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Kansai Beyond a memorable experience
JP / Margareth S
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JP / Margareth S. Aritonang
Everything is illuminated in the Kansai region of Japan. Thousands of grand mixed-color lights that immediately fill you with a sense of awe shine on the cities of Kobe and Osaka in Kansai every December.
The sight of the colored lights arranged in different shapes in Higashi-yuenchi Park in Kobe, and at the park at Osaka Castle, will cause even the gloomiest heart to leap in happiness.
While the light festival at the Osaka Castle aims to entertain people with shapely and colorful lights accompanied by soft music, followed by a graphic projection of the story of the history of the famous castle built in 1583 displayed on the body of the main castle, the festival in Kobe is more philosophical.
The Kobe Luminarie, which takes place for two weeks every December, commemorates the Great Hanshin earthquake of 1995, which claimed the lives of thousands of locals and caused monstrous damage to the city.
'Luminarie', the plural form of the Italian word 'luminaria' meaning illumination, reflects the partnership between the Japanese and Italian governments in arranging the event, which presents collaborative works from artists from the two countries.
This partnership has been in place since 1995, when the Italian government donated hundreds of individually painted lights to embellish the city in celebration of Kobe's achievement in recovering and offering hope to its citizens in a time of darkness after the devastating earthquake hit.
'The lights that illuminate darkness. This is to remind us that darkness doesn't last forever,' local tourist guide Kiyotaka Kondo said.
'The Luminarie festival was originally held to console mourning locals after the earthquake, to encourage them to get out of the gloom and be happy.'
The Kobe Luminarie, an annual event symbolizing the hope of Kobe citizens, draws around 5,000 local and international visitors every year.
Each year presents a different theme. The theme for last year, which marked the 20th year of the festival, was 'Kobe, City of Dreams and the Light'.
Kobe and Osaka are not the only cities in Kansai that can stun you with their breathtaking artistic light shows. The concept of winter illumination dreamt up by a coalition of local administrations within the Kansai region also involves the historical city of Kyoto, known as the city of Ten Thousand Shrines.
Kyoto Arashiyama Hanatouro, located in the south of Kyoto, offers memorable sights of illuminated nature along an approximately 5 kilometers long walkway around which visitors can enjoy a stunningly decorated waterfront and bamboo forest.
Experiencing the green and exotic shadows of the famous bamboo forest will surely evoke your poetic nature, engaging you in a silent conversation with the magnificent beauty of the forest.
There will be only you and the bamboo forest in the stillness of the crowded night.
The magnificently beautiful green lights radiating from it will take your imagination back to the olden days when princes and princesses spent their time there for leisure, sword training or simply peaceful contemplation.
That bamboo forest still sometimes serves as a shooting location for Japanese samurai movies.
Another place in Kyoto used for movie-making is the Toei Kyoto Studio Park, where you can meet the living version of Rurouni Kenshin from the animation movie Samurai X, as well as other characters from Japanese anime.
This place, without a doubt, is an attractive destination for young Indonesians who are crazy about Japanese animation as well as manga. Besides getting the opportunity to meet their favorite anime characters, they too can dress as any character they wish.
Should you wish to experience more of the natural beauty of Kansai region, the city of Sakai offers beautiful parks and botanical gardens.
But natural beauty is not all that the city can offer, as Sakai, which was once known for its samurai swords, is famous for its high-quality knives and is the headquarters of the internationally renowned producer of bicycle components, Shimano.
The city owes its fame for such production to its skilled craftsmen, who in the ancient time constructed tombs, swords and later guns. Sakai was known as the largest producers of firearms in the whole of Japan during the 16th century.
For those looking to fall into a more conventional tourist trap in Osaka, there is Universal Studios Japan.
The amusement park, which occupies 4 hectares, also includes themed rides and other amenities based on best-selling author JK Rowling's Harry Potter.
The park is only the second in the world to showcase a Harry Potter attraction after the Universal Orlando Resort in Florida in the US.
Memory is indeed a treasure. Yet cities within the Kansai region can offer you more than just the beautiful memory of a holiday spent there, as you can bring home craftsmanship learned at some of the tourist centers.
You can, for example, learn to make your own musical box at the Rokko International Musical Box Museum located on top of Mt. Rokko. You can learn about Japanese candle making or flower coating, among other crafts, at the Kitano Kobo no Machi or Kitano Meister Garden housed in a former elementary school building in Kobe.
As the year 2015 makes its way through its second month, winter tourism destinations in Kansai might be the right choice to conclude your months of hard work by the end of the year, illuminating your path to embrace the coming year.
