We were going to the Kanto Festival Museum to see displays of the lanterns featured in one of the three biggest summer festivals in the Tohoku region.
We could imagine how difficult it would be to balance these poles holding dozens of lighted lanterns even if the wind is light.
The lantern festival began in the Edo period about 270 years ago. and is held between August 3rd-6th. It started as a way to show the strength of the participants, but grew to focus on balance and agility as well.
There are four sizes of poles:
Kindergarten to 1st grade: 10 pounds and holds 24 lanterns
5th through 6th grades: 30 pounds and holds 24 lanterns (Hmmm... What about the 2nd to 4th?)
Jr. High: 60 pounds and holds 46 lanterns
Adult: 100 pounds and holds 46 lanterns, but with real candles
Children train to do this from the time they are 4-5 years of age. I obviously have never been trained and could barely balance the lanterns on my hand, let alone on my head or leg or shoulder or back or whatever.
We stopped at Senshu Park where once Kubota castle built in 1602 stood.
It was now a place of respite and children in caps designating their age or grade walked holding hands on the beautiful grounds.
Lunch was at a yaki niku (grill) restaurant called Sutamina Taro which is a successful chain in Japan. OK... I know, I know I shouldn't be eating so many desserts, but the all-you-can-eat ice cream and sherbet bar was just much too good to pass up.
The Akita Brewery was our next place of interest. It was certainly a lot of fun to taste all the different sakes. Mom would have loved this. We bought a bottle of amazake which is a non-alcoholic or low alcoholic drink made from fermented rice that we knew mom would love.
And yes, she was thrilled! We let her have the entire bottle which she happily enjoyed for several days.
The Namahage Museum in Oga was one of the most interesting places we've visited in Japan. One of our tour friends tried on the entire costume for us. If I were a kid, I'd be terrified.
The museum displayed various namahage costumes worn at New Years by the men who were chosen to wear them.
A video showed just how terrified children were to see them.
I can just imagine how much they repented their sins of the previous year.
Still... many of the tour members wondered if all this could cause nightmares or damage sensitive children.
We later saw a demonstration which rather reinforced our misgivings.
I asked mom about this and she said she was terrified as a child too. I wondered why she was terrified since she and her sisters have all told me what a super good, super obedient, super wonderful child she was.
The older fellow here was pretending to recount what the year was like.
The namahage is supposed to be noting the shortcomings of people in the village from this Book of Deeds.
We passed alongside the Sea of Japan on the way to our hotel.
We stopped at the Akita City Port Tower Selion where we could see the cruise ship Asuka 2 docked from the 100 meter (328.084 feet) observation deck.
Each tour member was then given 2500 yen (about $25) to buy our dinner. We went to a department store basement and bought a quick meal.
Since I've tried my best to be a good girl this year, I didn't dream of namahages that night.
We could imagine how difficult it would be to balance these poles holding dozens of lighted lanterns even if the wind is light.
The lantern festival began in the Edo period about 270 years ago. and is held between August 3rd-6th. It started as a way to show the strength of the participants, but grew to focus on balance and agility as well.
There are four sizes of poles:
Kindergarten to 1st grade: 10 pounds and holds 24 lanterns
5th through 6th grades: 30 pounds and holds 24 lanterns (Hmmm... What about the 2nd to 4th?)
Jr. High: 60 pounds and holds 46 lanterns
Adult: 100 pounds and holds 46 lanterns, but with real candles
Children train to do this from the time they are 4-5 years of age. I obviously have never been trained and could barely balance the lanterns on my hand, let alone on my head or leg or shoulder or back or whatever.
We stopped at Senshu Park where once Kubota castle built in 1602 stood.
It was now a place of respite and children in caps designating their age or grade walked holding hands on the beautiful grounds.
Lunch was at a yaki niku (grill) restaurant called Sutamina Taro which is a successful chain in Japan. OK... I know, I know I shouldn't be eating so many desserts, but the all-you-can-eat ice cream and sherbet bar was just much too good to pass up.
The Akita Brewery was our next place of interest. It was certainly a lot of fun to taste all the different sakes. Mom would have loved this. We bought a bottle of amazake which is a non-alcoholic or low alcoholic drink made from fermented rice that we knew mom would love.
And yes, she was thrilled! We let her have the entire bottle which she happily enjoyed for several days.
The Namahage Museum in Oga was one of the most interesting places we've visited in Japan. One of our tour friends tried on the entire costume for us. If I were a kid, I'd be terrified.
