As stated in my self-introduction, I am a resident of Niigata Prefecture, born and raised in Niigata.
I spent my university years and until my late 20s in Osaka, so I am not a native of Niigata, but I am a resident of Niigata Prefecture.
As someone who was born and raised in Niigata and has since seen the city from the outside, I would like to introduce what kind of city Niigata is, while at the same time pointing out the good points and sometimes dissing the bad.
After all, it’s rice, right?
The image of Niigata Prefecture in the minds of non-native residents of Niigata Prefecture is that it is a “rice-producing” prefecture.
It is true that Niigata is a rice-producing region.
Niigata continues to hold the number one position in the nation in terms of rice acreage and production, ahead of Hokkaido.
In terms of national share, Niigata Prefecture is the rice kingdom, accounting for approximately 8% of the nation’s rice production.
It can be said that rice is Niigata Prefecture’s identity, or rather, that it is the only identity it has, and for this reason, industries that use rice have developed.
The best example of this is rice crackers.
In Niigata Prefecture, there are a number of confectionery manufacturers, including Kameda Seika, Kuriyama Rice Crackers, Sanko Seika, Naniwaya Confectionery, and Bourbon.
There are few people living in Japan who have not had rice crackers such as senbei (rice crackers) and kaki no tane (persimmon seeds).
Niigata, a rice-producing region, has long been the home of the much-loved rice snack.
Another specialty of Niigata Prefecture that is made from rice is sake.
Sake is brewed from rice, of course.
This inevitably leads to the development of sake production in Niigata, a rice-producing region that has now become a major industry, even hosting the largest sake event in Japan.
There are 89 sake breweries in the prefecture, each of which produces its own unique sake.
Sake breweries such as Asahi Shuzo’s Kubota and Hakkai Shuzo’s Hakkaiyama are representative of Niigata, and can be found in sake corners throughout the country.
Niigata’s sake is characterized by its crisp taste, described as “light and dry.
The appearance of Niigata’s light, dry sake in an age when sweet sake flourished has made such a strong impression on sake lovers that it has created a bit of a boom.
Niigata is an area of heavy snowfall, right? That’s right.
If you ask people who are not from Niigata Prefecture what they think of Niigata, other than rice, what else do they think of Niigata? Most people would probably say that Niigata is a place of heavy snowfall.
The phrase that appears at the beginning of the novel “Snow Country” by Yasunari Kawabata, the first Japanese Nobel Prize winner for literature, is very famous.
When I passed through the long tunnel at the border, I found myself in a snow country.
This border seems to refer to the border between Niigata and Gunma prefectures, and it is true that Niigata is one of the heaviest snowfall areas in Japan.
Whenever there is news of heavy snowfall in winter, Niigata is usually introduced as a heavy snowfall area.
Indeed, Tsunan Town, Uonuma City, Minami Uonuma City, Yuzawa Town, and Myoko City near the border of the prefecture receive heavy snowfalls that are worthy of the name “heavy snowfall area. In these areas, snow can fall as high as 4 meters at times, but this is not unusual for the people living in these areas, as it is their daily winter routine.
In coastal areas such as Niigata City and Kashiwazaki City, even if there is heavy snowfall along the mountains, there is no accumulation of 2 or 3 meters.
In my experience, the maximum snowfall is about 50 cm, and a little shoveling is all that is needed to get by.
In Niigata Prefecture, which is a car-based society, it takes about 30 minutes to shovel snow in order to get the car out of the car before work in the morning.
Although heavy snow may sound daunting, Niigata Prefecture is dotted with many ski resorts, mainly along the mountains.
From the ski resorts’ point of view, heavy snowfall is not a disaster or a nuisance, but a blessing in disguise.
On the other hand, if it does not snow in large quantities along the mountains, ski resorts cannot operate, and this could put them out of business.
Since many tourists from abroad visit ski resorts in the prefecture, heavy snowfall is not a disaster, but an important blessing that can stimulate the economy depending on the place and people.
A tourist attraction? None!
