【木橋ミュージアム「雲の上のギャラリー」 四国・梼原と隈研吾-3】

梼原での隈研吾建築、きっかけとなったゆすはら座に続いてはこちらの建物。高知方面から「雲の上」と表現されるほどの高地にある梼原へは約80kmほど。高速は途中でなくなるので、一般道の山道を辿ることになる。高知県から愛媛県方面への「山越え陸路」の最大中継点・要衝ということでしょう。
　実際に土佐を脱藩し陸路長崎を目指した坂本龍馬は、この道を通った。龍馬脱藩の道、というスポットも名高い。隈研吾建築でも「雲の上」という表現がいくつかあるけれど、ローカルな呼称として定着しているのでしょうか。
　この建物は梼原の市街地に至る最後のトンネルの手前側にある。トンネルを抜けて梼原の街に出会ったときの「突然目の前に立ち現れる」というような梼原についての隈研吾の印象を記したがわたしたちもほぼ同様の感覚を抱いた。
　この独特の形状の建築は公営の温泉施設に隣接してもいるので、他地域からの来訪者にはポピュラーな「地域のシンボル」的なものと理解される。「よく来たね」みたいな。
　「小断面の集成材を集積させるデザインを追究していく中で両端から「刎木〜はねき（木造建築の小屋組の中で、軒先をはね上げるようにしてささえている材）」を何本も重ねながら持ち出して橋桁を乗せていく「刎橋」という忘れられた架構形式を採用した。」

　「これを敷地の地形に適応させるために、鉛直荷重（建物に働く荷重のうち重力と同じ方向に働くもののこと。建物の自重、積載荷重、積雪荷重など）を受ける橋脚を中心として両端のバランスを取ることで「やじろべえ型刎橋」と言うべき新たな架構形式が出来上がった。崖上の端部には同様の架構を逆さにしたような屋根形式のアトリエギャラリーが併設されている。」
　というように隈研吾からの説明があったけれど、建築デザインとしていかにも「木組みの素肌」が感じられる。ゆすはら座でのインスピレーションが、こういうデザイン手法を発展させたことが視覚的にも追認できると思われた。アトリエギャラリーという建築用途ということも考え合わせてみると、調和感があって面白い。

　すぐ上の写真はゆすはら座の内観。個人的には天井の格天井（太い角材を井げた状に組んで正方形をつくり、その上に板などを張ったりはめ込んだりした天井）の木組みが大空間に木の素肌を見せて、なおしっかりと屋根からの荷重を支えているような印象とアナロジーさせられた。日本建築の骨格を支えてきた木造の技術、その施工の精妙さをデザインとしても昇華させてみたいという隈研吾の創造姿勢は共感できると思われた。
　あしたもこの木組みの架構ぶりを写真表現などで紹介してみたい。


English version⬇

Wooden Bridge Museum "Gallery Above the Clouds" Yusuhara, Shikoku and Kengo Kuma-3
Kengo Kuma's creative policy is to sublimate the traditional Japanese wooden construction techniques that have maintained the large Yusuharaza space in terms of design. ...

Following the Kengo Kuma building in Yusuhara and the Yusuharaza that inspired it is this building. Yusuhara, which is located at a height so high that it is described as "above the clouds" from the Kochi area, is about 80 kilometers away. The expressway runs out on the way, so you will have to follow the mountain roads of ordinary roads. It is probably the largest relay point and key point of the "overland route over mountains" from Kochi Prefecture to the Ehime Prefecture area.
　In fact, Ryoma Sakamoto, who escaped from Tosa and headed for Nagasaki overland, took this road. It is also famous as the "Road of Ryoma's Departure from the Domain. There are several expressions in Kengo Kuma's architecture that say "above the clouds," but I wonder if it has become a local term of endearment.
　This building is located on the front side of the last tunnel leading to downtown Yusuhara. Kengo Kuma described his impression of Yusuhara as "suddenly appearing in front of you" when he passed through the tunnel and encountered the city of Yusuhara, and we had almost the same feeling.
　This uniquely shaped building is adjacent to a public hot spring facility, so visitors from other areas understand it as a popular "symbol of the area. Visitors from other areas will understand it as a popular "symbol of the community," as if to say, "Welcome!
　In pursuit of a design that integrates small sections of laminated wood, we adopted a forgotten structural form called a "decapitation bridge," in which a series of "decapitation timbers" (timbers that support the eaves of a wooden structure by lifting them up) are brought out from both ends and placed on the bridge girders.

