Nojimasaki lighthouse 野島埼灯台 (chiba, japan)

Posted by timothy sullivan (Tokyo, Japan) on 20 January 2009 in Landscape & Rural.

I'm not entirely sure why I so feel, but every so often I am compelled to be near the sea; my mum had kidded once, saying that perhaps it's because of my being born in Newport, RI, where the refreshing saline breeze from the ocean blew into my room daily.
Usually when I venture to the ocean, I make my way to Kamakura or somewhere around Yokohama; however at times I want nothing more than to be somewhere new--but around Tokyo, "somewhere new" also means spending a bit more money to get there.
Thus, recently, I have been finding myself venturing to Chiba Prefecture more and more often. Sometimes I'll head down to Kurihama, and take the ferry over to Hamakanaya (which is a lovely place for a day trip), or take my folding bike on the train to Ohara or somewhere else.
A few years ago, a semi-retired Japan Coast Guard officer told me about a contest the JCG has from time to time: lighthouses around Japan. I had ventured to this location in Southern Chiba to take a photo of the lighthouse--only to find that there didn't appear to be a really good vantage point from which to photograph. (I reckon I'd have to hire a crane or something in order to have a good perspective!) Nevertheless, a few images turned out fairly well--this is one of those.

Quick word on the Nojimasaki Lighthouse: the original structure was built in 1869 under a four-nation treaty (America, Britain, France, and the Netherlands); it sported a French-made Fresnel lens of the highest quality at the time. However, that structure was destroyed during the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923; this present tower was constructed two years later.

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