It's honestly great that there's fans who really care for Touhou enough to go on a pilgrimage to Touhou's insperations, I would love to visit these places someday to have a better appreciation for Touhou as a series, makes me wonder if people in Japan appreciate Touhou not as a game series but as a celebration of values and culture in Japan. Thank you so much for your work within the fandom and I wish you all the success.
There's a community around touhou "holy spots" that document and explain their significance. I used some of them a reference while in Suwa, though they are in Japanese.
"-and behind us would be none other than Gensokyo." I don't know why, but that line coupled with the music really gave me some feelies. Just the thought of being there, where the land of fantasy lies just beyond a border...
I like how despite the title being called a “vlog” it still feels grounded like a video complete with narration, progression and details you’d find in one of your usual videos! Really gives a whole new vibe!
Yeah, I asked myself, "Is this really a vlog anymore with how much game footage I'm showing? Lol. " It sounds like you enjoyed it though, which is all I can ask for.
It reminds me of that episode of the Hifuu Sealing Club fanmade anime where they kind of correlate the real mythology in Suwa lake with the one in Touhou, as if it was rewritten when Kanako and Suwako moved to Gensokyō. Urgh that anime is so gooood I wish it had more episodes :')
I had the opportunity to study abroad in Japan in March. During the trip, we took a short visit to Yasaka Shrine in Kyoto. I instantly went "OMG KANAKO". Heh.
I am a young but also new touhou fan, so i haven't experienced much, but i cannot put into words how much i love people like you, that put so much passion into this beautiful world that they've known for so long, to the point of doing what you have done. Amazing video.
It's for the new and soon to becoming fans that I make these videos. I want them to see what I love about the series in the hopes that they may also find enjoyment in them.
Man I've plans to go here in the future, I've personally studied into this a lot myself and it's interesting to see how Touhou is based on real-life like this! I never imagined last year that this game would be so deep, and that's why I've gotten so interested and deep into the lore, fandom and all this stuff! But yeah, I hope to go check this place out with my friends some time in the future, there's 3 of us all of us into Touhou so it'd be great crack. Happy to see I'm not the only one who wants to go here and infact people do go here. Very cool!
Next year we get a vlog where GensouChronicle visits Gensokyo proper. :P Super interesting video. I do love how much thought and real mythology ZUN puts into his writing, lots of people really overlook that.
Stuff like this makes me remember what it is about Touhou that's so timeless. It's such a sincere celebration and appreciation of the mythology that has deeply inspired ZUN. I'm really happy that that same appreciation is so infectious that it goes on to inspire so many fans.
this is both incredibly soothing to watch and also very interesting! i remember reading an interview with ZUN where he revealed he was born and raised near Suwa, so he heard about their traditions and kamis all the time. In that way, MoF is ZUN's way of revisiting his childhood in the form of a videogame, which makes this vlog all the more adorable 🥺
I dont know why, but the footage with your soft spoken narration is really comfortable to watch. Man, seein all the places that inspired ZUN is something else, they all look so beautifully built!
I've been slowly developing my narration voice to have that "calming" effect. I used to be worried I didn't have a good UA-cam voice, but I'm glad people like it.
not gonna lie i absolutely had a pog moment when i saw m-1 grand prix 17 on the shelf. I help with the official localization of it, but I've never actually seen it in person
@@GensouChronicle wow, we were in the same area in japan at the same time then, what a massive coincidence. i hope you enjoy (especially the soundtrack!)
As a huge fan of the series, I hope to one day do the pilgrimage to the shrines myself. I can't describe how much I love the depth and level of inspiration touhou takes from classic japanese legend! It's so beautiful
i love how touhou is essentially is a celebration of core eastern culture and inspires its fans to actually go research and view the culture id love to do something like this by myself one day
That was quite entertaining, all those references are so specific to understand at first, so it's great to see them in real life. Also... That´s Suwako's association with frogs, uh? funny how it is involved in hunting frogs lol. Great video; the shots and your commentary were clear, making the video go smoothly.
Thanks. It was a bit of a pain editing in 4k resolution. There's apparently a trick where you can edit with a lower resolution and put the higher one in on export, but I didn't want to bother learning it for one video.
