Chugei

Just a small note about Chugei.

Chugei refers to the collection of five villages surrounding Tano (including Tano). Umaji, Kitagawamura, Yasuda, Tano, and Nahari are collectively a little nexus against the big bag blankness that lies between Nahari and Muroto and Yasuda and Aki. There are other cities out there, they just don't matter much. It's a question of sotto vs uchi. That's for another time.

Apparently this little group used to be the logging center of here. I didn't understand it all or even much of it, but there used to be an impressive train track via which the massive logs were carted down the mountains out to the seaside, probably to be made into disposable chopsticks. I jest. That's what the Amazon Rain-forest is for. (google spell-check made me hyphenate "rainforest"...) 

This year was the 100th anniversary of the railroading-logging-five-villages connection and Tano hosted a little festival in honor of all the dead trees. We had a tiny miniature railroad and a little Blue train that could, but it could only go straight. When it hit the end of the track, it simply shifted into reverse and came back. 

We also had a visit from a few of the anime characters who make up our train-line. Each train stop has

a little guy to help you remember which is your stop. Tano's is a blue samurai. Nahari's is a conductor-chick. And Yasuda's is a fellow with a fish on his hat. 

And of course we had a visit from Nakaoka Shintaro from Kitagawamura. He looks quite frightful. 

That's all.