As a resident of Niigata Prefecture, I have a question I like to ask people who visit Niigata for sightseeing.
What are you doing here?
I was born and raised in Niigata, and I can assure you.
There are no significant tourist attractions in Niigata Prefecture.
Many of you have probably heard of Sado Island.
Sadogashima Island is a well-known tourist attraction in Niigata Prefecture, but is there any famous tourist attraction? Many Niigata Prefecture residents, when asked if there are any famous tourist attractions in Niigata Prefecture, will probably not be able to come up with anything after mentioning the ruins of a gold and silver mine and facilities where visitors can try their hand at catching gold sand.
The gold and silver mine ruins on Sado Island prospered as one of Japan’s leading mines during the Edo period (1603-1868), but there is no mining there anymore.
Therefore, even if you see these ruins, you can only experience history, and to be honest, I must say that this is a sightseeing spot for experts.
Despite all this, the gold and silver mine sites on Sado Island are in the process of being registered as a World Heritage site, so you may want to take a look at them when you visit Niigata.
When I ask people in Niigata if there are any sightseeing spots other than Sado Island, many of them reply, “Yes, there are. Many Niigata residents are at a loss for words when asked if there are any sightseeing spots other than Sado.
That is how much there are no tourist attractions in Niigata Prefecture.
I can only recommend one thing in such an empty Niigata Prefecture: the sunset.
On the Sea of Japan side, the sun rises from the mountains and sets over the sea.
Born and raised in Niigata Prefecture, I do not see any value in the sunrise or the first sunrise from the sea that is featured on the news during the New Year’s holiday.
I apologize to those who love sunrises and sunrises, but I don’t think I would understand their beauty if I had never seen them.
Instead, I know the beauty of the sunset over the Sea of Japan.
In summer, concerts are held with the sunset as a backdrop. If you don’t know what to see in Niigata, please come to see the sunset.
I am sure you will like it.
Niigata is a Ramen kingdom
Niigata Prefecture has a very large number of noodle restaurants.
In Niigata, a rice-producing region, people usually eat rice at home, so many people seek noodles when eating out.
As a result, Niigata Prefecture has developed a ramen culture, giving birth to a genre of ramen called the “five major ramen” in the prefecture.
The flavors vary from region to region, including “light soy sauce ramen” served mainly in Niigata City, “ginger soy sauce ramen” eaten mainly in Nagaoka City, “back oil ramen” originating in Tsubame City, “thick miso ramen” with a split broth, and “curry ramen,” a forbidden combination of the national dishes.
Although not one of the five most popular ramen dishes, “mapo ramen,” a combination of mapo tofu and ramen, has become so popular that specialty stores have opened in the area.
Because Niigata is a rice-producing region, there is also a “rachan” dish, a combination of light shoyu ramen and fried rice, mainly in Niigata City.
The light shoyu ramen is popular for its refreshing flavor, but many people, especially men, find it insufficient on its own, so the number of people who order half a bowl of fried rice with their ramen has naturally increased.
Some ramen stores now offer “rachan” as their mainstay product.
The number of ramen stores per 100,000 people in Niigata Prefecture is one of the highest in Japan, and according to data from 2021, there are 37.7 ramen stores per 100,000 people, the second highest number in Japan.
According to a household survey by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, Niigata residents’ spending on ramen in 2021 ranked first, ahead of Yamagata City, which had long held the top spot.
The large number of restaurants and the large amount of money spent on ramen may help you understand that Niigata Prefecture is a ramen kingdom.
Many people come to Niigata for its delicious rice and fresh seafood, and many people come to Niigata for its delicious sushi.
However, many visitors may get bored with sushi at every meal.
Why not try one of the five different types of local ramen and see what you think you might like to try?
Niigata, a prefecture with both a rich and a poor reputation for its attractions.
I, who was born and raised in Niigata, have introduced Niigata Prefecture with a mixture of good and bad aspects.
I believe that Niigata is a prefecture that cannot be fully expressed by superficial information alone.
I would like to continue to introduce you to Niigata Prefecture, which has such a rich flavor.