Wow! This was very interesting. I'm surprised by how specific all these references for these spellcards are. Although I am mostly a Touhou fan for the characters rather than any of the main series games, it's still very interesting to see how connected these gameplay features are to the culture of Japan. Thank you for making this video.
I remember there being a Tazakuya shrine that was the perfect irl equivalent to the Hakurei Shrine. I have it in my notes for places to visit and I clearly remember pictures inside it but I can't find anything about it online anymore. It was so decrepit and forgotten it might've been fully brought into Gensokyo I guess.
This is amazing! I just can't thank you enough for all effort you put into these videos, Touhou community is amazing and you're one of the best examples.
These kinds of videos make me appreciate travelling. Honestly, if I could. I would always be travelling. Seeing new spots, meeting new people and learning about the culture that's built around the locations I travel to. I can feel your love of travelling from this video. It's infectious!
Honestly one of the best video I have ever seen on Suwa regarding Touhou. I've been a fan for a long while now and always wanted to visit this place to just see the locations in real life myself(and also the fact that Suwako is one of my favourite characters :D) but you gave me a lot of courage coming here even if i live in Hungary which aint the most sharpest place. Again amazing video keep it up and hopefully i can enjoy this place in the near future.
I was there yesterday the lake was really beautiful and that small cafeteria in the south of the lake that has some touhou stuff was really neat. The older lady who runs that cafeteria was really talkative and I'm glad I had that experience. Of course the other main point I did was visiting practically every shrine on the northwest to south side of the lake and the Suwa-Taisha. It was amazing to see those small cities and getting fresh strawberries it paid of completely but I would personally only recommend to people who appreciate hiking, nature, shrines and temples because this is a place that really feels like you are in the country side.
If I didn't have a friend with me who occasionally hikes with me and appreciates architecture, it would have been slightly less fun but yea for me it was probably my best day in japan (my vacation last until the end of this week). I also got finally physical touhou games and a damn fumo. And the ost of 17.5
I see people in Japan making offerings in shrines because of the Touhou project or characters in an anime (like K-On, Lucky Star or Higurashi), but I have never heard of something similar in the West. Maybe I should go to Reims' cathedral and offer a Fate/Grand Order themed candle to Joan of Arc? Anyway... I like your videos. Touhou sure is fascinating!
I can't believe you included footage from one of KamS animations you absolute legend! I remember coming across them years and years ago and loving them, but i've rarely encountered another Touhou fan who's seen them.
Crazy, I was wondering just recently about the usage of Suwa in MoF, and then this pops up in my recommended. I love the usage of culture and religion in Touhou, but I'm not well-versed in it and sometimes it's hard to find good English-language resources on the subjects. Hearing about it really deepens my appreciation for the series. Fantastic video, your experience sounds fantastic!
This was an amazing video tour around Suwa! I really enjoy learning more about japanese history and culture, and you're so thoughtful in your videos it really encourages me to be a more involved member of the Touhou and wider japanese media fan community. Thank you!
Might not get seen since I'm commenting over a year after the original posting of the video, but I must say that this video heavily influenced me to have me and my friends go to these locations (even if I'm the only one who's into Touhou) in our own trip to Japan we have been planning for over a year now and I have had this video and location in my mind and as a set destination ever since it came out. I'm even highly considering trying to convince them to go to the hotel mentioned since it looked really nice. I would love to know of more locations that influenced Touhou throughout Japan.
I've been watching your channel for a while now and I gotta say, I greatly appreciate the time and effort you put behind your videos. I've been in the fandom for about a year now, I'm mainly a fan of Touhou because of the characters and fanworks but I've always found the lore to be interesting and deep, there's just a certain mystical charm about it I can't describe. I enjoyed watching your vlog, I hope you make another one someday. Thank you for all your work.
Envy with white envy) Actually, I've looked around Yatsugatake mountains surroundings in different map services; the highest of it, mt. Aka, is surrounded by mountaneous landscape, hardly a place to include a town and huge forests. But then I read more and got that there are Northern and Southern Yatsugatake mountains; mt. Aka is the highest of them all and, particularly, the southern part; while the name of the highest mountain of the northern part is... Mount Tengu. And actually, mt. Tengu has an access to relatively large forests and plains, that go south-west, down to the Suwa city and lake. So, IMHO, mt. Tengu and its surroundings seem to be a better IRL analog of Gensokyo's location. I'm not sure about the Misty Lake, no better candidate than lake Suwa itself has been found by me.
