松本イモリ谷の紹介　英語版

     English version 　
 

 
 Introduction of Matumoto Valley, so-called “Imori Dani” and activities of the Green Turism there (Imori-dani Club)
 

 We’ll find Matumoto in the middle of the map of Ajimu Town. It is about 3 kilo-meter long, narrow valley. Seen from the sky it looks like a water lizard--“imori” in Japanese. The little creature isn’t beautiful, but the kanji for it means Guardian of a well or spring!
 
 

 Both sides of the valley are dotted with about fifty houses. A small river “ Matumoto River” runs in its middle.  It used to wind down in the valley but about 20 years ago the embankment project caused it to run straight down. The high walls, sorry to say, make it difficult and dangerous to go down and play in the river. Therefore, we feel it all the more important to do something so we won’t lose contact with the river. Firefly watching in June is one of the most important events for us.
 
 

 The bottom of the valley is filled with small rectangular rice fields.　Several vineyards are on the hills of both sides.
 
 

 It is a generally accepted fact that the population of rural areas is  decreasing so rapidly that there remain only aged gran’pas and gran’mas. But our valley seems to go the opposite way. More people have moved in here than those leaving the valley.
 
 

 One of the things which attracted them to the valley is certainly the existence of the farmers believing in sustainable growth of agriculture and trying to make workable co-existence and cooperation between rural and urban regions. Their efforts naturally led to Green Turism.
 
 

 Our main activities or events are as follows:
 
 

I: “Rengeso” festival in April

  Walking around in the valley, you can enjoy the view of rengeso (Chinese milk vetch) fields here and there. You can drop in at the charcoal furnace constructed this March. You can also go up about a hundred stone steps to our ujigami shrine(clan shinto shrine) near the furnace.
 
 

II: Firefly festival around the end of May or beginning of June

　Listening to the concert performed by guest musicians , we watch swarms of fireflies turning light on and off.
 
 

III: Grape picking in the latter half of August

  We’ll welcome you to grape picking in our vineyards. If you bring lunch you can have a luncheon party under grapevines. We hope it will be a pleasant diversion during sultry summer.
 
 

IV: Outdoor Film Screening in August

  Good old movies are shown outdoors on a summer night. We’re thinking of presenting on a latest, if possible, movies received through DVD.
 
 

 V: Learning how to make rice straw articles

   Various things of daily use made of rice straw were replaced by chemical products. Nowadays only straw rope is still in use. One kind?big sacred rope for shinto shrine festivals ?is difficult to make. Very few aged men know how. Therefore, it is urgent for us to learn the skills of making not only sacred ropes but also other useful articles ,suche as rice straw sandals,bags for storing rice  and the like,before it’s too late.
 
 

VI: Autumn Festival

  It is an age-old and most important shinto shrine ritual and festival which takes place after harvesting rice in November. We set up a tent and serve snacks and drinks. We hope it will also be a reunion, as was usual in old days, with relatives and those people who have left the valley.
 
 

 We’d like to have people from cities, young and old, come to our place and have a better understanding of our situation. Of course we’d like you to enjoy yourselves more than anything else.
 
 

 Our telephone number and E-mail address are on the Japanese version above.        　
 
 

                                                                                                                    Trancerated by Hideo Fujigaki    June,21,2002