Bon Odori

This weekend begins the week during which most of Japan celebrates Obon - an annual Buddhist celebration of ancestors. It is believed that each year during Obon, the spirits of ancestors return to this world to visit their relatives. Traditionally, lanterns are hung on the fronts of houses to guide each family's ancestors home, bon odori (obon dances) are performed, graves are visited, and offered are made at temples. At the end of the Obon period, floating lanterns are put into rivers and lakes in order to help guide spirits back to their world. Customs followed during Obon very significantly from region to region as do the exact dates on which Obon is celebrated.

Because bon odori is such a significant part of the Obon celebration, smaller matsuri (Japanese festivals) are often held in the weeks leading up to Obon to provide instruction on the local dances. While we missed celebrating Obon in Sapporo, we were lucky to be there for a smaller matsuri including lessons on both national recognized as well as local Hokkaido bon odori. I've struggled to write about this experience because it was - at least for me, and I think for all of us - the most special, memorial experience we've had in Japan yet. The entire evening was magical - I can't think of another time when I've been part of such a huge crowd of people where everyone is so happy and in the moment and united. I don't know, like I said, there's really no way to do it justice. I guess the best way I can describe the infections mood of the evening is to say that even Jason danced!

A big part of these summer festivals is the donning of yukata - mostly by women and children, but also by some men. Yukata are summer kimonos - made of very lightweight, breathable fabric to make them more comfortable to wear during Japan's hot, humid summers. At this particular matsuri, every little girl there was wearing a yukata and I have no doubt that had Fiona not had one to wear, the evening wouldn't have been nearly as special for her. Luckily, some very generous and kind friends that we have made bought her one as a gift to take home from Japan. Several nights before the festival, Rie and her six-year-old son Kotaro stopped by with this for Fiona:

The afternoon of the festival, I did my best to put it on her properly and we made our way into town.

Fiona was so excited to be wearing this beautiful yukata!

The festival strarted with a parad of musicians playing traditional music:

Waiting for her buddy, Taere to show up:

So excited for the dancing to begin!

The festival started with lessons for the children to learn the traditional dances:

Anyone who knows Fiona knows she LOVES to dance. This was her dream come true!

At some point she decided that her bow was really inhibiting her dancing, so she pawned it off on Daddy:

Eventually I got pulled into the action as well - like I said earlier, it's such an intoxicating environment you can't help but want to join into the fun.

When the band took a break, Fiona came to us famished from the hours of dancing. What did she choose for dinner? Naan! I'd like to think this picture sums up the real citizen of the world we're trying to raise - just an American girl in her yukata eating some naan.

After refueling, she was right back to more dancing!

After more dancing, we were hungry again, so we finally had an excuse to try a popular Japanese dessert that has been on our list of things to eat - crepes filled with cream, chocolate, and banana (or any other combo you can imagine) and rolled into a cone shape:

It was after this snack that even Jason couldn't resist joining in the bon odori:

With the exception of a few short breaks for the band, the music and dancing was pretty much nonstop for four straight hours.

We're told this is a very typical scene for an Obon festival - a stage with one or more dancers around which the rest of the crowd dances - usually moving in a slow circle.

What an amazing night!

Despite all the fun, the night was a little sad too - we had to say goodbye to Taere and her family who have been really great friends this summer. Until next time Taere!

Random aside: These quilted flags and the quilted blanket covering all of the festival grounds had an interesting story that our friend Yu (Taere's mom) filled us in on.

Apparently, after the tsunami in 2011 that lead to the Fukushima nuclear disaster, local citizens began quilting miles and miles of some sort of ground covering to protect the soil beneath from radioactive materials (it wasn't clear to us if this was something quilted from a material that would actual protect the ground or if locals simply used extra cloth they had at home in a desperate - yet fruitless - attempt). Nonetheless, somehow the look of this quilting became trendy and is now used somewhat decoratively, as a popular means of adorning homes, parties, etc.