You can be healed just by watching and study the show.

It is a program where people can re-discover new charm and culture of cities while encountering their history, secret stories, and traces left on the terrain of the lands in the cities.

One day, when we have a chance to visit the places introduced in the show, we will read back the records of BURATAMORI in advance so that we can enjoy the trip much more.

Ken

So before I forget the contents of the TV program, I would like to write the focal points as our memorandum in this blog.

What is the relationship between Nagoya and Tokugawa Ieyasu?

Tokugawa Ieyasu (1543-1616) was the founder and first shogun of the Tokugawa Shogunate of Japan.

Tokugawa Shogunate e effectively ruled Japan from the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868.

Shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu

Tokugawa Ieyasu was one of the three unifiers of Japan, along with his former lord Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi.

Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi are from Owari. In the days of Nobunaga and Hideyoshi, the center of Nagoya was located in Kiyosu.

Tokugawa Ieyasu built the Nagoya castle as a battle base.

In 1610, Tokugawa Ieyasu from Mikawa built the Nagoya castle at the current location instead of Kiyosu.

Tokugawa Ieyasu built the Nagoya Castle during the time of the Sekigahara Battle in 1600 and the Siege of Osaka in 1614. He needed to build the castle as a base to deploy strong battles.

“Umadashi” is one of the strengths of the Nagoya Castle. Umadashi is a moat built in front of the gate to create a space that works effectively in both offense and defense.

The secret of the other strength of the Nagoya Castle is Ishigaki, a stone wall.

The stone used for a moat is different depending on the location. In some places, granite was used and in other locations sandstone was used. This is because “Daimyo” (feudal lord) responsible for each moat was different.

Having many Daimyo take charge of building a castle in this way is called the “Tenka Bushin” system. Tenka means the realm.

The Nagoya Castle was built by the “Tenka Bushin” system, and the building cost was borne by the Daimyo in charge of the construction.

The Daimyo who was mobilized to create the Nagoya Castle was a Toyotomi Daimyo, and one of the Tokugawa Ieyasu’s objectives to construct the Nagoya Castle was to cut down Toyotomi’s financial resources before the final battle in Osaka.

Also, since the Nagoya Castle is located on the northern edge of Atsuta Plateau, it is considered to be an excellent defense castle. On the northern side of the castle, a large “Umadashi” (moat) was created by an embankment.

The construction of the Nagoya Castle and the castle town were well planned ahead.

This means that when Ieyasu built the Nagoya Castle, he was thinking of using Umadashi as a future utility space (space for food storage and shelter, etc.) in anticipation of the peaceful era after the battle era is over.

Nagoya Castle is the largest in Japan in terms of total floor area. It is the third tallest after the Edo Castle and the Osaka Castle.

The castle town of Nagoya Castle was divided into square areas in the south of the castle. The parcel of the castle town that Ieyasu made can still be observed in Nagoya City. One side is a 100 m square.

At that time, this square board area in front of the castle was inhabited by the townspeople, while “samurai” (samurai warrior) lived outside. Ieyasu made preferential treatment for the townspeople.

Ieyasu aimed for building an economic city centered on merchants, not samurai warriors.

“Hisaya Odori Street”, now famous for its TV tower, is built by utilizing the easternmost section of the square.

Nagoya’s economic development began with the town creation by Ieyasu.

Nagoya was built 400 years ago by Tokugawa Ieyasu.

The Nagoya Castle is located in the northernmost part of the plateau and Atsuta Jingu Shrine is located in the southernmost point.

Handwritten letters from Nobunaga, Hideyoshi, and Ieyasu with powers at that time are still preserved in Atsuta Jingu Shrine.  It is the indication that the shrine was very cherished by these leaders.

Going further south on the southern end of the plateau, there is a signpost that crosses the old Tokaido Street. Since the road from Tokaido Street is a dead-end here, the road turns south and heads for Shichiri-no-Watashi.

In the time of Ieyasu, only between Atsuta and Kuwana of Tokaido Street was traveled by boat. This is called Shichiri-no Watashi. Watashi means crossing in Japanese.

Atsuta prospered as a port because those who traveled from Tokaido Street boarded a boat from this Shichiri-no-Watashi section.

This area is called the Nobi Plain and has three large rivers. The Kiso River, the Nagara River, and the Ibi River.

In those days, when traveling by land from Atsuta to Kuwana, travelers had to cross each of these three rivers, so they traveled by sea.

Large keyhole-shaped ancient tomb mound remains at Atsuta, indicating that Atsuta had prospered since ancient times.

Ieyasu helped develop Nagoya by making Atsuta the center of trading.

Ieyasu aimed at creating a castle and a castle town in Atsuta plateau by taking notice that Atsuta is located at the southern tip of the plateau since Atsuta had been flourished for a long time from the ancient time. Since he made Atsuta the center of Nagoya’s trade Nagoya has been flourished.

Atsuta plateau was spread 7 km north and south, the distance from the castle town to the port was considered as an issue.

However, at the same time, Ieyasu built the Nagoya Castle and created a canal linking the castle and Atsuta, using the slopes of the plateau to maintain water depth. This canal connected the castle town with the port of Atsuta and thus trade was expanded.

This canal is the current Horikawa Canal. Horikawa is considered to be the part of the Nagoya Harbor and not a river. The water of Horikawa also contains some salt.

By flowing wood from the Kiso Mountains to the Kiso River and transporting them from Atsuta to the castle town of Nagoya using the Horikawa Canal, Nagoya prospered as a timber distribution base for nationwide.

You can be healed just by watching and study the show.

It is a program where people can re-discover new charm and culture of cities while encountering their history, secret stories, and traces left on the terrain of the lands in the cities.

One day, when we have a chance to visit the places introduced in the show, we will read back the records of BURATAMORI in advance so that we can enjoy the trip much more.

Ken

So, before I forget the contents of the TV program, I would like to write the focal points as our memorandum in this blog.

Why is the Tottori Sand Dunes very popular?

The Tottori Sand Dunes is designated as a national natural monument. It is a popular tourist destination visited by about 2 million people annually.

It faces the Sea of Japan and is 2.0 km east-west and 1.5 km north-south.

In Japan, there are over 30 dunes across the country.  And some of the dunes are even larger than the Tottori Sand Dunes. Nevertheless, the Tottori Sand Dunes is by far the most popular tourist attraction as a sandhill in Japan.

Why does the Tottori Sand Dunes attract so many people?

The most popular location in the Tottori Sand Dunes is the hill of the sand called the “Umanose” (Horseback).

As you walk down the dune from inland to the sea, you will encounter the sandhill with a slope of 32 degrees.

This hill is called the “Umanose.” It is as high as 45 m from the sea level.

Looking at the entire dune and the landside from the top of the Umanose, you can see there is another hill on the landside with the same height as the Umanose.

This sandhill is called the “Camel Rise.”

In Japan, only the Tottori Sand Dunes has two sandhills with a different height (the Horse Back and the Camel Rise) adjacent to the sea.

Being able to feel such large undulations and differences in height is the most attractive feature of the Tottori Sand Dunes.  It can not be seen in other dunes.

