Rice plays a major role in these parts and many of the autumn festivals coincide with the rice harvest. Over in Nakazato you can experience rice harvesting by hand and some friends of our went along to see what it was like. Here is the report from Pelle and Emilia.
Rice harvesting in Echigo-Nakazato.
Each season brings different experiences in the Snow Country. Winter brings abundant snowfall excellent for all kinds of winter sports. Spring is beautiful with its cherry blossoms and wild rivers. In summer there are many festivals and the lush mountainous nature to explore. Autumn is great for trekking among the changing colors of the trees. Autumn is also the time for harvesting the famous Niigata Koshihikari rice.
Through Hop Step Japan we had the opportunity to try traditional rice harvesting on our latest trip to Snow Country. On a beautiful, sunny autumn day we hopped on our bikes and set out for Nakazato and the rice harvesting experience. We were excited to try harvesting one of the culinary gems of Niigata, Koshihikari rice, but also a bit nervous due to our lack of Japanese language skills. As I turns out it was a wonderful day, and the helpful staff made sure we knew what to do by giving a demonstration. So with about 100 other eager participants we soon got to work cutting down a whole field of rice. People of all ages made an effort together, and little kids enthusiastically carried around bundles of rice bigger than themselves. The only time work was halted was when a frog was found in the rice field. After a while and many pictures everybody got back to work. The kids got to take turns riding the harvesting machine and looked very happy. It was amazing how quickly you can harvest a rice field by hand when working together side by side.
It was a fun way to feel a connection to the community and the area, were rice fields stretch out as far as the eye can see. After harvesting we all posed for photographs and were rewarded with one kg of premium koshihikari rice and a bathing ticket to try a local onsen. The friendly organizers reminded us to stop by the harvest festival held near the Nakazato station the next day, and we promised to do so.
After the harvesting we rode our bikes to the trendy 3-ji café in front of the Nakazato station for lunch, and had some delicious curry with homegrown vegetables. We highly recommend trying out the local specialities of the snow country area for a taste of the real, friendly, rural Japan.
