Nakamura Lantern Festival

A little more than a week ago I got to go to my first Japanese festival. This one was a local festival for my town. Local businesses and groups get together and build large lantern floats which groups of people, mostly men, hoist up on their shoulders and carry around town. Each lantern float has a portable shrine in it. The groups weave back and forth down the street and then at certain points along the way spin around in a fast circle before continuing forward. They also stop ever block or two to consume alcohol. This is all done to a chanting song that both lantern carriers and on lookers sing along to drummers that parade with them. The atmosphere was really fun and exciting not to mention the lanterns themselves were rather beautiful. One of the things I appreciated the most was how it seemed to bring the community together. I also continue to appreciate how alive traditional culture is in Japan.



A beer break