New rooftop tour offers unobstructed views of Demon Slayer rice paddy art
Fans looking to see a unique piece of artwork in Japan will soon have a new way to view it.
The municipal government of Gyoda in Saitama Prefecture is launching its first-ever rooftop tours, providing a new way to view its massive, anime-themed rice paddy art.
This form of large-scale art, known as “tanbo art,” uses various strains of rice planted with precision to create giant, colorful images in paddy fields, which come to life as the plants grow.
The city of Gyoda is famous for this tradition and has previously been recognized by Guinness World Records for creating the world’s largest rice paddy art.
This year’s design, which covers a massive 2.8-hectare field, depicts Tanjiro Kamado, the protagonist of the globally popular series Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba.
The artwork was created to coincide with the upcoming release of the film Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba The Movie: Infinity Castle Arc, which opens in Japanese theaters on July 18th and has recently seen the release of an exclusive themed popcorn bucket.
Typically, visitors view the artwork from the indoor observation deck of the 50-meter-tall Gyoda Tower, located in the city’s Ancient Lotus Park.
However, many visitors have been frustrated by the reflections from the glass windows, which can mar photos and obstruct the view.
To solve this problem, the city has installed a special, open-air viewing platform on the tower’s rooftop, about 55 meters above the ground.
This new platform will be accessible only through a limited series of guided tours.
The new rooftop viewing tours will be available twice daily, at 10:00 AM and 2:00 PM, on specific weekends.
Each tour session will admit a maximum of five groups, with each group consisting of two to four people.
The cost for the special tour is 1,000 yen per person, which is a separate fee from the standard entrance ticket to the Ancient Lotus Museum, the building that houses the tower.
Due to the limited capacity, participation in the tours will be decided by a lottery system if applications exceed the number of available spots.
Prospective attendees must apply by phone to the museum during designated periods each month.
The rice paddy art, planted in mid-June with four different colors of rice seedlings, is expected to be at its peak viewing quality from the middle of July through the middle of October.
The scheduled weekends for the rooftop tours are July 26th-27th, August 23rd-24th, September 27th-28th, and October 4th-5th.
Inquiries regarding tours should be directed to the Ancient Lotus Museum at 048-559-0770 (in Japanese).
Source: Mainichi
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