Fire Festival

Last Saturday was Fujinomiya's annual Fire Festival. If I understood correctly, this festival is held to appease Mt. Fuji so it won't erupt and kill everyone. I met some other ALTs for the festivities, and it was definitely worth the transportation time and money. Supposedly this is one of the top 3 Fire Festivals in Japan. There was a parade with floats, beautiful iconic women (not sure who they represented), and school bands, so this part of the festival was recognizable by Western standards. Our group followed the parade to the Shinto gate where the festival got REALLY interesting. There were groups of drummers dressed in traditional clothing, which for the men looked like t-shirts, underwear, and socks. The women added a smock-like shirt on top of this outfit. Drummers spend the whole time with their legs far apart and their knees bent, swaying to throw their whole body weight into the drums. The movements are very fast, powerful, and precise, and their timing was impeccable so the effects were quite impressive. I was most impressed by the variety of drummers--men and women, from age 5 to 75. They all had the same level of focus and attention, no matter how young or old they were. The drumming went on for hours, and eventually I noticed that the performers would switch out without disturbing the beat. Trying to spot them switch was like trying to watch a clock change time--I'd look up and see a different drummer, but I could never catch anyone in the act of coming or going.

Then there was a spectacle I've seen in photographs: large groups of "underwear"-clad men carrying "rafts" through the streets. The rafts were supported by large beams that rested on the men's shoulders. Each raft held at least four women and a large bonfire. The women were jumping up and down, shouting, and singing. I thought the Japanese had a reputation for being uptight and serious all the time, but this festival was a real throw-down. The raft groups paraded all over and later they ended the festival by walking waist-deep into the cold river, splashing water everywhere and eventually putting out the fires. It was a really beautiful night and we decided to "close the ceremonies" with some Japanese beer in a quiet little pub.

And of course, I must add the ever-paradoxical Japanese image of past-meets-present: half of the spectators wore Western clothing, but the other half wore kimonos. I kept staring at the kimono women with their little fabric bags, only to see them pull out cellphones and send text messages...elaborate hairdos of the past bent over electronic gadgets of today.

And did I mention the bugs? I still can't get over the bugs. Japan is like the Hollywood of the bug world--they're all bigger than life and look like they belong in the movies.

I apologize for the lack of pictures...once I get the internet at my apartment, I will come back and add photos!! Thank you for reading!