Ah wonderful! Now I'll need a whole day to convince my friends to go out on this weird adventure to a weird place, as some sort of pilgrimage. Thanks for the history lesson too, makes me more interested in visiting this (thankfully famous) shrine, and more easier to convince my friends in visiting this more remote area.
I'm traveling to japan this august for the first time. I know we're gonna be at suwa for one or two days. So while my friends are not really into Touhou, I think that thanks to your video (and another back in the day that talked about there) I'll have stuff to tell them, like a guide or something lol.
Since learning that the Moriya family was based on a real location, I've been wanting to visit this area and see the sights myself. This was incredibly helpful in giving me a guide for places to visit when it eventually happens! Thank you for documenting your trip like this!
Thank you for making this video! It's honestly really soothing to watch the footage from places that inspired ZUN to embed their history and culture into Touhou. And I gotta give props to your research of all the bits of lore you mentioned! Honestly, I'd really look forward to more footage from Suwa (or Japan) in general, if you revisit it!
I just got back from a trip to Japan, and actually went and saw Akimiya and Harumiya. Both shrines were beautiful, along with the rest of Suwa, highly recommend going to them if you get the chance.
Also these morya shrine has a connection to okinunushi which if you are a sharp touhou fan,you would notice who has the most connection to okinunushi,(if you understand who okinunushi is,you would also find out DDC and HSIFS are a little bit connected,in a weird way)
One year ago i could search up hakurei shrine and gensokyo in google map, however 1 month ago i tried to search up hakurei shrine and gensokyo the search result is absurd and i can no longer find the touhou historical places with search engine(except moriya shrine, maybe the moriya conspiracy is TRUE), so this video may show help for me just in case i visit Japan in the future :D
I remember there being a Tazakuya shrine that was the perfect irl equivalent to the Hakurei Shrine. I have it in my notes for places to visit and I clearly remember pictures inside it but I can't find anything about it online anymore.
I'm losing my mind try to find it. All I remember is it being near the mountains East of Suwa Taisha but there's nothing there that looks like the Tazakuya shrine. Did it get destroyed?
@@comdnoive yes, even when i search up touhou wiki for the historical location and directly search that specific word, the place is gone from map, im confused af
KamS. I decided to skip around the video to see what it was about and the first thing I see is a clip of KamS' animations. Ladies and gentlemen, if you've never seen an animation by KamS, then you're in for a real surprise.
I think I read somewhere that Sanae is an actual person, but there aren't any proof. I also once read that firework displays were once held at Lake Suwa, which might have inspired ZUN to make danmaku games. I should try refinding the source soon.. Also I also once read somewhere that while the Hakurei Shrine doesn't exist in real life, it is based on a shrines in real life, which was destroyed in an earthquake. Sounds similar..
There is a moriya descendant named Sanae, correct. I can't verify the fireworks bit, but there are indeed a couple shrines people theorize are the Hakurei shrine.
The part about the fireworks was from a talk page about Mountain of Faith on the Touhou fandom wiki. It says that a firework show is held every year on the lake to commemorate the end of WW2. According to the person, the firework displays at Suwa lake were spectacular because of the beautiful surrounding lakes and mountains, coupled with the fact Suwa is home to many good pyrotechnicians. Since fireworks look like danmaku, this might have inspired ZUN to make Mountain of Faith based on Suwa.
is that Akyuu okay, she looks like she just partied with Suika. Anyway it's interesting to see just how much Touhou is ingrained into Japanese culture, given the drawings.
I can't believe that i came across this video because i wanted more information for my Pathfinder 2 character, whose name is inspired by Yatagarasu and its history with the Suwa Kamisha. The Internet is wild.
Thank you for that excellent vlog, I am still impressed how few I know from my favorite game, MoF got a special place in my heart as my first one. I hope ZUN himself will see your videos one day.
