A Brief Visit to Uji After Hibike Euphonium Season 3

I had a great time in Osaka meeting tons of new people and being social for a week. But now my social battery is all depleted, it’s time to go solo again. In Osaka, I planned to finish up season 3 of Hibike Euphonium before heading over to Uji (1 in the image below) for a night (where it takes place).Then I’d take the shinkansen from Kyoto all the way to Shimada and start my Season 3 Yuru Camping (2, 3, 4). Then when I’m done with all that I’ll head back to Tokyo for a few days before flying home. More on the Yuru Camping later, this post is just about Eupho and Uji.

It’s worth noting I’ve been to Uji for Eupho before, and I fully documented my last visit with screenshots and all here. This time was me kind of following my nose around.

A Walk Around Uji

I didn’t quite complete that plan about finishing up season 3, so when I arrived at my hostel at around 3pm, I binge watched the final 6 episodes. What a roller coaster that was. The last time I watched any Eupho was probably years ago, and seeing all the characters facing and overcoming their struggles reminded me why I love it so much. When I first started Eupho, I must have been one or two years into high school. In season one we see Kumiko and her friends face new challenges at a new school. In the third season, we see Kumiko in her final year, and how she grapples with the decisions she has to make as the club president and beyond education. It just finished airing a week or so ago, not long after I finished University myself. I practically grew up alongside Eupho, and to say it resonates with me is an understatement. I’ll remember it for the rest of my life.

So after I finished that final episode, I was in a pretty emotional state. Not happy, nor sad, I don’t really know how to describe it. Seeing Kumiko move on from school and out into the unknown is exactly what I’m about to experience after I return from my Japan travels. It was a bit of a slap in the face.

I decided I’d have a wander around Uji. Visit all the important spots from the show. Take a long walk to process the emotions I was feeling. The guest house was just up the road from where Kumiko’s house is located in the anime. So that’s where I headed first.

It was nearing 5 or 6 pm so the sun was getting low, and the light was warm. I spotted this house overgrown with greenery.

And an old woman walking down a side street.

Eventually I reached Kumiko’s house. Which doesn’t exist in real life by the way, but if it did it would be on the opposite corner of the junction to the right.

I turned to the left towards Kumiko’s post box and the big red bridge.

Right here is where Kumiko and Reina squat next to the bridge to watch the fireworks in their Kimonos.

Turning to the left we see a building with lots of Eupho posters over it.

The sun damage on them reminded me just how long it’s really been.

I continued down that road towards Kumiko’s bench.

It wasn’t long until I reached it.

I chilled there for a bit until I remembered the light was fading. It wasn’t long until sunset. I got up and continued on. There were a fair few people around enjoying the evening by the river.

I crossed a bridge to take me onto the island in the centre of the river, and snapped this shot towards the main Uji bridge.

On the opposite bank we can see the temple and the spot by the water that Kumiko and Reina frequent.

While crossing the river, I heard a train crossing the other bridge so I quickly pulled out my camera.

There’s a shot that I remember from reading Michael Vito’s blog (the big anime pilgrimage man himself) from a long long time ago, so I decided to take a similar one myself.

At the end of the bridge I was greeted by the large Torii gate leading into the shrine. In the evening light it almost seemed like it was glowing.

A shot of the shrine after going through that gate.

And just to the right a spot where Kumiko shelters from the rain at one point.

Turning back around we can see that glowing Torii from a different angle.

And one at the top of the staircase.

I exit the shrine to the left and follow the road up towards the foot of mount Daikichi. I pass under another large Torii.

Then I reached the start of the climb.

A glance back down the road where I came.

And it was time to start climbing.

I reached the top a little worn out. There were a group of other young people. They weren’t Japanese and I assume they were other Eupho fans. The view was stunning as expected.

I tried to replicate that shot of Uji we see so much in the anime, but the summertime foliage was obscuring a chunk of it.

A shot of the gazebo itself.

Then I headed back down the mountain. At the bottom of the path, I turned right to head towards the Keihan Uji station. The clouds in the sky looked nice.

We can see the station in the distance.

When reaching the junction, glancing left we can see Uji bridge.

And a closeup of the station itself.

This is the station Kumiko gets off at on her way home from school.

I headed inside to take some photos.

Hagu!~

I continued onwards and snapped this shot of a train crossing the bridge on the way out.

And I also took this photo of the bridge, I thought it looked nice.

Some pictures of the bridge I took on the phone because the light was getting too dim for my main camera.

After that, I headed into the adjacent Saizeria to have some cheap “italian” food. The pizza the girls ate in season 3 was fresh in my memory and I was starving. I headed back to the guest house and had a good sleep.

The next morning I headed back to Uji station to catch my train into Kyoto.

There was a Eupho poster on a billboard outside.

And I had to take a pic of that big tea urn.

When I got to Kyoto station, only had just enough time to grab my tickets and find a bite to eat. I managed to squeeze in a visit to a Kyo-ani goods shop I saw on google maps, which surprised me since I read that they closed their main shop and were doing online orders only. Maybe this is unofficial? Anyway. There was Eupho promotion plastered over the front.

They had some of the characters intrument’s on display inside.

Some cutouts from past seasons.

And a drier than expected Eupho goods section. That wall scroll was tempting me, but I’d need to lug it around the mountains if I bought it. I’ll wait and see what there is in Tokyo.

Anyway that’s what I got up to in Uji. Hope the more diary-like flow was okay in this one. I didn’t approach this visit like my other pilgrimages and just sort of followed my nose. It felt sort of surreal wandering around, seeing all the locations, with the sun going down. There was something metaphorical about it. Kumiko’s time at school is over. Hibike Euphonium is over. My time in education is over. And it’s time to move on.

Emotions aside, I’m typing this up right now in a hotel in Shimada, ready for some Yuru Camping tomorrow! Suspension bridges and mountain trains! Stay tuned!