Gifu (岐阜市, Gifu-shi) - A city located in
the south-central portion of Gifu Prefecture, Japan, and
serves as the prefectural capital. The city has played an
important role in Japan's history because of its location in
the middle of the country. During the Sengoku period,
various warlords, including Oda Nobunaga, used the area as a
base in an attempt to unify and control Japan. Gifu
continued to flourish even after Japan's unification as both
an important shukuba along the Edo period Nakasendō and,
later, as one of Japan's fashion centers. Before becoming a
modern city, it was part of the former Atsumi District, but
it has since been designated a core city by the national
government.
Located on the alluvial plain of the Nagara River, Gifu has
taken advantage of the surrounding natural resources to
create both traditional industries (including washi and
agriculture) and tourism opportunities like cormorant
fishing. Mount Kinka, one of the city's major symbols, is
home to a nationally-designated forest and Gifu Castle, a
replica of Nobunaga's former castle. Gifu also hosts many
festivals and events throughout the year.
Two major rail lines connect Gifu to Japan's national and
international transportation infrastructure. The Tōkaidō
Main Line runs through the city, connecting it with Nagoya,
one of Japan's largest cities, and the surrounding area. The
city has a direct train route to Chūbu Centrair
International Airport and facilities capable of hosting
international events. Gifu has active relationships with six
sister cities.
Geography
The city of Gifu is located in the southern portion of the
prefecture and is on the northern edge of the Nōbi Plain. It
is also the main city of the Gifu region of the prefecture.
Much of Gifu's land area has been gained as the result of
mergers, but city's size grew the most through mergers with
the neighboring towns of Kanō (in 1940) and Yanaizu (in
2006). As a result, Gifu's geography is very diverse,
ranging from the built-up city center to persimmon orchards
and strawberry patches in the outlying areas. The northern
part of the city is bordered by tree-covered mountains,
whereas most of the city center is spread throughout the
southern part. The Nagara River serves to cut the city in
half, running from the northeast to the southwest. Much of
the city is part of the Nagara River's alluvial plain and an
environmental conservation district. Because of the
formation of the river, the area is prone to flooding when
large rains strike; however, dykes and levies have been
built to control the excess water. The rich soil of the area
is prime farmland, as well. As of 2005, there were 6,731
farms operating on 337,887 acres (1,367 sq km).
Though the foehn winds coming from the mountains to the
north provide dry, warm air to the city, it still
experiences an wide range of weather throughout the year. In
2005, the low temperature was -3.8 °C (25 °F) and the high
was 36.4 °C (98 °F); the average temperature was 15.9 °C (61
°F). That same year, the city received 1,451 mm (57 in) of
precipitation.
Lifestyle
The downtown area of the city is a bedroom community of
nearby Nagoya, which has larges offices of many
international companies, including Toyota. The ease of
commute between the two cities, as well as the plentiful
apartment construction underway, has contributed to this
distinction. Just north of Gifu Station is Gifu City Tower
43, a 43-story high-rise building that opened on October 13,
2007, as the tallest building in Gifu Prefecture. The upper
30 floors are divided into two- and three-bedroom
apartments, including those for senior citizens. The lower
floors will be used as offices or shops for targeted
services such as medical care. Additionally, there is public
space at the top of the building, which will allow residents
a second 360-degree view of Gifu, with the first one being
the view from Gifu Castle.
The city of Gifu is currently promoting the Slow Life City
Initiative, which is similar to, but more comprehensive
than, the slow food initiative. It is designed to encourage
residents to lead a slower lifestyles and give an
alternative to the fast-paced life of the modern world.
Major parts of this campaign include more dependence on
locally grown food, traditional culture and arts, and
activities to increase citizens’ participation in their
community. In addition to slow food, Gifu also hopes to
include slow industry (traditional crafts), slow education
(studying quality of life), and slow tourism (represented by
cormorant fishing).
