After leaving the hotel at sunrise we reach the station, where we quickly wrap the bikes in the rinku bags and go to the platform waiting for our train. At this early time in the morning we are the only two travelers to not be either students or workers, and is to be expected that we attract the discreet curiosity of all the other passengers.
When we board the train we manage to put our bikes and panniers in a way that causes the least trouble to the other passengers, and then stand until Kii-Tanabe. From there we are 2 of the remaining 6 passengers on the train, and we can seat and enjoy the panorama while the train travels. It's a good opportunity for us to get a glimpse of what we will be visiting few days ahead, and we must admit it looks really promising: bays and rocks, crystal blue waters every time the train travels along the coast.
With those pleasant sights in our eyes we quickly reach our destination and step down the train, but before we have to assure the train staff that we are at the correct station: we had a ticket for two stops ahead, but we have realized that it is pointless to cycle back. Mounted back the bikes in the deserted station, we are ready to climb to the Nachi falls.
The road goes parallel to the river, but for most of the route its waters are muddy: upstream they are working on the river bed, and this affects the water downstream. The surrounding are however enjoyable: the more up we go, the more the houses leave space to the forest, and when we reach the 5 headpins before the falls we have just trees around us. The view of the waterfall helps us focus on the climb, and the steady succession of curves gives us short term goals to maintain a good climb rate. When we reach the observation point we are breathless, both for the view and for the effort!
The nice thing of this part of the coast road is that it has recently built, 4 lanes tunnels to allow for the large road to go through the hills. The old, double or single lane tunnels however are still there and have been repurposed for pedestrian and cyclists.
When we reach Fukuroku guesthouse in Shingu at about 2 p.m., Seiko-san the landlady is surprised to see us on two bikes: she was expecting us on two motorbikes! After getting a shower we start chatting with her, about our trip, our past experiences in Japan and also explain her that our plan is to visit the city and the matsuri.
She listen to our stories and, thanks to a translator, we are able to pleasantly interact with each other. She is surprised about our bike trips in Japan, and among other things she tells us what are the places that can be visited in the city (way more than we can visit in half a day) and then she offers to guide us at the matsuri, since she has also decided to go there.
We gratefully accept her offer and go with her car to the temple, and once there she guides us into the precinct where, apart from showing us around, also introduces us to some of the crews who are about to join the matsuri. Then we move to the river bank, where the ceremony is about to start. Once a year the deity enshrined in the temple is brought back on a small island in the middle of the river, and 9 crews compete on a rowing race for choosing the one of them which will take back the deity into the shrine.
When we reach the river bank the crews are starting to warm up, and we get introduced to some more of the crew members by Seiko-san. She also tells us some stories about the matsuri (her father used to be one of the rower in the past) and also tells our story to all the people approaching and greeting her. We realize she is really popular in the city! During the warm up she also manages to find 3 seats on a boat to assist at the competition from very close, and offers us to join her.
The offer is surely fantastic, way above what we were expecting to do today, but we are not exactly covered up for staying on a boat in the middle of a river with a chilly wind blowing on us from the mountains and, afraid of catching a cold, we have to decline it. We assist then to the start of the competition: one member of each team has to run on the river bank, take a flag and take it to their boat which can then start rowing upstream and complete 3 laps around the island.
Once the crews start rowing upstream the creaking sound of the stressed wood quickly fades into the distance, and to reach the meander where the island can be seen we follow the omikoshi being carried back to the shrine. Both banks are crowded with spectators, and those of them coming close to us are proud to see two foreigners assisting at the their matsuri.
We have some small chat with them: someone has taken a day off and has come here from the distant city where they work just to be able to carry the omikoshi, and all of them appear very proud of keeping this tradition alive.
Once finished the race we walk back to the guesthouse, and while on the way we meet again the landlady, who takes us on board of her car. At home we ask her advice for where to have dinner, and she tells us that at short distance from her place there are several possibilities: an izakaya, an hamburger restaurant, a sushi restaurant and a ramen restaurant. We pick the last one and invite for dinner with us another guest who is staying there. The Wakayama style ramen we eat are really delicious, and having company while eating makes them taste even better.
Once we return at the guesthouse we ask the landlady if she can help us reserving the lodging for tomorrow.We must say she has been really kind to us, and we wish we had planned to stay more time here. However that's not the case, but we are glad we have had the possibility to enjoy her hospitality. Thank you very much for your kindness, Seiko-san!
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