Travel Tuesday: Gion Matsuri

So, a couple of weeks ago I mentioned the Japanese festival Gion Matsuri and explained how I saw the building of the floats everyday on my way to language school. Well this week I am showing photos of the big parade.

Gion Matsuri is a very lively festival where huge floats are pulled through the streets. There are floats for each neighborhood and on top of each float are groups of musicians. I love the music of Gion Matsuri. It is so distinctive and in the weeks prior to the festival you can hear it playing in shops. Like all the Christmas music you hear in winter.

The best way to experience Gion Matsuri is to stand on a road corner which is part of the parade route. This means you get to see the floats being maneuvered gradually around the corner which is much more interesting than seeing them go straight past you one after the other. 

I have seen many Japanese festivals, but Gion Matsuri was definitely one of the most impressive!

Linking up with Bonnie Rose for Travel Tuesday

Don't you think the floats look quite different from when they were being built?!

Travel Tuesday: Building the Gion Matsuri Floats

Those of you who have never been to Japan will probably have never heard of Gion Matsuri. So what is it? Gion Matsuri is the biggest festival in Kyoto and one of the three most famous ones in the whole of Japan! The main event is a parade however it is actually a month long festival throughout the whole of July with events happening every day!

The parade is on the 17th, and from the 10th to the 14th the floats are constructed. I was lucky last year because to get to my language school I cycled past where the floats were being constructed. This meant I got to see them change from just a few poles of bamboo into massive stunning floats.

Below are the photos I took over five days on my way home. I will be writing another post about the main parade so be sure to come back and take a look at photos of the floats in their full glory!

Some of the floats are so tall they are built on their side...

...and then pulled upright with a couple of ropes!

Linking up with Bonnie Rose for Travel Tuesday

Have you ever heard of Gion Matsuri?

Travel Tuesday: 20 Festivals in 10 Months

So, a couple of weeks ago I wrote this post talking about how during the 10 months I lived in Japan I saw 20 festivals. In that post I showed you photos from the first 10 festivals I saw, this post is the final 10 I saw.

11: Kyokusui-no-utage

What? A festival where people dress up in Heian period costumes, write poems and play music.
Where? Jonangu Shrine, Kyoto
When? November 3rd


12: New Years Day

What? In Japan EVERYONE visits at least one shrine at New Years. The more famous shrines get very busy and you have to queue for quite a while to actually get into the shrine. This was actually one of the less busy places...
Where? This was Heian-jingu shrine
When? January 1st, 2nd and 3rd

13: Iwashimizu Hachimangu Matsuri

What? A festival to protect against disasters in your life. One Japanese superstition is that there are three years in your life when disasters will happen. For women these years are 19, 33 and 61. I have just had my 19th birthday...
Where? Iwashimizu Hachimangu shrine
When? January 18th

14: Setsubun

What? This is one of my favourite Japanese festivals. It is day when people chase away evil spirits before the start of spring according to the lunar calendar. The main event is in the evening when people dress up as devils and do a performance in the grounds of a shrine.
Where? This was at Yoshida-jinja shrine
When? February 3rd

15: Hina Matsuri

What? Hina Matsuri is girls' day. It is when families with daughters celebrate by putting up a large display of special dolls. We didn't have the display of dolls but we did eat these very nice Hina Matsuri sweets!
When? March 3rd

16: Yosakoi

What? Yosakoi is a type of Japanese dance which originated in 1945. This was a great day out at Kyoto botanical gardens where they had different yosakoi teams competing. It's really fun and lively, as you can see from the photo!
Where? Kyoto botanical gardens
When? April 6th

17: Nagahama Matsuri

What? In April I went to Tokyo but before that I went to Nagahama for a few days. Nagahama is a town near Lake Biwa and it is famous for it's festival. Unfortunately the main parade was the day after I left but I did see some preparations for the festival, including lots of cute kids dressed up.
Where? Nagahama
When? 13th April

18: Kodomo no hi

What? Kodomo no hi translates as children's day. Makes sense really, if you have father's day and mother's day then why not also have children's day! On children's day these fish, called koinobori, are hung up outside houses and in public spaces.
Where? I saw these fish in Osaka
When? May 5th

19: Shimogamo-jinja Matsuri

What? I don't know what the correct name for this festival was or what exactly it was for, but basically we chose a white rock and then purified it in the same freezing cold water we walked through for the Mitarashi festival. Then we put them into these barrels, mine is the one just peeping up in the centre!
Where? Shimogamo-jinja shrine
When? May 10th

20: ???

What? A really local festival in my grandma's neighbourhood. I don't know what it was called. People from various neighbourhoods walked these small floats around town and as we were driving around we kept seeing other neighbourhoods' floats.
Where? Around Kyoto
When? May 11th

These are the last 10 festivals I saw while in Japan. Please note that the dates are the dates I went to the festivals in 2013, in some cases the dates might change each year.