Large amounts of sand from a river flowing near the dune were blown up by strong winds from the Sea of Japan.   Then created these two high sandhills over a long period.

Therefore, Little by little, the dune is moving inland from the seaside.

Why are these two high sand hills adjacent to each other?

You can find out the reason by studying the geology of the “Camel Rise,” the hill farther away from the sea.

You can see red soil near the Camel Rise. And this red soil is the deposited volcanic ash.

The Camel Rise was made by volcanic ash covers the surface of sandhill and new sand blowing up by wind is deposited on the volcanic ash.

The Camel Rise is solidified by this volcanic ash so that the entire dune will not move further inland by the wind from the sea.

On the other hand, the Umanose is made only sand (no volcanic ash), so it has been moving toward inland by the wind.

This has created the current shape of the Tottori Sand Dunes, where two sandhills are closely adjacent.

The wonderful landscape was created in this way.

The volcanic ash of the Camel Rise was found to be a thick layer of volcanic ash that flew from “Oyama” during the eruption.  Oyama is the highest mountain in the Chugoku region and erupted about 60,000 years ago.

The volcanic ash erupted from Oyama caused the entire dune to be solidified. Oyama is 65 km southwest of the Tottori Sand Dunes. As a result, the high dune (the Camel Rise) that does not move by the wind was made.

”Springwater” Another charm of the Tottori Sand Dune that attracts people

In addition to the two tall sandhills, the Tottori Sand Dunes has a great charm to attract people.

It is “spring water.”  In the Tottori Sand Dunes, water springs from under the dunes and the spring water flows out all year round. 600 tons of water are flowing out per day.

Why there is so much spring water despite it is the dunes?  It is because the layer of volcanic ash is impervious to water and the water remains in the sand piled up on the volcanic ash.

The rain that falls on the “Camel Rise” hits a layer of volcanic ash, flows sideways, and springs out as an oasis at the bottom of the dune.

Tottori University Arid Land Research Center uses this spring water to grow wasabi (Japanese horse-radish) in the dune.

Some households near the dune use this spring water for daily life.

The Tottori Sand Dunes has been “the land rich in water” since the Edo period.  This is the reason why it was developed as farmland and residential area.

The Tottori Sand Dunes is a tourist attraction.  However, we can visit only a small area of the original dunes as a tourist spot.

Why the part of Tottori Sand Dunes has remained as dunes and was not developed as farmland or residential area?

This is because the Army owned the land during those days.  And the desert and the rugged terrain were the best training grounds for the Army.

Later, in 1955, the Tottori Sand Dunes was designated as a national park in Japan.

You can be healed just by watching and study the show.

It is a program where people can re-discover new charm and culture of cities while encountering their history, secret stories, and traces left on the terrain of the lands in the cities.

One day, when we have a chance to visit the places introduced in the show, we will read back the records of BURATAMORI in advance so that we can enjoy the trip much more.

Ken

So, before I forget the contents of the TV program, I would like to write the focal points as our memorandum in this blog.

The roots of Fukui City is in Ichijo-Dani.

Fukui City is a castle town of the Echizen Matsudaira family during the Edo period with an area of about 12 square km. The city is currently the political and economic center of Fukui Prefecture with a population of 260,000.

Going back to the “Sengoku Period” or the Warring States period, Asakura Yoshikage (1533-1573) was the “Sengoku daimyo” or a warlord who ruled the current Fukui, “Echizen.”

The castle town created by Asakura is called “Ichijo-Dani.”  And its site is about 10km inland from the current city center of Fukui. It is about 15 minutes by local train.

If we have a chance to visit Fukui City, Ichijo-Dani is a place we want to take time to go. You can still enjoy the traces of the castle town built by Asakura during the Warring States period.

This castle town built by Asakura is said to be a “phantom city.”

This is because the castle town was burned down by Nobunaga Oda, who was the enemy of Asakura at that time. That’s why Ichijo-Dani was extincted only in 100 years.

However, about 50 years ago, the extinct town was excavated from under the soil. Since there were many discoveries from the Ichijo-Dani valley ruins, the place was designated as a national special historic site.

The Asuwagawa River flowing through Fukui City is divided further inland, and its tributary flows into Ichijo-Dani valley.

This tributary is called the “Ichijo-Dani River.”  Ichijo-Dani is a valley with only 1.7 km, but as much as 10,000 people lived in the area where the Ichijo-Dani River flows in during the Asakura’s era.

Ichijo-Dani was a well-planned city.

There is a huge “Ishigumi” or rockwork at the entrance of the Ichijo-Dani.

The current address in this area is called “Kidonouchi,” meaning “castle door” because this place was the entrance to the castle town created by Asakura.

And the huge stones used in the vast castle town of Ichijo Dani protected the town from its enemies.

As you enter the ruins of the castle town, you can see that low height stones are piled up to divide each residential area. And within each divided residence, there is a trace of square wells.

This fact indicates each dwelling had a well in those days.

Not only wells but also traces of toilets can be seen in each residence.

Accordingly, in the 1500s, Ichijo-Dani was a landmark city where each residence had a well and a toilet.

The discovery of some of the Chinese medical books led to identifying the homes of doctors with state-of-the-art medical technology at the time.

In this way, various relics that show the life of those days have been excavated from Ichijo-Dani. There are more than 2,000 relics designated as national important cultural properties.

Why was the archeological site of Ichijyo-Dani was excavated in such a good condition after buried in the soil for over 400 years?

Immediately after the town was destroyed by being burned down by Nobunaga Oda in 1573, the area was buried under the soil and became a paddy field.

For this reason, the ruins of Ichijyo Valley have been in a vacuum pack state for 400 years long. The ruins did not rot because the ruins were always surrounded by water.

In the area of the current Ichijo-Dani, there is also an area that recreates the townscape at the time.

The area with clay walls on both sides of the road is the samurai residence area where Asakura’s vassal lived.

The castle town is very realistically reproduced using the relics and archeological sites found by the excavation.

In a standard castle town, the area of the “Bukeyashiki” where old samurai warriors live and the area of “Machiya” where merchants live are separated.

But in the castle town Ichijo-Dani, these two areas are intermingled.

It is considered that the area originally a samurai residence was turned into a merchant house as the economy of Ichijo-Dani developed.

Why was the economy of Ichijo-Dani developed?

In the center of the town, there is a place where the lord Yoshikage Asakura lived.

Why Ichijyo-Dani was able to become economically rich?  It can be seen from the pieces of glass found in the place.

The fragment of the glass was that of the Venetian glass. In other words, it shows that there were trades between Europe and Ichijo-Dani.

A model of a large ship was also discovered from Ichijo-Dani, and it shows that Ichijo-Dani dominated the water transportation of the Sea of Japan at that time.

Despite being located in the interior of the inland mountain valley, since Ichijo-Dani was connected to the Sea of Japan through the Ashuwa River and Kuzuryu River, Ichijo-Dani was able to connect with the world and develop economically.

Ichijo-Dani flourished in those days was burned and destroyed by Oda Nobunaga. And the castle town has been moved to a vast plain that is now the center of Fukui City.

