Rites of spring

The Enburi Festival in Hachinohe, northern Honshu is the perfect time to explore this little corner of Japan, writes Neil Geraghty

On a late February evening in Hachinohe northern Japan, winter is in full swing and my umbrella is buckling in a cold north wind. Curtains of wet snowflakes are swirling around in the headlights of the commuter traffic and I’m in sore need of warming up. My destination on such an inhospitable night is Kojokaku, an elegant mansion built by a wealthy merchant in the 19th century. Each February the mansion plays host to an Enburi performance, one of many traditional music, song and dance shows that are held in the city during a three day festival that heralds the beginning of spring. On a veranda overlooking a courtyard I sit down on a floor cushion, grab a woollen blanket and huddle up for warmth. As if sensing I’m chilled to the bone, a hostess scurries over with a bowl of steaming hot udon noodle soup which I gratefully clasp in my frozen hands. As if by magic the snow stops and with a flourish of drumbeats and piping flutes a troupe of musicians and dancers enters the courtyard and their vibrantly coloured traditional costumes instantly light up this cold winter’s evening.

Hachinohe is a bustling port city on the Pacific coast of Tohoku, a region that covers the northern part of Honshu, Japan’s largest island. In Japan, Tohoku is known for its beautiful mountain scenery, tranquil rural communities and along the coast, its cheap, high quality seafood. The jewel of Tohoku is Lake Towada, Japan’s largest crater lake which in autumn attracts thousands of visitors from all over Japan who come to admire dazzling displays of crimson maple leaf foliage that cover the

Performers at the Enburi Festival, Hachinohe, main; blacktailed gulls lined up in Hachinohe, above mountain slopes and are reflected in the lake’s mirror smooth water. Throughout Japan such beauty spots are home to traditional rustic style lodges, ryokan, which for overseas visitors are ideal places to experience Japanese living. In the mountainous interior, many are built adjacent to onsens, hot springs, and have both outdoor and indoor pools where guests can bathe in the therapeutic waters.

Following an overnight flight and bullet train ride to the north, I arrive exhausted in the mountain town of Hachimentai and check into

Shikakan Saito Ryokan where the tranquil atmosphere quickly helps me recover from the long journey. In my room I slip into a yukata, a loose fitting cotton dressing gown, and totter over to the onsen in a pair of tiny slippers (shoes are not allowed in ryokans and the slippers provided are rarely big enough for large western feet). Bathing always takes place naked in onsens and after leaving my yukata in the changing room I walk self consciously into a beautifully constructed wooden bathing chamber. Fortunately it is completely empty and I slip into a pool of piping hot water and let the volcanic minerals and relaxing scent of cedar wood soothe away the aches and pains of the long journey.

Ryokans are excellent places to try kaisekizen, exquisitely presented dinner trays that contain several bowls of classic Japanese food, often cooked with the finest local ingredients. The region is famous for its high quality beef and a waitress comes to the table to light a small burner underneath a terracotta pot containing a hot pot of savoury miso broth, beef and vegetables. As the hot

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