Industry
Gifu's first major industry was textiles. For a long period
of time it rivaled Tokyo and Osaka to lead the Japanese
fashion industry. The area just north of JR Gifu Station is
open to many smaller clothing stores catering to many types
of consumers. Furthermore, the city's main downtown covered
shopping arcade, Yanagase, encloses many clothing, shoes,
and accessories shops that carry both domestic and overseas
goods. Over the past decade, though, as Gifu's fashion
industry has declined steeply, the city has begun looking
for other industries to prop up the local economy.
One such industry that Gifu has been able to depend on is
the manufacturing industry. Because the city is located
close to Aichi Prefecture and its many major automotive and
heavy industry companies, such as Toyota, it has become a
prosperous area for many metalworking, mold and die, and
parts subcontractors. Its ease of access to neighboring
areas using public transportation and highways has allowed
companies to set up many factories and facilities in the
area.
In addition to the modern industries upon which Gifu's
economy rests, the city also has a wide array of traditional
industries, which include traditional Japanese fans, Gifu
paper, and ayu-based food goods. Many shops, both small and
large, can be found throughout the city which produce these
goods. The most well-known local industries, though, are
traditional lanterns and umbrellas. There are approximately
15 businesses that make lanterns in the city, the largest of
which is the Ozeki Lantern, Co. In the Kanō area, visitors
have the opportunity to take a course and make their own
paper umbrellas.
Tourism
Cormorant fishing is the representative tourist attraction
of Gifu. Though cormorant fishing occurs in many places in
Japan, it is only on the Nagara River that cormorant fishing
has an uninterrupted over 1,300-year history. This is also
the largest display of cormorant fishing in all of Japan,
with six fishing masters going down the river at the same
time, using their birds to catch ayu (sweetfish). The
cormorant fishing season lasts from May 11 to October 15
every year and occurs each night, except during high water
levels and the harvest moon.
Matsuo Bashō, a renowned haiku poet, spent many months in
Gifu, creating haiku about many things, including cormorant
fishing. Famed comedian Charlie Chaplin also came to view
cormorant fishing on the Nagara River twice and came away
very moved.
Museums
Gifu has a wide range of museums available to its citizens
and visitors. To further promote the use of these
facilities, the city instituted a policy in 2006 that allows
elementary and junior high school students to enter many of
the museums for free.
The largest of the city-supported museums is the Gifu City
Museum of History. It is located in Gifu Park and its
permanent exhibit primarily focuses on Gifu's past and
contains many hands-on exhibits. It often hosts special
exhibits, though, providing a broader field of information
to its visitors. Also located in Gifu Park is the Eizō &
Tōichi Katō Memorial Art Museum, which is a semi-autonomous
branch of the history museum. This art museum is dedicated
to the works of the brothers Eizō and Tōichi Katō, famous
artists born in Gifu Prefecture. These brothers' paintings
had many subjects, but the Nagara River and cormorant
fishing feature prominently in a number of pieces. The
Yanaizu Folklore Museum in the Yanaizu-chō area of the city
is the other branch of the Museum of History.
There are two other museums in Gifu Park, too. The Nawa
Insect Museum, next to the history museum, and the Gifu
Castle Archive Museum, next to Gifu Castle atop Mount Kinka.
The Nawa Insect Museum was founded by Yasushi Nawa, Japan's
"Insect Man," in 1919, and provides a close up look at
insects and their world.
Other museums include the Gifu City Science Museum and the
Museum of Fine Arts, Gifu, both located near the prefectural
office. In addition to the Science Museum's general science
exhibits, it also includes a planetarium and a rooftop
observatory, allowing visitors to learn about the day and
night sky. The prefectural Museum of Fine Arts was opened in
1982 as a museum dedicated to art and artists related to
Gifu Prefecture, though it also contains pieces from the
world over.
Festivals and events
A wide array of festivals and events take place in Gifu
throughout the year. Some have long histories, honoring
Gifu's past and Japan's traditions, while others are more
modern, representing the views of its citizens.
