logging forestry company Shizenshita) and then dried for a year.
The Swedish torch is made by holding the log upright, cutting a slit in the trunk, and burning it with birch bark as a kindling, using a blowtorch to blow air into it to start and strengthen the fire.
There will also be roasted marshmallows cooked over a Swedish torch!
Roasted marshmallows: Roasted marshmallows over the flame of a Swedish torch
Frozen Flower: Original work by Yumi Komatsu
Icicle art: Made with large icicles hanging from the roof of Sunflower Park Hokuryu Onsen
Children having fun climbing the snow sculptures
A warm light glitters softly amid the softly falling snow.
We hope that the fantastical light of the ice candles will not only pray for the repose of the souls of those affected by the disaster, but also become a new "light of hope" for recovery, lighting the hearts of many people with warmth and brightness.
The gentle light of the mysterious ice candles, which fantastically decorate the night of the new moon, is filled with boundless love, gratitude, and prayers...
YouTube videos
Other photos
Articles related to Murakami and Sasaki
◇ Interview and text: Ikuko Terauchi (Photography and editing assistance: Noboru Terauchi)
