Last year, during my first ever trip to Japan, Honey and I planned to go to Koiwai Farm on Christmas Day to witness their beautiful light-up event. Unfortunately, that day was met with a heavy snow storm and the event was cancelled. It ended up being too white of a Christmas.
But this year we marked our calendars early, keeping tabs on the weather channel, so we don’t miss out. And we didn’t!
During Christmas weekend, we took a 40 minute drive out of the city and arrived on a chilly, winter night. Despite setting out early, the huge parking lots were nearly full just as the sun set around 5pm.
From the license plates, we saw people from Tokyo or further drive all the way for one night under the lights. You’d understand why once you take a stroll through the dazzling tunnels. But first things first, what is Koiwai Farm exactly?
Koiwai Farm: a brief history
Koiwai Farm is located in the small town of Koiwai within Morioka city’s municipality. Founded over 120 years ago by the “big three”, Ono, Iwasaki, and Inoue–surnames forming the name Koiwai (小岩井)–each had a vision of maintaining Iwate Prefecture’s agricultural roots amidst a time of booming modernisation. The idea was to preserve and enrich the beauty of nature.
The Farm continues to do so today, while caring for thousands of livestock. It’s main residents are dairy cattle, thus creating a healthy line of dairy products available on site and typically within the prefecture. There’s also a café and restaurant on the grounds, no doubt serving up farm-fresh ingredients.
Lighting up the dark, winter nights
For those who want a break from urbanisation to experience a bit of farm life, Koiwai is the place to visit. It often welcomes tours from student field trips to foreign travellers. But perhaps one of the most anticipated events of the year is their annual Winter Illumination.
First tunnel at the entrance
At this time, the majority of Koiwai Farm’s publicly accessible wide fields were sealed off, creating a contained space for the event.
In my opinion, the main showstoppers were their 3 light tunnels. These were made using hoop houses, also known as high tunnels, steel-frame contraptions used for greenhouse purposes while farming. Covered in many, many string lights, their skeletal structures were transformed into so much more.
Bright and hypnotic, the tunnels leave you in a daze of awe. And when you finally reach the end, you’ll feel as if a bit of magic has slipped away.
But worry not, because there were other illumination pieces besides the tunnels. For example, there were a couple of tractors decked out in lights. But even more surprising was a full sized train.
There were also some artistic displays, such as one picturing farm animals with Mount Iwate in the background. We also saw yet another train, this time in the style of Miyazawa Kenji, a famous poet and children’s novelist who hailed from the prefecture.
But perhaps both mine and Honey’s favorite was the panels of glowing cows surrounding a large grassy area. We are at a farm afterall!
Cows at a farm–who’d have thought?
At the end of our night, we took a look in the souvenir shop, where they sell both Koiwai and regional products. For me, their yogurt beverage and rare cheesecake are hands-down the best of the best! If you’re not familiar with Japanese rare cheesecake, this is the time to get acquainted.
Just before leaving, we took a moment to appreciate the short but beautiful fireworks. Though they are typical of Japanese summer events, I liked this winter show. It had reminded me of the coming new year, and how we’d launch them back in America.
Ending the day with a bang!
Despite the large number of visitors this event drew in, the place was not so crowded. We were able to take our time strolling through the tunnels and enjoyed a night lit up by a rainbow of colors.
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-Waifu ʕ•ᴥ•ʔ
Because I'm Waifu 