The first major festivals of the year are the Dōsan Festival
and the Gifu Festival, both of which occur on the first
Saturday and following Sunday of April. The Dōsan Festival
is a memorial to Saitō Dōsan, so much of the festivities
take place near Jōzai-ji, where his remains are buried. The
Gifu Festival is a Shinto festival that begins at Inaba
Shrine and winds its way through other shrines within the
city. Both festivals include street vendors, flea markets,
and floats being paraded through the city. The Gifu Nobunaga
Festival, which takes place on the first Saturday and
following Sunday of October, also pays homage to a former
lord of Gifu. This festival centers on the downtown area and
includes a procession of horses and warriors down the city's
main streets.
The city also has festivals representing its cultural
heritage. Twice each year, there is a Tejikara Fire
Festival. It first occurs on the second Saturday of April at
Tejikarao Shrine and it again occurs on the second Sunday of
August at Nagara River Park. These festivals are composed of
half-naked men carrying shrines and other devices that shoot
off a large of sparks, in addition to ringing bells. Near
the end of August, the city also sponsors Takigi Noh, a
traditional form of Japanese theater that takes place on the
banks of the Nagara River and is lit only by the surrounding
bonfires and the fires of cormorant boats.
Also twice a year, Gifu plays hosts to two large fireworks
festivals. Large numbers of visitors gather on the banks of
the Nagara River between Nagara and Kinka Bridge to see
these festivals, the size and scope of which are rivaled by
few places throughout Japan. The first festival, the
Chunichi Shimbun Nagara River All-Japan Fireworks Festival,
occurs on the last Saturday of July. The second festival,
the Nagara River National Fireworks Display, occurs on the
first Saturday of August. Approximately 30,000 fireworks are
set off at each festival, with crowds of 400,000 and 120,000
visitors, respectively.
As a major civic event, the downtown area serves as the
location for Flag Art Displays a few times throughout the
year. The flags displayed measure approximately 3 m tall by
1.8 m wide (10 ft by 6 ft). Each set of displays revolves
around a different theme (such as the beauty of Gifu or AIDS
Awareness) or are created by specific group of persons (for
example, local school students or local artists).
Other attractions
Gifu Park is one of the major tourist attractions of the
city because it contains many of the museums and is near so
many other sightseeing spots. However, it also serves as a
gathering place because of its large shaded areas that
include ponds, waterfalls and other peaceful escapes. Cherry
trees and wisteria vines in the spring attract many
visitors, too. Next to Gifu Park is Mount Kinka, which
serves as one of the main symbols of Gifu. It rises 329 m
(1,010 ft) into the sky along the banks of the Nagara River
and serves as the home of Gifu Castle and many hiking
trails.
Other places to rest include Bairin Park, a local park that
is filled with over fifty types of plum trees which bloom in
an array of colors, from white to dark pink, each Spring.
For those who would like to rest indoors, Nagaragawa Onsen
is a popular choice. This is a collection of onsen and
ryokan located along the Nagara River in central Gifu.Its
many springs have a high iron content, which is beneficial
for a variety of minerals for ailments. Also, its close
location to the Nagaragawa Convention Center and various
high class hotels make it a popular area for guests.
For shopping, Yanagase used to be able to fill most people's
needs as this covered shopping arcade for many years was the
primary shopping district of Gifu but in recent years that
part of the downtown area has suffered a downturn in
popularity as large modern shopping centers have opened in
other areas. In addition to its many smaller retail shops
and restaurants, Yanagase is also home to Takashimaya, Muji,
and two movie theaters. It was made famous throughout the
country when Kenichi Mikawa's hit, "Yanagase Blues," was
released in the 1960s.
Historical areas
Castles
Gifu's most famous castle is Gifu Castle, located on Mount
Kinka. First built by the Nikaidō clan during the Kamakura
period, the castle has gone through many forms, with its
current version being rebuilt in 1956. One of its first
major residents was Saitō Dōsan, who lived in the castle
when it was still being called Inabayama Castle. The next
resident of the castle, Oda Nobunaga, changed the castle's
name at the same time that he changed the name of the
surrounding town. From the top of the castle, visitors have
a 360-degree view, effectively giving them a view to all the
borders of the city. Inside the castle are many artifacts
from its past.
