Blog

As I mentioned in our previous blog that Mr. Ugyen Dorji who is studying

at University of Fukui as a teacher trainee from Bhutan since September of 2017

and his family will go back to Bhutan at the end of March.

Mr. Ugyen Dorji　and his family

from right to left lining up sideways

They always had such beautiful smiles on their faces and I enjoyed being around them.

I visited great places in Fukui Prefecture with them. I took videos and photographs of

the places and the family. They seemed to be enjoying all the places we visited.

By watching people from overseas appreciating the beauty and charms of Fukui Prefecture,

I realized that Fukui Prefecture is a great place to live and/or visit.

We talked about our cultures, hobbies, family, etc.

I learned about Bhutan from them that they are kind and polite, they're very religious,

they respect their king and queen so much, there's no ocean, they love spicy foods.

I didn't know that they like spicy foods so much that they even bring their own spices

when they came to Japan.

In the beginning of April, we walked around the city looking at cherry blossoms.

We enjoyed walking on the pathway along Asuwa River in Fukui City as well.

The river flows through the center of Fukui City. And the pathway along the river

was selected as one of the 100 best places for cherry blossom viewing in Japan.

It was the first time seeing the real cherry blossoms for Mr. Ugyen Dorji and his family.

They said that they had seen the cherry blossoms in movies and TV but not the real ones.

They were amazed to see the real ones.

We visited Fukui Prefectural Dinosaur Museum in Katsuyama City, Fukui Prefecture.

It is recognized as one of the top dinosaur museums in the world and

it's the largest one in Japan.

They were impressed by many real looking dinosaurs exhibited and how large the museum is.
They told me that there are dinosaur toys in Bhutan but there's nothing like this museum and/or those exhibits. They seemed to be impressed by everything they saw at the museum.

Even I had visited this museum several times, I like the lightings and how the exhibition area echoes the sound. I never get bored and still enjoy being there. The museum is enjoyable for both children and adults.

We visited Echizen Matsushima Aquarium(*you can change the language in the website) and the sea in Sakai City, Fukui Prefecture. There's no ocean in Bhutan. His wife saw ocean for the first time in her life. She took time to feel the ocean by touching and smelling it.

His son's favorite thing in the world is fish, so he was very excited to see all the fish at the aquarium. As soon as he walked into the aquarium, he started staring at the fish and

wouldn't want to leave from the large tank. He was quiet and shy when I met him,

and I didn't hear his voice much. At the aquarium, I was kind of surprised to hear him

saying "fish" and "wow" happily.

Ichijodani Asakura Clan Ruins
is surrounded by beautiful nature, so the visitors can enjoy the great view,

and learn about the history at the same time.

His sister loves flowers so she was grateful to see the beautiful flowers there as well.

They experienced the Warring States Period's style kimono dressing experience.

His son was excited to see how his mother and aunt looked different with the kimono.

They said that the kimono which they wore were similar to traditional Bhutanese clothing

for men called “Gho”. For women, the traditional clothing is called “Kira”.

It was such a great experience for me to visit all these beautiful places in Fukui Prefecture with them. As a person from Fukui City, I realized that Fukui Prefecture is

even more amazing place than I've always felt.

Anyone from all over the world can enjoy and relax all year around in Fukui Prefecture.

It welcomes you with the ocean, mountains and river, interesting sight seeing places

like Fukui Prefectural Dinosaur Museum, Echizen Matsushima Aquarium, Ichijodani Asakura Clan Ruins , etc.

There are also great foods, hot springs and people as well. Come visit Fukui!

T.F

I visited the Shibata-jinja Shrine for my New Year's prayers. The Shibata-jinja Shrine is about three-minute walk from Fukui Station, which is conveniently located. The Shibata-jinja Shrine enshrines a Japanese military commander in the period of warring state, Katsuie Shibata and his wife, Oichi, who resided in Fukui. So the shrine has a deep involvement in Fukui's history.

After his castle fell in 1583, the retainers of the time built a stone shrine at the castle tower site and enshrined the spirit of Katsuie. And in the Meiji Period, the stone shrine became an official shrine and it was the beginning of the Shibta-jinja Shrine.

In the precinct, there are statues of Katsuie, his wife Oichi and her three daughters, so people visit the shrine as one for bond with the divine virtues such as a bond of married couples, brothers and sisters and family.

Also, the chains of Funabashi, which were used for a bridge over the river, introduced on our website GEN, are exhibited in the neighboring museum. I was surprised that they were bigger and heavier than I expected. The museum is admission free and it has a resting space and the restroom. When you come to Fukui, please drop by. (H.S)

"Goshuin" (stamp given at shrines or temples) of the Shibata-jinja Shrine

The Oichi's statue stands quietly in the precinct. (Photo is from the shrine's website)

Description of the chains of Funabashi

Picture of the chains of Funabashi

The actual chains of Funabashi

Here is the video that the local people mentioned about the chains of Funabashi.