"Water City Osaka Waterside Walking Guide" Waterside Walking Guide by Area 2 "Yakkenyahama Area"

[Waterside Walking Guide by Area]

It has flourished as a terminal for land and sea transport since ancient times.
Hachikenyahama area

Hachikenyahama, which has flourished as a terminal for land and water transport since ancient times, is still the hub of the water city of Osaka, with the largest wharf on the city's rivers. Looking west from Tenmabashi at dusk, you can see the tip of Nakanoshima cutting through the Okawa River, with the forest of skyscrapers beyond and the setting sun beyond that, creating an impressive sight.

Hachikenya Beach

Hachikenyahama has been a terminal for land and water transportation since ancient times. Located between Temmabashi and Tenjinbashi, Hachikenyahama was an outer port called Watanabetsu during the Heian period, and was a gateway to Japan and other countries by sea. It also flourished as the starting point of the Kumano Kaido, a pilgrimage route to Shitennoji Temple, Sumiyoshi Taisha Shrine, Mount Koya, and the Kumano Sanzan, where people would disembark their boats and travel by land to make the pilgrimage.
During the Edo period, 8-koku boats plied between Fushimi and Hachikenyahama on the Yodo River, and this was the main route connecting Kyoto and Osaka. It is said that the name "Hachikenyahama" came from the eight boat lodges that lined the route. The night trip from Fushimi took about six hours to reach Hachikenyahama, following the current of the Okawa River, but the daytime trip from Hachikenyahama had to go up against the current, and the boat pullers on the riverbank had to walk and pull the boat up the river with ropes, so it took about 12 hours to reach Fushimi. The boat was about 17 meters long, had a passenger capacity of 28 people, and could carry 1 koku of rice, so it was called the "320-koku boat." Since the night trip down the river allowed passengers to travel while they were sleeping, it was very convenient and many people used it, and at its peak, it is said that there were 9000 trips a day, with about XNUMX people traveling up and down the river.
In the Meiji era, paddle steamers equipped with steam engines also appeared. At its peak, 14 ships were in service, connecting Hachikenyahama and Fushimi in six hours for the upbound journey and three and a half hours for the downbound journey. When the Keihan Electric Railroad opened between Temmabashi and Kyoto-Gojo in 6, water transport was replaced by electric trains, and this station became the electric train's terminal.
In 21, Hachikenya, the first river station in the Kansai region, opened in this historic location as a hub for people, things and experiences in Osaka, the city of water. It is an information hub for Osaka, the city of water, and houses restaurants, information hubs for waterside activities such as Nordic walking, and a ticket booth for sightseeing boats. Station 2009, located on the first basement floor facing the Okawa Promenade, hosts seminars, lectures, markets, concerts and more. Currently, Hachikenyahama is a hub for boat transport in Osaka, a city of water, as a junction between the river and land, and is bustling with people strolling while watching the flow of the Okawa River and the Nakanoshima Kensaki Fountain.

Riverside Station Hachikenya (left) and the recreated gangi and lanterns
At Hachikenyahama, the old lanterns and gangi have been reproduced. During the Edo period, the riverbank, known as "hama," had stepped gangi, and served as a port where boats could board and disembark even when the tide changed. The lanterns that once stood at Hachikenyahama now remain within the grounds of Ikitamakuni Shrine.

Various events are held at Station 8 inside River Station Hachikenya.

"Illustrated Guide to Famous Places in Naniwa: A Picture of the Ship Arriving at Yakenya" by Utagawa Hiroshige, late Edo period (National Diet Library Digital Collection)

"The site of Hachikenya Boat Wharf" monument (Osaka City Historical Site)
It is located under the eaves of Nagataya Konbu Shop, across Tosabori-dori from Temmabashi Station.

"One Hundred Views of Naniwa: Evening Scenes of Hachikenya" by Utagawa Kunimitsu, late Edo period (Osaka Municipal Library Digital Archive)

Tenmabashi

Tenmabashi Bridge was a busy bridge for government officials, with Osaka Castle and the magistrate's office to the south and shogunate offices and warehouses to the north, and was designated an official bridge in 11. The current Tenmabashi Bridge was rebuilt in 1634 as part of the first urban planning project, and is characterized by its graceful shape, described as "free and relaxed, like a bird with its wings spread." In 10, to ease traffic congestion, a new Tenmabashi Bridge was built directly above the original, making it a two-story bridge.
In 23, under the theme of "A bridge filled with light", the bridge girders were lit up with Tenma Kiriko patterns, which are an impressive feature of the birthplace of Tenma glass, and lights were installed under the bridge that shine a round light onto the water. Among these lights, there is one that shines in the shape of a star, and if you can find it while out on a boat, you're lucky! So before long, it came to be known as the Lucky Star. Why not get out on a boat and try to find the Lucky Star?

Tenmabashi

Illuminated Tenmabashi Bridge

Lucky star projected onto the floor of the boat

Tenma Vegetable Market

During the Edo period, Tenma Vegetable Market was one of Osaka's three major markets, along with Dojima Rice Market and Zakoba Fish Market. Located along the Okawa River from present-day Tenjinbashi 6-chome to Tenma 1931-XNUMX-chome, it sold vegetables and fruits, but was abolished in XNUMX when the Osaka Central Wholesale Market was established. A monument marking the site of the Tenma Vegetable Market remains in Minami Tenma Park.