Fukui Castle has been the center of Fukui since the Edo period.

At the entrance across the moat, there is a “gate made of white stone”. And tiles are all made of white stone.

This slightly greenish-white stone is called “Syakudani stone.”  It is a type of tuff made of ancient volcanic ash and is one of the finest stones that represent Fukui.

This slightly greenish-white stone is called “Syakudani stone.”  It is a type of tuff made of ancient volcanic ash and one of the finest stones that represent Fukui.

The Syakudani stone is used everywhere in Fukui Castle because it is soft and easy to process. And this Syakudani stone was also used for the frame of the “well” in the residence of Ichijo-Dani.

It is said that the era of the Ichijo-Dani was the beginning to use the Syakudani stone in various fields such as tiles.

In Ichijo-Dani, technology for processing stones was advanced, not only well frames but also tiles, building materials, and daily necessities.

The Syakudani stone was a legacy inherited from the era of Ichijo-Dani to the new era of Fukui.

Why were they able to use a large amount of the high-grade Syakudani stone?

To the west of Fukui Castle, there is a mountain called Asuwayama, which is almost entirely made of Shyakudaji Stone.

There is a fancy restaurant called Tangando located 2 km west of Fukui Castle.  And its garden is entirely made of Syakudani stone.

The restaurant is close to Mt. Asuwayama and used to be a quarry where Syokudani stone was cut out. From the age of Ichijo-Dani, Syakudani stone was cut out from this mountain.

And in the Edo era, beautiful and easy-to-process Syakudani stones were transported and sold throughout Japan, bringing huge benefits to Fukui.

The cut-out stones were transported all over Japan through the Aswa River.

Economic development was achieved by using water transport from the river to the sea during the Ichijo-Dani era.  It means that the wisdom from the era succeeded in the castle town of Fukui during the Edo period.

Currently, there is a place the west of Fukui Castle.in the city with the name “Ichijo Town.”

This area was the place where craftsmen and merchants from Ichijo-Dani fled the war and relocated. And the economy has been supported by these people, and so Fukui has been developed.

You can be healed just by watching and study the show.

It is a program where people can re-discover new charm and culture of cities while encountering their history, secret stories, and traces left on the terrain of the lands in the cities.

One day, when we have a chance to visit the places introduced in the show, we will read back the records of BURATAMORI in advance so that we can enjoy the trip much more.

Ken

So, before I forget the contents of the TV program, I would like to write the focal points as our memorandum in this blog.

Why was the Kurobe Dam built in such an unexplored region on purpose?

Kurobe Dam is located in the southeastern part of Toyama Prefecture, in the area surrounded by the Northern Alps.

The construction of the Kurobe Dam was a major project of the century.

The construction of the Kurobe Dam was a major project after the war, along with the Tokyo Tower and the Seikan Tunnel. It is said to be a major project of the century.

The Kurobe Dam (or Kuroyon Dam) is a variable-radius arch dam located in the Kurobe River.

It supports the Kurobe No. 4 Hydropower Plant and is owned by Kansai Electric Power Company.

With 186 m (610 ft) in height, it is the tallest dam in Japan. It was constructed between 1956 and 1963 at 51.3 billion Japanese yen.

In Japan, during the post-war recovery, the industry rapidly developed and the power shortage occurred as a result.

Electric power was limited to five days a week in factories and 3 days a week in households, particularly in the Kansai area (the western part of Japan), which became a major social problem.

To solve the problem, a huge hydropower dam was constructed.

Until recently, tourer used a tunnel trolley bus to get to Kurobe Dam from Ogizawa Station in Nagano Prefecture.

The trolley bus is an electric bus that draws power from dual overhead wires using spring-loaded trolley poles.

The trolley bus was in service only in Kurobe in Japan, but it was abolished in 2018. It has been replaced by an electric vehicle to visit Kurobe Dam.

The construction of the tunnel was a heavy task.

Originally, the 4.5km-long tunnel from Ogizawa Station to Kurobe Dam was created to carry materials necessary to construct the dam.

The construction of the tunnel was a heavy task. Inside the tunnel, there was a so-called “crush zone”, which required more time and labor because the area was covered with very cold groundwater as well as fragile earth and sand.

The tunnel construction usually progressed about 9 m (10 yards) a day, but it took 7 months to process the 80 m (88 yards) crush zone with only about 40 cm (1.3 ft.) per day.

The tunnel was dug from both sides of the tunnel, Nagano side (Ogisawa route) and Toyama side (Tateyama route). It finally penetrated 1.7 years after the launch of the construction. You can find a “penetration point” signage in the tunnel.

In this way, a tunnel capable of carrying a large number of materials for the construction of the Kurobe Dam was completed, and the construction of the Kurobe Dam began in full swing.

Kurobe Dam is a huge dam for hydroelectric power generation

The Kurobe Dam is 186 m (610 ft) high and is the same height as a 62-story building. The arch-like width is 500 m.

200 million tons of water is reserved in the dam, and all water is used for power generation.

The Kurobe Dam’s power plant is located 10 km downstream from the dam. With a distance of 10 km, the height difference between the dam and the power plant is 545 m.

The Kurobe Dam was built in the unexplored area partly to create this height difference.

The Kurobe Dam is also called as “Kuro-Yon(Kuro 4)” because it was the 4th power plant in Kurobe area.

Before the Kurobe Dam (the No. 4 Power Plant) was built, there were several power plants downstream of Kurobe, and their power generation was about 230,000 kilowatts.

Since the Kurobe Dam was built, the amount of electricity has increased to about 900,000 kilowatts. There are currently 10 power plants, including downstream ones, in Japan.

Why the dam was built in Kurobe?

The Kurobe Dam was created in a secluded area not only to make a large difference in height between the dam and the power plant but also to store a large amount of water and flow them into the downstream power plant.

Kurobe is the optimal location for a dam.

Geologically, both shores of the upper part of the Kurobe Dam are made of the same granite. Therefore, Kurobe Dam has a wide terrain where water can accumulate widely because water erodes the shore evenly.

On the other hand, the downstream side of the Kurobe Dam is a terrain where several types of rocks are mixed.

In the downstream, water flows toward an area where different types of rocks are adjacent, which made the shore cut down narrowly. With the large difference in height, it created a terrain by narrowing the river width.

Therefore, the upstream side of the Kurobe Dam is suitable for storing abundant water.  And the downstream side is suitable for generating the power of water. The water power flows vigorously in a place where the water is narrow and the height difference is large.

In other words, the Kurobe Dam is located at the two borders where the width of the river changes greatly. As such, geologically most appropriate location for the dam was selected and constructed.

When we take a cable car and a ropeway from the Kurobe Dam to the Daikanbo Observation Deck, we can see a terrain surrounding the Kurobe Dam.

Kurobe is abundant with snow.

The ropeway to the observatory has no pole brace. This is because the avalanche could break pole braces. The altitude of the area is 2000m and the snow cover amounts to 7 m during wintertime.