I'm thinking of stopping by Lake Suwa when I go to Japan, all of the videos I've seen on it looks so calm. By the way, Do you remember the name of the themed cafe? It looks so charming
It's just the newest GoPro with 4k resolution and 60fps. I messed with the settings a little bit but not much. Just what a couple of guides suggested for my use cases. You might notice some slight quality drop with shots inside some of the buildings, which is because the sensor works off of surrounding light(?). There is apparently a setting for indoors that I didn't know about. so some of my indoor footage didn't look as good. Luckily, enough of it turned out serviceable.
It's honestly great that there's fans who really care for Touhou enough to go on a pilgrimage to Touhou's insperations, I would love to visit these places someday to have a better appreciation for Touhou as a series, makes me wonder if people in Japan appreciate Touhou not as a game series but as a celebration of values and culture in Japan. Thank you so much for your work within the fandom and I wish you all the success.
There's a community around touhou "holy spots" that document and explain their significance. I used some of them a reference while in Suwa, though they are in Japanese.
I'm going to Japan to pet a Nekomata. Wish me luck.
@@GensouChronicle Where can I find this stuff? Is there a sight or forum that could be linked or found?
This video made me realize how much culture ZUN puts into our suffering by naming Kanako's spellcards.
Reading through all the spell cards is a lot of fun. You can tell ZUN has a wide breadth of interests.
Just like any divine being should.
Fuck Miracle of Otensui
All m'y homies hate Miracle of Otensui
One day I will make the journey there
It's definitely worth the trip.
6:37 the dedication of this artist hanging ema in all four suwa taisha and moriya shrine every month is insane
That's really cool.
"-and behind us would be none other than Gensokyo." I don't know why, but that line coupled with the music really gave me some feelies.
Just the thought of being there, where the land of fantasy lies just beyond a border...
A lot of people might not realize it, but I do time music to sync with a lot of my deliveries. Lol
It has Hifuu Sealing Club vibes. Literally experiencing what Maribel and Renko are going through looking up o about Gensokyo.
I like how despite the title being called a “vlog” it still feels grounded like a video complete with narration, progression and details you’d find in one of your usual videos! Really gives a whole new vibe!
Yeah, I asked myself, "Is this really a vlog anymore with how much game footage I'm showing? Lol. " It sounds like you enjoyed it though, which is all I can ask for.
Can't believe they made Moriya shrine in real life bro 😫😫😫
Japan was a real one for that
@@GensouChronicle Thank you Japan, can't believe they made the outside world from Touhou in real life as well 😫🙌🏻
It reminds me of that episode of the Hifuu Sealing Club fanmade anime where they kind of correlate the real mythology in Suwa lake with the one in Touhou, as if it was rewritten when Kanako and Suwako moved to Gensokyō. Urgh that anime is so gooood I wish it had more episodes :')
Suwa is very cool.
the thumbnail art goes hard
I had the opportunity to study abroad in Japan in March. During the trip, we took a short visit to Yasaka Shrine in Kyoto. I instantly went "OMG KANAKO". Heh.
I am so happy seing my friend as your artist! His art is unique with it's own charm.
Akyuu turned out very cute.
I am a young but also new touhou fan, so i haven't experienced much, but i cannot put into words how much i love people like you, that put so much passion into this beautiful world that they've known for so long, to the point of doing what you have done. Amazing video.
It's for the new and soon to becoming fans that I make these videos. I want them to see what I love about the series in the hopes that they may also find enjoyment in them.
Man I've plans to go here in the future, I've personally studied into this a lot myself and it's interesting to see how Touhou is based on real-life like this! I never imagined last year that this game would be so deep, and that's why I've gotten so interested and deep into the lore, fandom and all this stuff! But yeah, I hope to go check this place out with my friends some time in the future, there's 3 of us all of us into Touhou so it'd be great crack. Happy to see I'm not the only one who wants to go here and infact people do go here. Very cool!
If you can, check out the link to the ryokan I stayed at in the description. It's not too expensive, but the service was excellent.
Next year we get a vlog where GensouChronicle visits Gensokyo proper. :P
Super interesting video. I do love how much thought and real mythology ZUN puts into his writing, lots of people really overlook that.
I've only really scraped the surface with how much he puts into these spell cards. It's wild.
