Yaramaika Spirit!
From Hamamatsu, City of Creativity
Number one in Japan. Japan’s Only. Japan’s First. These are just a few phrases that embody the yaramaika spirit.From Hamamatsu, City of Creativity
Number One in Japan!No.1 in Japan
Number One in Japan!
The Greatest Kite Battles in the Country
Hamamatsu Festival
Held every year on May 3-5, the festival features fierce kite battles in the afternoon, while gorgeous float parades and a wild procession called neri transform the city at night.
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Motorcycles
Domestic production of motorcycles began in 1946, when Soichiro Honda began selling bicycles equipped with small wireless engines. There was a period when over 40 motorcycle makers battled it out in Hamamatsu; currently three companies (Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki) remain.
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Pianos
The first domestic piano was made in 1900 by Torakusu Yamaha, founder of the famous company of the same name. The musical instruments industry went on to flourish in Hamamatsu, and even now the city can boast that all of Japan’s pianos are produced in Hamamatsu.
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Electronic Musical Instruments
In 1887 Torakusu Yamaha repaired an organ from America: the action proved to be the catalyst for organ manufacturing here. Currently the four companies that produce electronic organs in Japan are all based in Hamamatsu.
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Photomultipliers
Hamamatsu Photonics produces about 65% of the photomultipliers on the world market. Photomultiplier technology contributed greatly to the research of Dr. Masatoshi Koshiba, a recipient of the 2002 Nobel Prize for physics.
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Navel Oranges
Mikkabi and Hosoe are the centers for these delicious oranges; the former cultivates “Suzuki navels” and “Morita navels”, while the latter cultivates “Shirayanagi navels”. Shirayanagi navels are known for their large size and are popular as first-class gifts.
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Chingensai
Chingensai, or bok choy, are grown via 100% hothouse cultivation; the majority are shipped out all year long. Hamamatsu chingensai are famous for being grown in tough fields of mostly red clay, a method that ensures robust, healthy plants.
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Shallots
Cultivation of these vegetables in Hamamatsu began during the 1950s, with the Goto district soon becoming Japan’s leading producer. Called “sand pearls” because they flourish in the sand, Hamamatsu shallots are of consistently high quality: white and tender, with lustrous stems. Compared to shallots from other regions, ours are less spicy; this mild quality has earned them the reputation of being easy to eat.
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Ground Cherries
Cultivation began in 1948 in Inasa and then spread to the Shonai district. Currently, Hamamatsu produces 90% of Japan’s ground cherries. The ones seen on sale at Asakusa’s “Ground Cherry Market” are almost all from Hamamatsu.
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Gerberas
Gerberas were first brought to the Shonai and Iwatomi districts as seeds in the 1960s. They currently thrive in the Kanzanji and Shonai district and are shipped to all parts of the country, from the central Kanto region to Hokkaido to western Japan.
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Sakuma Dam
At 150m tall and 291m long, this concrete dam has a maximum generating capacity of 35,000 kilowatts. Construction began in 1953 and was completed in 3 years and 4 months – an unusually quick period for the time. At the time of completion it was the tallest dam in Japan.
Largest in Japan
Giant Tengu Mask
After being displayed at the “National Urban Greenery Fair – Kobe Green Expo '85”, this mask was entrusted to the neighborhood of Haruno, an area with connections to tengu legends, and set up in the Tengu Plaza within the Rural Development Center site. The mask is 8m tall and 6m wide; its nose is 4m long.