Katagami City

From Akita Wiki

Rice fields in Showa, Katagami City
Rice fields in Showa, Katagami City
Katagami City (潟上市; -shi) is a small city in western Akita prefecture. It is a suburb of Akita City. It was formed in March 2005 with the consolidation of the three former towns, Tenno Town (天王町; -machi), Iitagawa Town (飯田川町; -machi), and Showa Town (昭和町; -machi). Today, the names of the three former towns are frequently used without the -machi (町) suffix to identify the regions of Katagami City, but are no longer independent towns in the political sense.

Contents

Towns in Katagami City(潟上市):

Tenno (天王)

Iitagawa (飯田川)

Showa (昭和)

Description

Katagami City is located in western Akita prefecture, southeast of the Oga Peninsula, south of the Hachirogata Lagoon, west of Ikawa, and north of Akita City. The name Katagami is a combination of the kanji 潟 (kata), meaning lagoon, and 上 (ue), meaning above. This is because the city's elevation is above the adjacent Hachirogata Lagoon, one of the few points in Japan below sea level. The area of Katagami City is 97.96 km². The population is estimated in 2008 to be 35,383, giving the city a population density of 361 persons per km².

In the 2005 census, Katagami's town of Tenno was the only current or former municipality in Akita prefecture to actually show a population increase. This is due in part to the fact the former town never zoned residential districts. As a result, Tenno is lined with many narrow, winding streets in between concrete walls and houses in very close proximity. The housing situation has made the area vulnerable to the transmission of residential fires and frequent traffic jams.

Festivals

Tenno

  • Tenno Greenland Festival (グリーンランドまつり), August 30-31 (2008)
Family festival with character shows followed up by fireworks.

Iitagawa

  • Crane Dance Festival (鷺舞まつり), August 2-3 (2008), 4:30-5:30
In front of the Iitagawa government office building (庁舎＝chousha)

Showa

  • Hachiro Festival (八郎祭り), August 16, 2:30
Small local festival which celebrates the migration of the dragon-god of Lake Hachiro to his lover at Lake Tazawako. In front of the Showa government office building (庁舎＝chousha)

Sightseeing Destinations

Springtime in Motokiyama Park
Springtime in Motokiyama Park
  • Motokiyama Park (元木山公園)[1]
Has a Baseball field, track, tennis courts, and is beautiful for cherry blossom viewing in the spring.


Onsens

  • Tenno Onsen Kurara (Greenland)
秋田県潟上市天王字江川上谷地109-2[2]
TEL.018-878-9877
Nice modern facility in the same area as the Tenno Greenland Tower.

Restaurants

  • ポン　Pon is a Izakaiya located near Akita West High School（秋田西高校）and the Tenno ALT's House. The Master is an animated fellow who speaks some English. It's a great place to meet friends and have a chat with the occasional conversation with the Master and other guest there that night. The food and beer are both good and reasonably priced.

秋田県潟上市天王江川上谷地１０６−９ Hours: 10:00-7:00 (Last Order at 6:30) Telephone & Fax: 018-878-7879 Open: Wednesday-Monday (Tuesdays Closed)

Cafe Brenner is an excellent cafe not far from Tenno Greenlands. It offers a warm atmosphere, filled with the smell of coffee beans and sweets. The cafe itself offers a wide variety of coffees from all around the world and homemade sweets that are really delicious. The Master and his Wife are really friendly and knowledgeable people who are happy to talk about both coffee and sweets (in Japanese). They also sell coffee whole bean and have a roaster inside the shop. Well worth a visit if you find yourself in Tenno.

  • Jin (甚)
Behind Daisan Supermarket, red sign
The original "international" izakaya for Showa ALT's!
  • Taisho Sushi (大将)
Near Showa Town Hall
The very bibulous master makes some narrow-minded, off-the-wall comments from time to time, but if you can take it with a grain of salt, the sushi is top notch (and the price tends to fluctuate greatly depending on how much master drank that night).
  • Manmatsu (万松)
潟上市飯田川町下虻川 (right past Okubo Station)
Tues-Sun: 11:00AM - 11:00PM
The best ramen, chanpon, and Chinese style restaurant in Katagami City (if not Akita). Also at least in Showa, it is famous for yakitori. The 牛バラメン is also recommended.
  • Azumi (安澄)
秋田県潟上市昭和大久保字虻川境1　Right outside Okubo Station
Tel: 018-877-3659
Very famous soba and udon restaurant. Hikake natto（冷かけ納豆) is highly recommended, even if you're not huge on natto.
  • Hana no Daichi (花の大地)
Blue Messe Akita
Tel: 018-855-5587
11:00 AM - 6:00 PM (will take reservations after 6:00 for over 5 people)
Good mix of Japanese cuisine with some western fare (pizza, pasta, etc).

Shopping

  • Tenno Greenland (Michi no Eki Tenno)
潟上市天王字江川上谷地[3]
TEL ８７８−６５８８
A great place to buy Akita souvenirs.


External Links

Back to the Main Page

Retrieved from "http://www.akitajet.com/wiki/index.php?title=Katagami_City"