Wakamatsu-ku, Kitakyushu
Wakamatsu-ku (若松区?) is a ward of Kitakyūshū, Fukuoka, Japan. It has an area of 67.86 km² and a population of about 88,594 (national census, 2000).
Important facilities include: Green Park, Ecotown recycling area, Gakuen Toshi academic area, and Hibiki container terminal (opened on April 1, 2005). A new underwater tunnel is being constructed in 2005-6 between Tobata and Wakamatsu wards to link the Hibiki container terminal with Kokura.
Green Park is a large green area which includes a tropical house with rare plants, fish and birds; a herb garden; a rose garden (rare in Japan); a children's play area; a Japanese garden; a wallaby enclosure and boating facilities. It is not particularly well-known outside Kitakyushu. Sometimes indoor and open-air concerts are staged. There is also an observation tower.
There is a wind farm on the coast, harnessing wind power for electricity. There is no particular controversy about the sightliness or otherwise of this wind farm, as in some other countries. It is on windy reclaimed land.
The beaches are small but pleasant. A larger one is at Ashiya-machi to the West, beyond the city limits of Kitakyushu. Bathing is limited in Japan to the summer months.
The writer Hino Ashihei was born in Wakamatsu and his birthhouse can be visited.
The rose garden at Green Park in late May 2003
Marigold beds at Green Park in mid-November 2004
Wakamatsu wind farm
Iwaya beach, Wakamatsu
Coordinates: 33°54′20″N 130°48′40″E / 33.90556°N 130.81111°E
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