Visiting Spots in Wakayama City

Info on Kada Area

Photo Collection of Kada Area

Awashima Shinto Shrine
Awashima Shrine. A guardian deity for women is enshrined here.
Dolls in the shrine-1.
These dolls finished their roles at their first home and came here.
Dolls in the shrine-2.
Various types of dolls got together at Awashima Shrine.
Hinamatsuri Festival-1.
In a Hina-matsuri festival on March 3rd, some of the dolls are carried by women to a nearby shore.
Hinamatsuri Festival-2.
Girls and women have a ceremony to express gratitude to the dolls.
Hinamatsuri Festival-3.
The dolls on wooden boats are seen off to the sea.

You can see other photos of the festival in 2023 at Hina-nagashi Festival at Awashima Shrine in 2023

Kada Port.
Kada Port has a ferry service to a neighboring island called Tomoga-shima.
Tomoga-shima Map.
It takes about 20 minutes to reach Tomoga-shima Island by boat. The island has a hiking course.
A strait to and from Osaka Bay.
Tomoga-shima Island is located at the mouth of Osaka Bay. You can see Awaji-shima Island beyond the strait.
Gun battery-1
Kada Area has two remains of gun batteries built in the Meiji period. One is at Tomoga-shima Island. The other is at Miyama in Kada. You don't have to take a boat to go to Miyama. However, Miyama's one is smaller than that of Tomoga-shima.
Gun battery-2.
You can enter the former sites of the gun batteries.
Gun battery-3.
The former gun battery sites are under control of Wakayama City Government now.

Info on Kada Area

Access

  • You can go to Kada by train. Nankai Kada Line reaches Kada Station from Namba in Osaka City or Wakayama-shi Station in Wakayama City.
  • You can walk around the area from the station.

History

  • Kada is a traditional fishing port with a long history from the ancient times.
  • Awashima Shrine is said to have been founded around 1700 years ago.
  • In the Meiji period, around 100 years ago, gun batteries were built at Tomo-ga-shima Island and the coast of Kada to defend Osaka Bay.

Characteristics

  • Awashima Shrine has deities including one to protect women and girls. Dolls whch had been used to decorate girls festival (hina-matsuri) have been moved to the shrine. You can see many different types of dolls there.
  • Ruins of gun batteries build with bricks have become very popular among young people who like to feel the atmosphere.
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Hina-nagashi Festival at Awashima Shrine in 2023

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On March 3, 2023, I went to Awashima Shrine in Kada Area to see Hinanagashi Festival.

The "hinamatsuri festival" is also called the Doll Festival. It is held on March 3rd. At the festival, families with girl children display dolls called hina and eat eat sweetmeats, and drink shirozake (white sake made from sake and rice malt).

"Hina" means the doll and "nagashi" means leaving something being washed away. Hinanagashi Festvial at Awashima Shrine is very popular. A lot of women come to see off hina dolls on wooden small boats at the nearby shore, saying farewells to the guardians of girls.

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If this year had been an ordinary year, women would have carried the boats on their shoulders to the shore. Due to Covid-19, the dolls and the boats were carried by car in 2023. I hope women will be allowed to carry the dolls and the boats by themselves next year.

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