In order to adapt the bridge to the topography of the site, a new structure called the "Yajirobe-type decapitation bridge" was constructed by balancing the vertical load (the load acting on the building in the same direction as gravity. The bridge is balanced at both ends around the piers, which are subject to the building's own weight, loading, snow loads, etc.), resulting in a new structure form that should be called a "Yajirobe-type decapitation bridge". At the edge of the cliff is an atelier gallery with an inverted roof form of the same type of structure.
　Kengo Kuma explained that the building was designed with "the bare skin of the wooden structure. It is visually evident that the inspiration for the Yusuhara-za building led to the development of this kind of design technique. When we consider the architectural use of the building as an atelier gallery, it is interesting to see the sense of harmony.

The photo immediately above is an interior view of Yusuhara-za. Personally, I was struck by the wooden ceiling (a square made of thick square timbers assembled in the shape of a well, on top of which boards and other materials are attached or inserted) that shows the bare wood surface in the large space and yet firmly supports the load from the roof. Kengo Kuma's creative approach of sublimating the wooden technology that has supported the framework of Japanese architecture and the exquisiteness of its construction into design is something I can relate to.
　I would like to introduce this wooden structure through photographs and other forms of expression in the future.

【劇場建築「ゆすはら座」木肌の豊かさ 四国・梼原と隈研吾-2】

<img src="https://blogimg.goo.ne.jp/user_image/4a/2a/24b166154ca09b470a3d5f7797366188.jpg" border="0">
<img src="https://blogimg.goo.ne.jp/user_image/7b/9e/32d8fc5a4dfa6582fffac1e7db328788.jpg" border="0">
<img src="https://blogimg.goo.ne.jp/user_image/2c/dc/0645ea6ff960206231dcbf2b742f28ca.jpg" border="0">
　〜隈研吾と梼原町を結びつけたのは、木造の芝居小屋「ゆすはら座（梼原公民館）」。大正時代に流行した和洋折衷様式の流れを汲む貴重な建物だったが、建築から約40年を経た頃、老朽化などを理由に取り壊しが検討されていた。その保存運動に関わっていた高知県在住の一級建築士・小谷匡宏さんが、交流のあった隈さんに「ぜひゆすはら座を見てほしい」と依頼。隈さんは1987年（昭和62）に梼原町を訪ねたのだという。
　この正直な木組みそのままの端正な美しさとそれを成し得た技術に圧倒された隈研吾は、ゆすはら座の保存運動に力を貸すことを決意。そして、それまでに手がけてきた装飾的なモダン建築の対極にあるようなこの建物との出会いは、建築家人生の大きな転機となった。隈建築の特徴である「木」へのこだわりは、ここから始まった。〜＜昨日紹介の四国電力広報誌から要旨を引用。＞
こうした木造の大型芝居小屋建築は全国で遺っている。架構はされていない野外建築だけれど川崎の日本民家園でも残されているし、四国香川県の四国村でも保存されている。また屋根も掛けられた秋田県鹿角郡小坂町にある小坂町立の芝居小屋「康楽館」はわたしも実見した。国の重要文化財。
　娯楽の少ない時代、旅回りの芝居劇団がこういった小屋で公演することは、そのまま地域の貴重な一体感を確認する装置でもあったことだろう。やがてテレビに情報と娯楽の中心が移っていくことで、こうした建築施設はその主要な機能を失っていく。
　しかし隈研吾が揺り動かされたように、村人全部を包含するような大きさとその木造の力強い架構ぶりからは、地域のプライドの象徴といった側面が強く感じられる。そして木肌のゆたかな表情からは、コンクリートや鉄筋などでは感受できないイキモノ感が強く伝わってくる。モダン建築に限界を感じていた隈研吾が、時間が経過した分だけ正直にその美感を訴えてくる建築と出会ったときに、コアが揺さぶられたものがあったのでしょう。
<img src="https://blogimg.goo.ne.jp/user_image/35/4e/b921df3d710e2ce57cd03453db886cd3.jpg" border="0">
<img src="https://blogimg.goo.ne.jp/user_image/1d/25/d5fba98a37a95f03aca2d512de685ab3.jpg" border="0">
　逆にこの「ゆすはら座」のような建築が、現代都市への人口集中、合理化最優先の社会構造の中で、人びとの「心の叫び」のようにして保存運動が盛り上がることに建築家として接して、木の魅力の復元再生がむしろ現代世界の閉塞性を突破できるものと直感したとも言えるのだろうか。
　わたし的にはこの四国山地のド真ん中、清流・四万十川源流域と言われる梼原がむしろそのことを、現代社会の中で最大のセールスポイントとして訴求していったことが魅力的だと思う。むしろ地域戦略としてかなりパワーのある選択だと思えるのですね。
　翻って全国でいま、木造の公共建築が大きく着手されてきている。これまでのコンクリートによる集約化・巨大化追究から潮目が大きく変化してきている。ゆすはら座は、そういう潮目で大きな役割を果たしているのかも知れない。


