Manhole Fish

This is the manhole cover for Nishinoshima, one of the islands that make up the Oki Islands. I know a squid is not a fish, but its close enough.

Masuda down in the southwest of Shimane has the Takatsu River and I'm guessing these are carp.

This is from Taki Town up in Izumo and its hard to tell from the design exactly which fish it is meant to be, could be flying fish or it could be an Orca.

Fukuura is a village on the Shimane Peninsular and now a part of Mihonoseki. The fish is probably a Sea Bream (tai) as Kotoshironushi, popularly known as Ebisu, used to enjoy fishing for Tai here.

The draincover for Mihonoseki also features the Tai.

Another one from Masuda, and these look like Ayu, called Sweetfish in English. The Takatsu River is a popular place fro Ayu fishing.

Not sure which town this belongs to, but it was on the banks of the Shimanto River in Ehime, Shikoku. They might also be Ayu.

Hananba Matsuri

Every town in Japan has its own design of manhole cover. Usually the design reflects something of the towns traditions or culture. This one is for Tagi-cho in Izumo.
The design depicts a scene from the 2 annual festivals held in the middle of October at Tagi Shrine, and a few days later, at Takigi Shrine.
The men carry and pull a wooden horse covered in a giant umbrella composed of thousands of colorful paper flowers.

See more Japanese manhole designs

Kazenoko (windchild)

This may look like a sculpture, but it's not. It's part of a device to teach kids about the wind. Kazenoko is located just off Route 9 in Tagi-cho, Shimane, just underneath one of the wind generators in the area.

There is a large room with interactive displays for kids to play with wind, and several rooms where art and craft classes are held.
Kazenoko is located on the hill above Tagi JR station. Entrance is free.

Click here for more photos of Kazenoko