Thanks to the heavy snow, even in summer when the water volume is low, winter snow melts slowly so that melted water flows into the dam.

Having abundant snow is also one of the reasons that the Kurobe Dam was constructed in the unexplored region.

The observatory is located at “Tateyama Mountain Range”.  If you look down at the Kurobe Dam from the observatory, you will find 3000 m-level mountains on the other side of the dam.

The opposite side is called “Ushiro-Tateyama Mountain Range” and the Kurobe Dam is located in a valley between these two 3000m-level mountain ranges.

The ropeway to the observatory has no pole brace in between. This is because avalanche could break pole braces. The altitude of the area is 2000 m and the snow cover amounts to 7 m during the wintertime.

Thanks to the heavy snow, even in the summer when the water volume is low, winter snow melts slowly so that melted water flows into the dam.

Another reason that the Kurobe Dam was constructed in the unexplored region is that the area has a lot of snow.

The observatory is located at “Tateyama Mountain Range”. If you look down the Kurobe Dam from the observatory, you will find 3000 m-level mountains on the other side of the dam.

The opposite side is called “Ushiro-Tateyama Mountain Range” and the Kurobe Dam is located in a valley between the two 3000 m-level mountain ranges.

With the completion of the Kurobe Dam, the power situation has improved, and Japan has entered a period of high growth and development.

You can be healed just by watching and study the show.

It is a program where people can re-discover new charm and culture of cities while encountering their history, secret stories, and traces left on the terrain of the lands in the cities.

One day, when we have a chance to visit the places introduced in the show, we will read back the records of BURATAMORI in advance so that we can enjoy the trip much more.

Ken

So, before I forget the contents of the TV program, I would like to write the focal points as our memorandum in this blog.

What is the “hurdles” of the Kanmon Strait?

The meaning of “Kanmon” in Japanese is “difficult” or “hurdles” in English. And there are many difficulties or hurdles in the Kanmon Strait. The sea width is narrow, the terrain is complex and difficult to pass through by ship.

The Kanmon Strait is only 0.7 km wide although it is 27 km long.

Although its scale is smaller than that of other straits of the world, many more vessels pass the strait with currently about 500 ships a day.

The location of the Kanmon Strait is excellent.

About 500 ships pass the strait in a day because of the Kanmon Strait’s excellent location.

When sailing from South Korea or China to Osaka or Tokyo, the Seto Inland Sea has very gentle waves so that ships can sail safely by going through the sea.  It is located between the Kanmon Strait and Osaka,

The Kanmon Strait is an international route.   And it was also the route of the Japanese official diplomatic delegations sent to China from the 7th to 9th centuries.  It is called Japanese missions to Sui Dynasty China and the Tang Dynasty China.

Three main hurdles of the Kanmon Strait

The first hurdle is its “narrowness.”  The lower part of the Kanmon Bridge that connects Shimonoseki and Moji is the narrowest section of the Kanmon Strait and is only about 700m wide. Every day, 500 ships, including large ships, pass through this narrow strait.

The second hurdle is the “speed of flow.”  Tide from both seas flows toward the narrowest place of the strait so that its speed becomes about 20km/h.

Therefore, there is a risk that ships going through the strait could collide with each other.

The third hurdle is “shallow water depth.”  The Kanmon Strait has long been known as a dangerous strait that has several shallow bottoms.

The Origin of the Kanmon Strait

We can overlook the Kanmon Strait and the surrounding mountains from the “Hinoyama Park” in Shimonoseki in Yamaguchi prefecture.

The small mountains on both sides, which are currently divided between Honshu (the main island of Japan) and the Kyushu region, used to be one connected mountain in the past.

They were proved to be one mountain before from the fact that both mountains consist of the same rocks made of mudstone called Hornfels, which is hardened by the heat of magma.

One of the mountains was eroded and shaved over a long period, leaving hornfels on both sides.  And then the magma in the middle was shaved before the hornfels on both sides to form a strait.

Magma in the middle was shaved before the hornfels and became the strait, which is made of granite.

We can still see that the sand on the shore of the strait is made of the weathered granite.

Seawater entered into the granite and formed the narrow strait, whereas the weathered granite entered the sea to form the shallow strait.

What is “Kanmon” of Shimonoseki City?

Shimonoseki is the final point of Sanyodo Road connecting Kyoto and western Japan.

And there was “Sekisho” at the current location of Kameyama Hachimangu Shrine.  “Sekisho” is a checkpoint facility set up at major points of traffic by then government.

Shimonoseki was developed significantly as a port. And it was necessary to grasp not only marine traffic but also the traffic of land and people. This is the reason why the “Sekisho” was set up in Shimonoseki.

In the picture of the Kanmon Strait drawn in France in 1866, the strait was described as the “Shimonoseki Strait.”  This explains that Shimonoseki was the center of the strait until the end of the Tokugawa period.

So why did the name of the strait change from the Shimonoseki Strait to the current Kanmon Strait?

The answer lies in Moji town.

Why did the name change from the Shimonoseki Strait to the current Kanmon Strait?

We can see why the name of the strait has changed by looking at the building of the old Mitsui O.S.K. Lines in Moji built in Taisho 6 (1917).

The tiles of buildings are made using a technique called “Fukurinmeji.”

“Fukurinmeji” is a method to make bricks look aesthetic by raising joints between tiles in a semicircular shape.

“Fukurinmeji” was the finest finish for a tile prepared during that time.

Therefore, the fact that the “Fukurinmeji” was used in Moji, is one of the traces to show how prosperous Moji was during the time.

Moji was developed as a modern city.

Moji was home to major companies, such as major banks, trading companies, shipping companies, and newspapers.

Looking at the map in the middle of the Meiji era, you can see that Moji was developed as a modern city.

Moji flourished because of “Chikuho Coalfield.”

The main reason Moji flourished as a modern city was the “Chikuho Coalfield”, which was located very close to Moji.

This large coal field spread over Kitakyushu produced about half of the country’s coal.

The produced charcoal was transported to Mojiko (Moji Port). Moji Port was designated as a special export port in 1902 as a port for loading coal mines. And Moji town developed as a large city that transports coal both domestically and overseas.

Taisho 14 map shows that the name of the strait has been changed from the Shimonoseki Strait to the Kanmon Strait.

Following Shimonoseki, which expanded greatly at the end of the Tokugawa period, Moji began to develop significantly in the Meiji era.

Due to the great development of both cities across the strait, the name of the strait has been changed.

The Kanji character of Shimonoseki can be pronounced as “Shimo-Kan.”  Also, the Kanji character of Moji can be pronounced as “Mon-Ji.” So, “Kanmon” is taking one word each from Shimonoseki and Moji.

With the prosperity of Shimonoseki and Moji, the construction of a transportation network connecting these two places was carried out at a rapid pace.

Mojiko Station and Moji port became an important transportation hub

Mojiko Station (Moji Port Station), which opened in Meiji 24 (1891), is a symbol of Moji.

The current station building was built in Taisho 3 (1914) and is designated as a national important cultural property.

The railway network was developed starting from Mojiko Station.  And Mojiko Station became the gateway to Kyushu as the closest station to Honshu, the mainland of Japan.