Stuff like this makes me remember what it is about Touhou that's so timeless. It's such a sincere celebration and appreciation of the mythology that has deeply inspired ZUN. I'm really happy that that same appreciation is so infectious that it goes on to inspire so many fans.
this is both incredibly soothing to watch and also very interesting!
i remember reading an interview with ZUN where he revealed he was born and raised near Suwa, so he heard about their traditions and kamis all the time. In that way, MoF is ZUN's way of revisiting his childhood in the form of a videogame, which makes this vlog all the more adorable 🥺
Yeah, even while filming, I got the impression that ZUN really loved the area.
I dont know why, but the footage with your soft spoken narration is really comfortable to watch.
Man, seein all the places that inspired ZUN is something else, they all look so beautifully built!
I've been slowly developing my narration voice to have that "calming" effect. I used to be worried I didn't have a good UA-cam voice, but I'm glad people like it.
Always amused by all the Touhou offerings at shrines. Like drawing something from Evangelion on the donation envelopes at Church.
It's great. Especially considering how old the series is already.
not gonna lie i absolutely had a pog moment when i saw m-1 grand prix 17 on the shelf. I help with the official localization of it, but I've never actually seen it in person
That's pretty cool. I bought the full collection during this trip at comiket.
@@GensouChronicle wow, we were in the same area in japan at the same time then, what a massive coincidence. i hope you enjoy (especially the soundtrack!)
I've never been more absorbed into watching something before. I didn't move for the entirety of the video and just watched. Good stuff man.
I'm really happy to hear that. I try for that sort of experience with all of my videos.
the spellcard backgrounds being rooted in these areas are pretty cool
Very.
As a huge fan of the series, I hope to one day do the pilgrimage to the shrines myself.
I can't describe how much I love the depth and level of inspiration touhou takes from classic japanese legend! It's so beautiful
This is a video I didn't know I needed to see, it gives me such a greater appreciation for how much effort ZUN puts into his games.
We started getting into touhou at the same time, how sweet
Nice!
i love how touhou is essentially is a celebration of core eastern culture and inspires its fans to actually go research and view the culture
id love to do something like this by myself one day
Go for it! It was definitely worth it.
This is so cool, great video! Really cool seeing touhou's real life counterparts!
Thanks!
That was quite entertaining, all those references are so specific to understand at first, so it's great to see them in real life.
Also... That´s Suwako's association with frogs, uh?
funny how it is involved in hunting frogs lol.
Great video; the shots and your commentary were clear, making the video go smoothly.
Thanks. It was a bit of a pain editing in 4k resolution. There's apparently a trick where you can edit with a lower resolution and put the higher one in on export, but I didn't want to bother learning it for one video.
Wow!
This was very interesting. I'm surprised by how specific all these references for these spellcards are. Although I am mostly a Touhou fan for the characters rather than any of the main series games, it's still very interesting to see how connected these gameplay features are to the culture of Japan.
Thank you for making this video.
Yeah, the spell cards past touhou 6 have all sorts of interesting lore behind them.
8:47 sorry but, i can't unhear seven sh*ts in seven toilets
lol
interesting how far yet so close touhou is from reality
Yup. I made two whole videos just talking about how great it is.
The Place of pilgrimage for any real touhou fan, probably the destination to go to if you want to feel as close as gensokyo as you can
Well, they certainly get a lot of them.
I remember there being a Tazakuya shrine that was the perfect irl equivalent to the Hakurei Shrine. I have it in my notes for places to visit and I clearly remember pictures inside it but I can't find anything about it online anymore.
It was so decrepit and forgotten it might've been fully brought into Gensokyo I guess.
There's a video on UA-cam of someone visiting it, I believe. If I do end up going again this year, I might try to visit it.
@@GensouChronicle Yeah I remember them entering the shrine in the video. There was an emphasis on the shrine's doors having glass panes.
@@yuujirousanji That's the problem, I don't remember and can't find it.
6:33 lmao Suwako with her face pressed up against the Covid shield
I remember seeing another vlog of someone visiting this place. Very cool to see all the inspirations.
There is, yes. I watched it before leaving for Japan.