English version⬇

The richness of Yusuharaza, a theater building in Yusuhara, Shikoku, and Kengo Kuma-2
In response to the trend of population concentration, urbanization, and depopulation of rural areas, wooden architecture is sending a message through the persona of Kengo Kuma. Yusuhara, Shikoku

〜What brought Kengo Kuma and Yusuhara together was the Yusuhara Theater (Yusuhara Community Center), a wooden playhouse. It was a valuable building in the style of the Japanese-Western fusion that was popular in the Taisho era (1912-1926), but about 40 years after its construction, it was being considered for demolition due to aging and other reasons. Masahiro Kotani, a first-class architect living in Kochi Prefecture who was involved in the preservation movement, asked Mr. Kuma, with whom he had been in contact, to take a look at the Yusuhara-za. Mr. Kuma visited Yusuhara in 1987.
　Overwhelmed by the neat beauty of this honest wooden structure as it was and the technology that enabled him to achieve it, Kuma Kengo decided to help in the campaign to preserve the Yusuhara-za. His encounter with this building, which was the polar opposite of the decorative modern architecture he had been working on, was a major turning point in his life as an architect. This was the beginning of Kuma's obsession with wood, a characteristic of his architecture. <Quoting from the public relations magazine of Shikoku Electric Power Co. ＞The building was built in the late 1960's.
Such large wooden playhouse buildings can be found all over Japan. Although it is an open-air structure with no structure, it has been preserved at the Nippon Minka-en in Kawasaki and at Shikoku-mura in Kagawa Prefecture, Shikoku. I also visited the Korakukan, a playhouse in Kosaka-cho, Kazuno County, Akita Prefecture, which is also covered with a roof. It is a national important cultural property.
　In an era when entertainment was scarce, traveling theatrical troupes would have used performances at such a hut as a device for confirming the precious sense of unity in the community. Eventually, as the center of information and entertainment shifted to television, these architectural facilities lost their primary function.
　However, as Kengo Kuma was moved by the building's size, which seemed to encompass the entire village, and its powerful wooden structure, one can strongly sense the symbolic aspect of regional pride. The rich expression of the wood surface strongly conveys a sense of "real thing" that concrete and reinforced concrete cannot convey. Kengo Kuma, who felt the limitations of modern architecture, must have been shaken to the core when he encountered an architecture that honestly expressed its sense of beauty only through the passage of time.

