2015年05月31日
春を追いかけて
春
南北に細長い日本、南から北へと順番に春が訪れますますので、北へ行けば春に追いつくことができます。
春の訪れを告げる代表の一つ菜の花、関西の平均的な開花からほぼ１ヶ月遅れのGW開け、北信州は飯山市にある「菜の花公園」を訪れてきました。野沢温泉まで１５分程度の場所です。
菜の花公園は、唱歌「おぼろ月夜」に謳われた風景を味わうことができる場所として有名で、丘の両側が、満開の菜の花で真黄色の絨毯のように埋め尽くされた風景は圧巻でした。特に丘の西側は、黄色い絨毯の先に千曲川が流れ、その遥か先には北信濃の山並みを望むことができ、さらに情緒を掻き立ててくれます。
おぼろ月夜の作詞家、高野辰之氏は飯山市の隣の旧豊田村に生まれ、飯山市の小学校で教鞭を執っていた時期があり、そのときの菜の花畑の印象が心の中に強く残っていて、後に「おぼろ月夜」の作詞のきっかけになっていると言われております。
ところで、菜の花と言えば菜種油を採取するものですが、ここ飯山の菜の花は搾油用ではありません。なんと漬け物です。多くの方が大好きで、信州を代表する漬け物「野沢菜」です。さらに驚くのは、野沢菜の元は修行にでたお坊さんが１７５６年に京都から持ち帰った蕪とのこと。寒冷地だったためか蕪本来の根が育たず茎のみが長く伸びてしまったそうです。仕方なく茎を漬け物にしてみたところ、これがたいへん美味しかったことで、今日の野沢菜漬けとなりました。大地のいたずらでしょうか。
URL:http://www.mimilocco.com
Spring
The Japanese Archipelago, with a long and narrow stretch from north to south, welcomes the arrival of spring from in the southern area to northern area in time order. You may catch up with the front line of spring if you move up north.
One of the representatives which tell a harbinger of spring is rape blossoms. I have been to “Nanohana Koen Park,” or park of rape blossoms in northern Nagano prefecture, right after the “Golden week,” which is approximately one month later than the average flowering season in Kansai area. The location of the park is within an approximately fifteen-minute drive of the famous Nozawa Onsen hot spring resort.
The park is known as the spot where the visitors can appreciate the scenery featured in the popular children’s school song of “Oboro tsukiyo,” or Night with a hazy moon. The scenery is astonishing that both sides of the hill were carpeted in yellow along the poetic Chikumagawa River.
By the way, talking of rape blossoms, most of us think of the flowers of which seeds are pressed for oil. However, here in Nagano prefecture, the rape blossoms are not for pressing oil, but for pickling them into “Nozawana pickles,” which is one of the representative products in Nagano and well known nation-wide. To my further surprise, the origin of Nozawana is a turnip of which seeds a monk from Nagano prefecture brought to his hometown, after finishing his training in Kyoto. His villagers sowed the seeds, but the turnip did not grow well and only its stalk grew high, probably because of the reason for being in a frigid climate. With no choices, the villagers pickled the stalk with little hope……... What a taste! What a crunchy mouthfeel! The very birth of Nozawana pickles. It might be a mischief of climate.
URL:http://www.mimilocco.com
南北に細長い日本、南から北へと順番に春が訪れますますので、北へ行けば春に追いつくことができます。
春の訪れを告げる代表の一つ菜の花、関西の平均的な開花からほぼ１ヶ月遅れのGW開け、北信州は飯山市にある「菜の花公園」を訪れてきました。野沢温泉まで１５分程度の場所です。
菜の花公園は、唱歌「おぼろ月夜」に謳われた風景を味わうことができる場所として有名で、丘の両側が、満開の菜の花で真黄色の絨毯のように埋め尽くされた風景は圧巻でした。特に丘の西側は、黄色い絨毯の先に千曲川が流れ、その遥か先には北信濃の山並みを望むことができ、さらに情緒を掻き立ててくれます。
おぼろ月夜の作詞家、高野辰之氏は飯山市の隣の旧豊田村に生まれ、飯山市の小学校で教鞭を執っていた時期があり、そのときの菜の花畑の印象が心の中に強く残っていて、後に「おぼろ月夜」の作詞のきっかけになっていると言われております。
ところで、菜の花と言えば菜種油を採取するものですが、ここ飯山の菜の花は搾油用ではありません。なんと漬け物です。多くの方が大好きで、信州を代表する漬け物「野沢菜」です。さらに驚くのは、野沢菜の元は修行にでたお坊さんが１７５６年に京都から持ち帰った蕪とのこと。寒冷地だったためか蕪本来の根が育たず茎のみが長く伸びてしまったそうです。仕方なく茎を漬け物にしてみたところ、これがたいへん美味しかったことで、今日の野沢菜漬けとなりました。大地のいたずらでしょうか。
URL:http://www.mimilocco.com
Spring
The Japanese Archipelago, with a long and narrow stretch from north to south, welcomes the arrival of spring from in the southern area to northern area in time order. You may catch up with the front line of spring if you move up north.
One of the representatives which tell a harbinger of spring is rape blossoms. I have been to “Nanohana Koen Park,” or park of rape blossoms in northern Nagano prefecture, right after the “Golden week,” which is approximately one month later than the average flowering season in Kansai area. The location of the park is within an approximately fifteen-minute drive of the famous Nozawa Onsen hot spring resort.
The park is known as the spot where the visitors can appreciate the scenery featured in the popular children’s school song of “Oboro tsukiyo,” or Night with a hazy moon. The scenery is astonishing that both sides of the hill were carpeted in yellow along the poetic Chikumagawa River.
By the way, talking of rape blossoms, most of us think of the flowers of which seeds are pressed for oil. However, here in Nagano prefecture, the rape blossoms are not for pressing oil, but for pickling them into “Nozawana pickles,” which is one of the representative products in Nagano and well known nation-wide. To my further surprise, the origin of Nozawana is a turnip of which seeds a monk from Nagano prefecture brought to his hometown, after finishing his training in Kyoto. His villagers sowed the seeds, but the turnip did not grow well and only its stalk grew high, probably because of the reason for being in a frigid climate. With no choices, the villagers pickled the stalk with little hope……... What a taste! What a crunchy mouthfeel! The very birth of Nozawana pickles. It might be a mischief of climate.
URL:http://www.mimilocco.com
