KYOTO–On a recent evening, residents in the scenic Arashiyama district here exclaimed “so spectacular” and “really fantastic” as the Chikurin no Komichi bamboo grove was lit up by bamboo cylinders and other handcrafted pieces.
Seeing their delighted faces at the preview event on Sept. 29, Keisuke Ishikawa, chairman of the Arashiyama shopping street association and operator of a dedicated bamboo goods store, brimmed with tears.
“We have finally made it this far,” said Ishikawa, 56, looking back on the journey that saw the annual illumination event suspended for four years until residents banded together to bring it back.
Ishikawa explained that locals are still asked by visitors “when this year’s Hanatoro will start” at times.
“Beautiful sights of the illuminated Togetsukyo bridge and elsewhere have been engraved in many people’s minds,” Ishikawa said. “We were thus desperate to resume the show by any means without municipal support.”
Visitors to the Chikurin no Komichi bamboo grove in Arashiyama can enjoy the nightly Arashiyama Tsukitoro (Arashiyama Bamboo Path) event that will run for a month from Oct. 1.
The town illumination program, previously called the Arashiyama Hanatoro (Arashiyama flower path), was famed as a winter fixture in the Arashiyama district of this ancient capital.
But Kyoto pulled the plug on the event due to the city’s financial difficulties, among other reasons, in fiscal 2021.
The light show has been reintroduced by residents under the new name, although on a smaller scale.
STARTED AS TOURIST DRAW
Hanatoro was first held in fiscal 2002 in Kyoto’s Higashiyama Ward, home to the revered Kiyomizudera and Kodaiji temples, as part of an effort to attract tourists to the area during winter.
Shrines, temples and streets were lit up at night with lanterns and ikebana floral arrangements at the time.
Its aim was to address the tourism slump that Kyoto faced. Sightseeing destinations were then deserted in the coldest months of the year, whereas hordes of individuals flocked to cherry blossom spots in spring and autumn foliage sites in fall during these busiest seasons.
Likewise behind the decision was the city’s tourism industry struggling to recover from the negative impact of a conflict between the municipality and the Kyoto Buddhist Organization.
The city and the Buddhist group were at odds over the temple admission tax and the relaxation of building height restrictions in urban zones during the 1980s and 1990s.
The late Kazuo Inamori, famed as the founder of Kyocera Corp., mediated a reconciliation between the two sides in 1999.
Relevant officials gathered and discussed the future of sightseeing in Kyoto in line with the settlement. This meeting is said to have ended up leading to the realization of the Hanatoro.
Following the first round in Higashiyama, the illumination show expanded to the Saga-Arashiyama district in 2005. The Togetsukyo bridge and the bamboo grove, alongside various celebrated destinations throughout Saga-Arashiyama, were gorgeously lit up.
In the final year, a record 1.578 million visitors showed up at the event venue over its 10-day period in December 2021.
Most of the Hanatoro expenditures were borne by the city.
Records from the municipality’s division to promote tourism, business meetings, incentive trips, international conferences and exhibitions show that the local government covered as much as 130 million yen ($884,000) of the total project budget of 168 million yen in fiscal 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, then Kyoto Mayor Daisaku Kadokawa concluded that the Hanatoro should be abandoned in fiscal 2021 given the city’s difficult financial situation. He was overseeing exhaustive administrative and budgetary reforms in those days.
SOMETHING TO DO AT NIGHT
Now that sightseers are returning to Arashiyama from abroad following the end of the global health scare, Ishikawa, alongside regional tourism insiders, began exploring “somehow bringing back the event on our own.”
They knew all too well that Arashiyama offered few places travelers would find enjoyable after sunset. Visitor numbers in the area plummeted dramatically at night, compared with during the day.
The issue of lagging night tourism, as seen in Arashiyama, was similarly a common problem across Kyoto.
Directing sightseers to night-time destinations is especially significant at present, since dispersing tourists in this manner is considered an effective countermeasure against the excessive influx of people from outside Kyoto.
As overtourism emerged as increasingly problematic, the Kyoto Chamber of Commerce and Industry started emphasizing the importance of the “night-time economy” so travelers could enjoy the evening hours.
Assisting in the endeavor was Hirotsugu Yoshida, 74, head of the Kyoto-based nonprofit organization tackling problems linked to long-unattended bamboo thickets. He has been maintaining the Chikurin no Komichi grove for about 10 years.
Cooperating with his group members, Yoshida thins out old bamboo. The collected bamboo is transformed into tubes and baskets for producing bamboo lamps embedded with LEDs. Those lanterns are displayed as artworks and later recycled into charcoal.
Devoting himself to bamboo forest preservation, Yoshida witnessed bamboo in the Chikurin no Komichi thicket vandalized by tourists with knives and wither in the end on one occasion.
Recalling the bitter incident, Yoshida willingly offered support for the Tsukitoro project, stressing, “We have been seeking how to take full advantage of our bamboo lanterns in order to keep the grove glorious. Let’s do it together.”
The Tsukitoro became a reality through the efforts of locals this way.
The light exhibition is no longer eligible for governmental subsidies, so illumination is limited to the bamboo grove, unlike the Hanatoro, where the entire Saga-Arashiyama was featured and highlighted.
An admission fee is charged for the latest showing as well.
A total of 1,000 bamboo lamps were handcrafted primarily by 150 individuals from the NPO and the event’s volunteer workforce. Some were made by children in Arashiyama through workshops and similar activities.
Operating costs of the Tsukitoro are anticipated to be covered primarily by admission fees under the plan. If the event generates a profit, illuminating the Togetsukyo bridge will reportedly be considered in winter 2025 at the earliest.
“It was fortunate for us to revive the exhibition before the Hanatoro disappears from people’s memories,” Ishikawa said, while expressing his hopes for the future. “The show not only will help create a fresh vibrant atmosphere in Arashiyama, where silence reigns like a ghost town at night, but also may prove useful in dispersing visitors.”
The nightly illumination runs from 6 p.m. through 9 p.m. Admission is 1,500 yen for junior high school students and above. Tickets can be purchased in front of Nonomiyajinja shrine.
AloJapan.com