 

Linking up with Bonnie Rose for Travel Tuesday

Travel Tuesday: 20 Festivals in 10 Months

Now that I'm back in England I keep getting asked the question, what was the best thing you did in Japan? Which of course is an impossibly hard question to answer, however I must say one of my favourite things was all of the festivals.

In Japanese, festivals are called matsuri, there are matsuri ranging from Children's Day, to welcoming back your ancestors' spirits. Below are the first 10 festivals I saw while living in Japan for 10 months, some are the most famous in Japan, others are very small local matsuri.


1: ???

What? A small dancing festival as part of the lead up to Gion Matsuri. I can't find any information on the internet about it and can't remember it's name.
Where? In front of Kyoto City Hall.
When? July 9th.

2: Yoiyoi-yama

What? Another festival in the lead up to Gion Matsuri. The three nights before Gion Matsuri the streets are filled with lanterns, food stalls, floats and of course crowds of people. Out of all the festivals this one had the most interesting atmosphere as everyone was gearing up to celebrate the big day.
Where? Various streets around Kyoto.
When? On July 14th, three nights before Gion Matsuri is Yoiyoiyoi-yama. On July 15th is Yoiyoi-yama and on July 16th is Yoi-yama.

3: Gion Matsuri

What? Gion Matsuri is one of the largest and most famous festivals in Japan. It is technically a month long festival, however the main event (Yamaboko-junko) is a parade of 32 floats. However starting from this year Gion Matsuri is going to have a major change and there will be two smaller parades on different days. I am so glad I was in Kyoto last year as it was the last chance to see all 32 floats together.
Where? Various streets around Kyoto.
When? July 14th

4: Mitarashi Matsuri

What? River water is diverted into the grounds of the shrine where it creates a shallow river and pool. It is believed that by walking through this water you will be blessed with good health. It is very popular with school children as a fun summer activity and leading up to the shrine there were many food stalls.
Where? Shimogamo-jinja Shrine to the north of Kyoto.
When? July 20th

5: Hanagasa Junko

What? The second largest public event of Gion Matsuri after the Yamaboko-junko. It is a parade of children, dancers, floats and even Maiko (apprentice Geisha.)
Where? The parade starts at Yasaka-jinja Shrine and then goes around the nearby streets.
When? July 24th.

6: Bon Odori

What? In mid-August it is Obon, a time of year when it is believed that ancestors' sprits return to visit. As part of Obon, every communtiy has a Bon Odori (Bon Dance.) This dance is to welcome the spirits home.
Where? There are Bon Odori all over Japan. The one I went to last year was in Nishijin, the older, less famous Geisha area in Kyoto.
When? August 4th

7:Tanabata

What? Tanabata is the star festival. It is believed that two lovers in the stars are separated by the milky way and can only meet on this night, if the sky is clear. A popular activity on Tanabata is writing your wish on piece of paper and tying it to a bamboo tree.
Where? There are Tanabata celebrations all over Japan, however my photo is from Horikawa River in Kyoto.
When? August 7th.

8: Seiryu-e

What? Possibly the most recent addition to Kyoto's festival calender is Seiryu-e which was started in 2000. The style is very Chinese influenced, there is a dragon and musicians which go on a parade around the temple grounds and nearby streets of Gion.
Where? The parade starts at Kiyomizu-dera Temple.
When? September 15th.

9: ???

What? Erm, I have no idea! I was traveling near Kobe and just happened upon this festival which I like to call the Pink Festival!
Where? Somewhere near Kobe..
When? Mid-October sometime...

10: Jidai Matsuri

What? Along with Gion Matsuri and Aoi Matsuri (which unfortunatley I missed) Jidai Matsuri is one of Kyoto's three big festivals. It is a parade of people dressed up in costumes from various era's and many poeple are dressed up as specific historical figures.
Where? The parade starts from Gosho (the Imperial Palace in Kyoto.)
When? October 22nd.

These are the first 10 festivals I saw while in Japan, next week I will post about the next 10 which I saw! Please note that the dates are the dates I went to the festivals in 2013, in some cases the dates might change each year.

Linking up with Bonnie Rose for Travel Tuesday.

Travel Tuesday: Yosakoi Dance Competition

At the weekend it was the annual Kyoto Yosakoi dance competition. Yosakoi is a type of dance unique to Japan. It originated in Kochi city in 1954 and has gradually spread around Japan. It is a very lively style of dancing mixing traditional and modern together which makes it very fun to watch.

There were seven venues around Kyoto where various universities and dance groups from around Japan competed together. I went to the Botanical Gardens which had the added bonus of lovely sakura. I really enjoyed watching all the dances and, not being biased or anything, but Kyoto Girls University was my favourite. Also their outfits were really nice!

Kyoto Girls University, don't they look so happy and cheerful!

This group were my second favourite. Their routine was great and they were the champions last year.

I like that their outfits are similar to those worn in Awa Odori.