This is amazing! I just can't thank you enough for all effort you put into these videos, Touhou community is amazing and you're one of the best examples.
Thank you. Just trying to do my part.
Comment to hack the algorhythm, all of this hard work can't go unnoticed
These kinds of videos make me appreciate travelling. Honestly, if I could. I would always be travelling. Seeing new spots, meeting new people and learning about the culture that's built around the locations I travel to. I can feel your love of travelling from this video. It's infectious!
Thank you. I plan to return later this year.
ZUN is a man of many talents. A musician, game designer and a history buff among them.
Thanks for this lovely little video!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Honestly one of the best video I have ever seen on Suwa regarding Touhou. I've been a fan for a long while now and always wanted to visit this place to just see the locations in real life myself(and also the fact that Suwako is one of my favourite characters :D) but you gave me a lot of courage coming here even if i live in Hungary which aint the most sharpest place. Again amazing video keep it up and hopefully i can enjoy this place in the near future.
It's definitely worth a visit!
I was there yesterday the lake was really beautiful and that small cafeteria in the south of the lake that has some touhou stuff was really neat. The older lady who runs that cafeteria was really talkative and I'm glad I had that experience. Of course the other main point I did was visiting practically every shrine on the northwest to south side of the lake and the Suwa-Taisha. It was amazing to see those small cities and getting fresh strawberries it paid of completely but I would personally only recommend to people who appreciate hiking, nature, shrines and temples because this is a place that really feels like you are in the country side.
Glad you got to experience it. And yeah, it's a lot of walking.
If I didn't have a friend with me who occasionally hikes with me and appreciates architecture, it would have been slightly less fun but yea for me it was probably my best day in japan (my vacation last until the end of this week). I also got finally physical touhou games and a damn fumo. And the ost of 17.5
I see people in Japan making offerings in shrines because of the Touhou project or characters in an anime (like K-On, Lucky Star or Higurashi), but I have never heard of something similar in the West.
Maybe I should go to Reims' cathedral and offer a Fate/Grand Order themed candle to Joan of Arc?
Anyway...
I like your videos. Touhou sure is fascinating!
Thanks!
This is awesome! Thanks for all the effort!
Glad you enjoyed it!
I can't believe you included footage from one of KamS animations you absolute legend! I remember coming across them years and years ago and loving them, but i've rarely encountered another Touhou fan who's seen them.
I had to. Especially since it actually shows parts of the suwa war like ashinaga and tenaga.
Crazy, I was wondering just recently about the usage of Suwa in MoF, and then this pops up in my recommended. I love the usage of culture and religion in Touhou, but I'm not well-versed in it and sometimes it's hard to find good English-language resources on the subjects. Hearing about it really deepens my appreciation for the series. Fantastic video, your experience sounds fantastic!
Thanks. Hoping to get some more footage this winter.
This was an amazing video tour around Suwa! I really enjoy learning more about japanese history and culture, and you're so thoughtful in your videos it really encourages me to be a more involved member of the Touhou and wider japanese media fan community. Thank you!
Glad you enjoyed it!
5:11 SWK spotted...
Might not get seen since I'm commenting over a year after the original posting of the video, but I must say that this video heavily influenced me to have me and my friends go to these locations (even if I'm the only one who's into Touhou) in our own trip to Japan we have been planning for over a year now and I have had this video and location in my mind and as a set destination ever since it came out. I'm even highly considering trying to convince them to go to the hotel mentioned since it looked really nice.
I would love to know of more locations that influenced Touhou throughout Japan.
Glad to hear that. Enjoy your trip and you do go!
Amazing lore dives!
Glad you like them!
I've been watching your channel for a while now and I gotta say, I greatly appreciate the time and effort you put behind your videos. I've been in the fandom for about a year now, I'm mainly a fan of Touhou because of the characters and fanworks but I've always found the lore to be interesting and deep, there's just a certain mystical charm about it I can't describe. I enjoyed watching your vlog, I hope you make another one someday. Thank you for all your work.
Thank you. I try to make every video release "an event," so to speak, rather than just another piece of content to be shoveled out.
