Matsumoto Castle (松本城) located in Matsumoto City in Nagano Prefecture, the castle was built between 1592 to 1614 is one of the most beautiful castles in Japan, and was built on plains instead of mountains.
Every year, for over 30 years, an ice sculpture festival has been held between January and February at Matsumoto Castle. During this time of year the temperature is between 0 a -10 degrees, enough to keep the ice sculptures outside the castle in good condition.
The pictures of the sculptures look perfect with Matsumoto Castle in the background:
Like any festival, you will taste a lot of typical food in the city, and street food.
You can enjoy the sculptors working on the sculptures on Saturday night, or Sunday morning you can see them newly built. The kids also have fun with an ice slide and some stage shows.
Our friend Santana's video shows a little more about this Belo Festival:
