Aomori Sightseeing Spots | One of Aomori's Three Great Sleeping Demon Festivals: Goshogawara Tateishi Sleeping Demon Museum (Tachineputa Museum)

The three major Nebuta Festivals in Aomori Prefecture are the Aomori Nebuta Festival, the Hirosaki Nebuta Festival, and the Goshogawara Nebuta Festival, which attract more than 3 million visitors each year. If you want to see the standing Neputa (sleeping demon) outside the festival, you must go to the exhibition hall to appreciate the static exhibition. The large lanterns in the Neputa Festival are mainly divided into three main types: "Aomori Neputa" (horizontal), "Hirosaki Neputa" (fan-shaped) and "Goshogawara Neputa" (vertical). This time I went to Goshogawara City, Aomori Prefecture, and visited the Tachi Nebuta-kan, which is about a 10-minute walk from JR Goshogawara Station, where I could get up close and personal with the three-dimensional Nebuta. Transportation tips: Take a flight or Shinkansen from Tokyo to Aomori. From JR Aomori Station, take the Ou Main Line to Kawabe Station, then transfer to the JR Gono Line to Goshogawara Station. The entire journey takes about 75 minutes. From JR Hirosaki Station, take the Ou Main Line to Kawabe Station, then transfer to the Gono Line to Goshogawara Station. The entire journey takes about 50 minutes. Walk straight out of JR Goshogawara Station toward the station square for about 10 minutes and you will arrive at Tachineputa-no-kan. The exterior of the building is a modern one and is very eye-catching, so don't worry about going too far. There are two exhibition halls in the museum: the Tachineputa Exhibition Room ticket is ￥650 and the Art Exhibition Gallery ticket is ￥300. Tickets can be purchased separately or as a package (￥850). There is also a cafe and observation deck on the 6th floor. When visiting Tachinebuta, you can walk slowly upwards from the first floor and appreciate the appearance of the huge lanterns from different viewing heights. Three tachinebuta are displayed in the museum every cycle, and each tachinebuta is usually displayed for three years. Despite the burning of data, local efforts to start again have never stopped. In addition to displaying a huge real Tachineputa, visitors can also experience the powerful Tachineputa when it "goes out" through a video introduction. The door of the exhibition hall can also be fully opened during the festival from August 4th to August 8th every year, so that visitors can see the actual movement of Tachineputa. The biggest feature of the Goshogawara Nebuta Festival is that it is dominated by tall, upright giant lanterns. Every year, the festival will design lanterns with themes that reflect modern society. The three giant lanterns in the parade have a base that is 10 meters high and a human-shaped part that is 12 meters high. The entire lantern is 22 meters high, equivalent to a seven-story building, and weighs 17 tons. It requires more than 50 people to lift it. Below the giant lantern you will see the Chinese characters "雲汉", which means Milky Way in Japanese. Standing under these giant lanterns, the force and the shock are beyond words. It also shows the determination of the locals to preserve and protect their cultural heritage. It is because of their perseverance in making lanterns that the Nebuta Festival can restore its tradition and continue to pass it on. Please take a trip to the Nebuta Festival with a grateful heart. #SleepingMan #SleepingManFestival #Aomori #Hirosaki #Goshogawara #Neputa #TateNeputa #Tohoku #Japan