Love your nice sharing! 100% great video~Friend! have a beautiful weekend!!! ❤❤❤❤❤️
Envy with white envy)
Actually, I've looked around Yatsugatake mountains surroundings in different map services; the highest of it, mt. Aka, is surrounded by mountaneous landscape, hardly a place to include a town and huge forests. But then I read more and got that there are Northern and Southern Yatsugatake mountains; mt. Aka is the highest of them all and, particularly, the southern part; while the name of the highest mountain of the northern part is... Mount Tengu. And actually, mt. Tengu has an access to relatively large forests and plains, that go south-west, down to the Suwa city and lake.
So, IMHO, mt. Tengu and its surroundings seem to be a better IRL analog of Gensokyo's location. I'm not sure about the Misty Lake, no better candidate than lake Suwa itself has been found by me.
Ah wonderful! Now I'll need a whole day to convince my friends to go out on this weird adventure to a weird place, as some sort of pilgrimage.
Thanks for the history lesson too, makes me more interested in visiting this (thankfully famous) shrine, and more easier to convince my friends in visiting this more remote area.
It's not terribly far from Tokyo. A couple hours by train. I definitely recommend it.
Cool dude!
This is so cool. Thank You.
Glad you liked it!
I'm traveling to japan this august for the first time. I know we're gonna be at suwa for one or two days. So while my friends are not really into Touhou, I think that thanks to your video (and another back in the day that talked about there) I'll have stuff to tell them, like a guide or something lol.
Definitely visit the shrines.
Really neat stuff. The places look beautiful.
It very much is. I was only planning to go once for this video, but it really made me want to come back. I love the scenery so much.
Since learning that the Moriya family was based on a real location, I've been wanting to visit this area and see the sights myself. This was incredibly helpful in giving me a guide for places to visit when it eventually happens! Thank you for documenting your trip like this!
You're welcome. Definitely check it out if you have the opportunity.
Thank you for making this video! It's honestly really soothing to watch the footage from places that inspired ZUN to embed their history and culture into Touhou. And I gotta give props to your research of all the bits of lore you mentioned!
Honestly, I'd really look forward to more footage from Suwa (or Japan) in general, if you revisit it!
Well, I might have a trip this coming winter. And if things go well, there are other places I can definitely cover like this.
Japan is something else
Great, more items to my list of places to visit some day! Thank you for this video, I loved it.
Glad you enjoyed!
Nice, liked it more then I expected to
Really beautiful video.
This is amazing, you have earned another sub
Thanks!
I just got back from a trip to Japan, and actually went and saw Akimiya and Harumiya. Both shrines were beautiful, along with the rest of Suwa, highly recommend going to them if you get the chance.
You did so much and this turned out incredible. Thank you.
I discovered Touhou through your channel, and it’s brought me to play the Touhou games and enjoy the series. Thank you for another awesome video.
I'm always glad to hear someone became a fan because of my work. Thanks for watching.
Also these morya shrine has a connection to okinunushi which if you are a sharp touhou fan,you would notice who has the most connection to okinunushi,(if you understand who okinunushi is,you would also find out DDC and HSIFS are a little bit connected,in a weird way)
I knew they were based on real shrines, just never knew where those shrines were actually located.
Suwa is absolutely packed with touhou lore. I was practically wandering into locations.
@@GensouChronicle That is awesome. XD The icing on it all would've been running into ZUN himself, even if by accident.
With how many touhou fans visit the shrines, the characters may actually manifest themselves. 😂😂😂
They probably already have!
One year ago i could search up hakurei shrine and gensokyo in google map, however 1 month ago i tried to search up hakurei shrine and gensokyo the search result is absurd and i can no longer find the touhou historical places with search engine(except moriya shrine, maybe the moriya conspiracy is TRUE), so this video may show help for me just in case i visit Japan in the future :D
I allude to Gensokyo, but no Hakurei shrine. Not this time, at least. Possibly next year.
I remember there being a Tazakuya shrine that was the perfect irl equivalent to the Hakurei Shrine. I have it in my notes for places to visit and I clearly remember pictures inside it but I can't find anything about it online anymore.
I'm losing my mind try to find it. All I remember is it being near the mountains East of Suwa Taisha but there's nothing there that looks like the Tazakuya shrine. Did it get destroyed?