Conversely, as an architect, I have seen the movement for the preservation of buildings such as Yusuharaza gain momentum as if it were a cry from people's hearts in the midst of a social structure that places the highest priority on population concentration and rationalization in modern urban areas.
　I think it is fascinating that Yusuhara, which is located in the middle of the Shikoku mountainous region and the headwaters of the clear Shimanto River, has made this its biggest selling point in the modern world. I think it is a rather powerful choice as a regional strategy.
　On the flip side, there is now a major push for public buildings made of wood throughout Japan. The tide is turning away from the conventional pursuit of concrete construction, which has led to intensification and gigantic buildings. Yusuhara-za may be playing a major role in this trend.

【四国「雲の上のまち」梼原と隈研吾のかかわり-1】

　さて四国シリーズ、今回から建築家・隈研吾建築との出会い編であります。今回の四国旅では淡路での安藤忠雄建築、そして高知での竹林寺の堀部安嗣氏の建築を巡って、四国の山岳地域の梼原（ゆすはら）での多数の隈研吾建築群というように探訪したのです。
　なかでも隈さんの建築が６つも集中的に建築されていて梼原のアイデンティティにまで昇華しているという。その様子を取材したいという動機にかられてもいた。
　隈研吾建築については、これまでもいろいろ遭遇し記事にも取り上げてきています。わたしとしては北海道の十勝に建てられた「メーム」がいちばん印象に残っております。このブログの2012年６月15日と16日版で詳報しています。http://kochihen.replan.ne.jp/blog2/?p=6910　http://kochihen.replan.ne.jp/blog2/?p=6900　。ぜひごらんください。
　アイヌチセにインスピレーションを受けて、化学的な建築外皮によってアイヌ語で湧水池を意味する「メム」と対比させながら風景としての建築を作っていた。


　一方で、隈研吾といえば木を生命感に満ちた表情でデザインする手法が特徴的。そういう建築家としての原点として、この四国高知の山岳地・檮原の公民館舞台建築「ゆすはら座」とのかかわりを自ら語っている。以下、四国電力広報誌『ライト&ライフ』から要旨抜粋。氏はこの建物の保存運動に取り組んでいた地元建築家から強く誘われたという。
　〜初めて梼原町を訪ねたとき、長いトンネルを抜けるとパッと別世界が現れたという不思議な感覚を抱きました。当時の私は「今後、自分はどんな建物を造ったらよいのか」と悩んでいました。それを払拭してくれたのが「ゆすはら座」。地域の人たちの建物への愛情と木造建築の素晴らしさを肌で感じ、自分がやるべきことの答えを見つけることができました。そして、足しげく梼原町へと通ううちに、当時の町長さんが「公衆トイレを設計してみますか」と声をかけてくれました。施主や職人さんと話し合いながら進めたその仕事が実に楽しくて、それが「雲の上のホテル」に結びついたのです。この町は私を初心に還らせてくれた場所であり、仕事で迷いが生じたときにはここで感じたこと、得た知恵を判断基準にしてきました。後に私は梼原町を「物差しのような場所」と呼ぶようになったのはそんな経緯があるからです。〜
　上の写真３枚は、その「ゆすはら座」の様子。そういった経緯から少し集中的に「まちと建築家」との関わりとしてブログシリーズで掘り下げてみたいと思います。


English version⬇

Kengo Kuma's Relationship with Yusuhara, Shikoku's "City Above the Clouds"-1
Kengo Kuma's buildings have been sublimated into the city's identity. This is a record of an exploration of Yusuhara's "Yusuhara-za," which Kuma himself describes as his "starting point. Yusuhara

