199 Special Post: A Trip Around the Kii Peninsula with Mow – Taro.

( モー太郎とは？→→→それは後ほど。。)

(Who is Mow-Taro? →→→More on that later…)

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スタートは、三重県の四日市駅。

今回は珍しく「相棒」と合流しての旅になります。

The starting point is Yokkaichi Station in Mie Prefecture.

This time, unusually, I’ll be traveling with “Buddy.”

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まずは「快速　みえ号」で、紀伊半島東部の付け根である多気駅を目指します。

First, I’ll take the “Rapid Mie” train to Taki Station, which is located at the base of the eastern part of the Kii Peninsula.

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松阪駅にて。

At Matsusaka Station.

地元の業者さんである、「あら竹商店」さんから「相棒」を受け取ります。

こちらのお店では、事前にお伝えしていれば、限られた時間内ですが、このように乗っている列車までお弁当を届けてくださいます。(お支払いは現金のみで、お釣りのないように。。)

I’ll be receiving today’s “Buddy” from a local supplier, “Aratake Shoten.”

This shop will deliver your bento box to your train, within a limited time frame, if you let them know in advance. (Payment is cash only, and please bring the exact amount.)

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相棒も揃い、紀勢本線の多気駅からは紀伊半島東岸を南下する普通列車で先へと進みます。

多気駅発9時43分、終着の和歌山県の新宮駅には13時20分と、3時間37分のローカル列車旅です。

そして、この駅員の制服を着たキャラクターが、「今日の相棒　モー太郎」です。

With Buddy by my side, I boarded a local train at Taki Station on the Kisei Main Line, heading south along the eastern coast of the Kii Peninsula.

The local train journey departs Taki Station at 9:43 AM and arrives at its final destination, Shingu Station in Wakayama Prefecture, at 1:20 PM, making it a 3-hour and 37-minute trip.

And the character wearing a station attendant’s uniform depicted on this lunch box is “Today’s Buddy Mow-Taro.”

Here’s an explanation of the name Mow-Taro.

First of all, Matsusaka City in Mie Prefecture, where this bento shop is located, is one of Japan’s leading beef producing areas, and this shop specializes in bento boxes made with high-quality beef.

Therefore, Mow-Taro was designed as the character for this shop.

The first part of the name, “Mow,” is the sound a cow makes in Japanese, and “Taro” is a name that is representative of Japanese men.

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途中の紀伊長島駅には11時00分着、出発が11時28分と、28分間の小休止が入ります。

この長時間停車も、ローカル列車ならではの楽しみです。

乗り遅れがないよう時間を見ながらですが、駅の内外を散策できるので、よい気分転換になります。

The train arrived at Kii-Nagashima Station at 11:00 AM. Departure is scheduled for 11:28 AM, with a 28-minute break.

These long stops are one of the unique pleasures of taking a local train.

I keep an eye on the time to avoid missing my train, but being able to stroll around inside and outside the station is a nice change of pace for me.

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尾鷲駅です。

太平洋に面したこの町の駅に掲げられた「大漁旗」が、漁師町のムードを盛り上げています。

This is Owase Station.

The “Tairyo-ki” (a flag flown on fishing boats to pray for a bountiful catch) displayed at the train station in this town facing the Pacific Ocean enhances the atmosphere of this fishing town.

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