Spring Festival Sake Festival at Xitou: Toast with the Yokai

Reported by You T-Ru / Taipei

The annual highlight of the Spring Festival at “Xitou Yokai Village” — the “Shiraki Sake Festival” — will kick off with the New Year’s Eve “Sakura Taiko Countdown Show” in the early hours of February 9. A grand “Sake Blessing & Kagami Biraki Ceremony” will be held at 6:30 PM on February 10 (the first day of the Lunar New Year), continuing until 3:30 PM on February 17 (the seventh day), making for a seven-day celebration.


▲ Raise a toast together at the “Shiraki Sake Festival.” (Photo / Xitou Mingshan Forest Hotel)

The “Shiraki Sake Festival” is primarily held to celebrate the harvest and express reverence for nature. During the Lunar New Year, Xitou, nestled at the foot of Phoenix Mountain, holds a series of ceremonies to give thanks to the mountain gods. In line with the festive atmosphere, this year the performance troupe “Ting Wei Lion Dance Theater” will present a ritual drama titled “Mountain God Beats Away Evil,” where comically cute yokai holding sheaves of rice symbolizing a bountiful harvest will chase and lightly tap visitors to drive away bad luck and pests. There’s also an alternative ceremony called “Yokai Feast – Food Shared Together,” during which yokai will arrive during mealtimes, and visitors can offer them sake and food in exchange for New Year blessings, wishing everyone happiness and wisdom throughout the year.


▲ Xitou Yokai Village also offers many activities during the New Year period. (Photo / Xitou Mingshan Forest Hotel)


▲ The “Ting Wei Lion Dance Theater” performs their ticketed show “Si Ling Gu” for the first time in collaboration with Yokai Village. (Photo / Xitou Mingshan Forest Hotel)
Additionally, Xitou Yokai Village’s most popular product — the Yokai Cat Bread — will have special deals during the New Year. Those who queue up to buy the limited-edition “Biting Cat Bread” may just “bite into” a 99% pure gold “Lucky Bear Gold Medallion.” A gold medal will be given out each time the bread is freshly baked.

The “Ting Wei Lion Dance Theater” performs their ticketed show “Si Ling Gu” for the first time in collaboration with Yokai Village. The performance combines elements such as masks, drumming, modern dance, and indigenous singing, while also weaving in the unique natural mountain forests of Xitou Yokai Village and the folklore of the “16-Bell Attendants” known as the “Shi Ba Wei.” It pays tribute to the eight local heroes who bravely sacrificed themselves to protect their homes and forests during the Japanese occupation, interweaving anti-Japanese history, forest lore, performing arts, and the natural environment into a truly unique theatrical experience. After each “Si Ling Gu” performance, audiences will also have the chance to try drumming on stage, jointly commemorating the contributions of those before us through artistic creation and ringing in each day of 2013 with their own hands.


▲ An extremely unique performance style that intertwines anti-Japanese history, forest lore, performing arts, and the natural environment. (Photo / Xitou Mingshan Forest Hotel)