TSURUOKA, Yamagata Prefecture The bodies of two people were found on Jan. 2 in the rubble of a landslide that buried around 10 homes and other structures in the Nishime district here.
TSURUOKA, Yamagata Prefecture The magnificent five-storied pagoda on Mount Hagurosan, designated as a national treasure, is holding an illumination event through mid-October.
Keiichi Iyama was chosen as a contemporary master craftsman by the government in November 2020. (Teruto Unuma)
SAKATA, Yamagata Prefecture The last call came on May 10 for Japan s oldest bartender, Keiichi Iyama, who invented the world-famous Yukiguni cocktail and was the subject of a 2018 documentary film.
Iyama, who proudly served customers for seven decades here, died at the age of 95 of natural causes.
Koichi Sato, 43, a videographer, who filmed Iyama over two and half years for the “Yukiguni” film, called his death a loss for the community.
“He let others come inside the counter freely and was the kind of person who even strangers came to love,” Sato said. “He was also a walking encyclopedia on Sakata city. I feel sad as if we have lost an entire library.”