[Former Hokota Town (Hokota City), Ibaraki Prefecture]Relaxing time at Kashima-nada Seaside Park | Gadget Tsushin GetNews

All over Japan, various events are happening every day. “What kind of land is there in Japan?” I (Katsusuke Nishina), who works as a photographer, set out on a trip to visit all the old cities, towns and villages that remained during the “Great Heisei Merger.” It came out. The number is over 2000.

This time, I had the opportunity to introduce them on the news site “Straight Press”, which disseminates information on local areas, local governments, corporate initiatives, new products, etc., so I started a series with photos.

It may have something to do with the local cities and towns that appear in “Straight Press.”

This time, we will introduce the former Hokota Town (Hokota City) in Ibaraki Prefecture with photos.

Vol.210/Ibaraki Prefecture Former Hokota Town (Hokota City)

I came to the old Hokota town. When I headed to Kashima-nada Prefectural Seaside Park, I found not only a park, but also a vegetable store, with melons lined up in stores. The signboard at the sales office says, “Sea and Forest Village.” The location is close to the Pacific Ocean, so I know about the ocean, but I felt that the fact that it’s a forest village shows that the ocean and the forest are interconnected with each other’s nature.

The bus stop and banners also had melon designs, and the banners had illustrations of comedian Kaminari. Apparently both of them are from Hokota City. Below the lead sentence about No. 1 vegetable production, there are illustrations of vegetables and Mr. Kaminari, and the words “Pride of Hokota.” I could feel the pride in both of them, and it gave me a warm feeling.

It’s melon!

To the observation deck where you can see the sea

Although it’s cloudy, the sea is nice

In a relaxed manner

free time

At Kashima-nada Seaside Park, I walked to the observation deck overlooking the ocean. As we reach the end of the ascent, the Pacific Ocean finally comes into view. A lead-colored cloudy sky and a slightly darker gray sea stretched out vastly. While the wind was blowing roaring, the two women who were earlier on the observation deck were engrossed in conversation. They don’t seem to mind the wind either. The overcast Pacific Ocean’s appearance differs from person to person. It’s not sunny every day. This scenery is also a part of everyday life here.

When I returned to the parking lot, I saw children playing happily on the lawn.

(Katsusuke Nishina)

Photographer profile

Katsusuke Nishina/bonito
Active as a photographer. Born in 1996 in Kurashiki City, Okayama Prefecture. While he was a student at Hiroshima University, he visited all 1,741 municipalities in Japan.
He has published “Hometown Notebook” (KADOKAWA), “Entourage Japanese Car Diary” (translated by Mr. Chiu Kako) (Hiji Publishing), and in 2022, “Wherever I Live” (self-published).
A trip around the old cities, towns and villages “Furusato no Techo”: https://katsuo247.jp
Katsuke Nishina official Twitter:https://twitter.com/katsuo247
Katsuo Nishina official Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/katsuo247/