Japan
Every August, for four days, the city of Tokushima abandons its customary restraint and transforms into the most exuberant dance floor in Japan. The Awa Odori, the country's largest traditional dance festival, fills the streets with over 100,000 dancers performing the dynamic, hypnotic bon odori that has been Tokushima's signature cultural expression since the late 16th century. According to local legend, the festival began in 1585 when the daimyo Hachisuka Iemasa threw open the sake warehouses to celebrate the completion of Tokushima Castle, and the citizens danced with such abandon that the revelry became an annual institution. The famous festival saying captures its philosophy: "The dancing fool and the watching fool are both fools — so you might as well dance."
Tokushima Prefecture occupies the northeastern quarter of Shikoku, Japan's smallest main island, separated from Honshu by the Naruto Strait — a narrow channel where the tidal exchange between the Inland Sea and the Pacific generates enormous whirlpool vortices that can reach 20 metres in diameter. The Naruto Whirlpools, visible from observation boats and the glass-floored Uzu no Michi walkway built beneath the Onaruto Bridge, are among the largest tidal whirlpools in the world, and their swirling, turbulent waters have fascinated Japanese artists and poets for centuries — Hokusai included them in his famous print series, and they feature in local Shinto mythology as manifestations of divine energy.
The food culture of Tokushima is distinguished by its regional specialities. Tokushima ramen, unlike the pork-bone or soy-based broths of other ramen capitals, uses a rich pork-and-chicken-bone broth sweetened with soy sauce and topped with a raw egg that the diner stirs into the steaming soup, creating a creamy, intensely flavoured bowl that has earned the city a devoted following among ramen obsessives. Sudachi, a small green citrus fruit unique to Tokushima, is squeezed over everything from grilled fish to soba noodles to beer — its tart, fragrant juice is the region's most ubiquitous condiment and one of the flavours that Tokushima residents miss most when they leave. The Naruto strait's fierce currents produce tai (sea bream) and wakame (seaweed) of exceptional quality, prized across Japan for the firm texture that the strong tidal flow imparts to the marine life.
Tokushima is one of the four starting points for the Shikoku Pilgrimage — an 88-temple circuit of approximately 1,200 kilometres that circumnavigates the entire island, following in the footsteps of the 8th-century monk Kukai (posthumously known as Kobo Daishi), the founder of Shingon Buddhism. Temple 1, Ryozenji, is located in Tokushima Prefecture, and the white-clad henro (pilgrims) who begin their journey here — whether completing the circuit on foot over 30-40 days or by tour bus in 10 — are a common sight in the city and surrounding countryside. The Iya Valley, deep in the mountainous interior of the prefecture, offers dramatic gorge scenery, vine bridges dating to the 12th century, and remote onsen villages that preserve the Japan of centuries past.
Tokushima is served by Princess Cruises on Japanese coastal itineraries, with ships calling at Tokushima port. The most rewarding visiting time is mid-August for the Awa Odori festival, though spring (cherry blossom season) and autumn (November foliage in the Iya Valley) offer their own compelling attractions. The Naruto whirlpools are most impressive during spring and autumn tides, when the tidal differential is greatest.