In 1873, the “Kanmon Ferry” connecting Moji and Shimonoseki was launched, and traffic between Honshu and Kyushu became active.

At that time, Mojiko (Moji Port) and Mojiko Station (Moji Port Station) were designed to be connected by an underpass.  The purpose is to make it easy to get from the port to the railway.

In 1941, the Kanmon Ferry made as much as 53 round trips a day, with an average of 24,000 passengers a day.

In addition to people and supplies, there were ships that even carried trains.

With such growth, sea transportation came to its limit.  And the construction of the world’s first undersea tunnel began in 1936.

What were the difficult points to build the first “undersea tunnel” in the world?

The hardship to build the undersea tunnel.

To build the undersea tunnel, totally four tunnels were excavated at the same time.

It was a safety measure so that there is an accident in one tunnel, another tunnel was still able to be used.

From the Moji station side, the shape of the entrance of the submarine tunnel is a square.  However, it becomes a vertical ellipse from about 450m (12m underground).

This is because the first part of the tunnel was made by embedding a square tunnel assembled outside in advance.

Further, around 900m from the Moji side entrance (20m underground), it will come to close to the bottom of the strait.  And the tunnel becomes round instead of an ellipse shape.

A shielding method was adopted for the construction.

The reason for adopting the round shape is that the tunnel was dug using a shielding method from this section.

The shield method is a tunnel construction method that is to excavate using a cylindrical machine. The outer frame of the cylindrical machine acts as a shield. And the tunnel was dug safely while preventing the collapse of the dug part.

The shield method is now a common method to build a tunnel.  But the submarine tunnel in the Kanmon Strait was the first tunnel in Japan where the shield method was successfully implemented.

The first difficulty of the Kanmon Tunnel was that the ground near the seabed of the strait was made of weathered granite sand so that the ground was soft.

To prevent the tunnel from collapsing, it was necessary to constantly send high-pressure air into the tunnel from outside.

The second difficulty of the Kanmon Tunnel was that workers were affected by air pressure. Workers had to enter a decompression chamber to reduce air pressure.

Lastly, the third difficulty of the Kanmon Tunnel was springwater. Springwater came out from the weak ground, making the work difficult.

Finally, The Kanmon Tunnel was completed.

The Kanmon Tunnel was completed in 1944, eight years from the start of the construction.

The technology of the world’s first submarine tunnel was applied to the construction of subsequent submarine tunnels both in Japan and overseas.

Namely, Kanmon Kokudo Tunnel (1958), Shinkansen Shinkanmon Tunnel (1975), Seikan Tunnel connecting Hokkaido and Honshu (1988).  And Channel Tunnel connecting the United Kingdom and France (1994).

You can be healed just by watching and study the show.

It is a program where people can re-discover new charm and culture of cities while encountering their history, secret stories, and traces left on the terrain of the lands in the cities.

One day, when we have a chance to visit the places introduced in the show, we will read back the records of BURATAMORI in advance so that we can enjoy the trip much more.

Ken

So, before I forget the contents of the TV program, I would like to write the focal points as our memorandum in this blog.

Why did the Satsuma Clan become the leading role in the Meiji Restoration?

Many heroes emerged from Kagoshima far from Edo and Kyoto and involved in the Meiji Restoration. This is largely related to Kagoshima’s unique terrain and town development.

The Satsuma feudal lord, the Shimazu, who ruled Kagoshima for more than 700 years, had accumulated enough power to compete with the Edo Shogunate at the end of the Edo period, despite losing to Tokugawa Ieyasu in the Battle of Sekigahara.

However, at the end of the Tokugawa period, they were as powerful as the Edo Shogunate. Why was the Shimazu Clan able to accumulate such great power?

Castle and town planning by the Shimazu Clan

The driving force behind the Meiji Restoration can be seen in the “town development” that the Shimadzu family performed in Kagoshima during the Edo period.

From the ruins of Tsurumaru Castle, a typical castle in Kagoshima, you can see what triggered Satsuma to grow.

The ruins of Tsurumaru Castle are located in the center of Kagoshima City, a short distance from Kagoshima Station to Kagoshima Chuo Station. Tsurumaru Castle was built in 1602 after the battle of Sekigahara.

The moat is only 13m wide and only 80cm deep, and you can still see the stone wall very close to the sidewalk.

There are many bullet marks on the stone wall near the castle entrance. Many of these are traces of bullets from the army revolt, the Seinan War, which took place in 1877 with Takamori Saigo as their leader.

The height of the stone wall is as low as 6.6 m, and the width, depth, and height of the moat are only about one-third of those of Kumamoto Castle.

And just 60m from the moat, you will reach the “Honmaru” or the main enclosure of a castle. Tsurumaru Castle does not have a castle tower, so it looks very vulnerable.

The importance of “Shiroyama” mountain

Tsurumaru Castle was safe even if it was unprotected because of the 108m-high “Shiroyama” mountain with a cliff behind the “Honmaru” of the castle.

When you climb Shiroyama mountain, you can see the “Sakurajima” island from above. It is a flat plateau.

A flat place in the mountains was called “Kuruwa,” which was a place where soldiers were stationed during a battle to secure their defenses.

There are five “Kuruwa” in Shiroyama mountain. Tsurumaru Castle was safe without a defense because Tsurumaru Castle was built under cliffs and slopes of Shiroyama mountain.

Accordingly, the true guardian key of Tsurumaru Castle was Shiroyama mountain.

Why does Shiroyama have cliffs and plateaus?

What is “The Shirasu” plateau?

“The Shirasu” plateau is a unique stratum that spreads around Kagoshima Prefecture. Shirasu plateau is a collection of pyroclastic flows of high-temperature volcanic ash, pumice, and water vapor erupting from volcanoes.

Shirasu observed in Shiroyama was not created by the eruption of Sakurajima, but by pyroclastic flows came down from the Aira Caldera.

A caldera is a huge hole made by the sinking of the entire mountain due to the eruption of a volcano and the disappearance of underground magma.

It is said there was a huge volcano named the “Aira Volcano” on the north side of Sakurajima about 29,000 years ago.

How was the Shirasu plateau made?

The layer that covered the plateau which was compacted by heat and pressure is called the Shirasu plateau. In some places, the thickness of the Shirasu is as much as 100m.

It is said that Sakurajima was born by volcanic activity about 3000 years after the eruption of Aira volcano, and has become the current topography.

The characteristic of Shirasu is that the surface is brittle and easily collapses. Immediately after the eruption of the Aira Volcano, the area became flat and covered with white Shirasu.

After that, a groove that was eroded by rain was formed, and the surface of the groove became fragile and eroded vertically over a long period, and a cut slope was completed.

And the top of Shirasu that was not eroded by rain remained flat. As a result, the Shirasu plateau seen in Shiroyama was completed.

Whole Kagoshima was a fortress.

More than 50% of Kagoshima Prefecture is made up of the Shirasu Plateau. Taking advantage of the characteristics of this Shirasu plateau, many fortresses were created at the foot of the Shirasu plateau in Kagoshima Prefecture, just like Tsurumaru Castle.

