Island tourism: a variety of tastes
A new neon art photo spot has been unveiled at the Onaruto Bridge Memorial Hall, a tourist facility in Fukura, Minami-Awaji City, Hyogo Prefecture.
Awaji Island's famous landmarks, such as onions, whirlpools, and the ningyo joruri (puppet show) Ebisu-sama, are represented with colorful electric decorations. The aim is to attract more tourists to the island by spreading the "Ei" effect through social networking sites (SNS) and other means.
Located on a hill overlooking the Naruto Straits, the facility has a restaurant, product store, and science museum where visitors can learn about the mechanism of the whirlpools. The neon artwork has been planned by Uzunokuni Minami-Awaji, the operator of the facility, since last year to promote the island's products.
The Takarazuka Electronics Club, an electronics group active in events, was commissioned to produce the product.
The work was installed on the wall (about 10 meters wide and 2 meters high) of the eating and drinking space in the museum. The neon tubes shine in the shape of about 30 different island specialties, including onigawara, a local specialty, and koalas bred in the agricultural park.
A neon tube in the shape of an onion catches the eye in the center and blinks when visitors sit on cushions placed in front of it. Yuji Miyaji, 38, the facility's public relations manager, says, "We hope people will not only take pictures, but also learn about the various attractive places and things to see on Awaji Island and actually visit the island.
andthis way (direction close to the speaker or towards the speaker)The same story was also published in the "Kobe Shimbun NEXT" of
Dear Editorial Staff
Thank you very much for sharing this wonderful article with us!
EN 
JA