Hanataen

This is the Ōsawa village shrine. It is said the Katori Shrine was transferred here from Sagishiro. The “Meisaichō” notes the shrine's establishment as Ōei era (1394 to 1428). This area belonged to Shimōsa Province in the middle ages, and Katori Shrine, the province's first shrine, was invited to the village as its guardian deity and built in Sagishiro. It was moved to its current ground around the Kan’ei era (1624 to 1644) due to the maintenance of the Ōushū Kaidō. According to the sign displaying date of construction (munafuda), the current main shrine was renovated in 1866. A pattern from the fabric-dyer is engraved around one side of the main shrine. It is the work of Takejiro Hasegawa who resides in Mount Asama San’ya-machi and is the city’s designated cultural property.

At the Hanayoi Glass Studio run by Tamami Sudo, a glass artist who has had numerous exhibitions at famous department stores, you can try your hand at glass blowing and sandblasting (reservations required). Participants receive careful instructions which are easy for even beginners, and the workshops are popular for making wedding anniversary or children's milestone mementos. The stunning works of Tamami Sudo that are on display in the studio.

Cherry trees sprouted from the seeds of the Jindai cherry tree in Hokuto City, Yamanashi Prefecture, traveled to space with astronaut Koichi Wakata in 2008 and were planted in Seki Park on April 6th, 2019 through the Kibou (Hope) Cherry Blossom Project, which aims to plant cherry trees in municipalities affected by the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami. The decision to plant the trees in Yoshikawa City was a result of (1) the children's communication with astronaut Kanai Yoshishige in space, (2) dispatching staff to Iitate Village in Fukushima Prefecture, which was evacuated after the 2011 earthquake, and (3) the desire to pass on to future generations an explanation of the damage caused by Typhoon Kathleen from 70 years ago. The Sakura Festival is held at Seki Park every March.

In 1187, the Yoshikawa clan reestablished this shrine as the Ujigami Suwa Shrine for indigenous deities. The shrines within the precincts include Yasaka Shrine, Furumine Shrine, Inari Shrine, Matsuo Shrine, Yoshikawa Tenmangu Shrine, Suijingu Eight Great Dragons, and Shikato Daimyojin. The old Shimotsuma Highway runs behind the shrine, and a Japanese bay tree in front of the precincts and a large camphor tree in the rear tell the shrine's long history. Every July, the shrine holds the Yasaka Festival, which has a history of about 400 years. The highlight is the "abare mikoshi," portable shrines that are carried and thrown high above the heads of the bearers for a spectacular sight.

A well-established Japanese sweets shop in Yoshikawa City that has been in business for 60 years. It was relocated to behind Yoshikawa Shrine and reopened in 2019. The famous "Namazu Manju," made from homemade red bean paste cooked with a rare attention to detail, makes for a perfect souvenir. We also recommend the "Namazu Monaka" to compare the taste of smooth and coarse red bean paste, and the dango (rice flour dumplings) made fresh to order.