Tuesday 13 August 2013

Sardine Tornado on the Meiko Line

EMU Nagoya Municipal Subway 2000 series stands at Nagoyako Station on the Meiko Line
 
The hot summer still continues in Japan. According to the weather report, the daytime maximum temperature in several cities reached 40 degrees Celsius last weekend. I took a short midsummer holiday, and took a trip with my family. This year's destination was the central part of Japan, Aichi and Nagano prefectures.

We stopped over in Nagoya, a major city of Aichi Prefecture first. It was a very hot day. The least we could do was to go somewhere cool. An aquarium matched our needs. Nagoyako Suizokukan is a world-class public aquarium in the vicinity of Nagoya Port. There are many aquatic animals and attractions there. For instance, dolphin and killer whale shows are two of the major attractions, which are popular among children. But, I like "Sardine Tornado" the best.

What is Sardine Tornado? It is the feeding time for Japanese sardines. When the keepers feed, a school of sardines chases the baits, and forms a "tornado" in the glass-sided tank. The school itself looks like a creature with a spirit.

To get to this cool spot, the Meiko Line of Nagoya Municipal Subway is convenient. Nagoya Municipal Subway is one of the major transporters, which has a total of 6 routes on a 93.3km long labyrinthine railway network in the city. The track gauge of the Meiko Line is 1435mm. The electric system is 600V DC using a "third rail" without catenaries. The EMU 2000 series is the main fleet on this line.

 
"Sardine Tornado" in Nagoya Port Aquarium near Nagoyako Station on the Meiko Line
 
More information about the EMU Nagoya Municipal Subway 2000 series (in Japanese):