Namahage (生剥) in traditional Japanese folklore is a demon like being, portrayed by men wearing hefty ogre masks and traditional straw capes (mino) during a New Year's ritual of the Oga Peninsula area of Akita Prefecture in northern Honshū, Japan.
The frightfully dressed men, armed with deba knives (albeit wooden fakes or made of papier-mâché) and toting a teoke (手桶, "hand pail" made of wood), march in pairs or threes going door-to-door making rounds of people's homes, admonishing children who may be guilty of laziness or bad behavior, yelling phrases like "Are there any crybabies around?" (泣く子はいねがぁ Nakuko wa inee gā?) or "Are naughty kids around?" (悪い子はいねえか Waruiko wa inee ka?) in the pronunciation and accent of the local dialect. --Wikipedia
The museum displayed various namahage costumes worn at New Years by the men who were chosen to wear them.
A video showed just how terrified children were to see them.
I can just imagine how much they repented their sins of the previous year.
Still... many of the tour members wondered if all this could cause nightmares or damage sensitive children.
We later saw a demonstration which rather reinforced our misgivings.
I asked mom about this and she said she was terrified as a child too. I wondered why she was terrified since she and her sisters have all told me what a super good, super obedient, super wonderful child she was.
The older fellow here was pretending to recount what the year was like.
The namahage is supposed to be noting the shortcomings of people in the village from this Book of Deeds.
We passed alongside the Sea of Japan on the way to our hotel.
We stopped at the Akita City Port Tower Selion where we could see the cruise ship Asuka 2 docked from the 100 meter (328.084 feet) observation deck.
Each tour member was then given 2500 yen (about $25) to buy our dinner. We went to a department store basement and bought a quick meal.
Since I've tried my best to be a good girl this year, I didn't dream of namahages that night.
Those lanterns are fascinating. I never heard of anything like that before. And those terrifying namahages! I would be very frightened even as an grownup, much less a child! :-)
ReplyDeleteGood for you trying out the lantern carrying. The festivals look to be amazing.
ReplyDeleteInteresting about no guidelines for the 2nd to 4th grades. Guess someone has to applaud. Maybe your Mom was so good because those namahages scared her into it. Would me.
ReplyDeleteYour explanation of Namahage made me chuckle. A few years ago, a nice Japanese (from Japan) family moved into the house next door with 2 young girls, ages 8 and 3. The 8 year old was their translator and very sweet. The 3 year old was a total terror and would scream at the top of her voice, constantly crying, nagging, and wailing. This went on for months, seemingly all day long and without interruption.
ReplyDeleteThen one day, the BIG Hawaiian neighbor across the street walked up to their front screen door and bellowed, "WHAT'S THE MATTER WITH YOU?" He went on to telling her that the whole neighborhood could hear her. He said if she starts screaming again, he would come back. He is a very imposing man, tall, heavy, with dark brown skin and long white hair pulled back in a ponytail. His voice was like a bullhorn and carried throughout the entire house, even into ours.
The little girl immediately stopped screaming and after he left, I could hear soft sobbings and her mother and grandmother chattering away in Japanese in shock.
For the first time in MONTHS, peace returned because from that momentous encounter, that little girl stopped screaming, period. I suppose the Hawaiian neighbor was her Namahage. Thank goodness!
OH MY GOSH! That is hilarious! How great to have peace and quiet in the neighborhood again. My mother insists that it's just the culture and she wasn't damaged by the tradition. She says she only experienced this when they lived in Yokohama. She doesn't know if they do this in Sendai. I could use a Namahage or two in our neighborhood when the teenagers throw a loud party in their garage until 1:30 in the morning. Arrrghhh!
DeleteToo funny. But HNL Aunty please send the Hawaiian man to yell at the neighbors above my son's apartment who run back and forth and apparently rearrange furniture and what sounds like dragging bodies across the floor until almost midnight? Thanks.
DeleteLots of culture and history in today's post.
ReplyDeleteCool lanterns
ReplyDeleteHow beautiful and fascinating Japan is! And how delicious the food looks. I will probably never get there now, but I do love reading your blog about these tours.
ReplyDeleteAnother wonderful day, glad you mom enjoyed her sake!
ReplyDeletesuch interesting traditions, sounds like the boogey man will get you-however you spell that..
ReplyDeleteInteresting how universal it seems to be to have traditions that scare children into behaving. Not sure it works, unless a BIG Hawaiian comes to your door.
ReplyDeleteWhat fun you had this day.
ReplyDeleteYou're so fun a writer!
ReplyDelete