This is the Shikoku series, starting with an encounter with the architecture of architect Kengo Kuma. On this trip to Shikoku, I visited the architecture of Tadao Ando in Awaji, the Chikurinji temple in Kochi, and the many Kengo Kuma buildings in Yusuhara, a mountainous region of Shikoku.
　Among them, six of Kuma's buildings are concentrated in Yusuhara, and they have been sublimated into the identity of Yusuhara. I was also motivated to cover the situation.
　I have encountered and written about Kengo Kuma's architecture in a number of articles. For me, "Meme," built in Tokachi, Hokkaido, left the strongest impression. I reported on it in detail in the June 15 and 16, 2012 editions of this blog.http://kochihen.replan.ne.jp/blog2/?p=6910　http://kochihen.replan.ne.jp/blog2/?p=6900　Please take a look.
　Inspired by the Ainu chise, he created architecture as landscape, contrasting it with "mem," the Ainu word for a spring-fed pond, by means of a chemical building envelope.

On the other hand, Kengo Kuma is known for his characteristic method of designing wood with a life-like expression. As the starting point of his work as an architect, Kuma himself talks about his involvement with the Yusuharaza community center stage building in Yusuhara, a mountainous area in Kochi, Shikoku. The following is an excerpt from "Light & Life," a public relations magazine of Shikoku Electric Power Co. Mr. Yusuhara was strongly invited by a local architect who was working on a campaign for the preservation of this building.
　〜When I visited Yusuhara for the first time, I had the strange sensation that I had exited a long tunnel and was suddenly in a different world. At the time, I was wondering, "What kind of buildings should I build in the future? Yusuhara-za" was the place that dispelled my doubts. I experienced firsthand the local people's love for their buildings and the beauty of wooden architecture, and I was able to find the answer to what I needed to do. Then, as I frequently visited Yusuhara, the mayor of the town at the time asked me if I would like to design a public restroom. I really enjoyed working with the client and the craftsmen as we discussed the project, and that led to the "Hotel Above the Clouds" project. Whenever I had any doubts about my work, I used what I felt and the wisdom I gained here as the basis for my decisions. This is why I later came to call Yusuhara "a place like a yardstick. ~.
　The three photos above are of the "Yusuhara-za. I would like to delve a little more intensively into this background in a blog series as a relationship between the town and architects.

【四国の清流・仁淀川と「沈下橋」】

　北海道人であるわたしが本州以南地域を旅するのにはいろいろな心理的動機があるのでしょう。東京関東圏には首都機能・人口密集地としての活力をみるし、関西圏の歴史を背景とした時間の重層性など、さまざまな「ニッポン」との出会い感がある。
　そういうなかでちょっと不思議な心理に至るのが四国との出会い。就職が決まって最初に会社のみなさんと共同行動を経験した「原体験」的なことはあるけれど、その後、ほぼ数十年経過して家族旅・夫婦旅を重ねてみると、温暖地域の中でもっとも「自然豊か」ということに癒されていることがわかる。
　中央構造線が四国を東西に走ることでそれに沿って山岳地域が形成される。北側の瀬戸内海地域の方が人口集積が大きい。しかし全体として人口規模がそれほどでもないことから山地には巨大な森が保存され続け、そこで蓄えられた豊かな水量が流れるとき「清流」を生み出している。その名前の印象深さから四万十川が有名だけれど、清流を教えてと高知で街の方に聞いたら「仁淀川」と即座に答えられた。
　さらにその清流には「沈下橋」という聞き慣れない橋が架けられているという。「なにそれ」であります（笑）。字の通りに考えると水の下に消えてしまう橋。そんなの橋の用を足さないではないか、という素朴な疑問。ということで探索に向かった次第。それが写真のような状況であります。
　沈下橋は低水路・低水敷と呼ばれる普段水が流れているところだけに架橋され、また床板も河川敷・高水敷の土地と同じ程度の高さとなっていて、低水位の状態では橋として使えるものの増水時には水面下に沈んでしまう橋のこと。河川行政的には「潜水橋」という。写真のこちらは名越屋沈下橋という橋。
　背景としての清流は奇跡の清流と呼ばれる仁淀川。国土交通省による水質調査結果で何度も「水質日本一」に選定。透明度が高いため水面と川底が青く輝く「仁淀ブルー」の愛称でも親しまれている。


