“Life with Teas & Mountains”
静岡県浜松市の中でも中山間地域に位置する天竜区は、2005年7月の“平成の大合併”により浜松市の区の一つとなりました。
海側に位置する浜松市街地とは景観が異なり、山には美しい杉林が立ち並び、段々と続く茶畑には、幻想的な霧がかかることも。山と山の間をぬうように大きくうねりながら天竜川が流れます。
かつては林業やダム事業、鉱山、茶栽培などで栄え、中山間地域特有の文化や営み、特色のある風習がそこかしこに残っています。たとえば、天竜を取材で回るたび、お会いする人たちはみな、地元で育ったお茶でもてなしてくれる。天竜に住む人たちにとってお茶は暮らしのすぐそばにあるもの。それは当たり前のようでいて、とてもすばらしい文化だと思うのです。
Tenryu-Ward is located in the hilly and mountainous area of the city of Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan and became a part of the city in July, 2005 when small villages and towns throughout the country were merged into bigger cities which the event is known as “great merger of municipalities in the Heisei era.”
The scenery of the region is quite different from the inner-city side of Hamamatsu which is situated towards the sea. Mountains are covered with beautiful Japanese cedar trees and if you are lucky, you may be able to see these beautiful terraced tea fields covered with mystical white mist. The Tenryu River winds through mountains in a snake-like manner.
When we visit this town of Tenryu which once flourished with its forestry, the dam, coal mine and tea cultivation, we can see its special customs and cultural traditions that are unique to hilly and mountainous area. For example, every time we visit someone for an interview, he/ she welcomes us with tea grown locally. For the people of Tenryu, tea and their lives are inseparable things. For some people, that may seem nothing special but we believe that’s is a great part of the culture.
そんな天竜区には2万8000人もの人びとが暮らしています。少子高齢化や人口減少、空き家といった問題にももちろん直面していますが、山と川に育まれる自然豊かな暮らしを求めて、移住する人も増えつつあります。
天竜に暮らす人びとを通して、天竜のさまざまな魅力を伝えること。それがこの「山と茶」プロジェクトの目的です。
Tenryu-Ward now has 28,000 people living there. Though they face quite bit of issues that are quite common for a small town in a country side such as its population decrease, aging population combined with declining birthrate as well as vacancy of houses, more and more people started to get attracted by a life style being surrounded by rivers and mountains where you can in touch with nature and move into the town.
Life with Teas and Mountains Project Team’s main aim is to promote Tenryu showing its various charms that can offer though lives of people of Tenryu.
このプロジェクトでは、天竜の“内と外”の視点から、ほかの地域には見られないオリジナリティあふれるもの、未来に受け継いでいきたい古き良きもの、天竜区内で起こっている新しい動きなどを発見し、掘り起こし、未来に受け継いでいきたいと考えています。
たとえば、その土地ならではの暮らしを体験する「農泊」の推進や、食のイベントなどさまざまな体験プログラムの実施、天竜らしい商品やメニューの開発とともにそれらが購入できるオンラインショップの運営などを展開していきます。
ほかにもまだまだやりたいことはたくさんありますが、何よりも天竜という土地や人びとともっとつながることができる“人の流れ”を作っていきたい。そのためにも、天竜に暮らす人びとの力をお借りしながら、この「山と茶」のウェブサイトが天竜と外をつなぐ、窓口になりたいと考えています。
We would like to discover, unearth and introduce some good old things that are unique to this region as well as some new developments being made through the perspective of someone both from and outside of Tenryu. So that we can pass these things on to the future generations.
A good example may be ‘agricultural stay’ where guests can experience local lives. We will also organise some foodie’s events and experience-based programmes and develop products and food menus that are unique to Tenryu and create an online shop. So that people can purchase them.
We want to do so many more but the main thing for us is that we want to create the flow of people who can connect to the region and people of Tenryu. With the help form people of Tenryu, we hope that this website “Life with Teas and Mountains” will be the hub to connect people inside and outside of Tenryu.
山と茶プロジェクト実行委員会
Life with Teas and Mountains Project Team