In other words, the whole Kagoshima was functioning as a huge castle. That’s why Tsurumaru Castle, in the center of the castle, was safe even without defense.

Another reason Tsurumaru Castle was created under Shiroyama was the spring water from Shiroyama. The Shiroyama stratum before the deposition of Shirasu was “mudstone” and it was impervious to water.

Shirasu, on the other hand, has the characteristic of absorbing water and passing a certain amount of water down little by little.

Therefore, a certain amount of spring water flows from the boundary between mudstone and Shirasu.

Water is indispensable for a castle. In this way, the castle was created by taking advantage of the characteristics and terrain of Shirasu.

Let’s look at Kagoshima’s town planning and castle town.

The secrets of the castle town – the track

Take a tram running through Kagoshima city to see the secrets of the castle town. The clue of the secret lies on the track.

The line train that connects Izurori from Kagoshima station square has almost no straight line and the track is curved.

This was once a track along the coastline, as can be seen from the stone lanterns in Izuri Dori (formerly acted as the lighthouse of the ship).

The seaside from this track was reclaimed by the Shimazu Clan, and trade with China expanded through the Ryukyu by allowing traders to live there.

This was the country and town planning that the Shimazu Clan aimed for., which allowed the clan to save a lot in foreign trade, despite the turmoil at the end of the Tokugawa period.

It is said that the sum was equivalent to three years of the clan’s income.

Tenmonkan, the station next to Izuro-Dori, is the largest downtown and entertainment district in southern Kyushu.

An ingenious attempt to create a castle town.

This area is not a landfill, but an original area. And here you can also see an ingenious attempt to create a castle town.

Samurai used to live in this area. At present, when you walk in this downtown area, you would notice that there are places where the ground is higher.

This rise was traces of the Kotsuki River, which had originally flowed here. And the Shimazu Clan artificially changed the flow of the Kotsuki River and diverted it.  And they newly developed the river so that samurai warriors were able to live in this landless area.

At that time, 25% of the population of the Satsuma Clan was samurai warriors.  So this kind of river replacement was performed to gather many samurai in one place.

As a result, this castle town became a major samurai residence where 50,000 samurai lived and had great influence at the end of the Tokugawa period.

Many heroes were produced from Kajiya-Cho town.

There is a place called “Kajiya-Cho” or Kajiya Town along the Kotsu River that was replaced.

There is a place in Kajiya-Cho where you can experience the history of Satsuma.  The place is called “Ishin Hometown Road” or Home town of Revitalization Road. There is also a place of Takamori Saigo’s birth nearby.

Just 150 meters away, there is a birthplace of Toshimichi Okubo.  Many other Meiji Restoration heroes such as Heihachiro Togo, Shinpachi Murata, Iwao Oyama, Kuniki Shinohara, and Tomomi Yoshii, are also from Kajiya Town.

This was because of Kagoshima’s unique education system in those days.

The education system at that time was called “Gochu Education” and youth provided education to children to learn studies and martial arts in each region.

Among them, Takamori Saigo and Toshimichi Okubo were both young leaders in the Kajiya-Cho area.

Kajiya-Cho was a valuable place where the younger generation was able to directly learn from the two heroes of the Meiji Restoration.

Creating castles and towns using the topography of the Shirasu Plateau.  Raising funds and strengthening finances through trade with China. And developing human resources through the unique educational system.

All these factors were the major factors that enabled Kagoshima to take the lead during the Meiji Restoration.

The secrets of the Satsuma Clan and how they used different stones.

Make “Daiba” preparing for attacks from overseas

Heading toward the sea from Tsurumaru Castle.  Then you will see the “Daiba Ruins” where you can see the stone walls that used to carry cannons.

There is also “Daiba” or a battery in the Edo period in the wake of Perry’s arrival (so-called Kurofune, the great Black Ship) in 1853.  But Daiba in Kagoshima was built in the earlier 1940s.

Many years before the Kurofune came to Japan, the Satsuma Domain had already been preparing for an attack from a foreign ship.

At that time, the most likely route used by European and Western powers to attack Japan was the route coming into Japan from the Chinese side.

In that case, Kagoshima is located as a place that would likely be the first choice in Japan to be attacked by enemies. 

Mining was easily done due to the characteristics of “Tantado Stone.”

Therefore, the Satsuma Domain had been preparing for defense in this area more than 30 years before Perry’s arrival.  This Daiba is made up of stones called “Tantado Stone.”

There is a bus stop called “Tantado” about 3km northwest from the site of Daiba.

This area has long been a quarry.  It is a place where stones are cut from the mountain and processed.

The stratum here is a stratum in which 29,000 years old “Shirasu” or post-larvae was deposited on welded tuff (ignimbrites). They formed about 500,000 years ago.

The flow of the river has cut Shirasu over time, exposing this welded tuff.

Welded tuff is a rock that is formed by melting a pyroclastic flow with high heat and high pressure. 

There are various types, but the welded tuff that can be obtained in this area is called “Tantado Stone.”

The characteristics of “Tantado Stone” is that it has many vertical cracks.  These cracks are formed when the lava cools down and hardens.  They are called “Chujosetsuri.”

Owing to these cracks, “Tantado Stone” is easy to dig from mountains and stones can be easily machined.  The Satsuma Clan has developed its clan using the “Tantado Stone” not only for “Daiba” or a battery construction but also for various purposes.

Nariakira Shimazu, the driving force behind the modernization of the Satsuma Domain

Nariakira Shimazu, the 28th head of the Satsuma Domain, was the driving force behind modernization.

The stage for the modernization was called Senganen, a private residence of the Shimadzu clan.  The place was located about 3 km northeast of the quarry of the “Tantado Stone.”

The scenery overlooking the garden from the audience room at Sengonen garden is very beautiful.

There is a stone lantern in the garden, and Shimazu Nakiaki was experimenting with gas lamps using this stone lantern.

Yokohama comes to mind for many people when it comes to gas lamps.  But fifteen years before Meiji 5 when gas lamps were born in Yokohama, Nariakira had already made gas lamps in this garden.

In the garden, a place that was originally a bamboo grove was cut open, and stones were piled up to create a ” reverberating furnace.”

The reverberating furnace is a metal smelting furnace for the refining iron invented in Europe in the 18th and 19th centuries.

Nariakira built this reverberating furnace in the garden, melted and refined iron to make a cannon.

Going further west from Sengonen, you will find a 77m long building built during the Edo period. 

Currently, it is a museum, but at the end of the Edo period, it was a machine factory.  The exterior walls of this building also utilize unique Satsuma ingenuity.

“Onoishi” used for the outer wall

The outer wall is made of stone called “Onoishi”. Onoishi is a stone that can be mined in Ono-cho town, 10 km away from Sengonen garden.

Why was Onoishi stone used instead of Tantanite?  This is because Onoishi stone has a thermal insulation effect, cool in summer and warm in winter, suitable for machine shops.

There are several calderas in Kagoshima, and different types of pyroclastic flows were blown out in each era. 

