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TUKUSHIMA |
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Built on the delta of the Yoshino-gawa - Shikoku's longest river -
and bisected by the Shinmachi-gawa, TOKUSHIMA , the capital of Tokushima-ken,
is known across Japan for its summer dance festival (the Awa Odori),
which is attended every year by over one million people. The city has
other attractions besides the festival: the Awa Odori Kaikan and ropeway
up Mount Bizan; the high-tech ASTY crafts and exhibition centre; and the
historic Awa JurobeYashiki , where puppet performances are held. The
opening of the Akashi Kaikyo Ohashi - providing a new road route from
Honshu to Shikoku, via Awaji-shima - is bringing more visitors and
development to Tokushima, but it remains a laidback, friendly place.
Tokushima also makes a good jumping-off point from which to explore the
rest of the prefecture. North of the city are the whirlpools of Naruto
and several craft villages . Heading south, there's the pretty coastal
village of Hiwasa , where turtles lay their eggs on the beach each
summer, seaside communities like Shishikui where surfing rules and,
across the border in Kochi-ken, the jagged cape at Muroto . Inland to
the west are mountains, which cover eighty percent of the prefecture,
including Mount Tsurugi , the second highest in Shikoku, and the
spectacular Iya Valley , including the gorge at Oboke and several
bridges made of vines and bamboo, such as the Kazura-bashi .
Tokushima (meaning "Virtuous Island"), was named by Hachisuka Iemasa, a
supporter of the warlord Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Hachisuka built his castle
here in the 1586, and his clan ruled the area until the fall of the
Tokugawa Shogunate in 1867. The following year the prefecture of
Tokushima-ken was established
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