May 2018 – EXPERIENCE YAMANASHI AND MORE

Noh was performed in the town of Fujikawaguchiko in Yamanashi Prefecture. The title was “Kurama Tengu (Long-nosed Goblin in Kurama).” Nohgaku is one of the traditional styles of Japanese theater. It is composed of the lyric drama noh and the comic theater kyogen. In this play, the kyogen part was included in the drama. The spiritual and symbolic nature of the story is facilitated by the stylized dance, mime, chanting chorus, and musical accompaniment. The elegance and beauty of the noh world is expressed with the slow movement, simple setting, and subdued music. (the-noh.com/index.html ;the-noh.com/en/plays/data/detail_025.html)

In 2008, nohgaku was listed as an Intangible Cultural Heritage by UNESCO. Also, refer to Lecture and Demonstration of Noh and Kyogen Performance Styles Theatre Nohgaku at Boston University (youtube.com/watch?v=-6msFSM1d9A).

A walking tour of the Aokigahara Woodland area in the town of Fujikawaguchiko and the village of Narusawa in Yamanashi Prefecture was conducted for a Lebanese person living in the USA to become a medical practitioner. The tour started with the Bat Lava Cave. The weather was really nice; however, there were not many visitors, so we were able to spend more time than usual. Walking through the woodland, we stopped at the Ryugu Lava Cave next (Refer to BLOG 4/26 & 4/30/2017). We encountered with two large groups of primary school students. They were well-mannered and cheerful. Climbing up to Koyodai mountain, we met two more groups of junior high school students. They were also well-managed. Because of the mild weather probably, we met several senior couples on the hiking trails. They were really fit. The view from Koyadai Rest House was magnificent (Refer to GALLERY). Walking in the woodland was very comfortable and enjoyable. It is the mid spring, so tree leaves are fresh green; bush warblers were singing beautifully in the sky. One more encounter, in the middle of the woodland trail, we met two persons, looked like a father and his son; the elder person was blind. We were very impressed since it was so hard to walk on the bumpy and hard lave surface.

Fugaku Wind Cave, a hollowed lava cave with ice. Inside the cave was cold, and Ice pillars and icicles were still in good shape. In the old days, this cave was used as a natural refrigerator, and stored silkworm cocoons and tree seeds. There are racks holding cans full of cocoons and seeds.

Narusawa Ice Cave, a hole lava cave with ice. The holes in the cave are big enough to hold a great amount of ice during cold months. The dripping water builds up the huge ice pillars. The ice in the cave was once sent to the shogun and his entourage in the Edo period. Walls of ice rectangular-cuboids are stored along the passage.

The surface humus soil on the lava in the woodland is so shallow, it is said that it is about 8cm-thick average, the roots of some huge trees cannot hold their weight, and fall down to the ground.