Though the two other castles in the city, Kanō Castle and
Kawate Castle, only have ruins marking their former
presence, they both have had important roles in the city's
past. Kanō Castle was built shortly after the Battle of
Sekigahara when Tokugawa Ieyasu ordered the Toyotomi family
to build it upon the ruins of a former medieval castle.
Okudaira Nobumasa was the first person to live in the castle
and he was followed by his descendants until the Meiji
period. The castle's citadel ruins are designated a National
Historic Site. Kawate Castle was used by the Toki clan while
they were guarding Owari, Ise and Mino provinces as the
Chief Retainer of the Shogunate during the Muromachi period.
It was also often used as a meeting place for the cultural
and social elite from Kyoto. There is a stone monument near
Seibi High School marking the castle's location.
Major shrines
The most famous shrines in the city include a family of
shrines: Inaba Shrine, Kogane Shrine, and Kashimori Shrine.
They are considered a family of shrines because the Inishiki
Irihiko-no-mikoto god at Inaba Shrine is married to the
Nunoshi Hime-mikoto goddess at Kogane Shrine and, together,
they are the parents of the Ichihaya-no-mikoto God at
Kashimori Shrine. Inaba Shrine was originally located on the
northern side of Mount Kinka, but it was moved to its
present location by Saitō Dōsan during his reign over Gifu.
Kogane Shrine is located in Kogane Park, behind the Gifu
City Culture Center, and it is said that, behind Kashimori
Shrine, you can see the footprints of Tenba, a mythical
horse.
Kanō Tenman-gū, a shrine located in the former Kanō-juku,
was built in concurrence with Kanō Castle shortly after the
Battle of Sekigahara. Originally built to serve as a place
of worship for the castle's residents, it eventually became
a place of prayer for many people within the growing town.
Tejikara Shrine, located in the eastern portion of the city,
is famous as the home of the Tejikara Fire Festival that is
held in April.
Major temples
Because of the important of both Saitō Dōsan and Oda
Nobunaga, many of the temples here hold strong connections
to them. Jōzai-ji, for instance, was built by Saitō Myōchin,
an ancestor of Dōsan, under the protection of Toki Shigeyori.
Dōsan took advantage of this temple's support as he began
his domination of Mino Province. His presence was so strong
here that his death was mourned at the temple for three
generations and his remains are now interred here. Zuiryō-ji
was also built by Myōchin and is currently undergoing
restoration and contains the tombs of Shigeyori, Myōchin,
and Gokei Kokushi. Sōfuku-ji contains the "Blood Ceiling;"
it was stained with the blood of the vassals of Oda
Nobunaga's grandson, Oda Hidenobu. They committed seppuku
during the Battle of Sekigahara after their leader's defeat.
This temple contains the mausoleums of both Nobunaga and his
son, Oda Nobutada.
Shōhō-ji is home to the Gifu Great Buddha, which is also
referred to as the "Blessed Buddha." Built during the Edo
period, this is the first and largest dry-lacquered Buddha
in Japan and remains one of the three largest Great Buddha
Images of Japan. The Buddha and its 13.7-meter (45-foot)
bamboo frame took 38 years to build. In the aromatic garden,
visitors are able to enjoy tea and traditional foods.
Jōdo-ji holds the remains of Hanako, who was the only
Japanese person to model for Rodin and traveled extensively
throughout Europe during her career. A statue of Hanako was
erected at the temple in 2004. Hanako spent most of her
later years in Gifu's Nishizono-chō, just east of Yanagase.
Information source: “Gifu, Gifu.” wikipedia.org. Article
date: 25 Feb. 2008. Retrieved: Wikipedia. 4 Mar. 2008 <Gifu, Gifu>. |
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