@@comdnoive yes, even when i search up touhou wiki for the historical location and directly search that specific word, the place is gone from map, im confused af
Wonderful video! That was so cool and im so jealous!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Japan is just like the Japan in my Japanese animes.
True and real. Naruto is also real.
Excellent bgm choice
I really love the last song. Check out more of arinosu's works. They are a small circle but their music is great.
Great video
Glad you enjoyed it.
I am actually able to hug Suwa-chan in real life? My life is complete.
You have to leave her a really good offering at her shrine, though.
I love your videos!
Thanks!
My man have been to Touhou twice 💀💀💀💀
This sort of stuff is so cool
It is. There's a ton of stuff like this in the series.
Amazing video! I really appreciate the effort you put into these.
Thank you very much!
Educative video. Nice content. 👨🎓
Glad you think so!
KamS. I decided to skip around the video to see what it was about and the first thing I see is a clip of KamS' animations. Ladies and gentlemen, if you've never seen an animation by KamS, then you're in for a real surprise.
OMG YOU ARE SOOOOOOOOO COOOOLLLL❤❤❤❤❤
Thanks!
Ooh I see KamS footage, based
I think I read somewhere that Sanae is an actual person, but there aren't any proof. I also once read that firework displays were once held at Lake Suwa, which might have inspired ZUN to make danmaku games. I should try refinding the source soon..
Also I also once read somewhere that while the Hakurei Shrine doesn't exist in real life, it is based on a shrines in real life, which was destroyed in an earthquake. Sounds similar..
There is a moriya descendant named Sanae, correct. I can't verify the fireworks bit, but there are indeed a couple shrines people theorize are the Hakurei shrine.
There's an actual living Sanae Moriya.
The part about the fireworks was from a talk page about Mountain of Faith on the Touhou fandom wiki.
It says that a firework show is held every year on the lake to commemorate the end of WW2. According to the person, the firework displays at Suwa lake were spectacular because of the beautiful surrounding lakes and mountains, coupled with the fact Suwa is home to many good pyrotechnicians. Since fireworks look like danmaku, this might have inspired ZUN to make Mountain of Faith based on Suwa.
We knew about Reimu’s old shrine that was destroyed in a tropical rainstorm.
After seeing this video, and as an almost a decade long fan...
*_Someday..._*
splendid ~;)
~;))
is that Akyuu okay, she looks like she just partied with Suika.
Anyway it's interesting to see just how much Touhou is ingrained into Japanese culture, given the drawings.
Akyuu is just really excited to see Suwako.
I can't believe that i came across this video because i wanted more information for my Pathfinder 2 character, whose name is inspired by Yatagarasu and its history with the Suwa Kamisha. The Internet is wild.
Thank you for that excellent vlog, I am still impressed how few I know from my favorite game, MoF got a special place in my heart as my first one. I hope ZUN himself will see your videos one day.
Thanks. And yeah, MoF in particular feels very special.
I'm thinking of stopping by Lake Suwa when I go to Japan, all of the videos I've seen on it looks so calm. By the way, Do you remember the name of the themed cafe? It looks so charming
Maemiya Amazoto. It's just outside of the Maemiya shrine. You should be able to find it on Google maps.
@@GensouChronicle thank you!
This video is so awesome.
Thanks!
10:30
The consequences of the industrial revolution on the Touhou fandom
Thanks for sharing! So many stunning shrines and nature! What camera did you use? All the visuals are crisp!
It's just the newest GoPro with 4k resolution and 60fps. I messed with the settings a little bit but not much. Just what a couple of guides suggested for my use cases. You might notice some slight quality drop with shots inside some of the buildings, which is because the sensor works off of surrounding light(?). There is apparently a setting for indoors that I didn't know about. so some of my indoor footage didn't look as good. Luckily, enough of it turned out serviceable.
Cool i have been wanted to visita there and the saigyo mount, i Made a akimiya miniature
Kams spotted
The GOAT
@@GensouChronicle factual
amazing
Thanks
man I wish I could go there!
*MORE TOUHOU, GO TO SUMIREKO’S HOUSE*
Then… We, yes.. *WE* will go to Gensokyo.
Amazing!
comment for algorithm
great video as always
Thanks for that!