I went to the “Mochi Pounding with Futagoyama Stable Sumo Wrestlers” event held at Omasu Park on March 1!
The Lines Were Huge
↑The event was supposed to start at 12:00, so I arrived at Omasu Park a little before noon! …Wait, what??
↑Oh no… there was already a massive line! I quickly got in the line for registration!
↑At its longest, the end of the line stretched all the way to the north side of the park.
↑And it wasn’t just the line outside the park for registration. Even after entering, there were long lines for “mochi servings,” “photos with the wrestlers,” and “kids’ mochi-pounding experience”!
Free Mochi Servings
↑After registering, I received this paper wristband and flyer.
↑The back of the flyer. For the mochi serving, you could choose one of four options: “pork miso soup,” “kinako roasted soybean flour,” “zenzai sweet red bean soup,” or “sugar soy sauce.”
↑While waiting in the mochi line, I suddenly faced the ultimate choice!? I was torn, but I went with the “pork miso soup” on the right!
↑There was so much mochi prepared under the serving tent!
↑Freshly pounded mochi kept being brought in!
↑They poured plenty of pork miso soup from a big pot over the mochi…
↑And the pork miso soup with mochi was ready! It was packed with ingredients like pork, daikon radish, carrots, and burdock root!
↑Being able to eat freshly pounded mochi in pork miso soup felt so luxurious! And the fact that it was free made it even better!!
Mochi Pounding and Photo Booth with Futagoyama Stable Sumo Wrestlers
↑Three sumo wrestlers from Futagoyama Stable were there.
↑They were pounding mochi together with the event staff.
↑Seeing them up close, sumo wrestlers really are huge! And so powerful!
↑There was also a line at the photo booth, where they were interacting with fans.
A Look Around the Venue
↑There were plenty of chairs and tables set up for people to eat mochi and relax. It was packed!
↑Lots of glutinous rice was being steamed to make all that mochi. The preparation must have been a lot of work.
Final Thoughts
I was surprised by the lines at Omasu Park, bigger than anything I’d ever seen there before! So many people came out, including neighbors, families, and sumo fans. This event started last year, and I hope it continues in the years to come.
