Mizusawa, Iwate

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Mizusawa (水沢市; -shi) was a city located in Iwate Prefecture, Japan.

As of 2003, the city had an estimated population of 60,979 and a population density of 629.17 persons per km². The total area was 96.92 km².

The city was founded on April 1, 1954.

Mizusawa is home to one of the six International Latitude Observatories. The observatories were close to the parallel of 39 degrees 8 minutes north latitude. They worked together to study the earth's "wobble" using stars selected by Dr. Kimura, the astronomer in charge of the Mizusawa station. Twelve groups of stars that had six pairs of stars each were chosen. Two groups of stars were observed at each station following a schedule of dates, time, and duration prepared by Kimura.^[1]

1 Merger
2 Schools
3 Transportation
4 Festivals
5 References

[edit] Merger

On February 20, 2006 the city of Mizusawa merged with the city of Esashi and the municipalities of Maesawa, Isawa and Koromogawa from Isawa District to form the new city of Oshu.

[edit] Schools

The educational system in Japan is based on the American system. Elementary and Junior High School is compulsory, while Senior High is optional. However, the majority of students continue their education in Senior High School.

In Mizusawa Ward there are eight Elementary schools and three Junior High Schools. All elementary and junior high schools in Mizusawa are public schools. There are four public Senior High schools and one private Senior High School.

High schools in Japan are where students begin to branch off and specialise in a particular field of study. This leads to a system of specialised schools whose curriculum focuses students towards a particular vocation. Mizusawa Koko (水沢高校)is an academic school and as such aims for it's students to move on into further education. Mizusawa Shogyo Koko (水沢商業高校) is a Commercial High School whose primary focus is on practical business and IT skills. Mizusawa Nogyou Koko (水沢農業高校)is an Agricultural High School while Mizusawa Kogyo (水沢工業高校)is an Industrial High School.

As with the majority of Japan schools are publicly run. However, in the cities it is more common to find private schools, starting from elementary school to high school. In Iwate only one such private school exists in Morioka, Shirauri Gakkuen (nursery school to high school).

Jet Programme in Mizusawa

[edit] Transportation

Airport

The nearest airport to Mizusawa is Hanamaki Airport, which is a 30 minutes train journey from Mizusawa. Hanamaki Airport only operates domestic flights. For International flights the nearest airport is Sendai Airport in Miyagi Prefecture. It takes roughly 2 hours by bus to reach Sendai or by Shinkansen (bullet train) 49 minutes.

Train

Mizusawa is located on the main JR line in Iwate. Conveniently, linking Mizusawa to other cities:

Morioka – 1 hour 10 minutes – 1,110円 Hanamaki – 30 minutes - 480 円 Kitakami – 20 minutes – 320 円 Ichinoseki - 23 minutes – 400 円

Shinkansen (Bullet train)

The Shinkansen Station is located between Mizusawa and Esashi and is called, surprisingly, Mizusawa-Esashi Shinkansen Station. The Shinkansen is a quick link to major cities throughout Japan, however it can be expensive.

Morioka – 29 minutes Sendai – 49 minutes Tokyo – 2hrs 56 minutes

To reach the station without a car can be a hassle. As a result many JETs choose to travel to a nearby combined Shinkansen/ JR line station using the JR line from Mizusawa Station. The nearest combined stations are Ichinoseki (going south) and Kitakami (going north). Otherwise be prepared to pay for a taxi (roughly 2000円).

Bus

There is a local JR bus service operating in Mizusawa. Buses also link Mizusawa to Esashi, Isawa and Measawa. These routes can be surprisingly expensive when considering the relatively small distance however. To reach Isawa, Esashi or Measawa will cost around 400円.

There is also a bus route to Sendai and Tokyo.

Sendai – 2 hours – 1,800 円 (buy tickets on the bus) Tokyo – 7 hours 30 minutes (night bus) – 7,900 円 (buy tickets in advance)

All buses stop at the front of Mizusawa station with the exception of the Sendai bus, which stops behind the station. Take the underpass to reach the other side and continue straight ahead to the first bus stop you see.

Cycling

Cycling is a convenient and cheap way to reach anywhere in Mizusawa. To travel to the other component parts of Oushu will give you a good workout however.

Cycling is not recommended during winter as the amount of ice and snow makes it rather dangerous.

Estimates of times to reach component parts of Oushu: Central Isawa - 30-40 minutes. Esashi - 25-30 minutes Maesawa - 30 minutes

Walking

Mizusawa is a compact city and the majority of shops and restaurants can be reached on foot.

[edit] Festivals

Hibuse Matsuri April 29-30 - The festival consists of elementary school girls dressed in traditional kimonos. They are carried around the city on float while they playing traditional Japanese music. The festival is held to drive away evil spirits from Mizusawa, this originated after a great fire which destroyed most of the city. Also their are groups dancing throughout the day and night.

Mizusawa Matsuri August 8-9 - Obon festival. One can take part in this festival with Aspia International Center.

Sominsai Festival February 13-14 - This is one of the more unique and quirky festivals in Iwate and maybe even Japan. It consists of men wearing sumo dappers walking around the grounds of the Shrine (Kuroishi-Ji), which includes dunking themselves into an ice cold river. The festival takes place in the dead of winter and goes on for most of the night climaxing at seven in the morning, when the participants fight for a lucky bag.