Therefore, there are several different types of welded tuffs even near the place, and there are as many as 20 types.

Welded tuff called “Yamakawa Stone” has a feeling that it sticks when the surface is put on the tongue and released slowly.

This phenomenon is called capillarity because there are many small gaps on the stone surface.

Yamakawa stone is hardly weathered because it is not easily affected by temperature changes due to these many gaps and does not expand or contract.

The Satsuma Clan used this Yamakawa stone as a stone for a grave. Shimazu’s grave is also made of this Yamakawa stone.

The Satsuma Clan used various stones for different purposes.

In the garden, not only the reverberatory furnace but also a glass factory and a smelter were built.  Nariakira named these places, “Shuseikan.”

There was a mountain behind the Shuseikan, and it was an environment where water could be dropped from a high place. 

Nariakira saw the opportunity and turned the windmill by the hydraulic power falling from there, using the power to pierce the cannon.

Upstream of the waterway leading to Shuseikan or the machine factory, about 4 km north, there is a rice field that spreads around the waterway.

Let’s go to the start point of the waterway.  Looking at the geological map, a place surrounded by welded tuff in Kagoshima is only this place and very rare.

The people of Satsuma built a waterway using this easy-to-process geology. Nariakira utilized this waterway as industrial water and used it for modernization.

Utilization of miraculous land due to the topography and geology of Kagoshima

If this area was the Shirasu plateau, a waterway could not have been created.

This place may be a miracle land being surrounded by welded tuff and being able to process rocks to create a waterway.

What is most amazing above all is that Shimazu, the head of the Satsuma Clan, was well-familiar with the topography and geology of Kagoshima.

Shimazu Naoki did not miss opportunities to lie in this miraculous place.

The Satsuma Clan achieved the modernization of Kagoshima and the Meiji Restoration by utilizing various types of pyroclastic-flow deposits for different purposes.

You can be healed just by watching and study the show.

It is a program where people can re-discover new charm and culture of cities while encountering their history, secret stories, and traces left on the terrain of the lands in the cities.

One day, when we have a chance to visit the places introduced in the show, we will read back the records of BURATAMORI in advance so that we can enjoy the trip much more.

Ken

So, before I forget the contents of the TV program, I would like to write the focal points as our memorandum in this blog.

Why is the Kobe Port a good harbor? [1300 years of history]

Why the Kobe Port has been flourishing?

The Kobe Port has been flourishing as a good harbor for 1300 years with the 3 reasons.

1. Deepwater
2. Mount Rokko prevents wind
3. The flow of the tide is gentle, protected by the Wada Cape

The roots of the Kobe Port is “Owada-no-Tomari”. It was located on the west side of the current Kobe Port.

“Taira no Kiyomori” developed “Owada-no-Tomari” as a trading port.

“Taira no Kiyomori” (Y1118-1181) was a military leader of the late Heian period of Japan. He established the first samurai-dominated administrative government in the history of Japan.

Then after that, the port greatly prospered as “Hyogotsu”.

Traces of Hyogotsu prosperity can be seen on the Saikoku Highroad.

The Shikoku Highroad connecting Kyoto and Kyushu area did not initially pass through Hyogotsu.

But later, then-government changed the road to passe through Hyogotsu so that travelers and supplies could go through the place because it was undergoing significant development.

The trace can be seen from the fact that the Saikoku Highroad built at the right angles of Hyogotsu. Usually, such main roads are made to run in straight lines and do not run at right angles.

The main reason is the location of Mt. Rokko.

And the main reason for the prosperity of Kobe and Hyogotsu is the location of Mt. Rokko.

Mt. Rokko is facing the sea from northeast to southwest, so the east-west traffic had to go through Kobe and Hyogotsu area.

The water of Osaka Port is shallow due to the flow of water from Lake Biwa and sediment accumulated in the port.

Kobe port only receives water from Mt. Rokko, so the sediment did not accumulate, which is why the Kobe Port keeps the water depth.

One reason the Kobe Port prospered is that it has good quality water. It is said among sailors that “water passing through the Rokko Mountains does not go rot even the water goes through the equator.”

Water passing through the Rokko Mountains does not go rot since there are few organic substances (impurities) in the water. Mt. Rokko is so steep that organic matter does not get mixed with water.

The hardness of water from Mt. Rokko water is 30 and the hardness is considered to be the best for drinking water.

It is also artificially designed to prevent mud from entering the reservoir due to floods during the Meiji era, which is another reason for maintaining high-quality water.

[Kitano of Kobe] A town where you can feel the western culture in your daily life: Why is Kobe “Hai Kara” (stylish) town?

A mixture of western and oriental elements is called “Hai Kara” in Japanese. When we try to describe the word in English, it is similar to “stylish” or “chic” but not the same meaning. The etymology of “Hai Kara” is “high color”, which comes from high-collar clothing.

Kitano of Kobe is located on a winding hill from Sannomiya Station to the north direction. There is “Kitano Tenmangu Shrine” in the area. On the old map, next to the shrine was a pond.

At present, the house of the weathercock, which is one of the symbols of stylish Kobe, is located where the pond was. In other words, the house of the weathercock was built in a place that used to be a pond in the past. It means its structure is semi-underground.

In the past, there was a pond in Kitano town, and the road to Kitano was a winding hill. Kitano was originally a farm village with the terraced field on the hill. And foreigners came into this village town and built houses such as weathercocks.

Kitano of Kobe had more mixed residential quarters than other locations.

From the Edo Period (1603-1867) to the Meiji Period (1868-1912), places, where only foreigners were able to live, were called “reservations area”. And places, where foreigners were allowed to live in the same area as the Japanese, were called “mixed residential quarters.”

Kitano of Kobe was one of the mixed residential quarters. It was an area where foreigners and the Japanese were able to live together.

Kobe had an overwhelmingly large number of such mixed residential quarters compared to other prefectures that also opened ports for foreign countries at the time. The number of mixed residential quarters in Kobe was as much as 1717 locations at that time.

According to a survey conducted from Meiji 21 to 24 (1888-1891), Yokohama City and Nagasaki City did not have mixed residential quarters. And Hakodate (76 locations) and Niigata (19 locations) had very few quarters compared to Kobe.

When it comes to “reservations area”, such area was 4,562 locations in Yokohama, 959 locations in Nagasaki, whereas 320 locations in Kobe.

Kobe’s reservation area still uses the reservation numbers in those days used 150 years ago. The reservation areas in cities such as Yokohama were arranged in order of lands and numbers.   But the number of reservation areas in Kobe was not in order.

Kobe harbor was opened in 1868.

This is because the opening of Kobe harbor (in 1868) coincided with the chaotic times of the end of the Tokugawa period. Accordingly, the reservations areas were not able to be maintained and so that the numbers were not in order.

Due to delays in the development of the reservation areas, the Japanese government allowed having a large-scale “mixed residential quarter” in Kobe.

At the same time, the Japanese government separated the reservation areas according to natural landforms.

The natural landform is a vast area surrounded by Mt. Rokko and two rivers, and the vast area has been designated as the reservation area of the Kobe Harbor.