Panoramic view of Tenma vegetable market
Source: Dai-Osaka Pictorial, 1928, p.566 (National Diet Library Digital Collection)

Tenma Market in the early Meiji period

"One Hundred Views of Naniwa: Tenma Market" by Utagawa Kunimitsu, late Edo period (Osaka Municipal Library Digital Archive)

"Tenma Vegetable Market Site" Monument

"Tenma Lullaby" Monument

Just across the river from the "Tenma Vegetable Market Site" monument is the "Tenma Lullaby" monument. There is a lullaby monument and a bronze statue of a girl in a sleeping kimono carrying a baby on her back. "Tenma Lullaby" is also called "Tenma Market," but I will quote only the first half of the lyrics.

At the Nennekoroichi Tenma market, radishes are gathered and loaded onto boats.　
If we put it on a ship, how far will it go? Under the bridges of Kizu and Naniwa

The Tenma vegetable market was established on the banks of the Okawa River in order to transport vegetables by boat, as the song says. Perhaps this girl is babysitting the baby while her parents are busy working at the market.

"Tenma Lullaby" Monument

"Yodogawa 30 koku boat song" monument

There is also a monument to the "Yodogawa Thirty-koku Boat Song" in Minami Tenma Park, located on the opposite bank of Hachikenyahama, where the Thirty-koku boats used to dock. This boat song is a work song sung by boatmen on the boat descending from Fushimi, Kyoto to Hachikenya, Osaka, about the changing scenery on both banks. Here are the last lines of the song, as the boat approaches Hachikenya:

I wonder if it's Nebuta. Let's have a good look at Nebuta.
Yay, this is Hakkenya in Osaka.
Yaresa yoiyoiyo

"Yodogawa 30 koku boat song" monument

Tenjinbashisuji Shopping Street

This is a 2.6km long shopping street that stretches from north to south from JR Tenma Station, one stop away from JR Osaka Station. It is bustling with around 600 stores, ranging from long-established shops to new spots, such as Tenma Kiriko glass shops and Osaka souvenir shops.

Tenjinbashisuji Shopping Street

Osaka Tenmangu Shrine

Osaka Tenmangu Shrine, affectionately known as "Tenma no Tenjin-san," was founded in the middle of the Heian period in the third year of Tenryaku (3). In the fourth year of Shotai (949), Sugawara no Michizane, who was the Minister of the Right, was demoted due to a false accusation, and it is said that he visited Daishogun shrine here before setting sail for Dazaifu. As a result, "Tenman Tenjin Shrine (now Osaka Tenmangu Shrine)" was built on the same site, and Daishogun shrine became a shrine within its grounds. Chinese poetry from that time describes the boatmen and fishermen who lived on the banks of the Okawa River visiting "Tenman Tenjin Shrine" in the evenings after work.

Osaka Tenmangu Shrine

天満天神繁昌亭

Built in 18 as the first permanent venue for Rakugo in 2006 years since the end of the war, it currently hosts a variety of vaudeville shows, including Rakugo, Manzai, Kodan, and Rokyoku. In addition to daily matinee and evening performances, morning and late-night performances are also held on some days, reminding us that Osaka is not only a "city of water" but also a "town of comedy."

天満天神繁昌亭

Sword Fountain (Nakanoshima Park)

The eastern end of Nakanoshima Park is designed with a sword-shaped tip that resembles a ship. The fountain resembles the tip of the ship, and the spiral slope and pillars that connect Tenjinbashi to Nakanoshima Park are designed to resemble a ship's mast. It's like a ship cutting through the current of a large river. The fountain usually flows every 10 minutes from 20:30 to 15:XNUMX.

Sword Fountain (Nakanoshima Park)

Nakanoshima seen from around Hachikenyahama

The view of Nakanoshima from around Hachikenya Beach is beautiful and changes its appearance throughout the morning, noon, and night, making it a view that symbolizes the water city of Osaka.

Nakanoshima during the day (looking downstream. The bridge in the foreground is Tenjinbashi. On the right is the Dojima River, and on the left is the Tosabori River)

Nakanoshima at dusk (the sun sets behind Nakanoshima)

Nakanoshima at night (The night view of Nakanoshima's skyscrapers is beautiful)

Reiwa Osaka Milky Way Legend

The place name "Tenma" comes from "Tenma Daijizai Tenjin", the deity enshrined at Osaka Tenmangu Shrine. The name means "Tenjin who prays to the stars that fill the sky for the elimination of epidemics," and the Okawa River that flows westward in front of the area was also called "Tenma River" because the Milky Way in the night sky was reflected on the river's surface, filling it with starry shadows.
In 21, the "Milky Way Legend" was started to convey the culture of this area. Since then, every year on the night of July 2009th, blue glowing "Inori Stars® (LED light balls)" containing each person's wish are released into the Okawa River. The sight of tens of thousands of light balls floating on the surface of the river between Temmabashi and Tenjinbashi is just like the Milky Way flowing on earth, and has become a seasonal feature of the new "City of Water."

Reiwa Osaka Milky Way Legend

OSAKA River Fantasy Hachikenyahama Area Fountain Show

In 7, a large fountain spanning approximately 2025m was installed along the right bank of the Okawa River. It will host a fountain show that combines water, light and sound. It is one of the largest fountain shows held on a river in the city center in Japan, and the water art that is performed in time with music is lit up in various colors at night, allowing you to enjoy the spectacle of water and light. We recommend viewing it from a cruise ship, where you can experience the splashes of water, the vibrations of sound and the flickering of light. It is scheduled to run until around February 100.

OSAKA River Fantasy Hachikenyahama Area Fountain Show Source: OSAKA River Fantasy Management Office