　わたしはさすがにチャレンジしませんでしたが、この橋をクルマで通行する人もいた。歩道と車道の区別も特段なく、速度はひとの歩く速度に自然と合わせられているように感じる。そういうのがまた、いかにも独特の雰囲気を醸し出してくれる。あとで調べたら、北海道内でもいくつかこの沈下橋はあるのだそうです。
　どうもひたすら高速道路に合わせた時間感覚の中でわたしたちは日常生活を送っている。そういうことにこれら清流や沈下橋は、「まぁちょっと待てや」と言ってくれているように感じられた。


English version⬇

Niyodo River, a clear stream in Shikoku, and a "submerged bridge.
A submerged bridge that hides in the water flow when the water level rises. Symbiosis with the abundant water volume rivers of the Shikoku mountainous region. I feel that human society has a mindset of obedience to nature. ...

As a Hokkaido-native, there are probably a variety of psychological motivations for me to travel to areas south of Honshu. In the Tokyo-Kanto area, I see the vitality of the capital city and its dense population, and in the Kansai area, I feel a sense of encounter with various aspects of "Japan," such as the multilayered nature of time against the backdrop of its history.
　In this context, the encounter with Shikoku is a little strange. Although I had the "original experience" of working together with everyone at my company when I first started my career, after about half a century has passed and I have traveled with my family and as a couple, I find that I am most comforted by the "richness of nature" in the warmer regions.
　The Median Tectonic Line runs east to west across Shikoku, forming a mountainous region along it. The Seto Inland Sea region to the north has a larger population concentration. However, because the overall population size is not so large, huge forests continue to be preserved in the mountainous areas, and the abundant amount of water stored there produces "clear streams" when they flow. The Shimanto River is famous for its impressive name, but when I asked a person in Kochi to tell me which clear stream he was referring to, he immediately replied, "The Niyodo River.
　He also told me that there is an unfamiliar bridge called a "sunken bridge" across the clear stream. What is that? If you think of it literally, it is a bridge that disappears under the water. (Laughs.) A simple question: "Wouldn't such a bridge serve no purpose? That is why we set out to search for it. The situation is as shown in the photo.
　A submerged bridge is a bridge that is constructed only where water normally flows, called a low waterway or low water bed, and the floor plate is the same height as the land of the riverbed or high water bed, so that it can be used as a bridge when the water level is low but sinks below the water surface when the water level rises. In river administration terms, it is called a "submerged bridge. This one in the photo is called the Nagoshiya Submerged Bridge.
　The clear stream in the background is the Niyodo River, which is called a miraculous clear stream. It has been repeatedly selected as the "best water quality river in Japan" according to the results of water quality surveys conducted by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. The river is also known by the nickname "Niyodo Blue" because of its high transparency, which makes the surface and bottom of the river glow blue.

I did not challenge the bridge, but there were some people who drove their cars over the bridge. There is no particular distinction between sidewalks and roadways, and the speed of traffic seems to naturally match the speed of people walking. This also creates a unique atmosphere. I found out later that there are several sunken bridges like this in Hokkaido.
　I think that we are living our daily lives with a sense of time that is constantly adapted to the expressway. I felt as if these clear streams and sunken bridges were telling us to "wait a minute.