Besides, Hyogotsu, a large living area where Japanese live at the time, and Kobe, where foreigners live, were separated by the Minatogawa River.

The Minatogawa River was a ceiling river. A ceiling river is a river in which sediment carried by the river flow has accumulated inside the embankment, and the riverbed has risen above the surrounding ground. This high bank played a role in separating the lives of Japanese and foreigners in those days.

The ceiling river divided Japanese and foreigners were reclaimed and developed.

However, as the years went by, the exchange between Japanese and foreigners became more active, and this high bank separating Kobe and Hyogotsu became an obstacle.

In 1890, the ceiling river was reclaimed and shaved, creating a downtown area on the hill, and the main street was built so that people can freely pass through between Hyogo and Kobe. This area is called “Shinkaichi.”

After that, Kobe and Hyogo were integrated and the “high color” or stylish culture in the area has developed.

When a flour mill was established in Hyogo, the mill became the largest producer of flour in Japan.  Then such sweets as western confectionery and tile crackers were introduced from Kobe to nationwide.

The design of the Kobe City’s emblem is the combination of two semicircles, and these two semicircles represent the shape surrounding the ports of Kobe and Hyogo.

Source：Kobe City HP

Season 1 & 2 were especially good. The surprising end will be waiting for you for both seasons!

The drama title implies about the story of a con man. The characters, who play the side of the main character Pete, are wonderful and all episodes have full of humanity.

Bryan Cranston, who starred in the masterpiece “Breaking Bad”, as well as Margo Martindale and Allison Wright, who played in the “The Americans” as Russian spies appear in this show. There is only one scene where both Margo and Allison appear on the same screen together throughout all 3 seasons. But I had a glimpse of the producer’s service spirit.

I also noticed from the middle of the season that the ending music of each episode is very good every time. I especially like the ending song of season 3 episode 4.

Antonino Giovanni Ribisi, who plays a principal role, is an American actor who was born in Los Angeles, California. Previous film appearances include James Cameron’s Avatar in 2009, TED in 2012, TED 2 in 2015.

What is Mr. Robot?

The final season has finally started with Amazon Prime.

IMDb’s work evaluation score as of February 2020, 10 episodes ( out of all 13 episodes ) are more than 9.0 points. Especially, the score of Episode 7 and Episode 13 is 9.9 points!

As if watching a Tarantino movie, I was immediately drawn into the world of Mr. Robot!

It is a crime suspense drama in which Rami Malek, who performed Freddie Mercury in the movie “Bohemian Rhapsody” and earned the Academy Award for Best Actor, plays a leading role (genius hacker).

• Broadcast year: 2015-
• Season 1-4 (45 episodes）
• IMDb Category: Crime, Drama, Thriller
• IMDb Rating: 8.5

When I saw the first episode about a year ago, I was overwhelmed by “the main character’s strong eye (Elliot’s eye appeal)” and stopped watching it after the first 10 minutes.

The dark atmosphere was somehow uncomfortable, and I figured this was not the type of drama I would watch.

Rami Malek won the Oscar with “Bohemian Rhapsody.”

Last November, the movie “Bohemian Rhapsody” was released in Japan, and since both I & my wife have been a big fan of QUEEN, we rushed to the cinema on the release date.

Although our concept is “Indoor Enjoy Life”, we needed to go out for the movie. Then we noticed Freddie, the leading role, is played by Mr. Robot’s man with strong eyes!!!

We were so excited after watching the movie, so we even went to see the movie again on the night of December 31, 2018, which is the final day of the year 2018! Then after that, I spent several months being absorbed in the QUEEN’s songs and was not interested in watching overseas dramas during that time.

When I checked Prime Video in the spring, I noticed that the latest season of the overseas drama “Home Land season 7” we were looking forward to watching was available and we watched the show although it was not for prime members and not free.

Also in Netflix, “Billions Season 4” was released. After we watched the dramas, we finally recovered from the “QUEEN Bohemian Rhapsody shock” and returned to the world of overseas TV dramas again.

This time, since “Mr. Robot” is the “Freddie”, I did not mind about his strong eye anymore. Once we started watching, we finished watching all 32 episodes of 3 seasons right away, as Mr. Robot is indeed a very intriguing story. And programming study was added to my private hobby lately thanks to Mr. Robot.

Mind Hunter Season 2 of Netflix

David Fincher’s overseas TV drama, Mind Hunter Season 2, was released on Netflix on Friday. I watched all 9 episodes over the weekend only within 3 days! If you haven’t seen it yet, please enjoy it from season 1.

Source: IMDb HP

• Broadcast year: 2017-
• Season 1-2: 19 episodes (season 1: 10 episodes / season 2: 9 episodes）
• IMDb Category: Crime, Drama, Thriller
• IMDb rating: 8.6
• It seems it will be produced until season 5 at this moment.

Brief Story

This is a suspense drama set in the United States in the latter half of the 1970s in which a member of the “Behavioral Science Unit Team” newly established in the FBI faces an unresolved serial murder case.

Their technique involves directly interviewing criminals who have been sentenced to serial murder, analyzing the criminals’ thought process and behavior scientifically, and identifying the criminals based on the behavioral analysis results.

Mostly based on the true story.

What’s amazing is this is mostly based on what happened. The name of the criminals is from real criminals. The contents of the interviews are also based on actual records.

Source: IMDb HP

However, criminals are not caught easily by the FBI’s analysis and the characters’ suffering as an FBI investigator as well as various personal human life are depicted in the show. The story goes on with an exquisite tempo without any stress for viewers and gradually gets to the core story.

This is a highly recommended drama for those who prefer “gradually goes to the end within one season type” rather than “one episode complete type”.

In season 1 (10 episodes), the story progresses with a focus on Holden Ford, one of the main characters. But from Season 2 (9 episodes), the focus has shifted to other members besides Holden. Although the main theme of this drama is a serial murder, it is also a superb work of a human drama.

Source: IMDb HP

In particular, three new characters from season 2 (The new boss of the FBI unit, Dr. Kerr’s lover, and the FBI agent in Atlanta) have made the drama more human and realistic.

Also, you would imagine cruel and bloody scenes would be depicted as this drama is based on serial murders, but in Mind Hunter, such cruel scenes rarely appear throughout the entire episodes.

Some depictions appear momentarily, such as criminals’ photographs, but I don’t think no description is too unbearable to watch. This also shows the skill of production director David Fincher.

David Fincher is the director.

David Fincher also supervises 7 out of 19 episodes as a director (Episode 1-2 and 9-13). Speaking of David Fincher, he is a film director of “Seven”, “Fight Club”, “Zodiac”, “Gone Girl”, and others.

He is a famous director, who has shown us a lot of “surprise” in his past works. I think “Mind Hunter” is worth watching just because David Fincher is the general director of the drama.

One last thing, another short story set in Park City, Kansas is inserted at the beginning of the end of each episode throughout the entire season. As I googled it, it turns out to be about a real serial murderer named Dennis Radar. Will he be involved in the main story in the future…?

I can’t wait to see the next season.