Chichibu

I headed out to the town of Chichibu today, as it was only an hour away by train. Every Saturday they bring out the old steam engine train to ride, but unfortunately I just missed it to get a chance to ride it. Fortunately it was waiting at Chichibu station for me to get a picture. I headed for Hitsujiyama Park, which is famous for its flower hill that is covered in bright pink. These flowers were just starting to bloom, which was disappointing, but the trees in bloom made it worth the trip. There are some big shrines and 30 or more mini shrines spread around the town. The mini ones are like sign posts with each having a different animal. There was an animated TV show called Anohana that was located in Chichibu, and a movie for it just came out, so there were posters all over for the film. One of the character named Menma seems to be the unofficial mascot for the town as is seen all over. I ended the day to check out Chichibu bridge. The bridge seemed way to big for what the town needs, but it is a very cool design nontheless. The old bridge is still underneath the new one. The old one is only one lane, but luckly there weren't a lot of cars for me to cross to get some pictures. There may be a part two as I took a lot of pictures.

Just a guy having lunch with his Menma doll. Totally not weird right?

They seemed to be mining the whole top of a nearby mountain.

The flowers starting to bloom. This will all be pink when they do.

One of the many mini shrines.

The character Menma seen throughout town.

The old and new bridge.