【WBC熱戦の狭間（笑） 土佐竜の浜景観で一服】

　昨日は夫婦で朝食を摂っていたら自宅のテレビリモコン不調という息子がひょっこり。「ははぁ、WBCで盛り上がろうということか（笑）」と直感。そこからはほぼ全国民同様に頭が完全に野球に支配されておりました。
　３点リードを許した時点で、カミさんの要望で出掛けざるを得なくなっていましたが、頭の60%ほどはオールジャパンが支配して一喜一憂の展開。クライマックスでは外出先でひとり狂喜乱舞。息子に電話して、電話越しのハイタッチ。まことに神さまが造形したとしか思えないドラマに心酔させられていた。
　白状すると同点に追いついた直後、ふたたびリードを奪われた時点で一ファンとしては覚悟は固めていた。しかし、代表たちは決して諦めてはいなかったですね。個人的には８回の無死１−２塁の好機に冷静に送りバントを決めて最低限の加点をして、メキシコにプレッシャーを掛けた時点で、希望が完全に復活していた。
　・・・ということで本日はついに日米決戦という頂上対決のステージに立つことができた。このブログ記事は早朝５時前後に書いているので、本日もふたたびどうなるか、波乱の予感が現在進行形。ドキドキ。

　ということで通常のブログシリーズ、住環境探訪にすぐにアタマとハートは復帰しにくい（泣）。なので本日は南国土佐の夕景と朝焼けの海岸線風景写真をお届けします。夕景の方は「土佐竜の浜」から西の太平洋を見晴らしたところ。いかにも南国風のラベンダーの色彩がこころを癒してくれる。
　一方の山の上に月が掛かっているのは、東側を見た朝焼けの様子。そして、写真のサンドイッチとして高知名物「田舎寿司」を挟んでおきました。
　本日も、ハラハラドキドキが仕事の合間に連続するのでしょうが、みんなで心静かに代表たちの活躍を祈念していたいと思います。しかし、ここまで来られればあとは運を天に任せるだけ。こういう日米決戦という舞台を作り上げられたことで、いまの世界情勢のなかでも、この構図は十分に示唆的な意味があるのではと思っています。
　がんばれニッポン！

English version⬇

Between the heated WBC games, a smoke at the beach scenery of Tosa Ryu.
The passion of the Japanese representatives is heating up the world. It is an event in the world of baseball, but it is also unexpectedly suggestive of the situation. ...

Yesterday, while we were having breakfast as a married couple, our son came up to us and said that the TV remote control at home was malfunctioning. My intuition told me, "Ha ha, you mean you want to get excited about the WBC (laughs). From that point on, like almost the entire nation, my mind was completely dominated by baseball.
　When we allowed a three-run lead, I had to go out at my wife's request, but about 60% of my mind was dominated by All Japan, and I was both happy and sad. At the climax of the game, I was out and about, and I was madly in love with myself. I called my son and gave him a high-five over the phone. I was so intoxicated by the drama that I could only think that God had created it.
　I must confess that as a fan, I was ready to give up when we lost the lead again right after we had tied the game. But our representatives never gave up. Personally, my hope was completely restored in the 8th inning, when we put Mexico under pressure by scoring the minimum number of runs on a bunt with no outs.
　...So today, we finally reached the summit stage of the battle between the U.S. and Japan, the decisive game. I am writing this blog post around 5:00 a.m., so I have a feeling that today's battle will be a bit more chaotic than before. I am very excited.

　So it's hard to get my mind and heart back to my regular blog series, "Exploring the Living Environment," right away (I cry). So today, I'm going to share with you the sunset and morning glow scenery of the coastline of Tosa, a tropical island. The evening view is from "Tosa Ryu no Hama" overlooking the Pacific Ocean to the west. The color of lavender, which is very tropical, soothes the heart.
　The moon over the mountains on the other side is the morning glow looking east. And as a sandwich for the photo, I put Kochi's specialty "inaka-zushi" (country sushi) between the two.
　Today, too, I am sure there will be a series of harrowing moments in between work, but I hope everyone will remain quiet and pray for the success of the delegates. However, if we can make it this far, all that remains is to leave the luck to the heavens. Having been able to create this kind of stage for a decisive battle between Japan and the U.S., I believe that the composition of this event is suggestive enough in the current world situation.
　Good luck, Nippon!