Japan Summer Guide (Part 1)

Summer is an exciting and colorful travel season, not only with ample holidays to savor trips with family, but also more time to explore abroad. Summer in Japan is also a peak season for fascinating festivals (matsuri), so why not join in and experience a different side of passionate Japan?

What exactly are Japanese festivals?

Answer: A grand ceremony to welcome and send off the gods.

Most Japanese festival rituals involve welcoming the gods, offering worship, and then sending them back. Thus, the festival process is usually divided into welcoming and sending off the gods, often carried out by carrying the gods in a portable shrine (mikoshi) on a parade.

What are the most worthwhile festivals in Japan?

Kyoto Gion Matsuri:

This is one of Japan's most famous festivals and a major summer event. During the Gion Matsuri, Kyoto's streets are filled with grand processions and beautifully decorated floats, attracting large numbers of tourists and locals.

This year, the pre-festival on July 17 and the post-festival on July 24 will follow the same yamaboko parade route as previous years. In addition, the highly anticipated "Takayama" float will officially return to the post-festival procession for the first time since the late Edo period.

This year, there will be a total of 33 floats in the parade, with the largest weighing 12 tons. From assembly, parade, to disassembly, it requires about 180 people. The most famous is the "Nagahoko" (long-sword float) that leads the parade each year, carrying a large long sword symbolizing the driving away of epidemic diseases and evil spirits. The second float, "Kanko-hoko," is inspired by the story of "The Cock's Crow and Dog's Bark" about Mengchang Jun from China's Warring States period. Other floats also have unique stories.

Nagasaki Lantern Festival:

Held in July this year, this is one of Japan's most unique summer festivals, taking place annually in Nagasaki City. During the festival, thousands of lanterns light up the entire city, creating a beautiful nightscape. This festival originated as a celebration of the Chinese Lunar New Year (Spring Festival) and is a highlight of Nagasaki's winter scenery. In central Nagasaki, including Shinchi Chinatown, Minato Park, Central Park, the area around Spectacles Bridge, Hamanomachi, and the shopping arcade, about 15,000 colorful Chinese lanterns and large artistic installations transform the streets into a dreamlike scene. During the festival, grand performances of dragon dances, Chinese acrobatics, and erhu music are held daily at various venues, showcasing rich Chinese cultural activities.

Hirosaki Castle in Aomori Prefecture and Aomori Nebuta Matsuri:

Hirosaki Castle is a historic castle that holds spectacular fireworks displays in summer. The Aomori Nebuta Matsuri is the largest summer festival in Aomori Prefecture, famous for its giant nebuta (lantern boats) and nebuta floats, attracting many visitors. It will be held in August this year.

The main features of the Aomori Nebuta Matsuri are the "large group floats" and the "haneto" (dancers) group dance. The large group floats are colorful three-dimensional lanterns shaped like warriors from tales such as "Ushiwakamaru and Benkei" (Ushiwakamaru is the childhood name of Minamoto no Yoshitsune, a general of the Minamoto clan from the late Heian to early Kamakura period; Benkei was a rogue monk who later became Yoshitsune's loyal retainer), resembling kabuki in their brilliance. The haneto group dance involves dancing along to drumbeats and accompanying music, creating a spectacular mass dance.

In the next article, I will introduce lesser-known festival recommendations in Japan.