Matsuri

On the weekend, my town has its summer 'Matsuri', a three day long festival held in the local park. Naturally, I decide to go along, and am rewarded for my adventurousness - it is a travellers paradise, with Japanese culture leaping out at you at every turn. Kimono-clad women dance with paper fans and lanterns, men march through the streets with giant shrines on their backs and the beat of the giant Taiko drums fills the air. And that's just the parade; off to the side, there is a whole maze of street food offering everything from ridiculously cheap beer and syrup-covered ice to traditional Japanese food like Okonomiyaki (Japanese pancakes), Yakitori (Charcoal-grilled chicken skewers) and Takoyaki (Grilled octopus).

I spend a whole day here, soaking up the Japaneseness of it all. When the sun sets and darkness falls, and I am so full of food I can barely move, I head off to meet my host family at the park. There are thousands of people here already, organized into little groups sitting on tarps around food and drink. The Matsuri nights are a chance for old friends to exchange gossip, to reminisce about the last time they sat in this park together, and to exclaim how quickly the year goes. There are at least 10 people on our host families tarp, and a mountain of food in the centre, of which I cannot possibly eat a single mouthful of. Suddenly the lights are extinguished, and we are left in pitch darkness. Then...BOOM! The fireworks have begun! Even though we are a small town, the display is spectacular, and lasts an hour long. A very important part of Japanese culture, fireworks are one of the most symbolic summer activities, and as well as being a family event it is also considered one of the most romantic occasions of the year. Boyfriend and girlfriend couples dot the landscape everywhere you look, dressed in traditional summer kimonos and holding hands. The scene lit by the fireworks is one of tender togetherness. The young lovers stand and sigh; the families and old friends gossip and laugh; the whole neighbourhood sits together in the local park, enjoying the night together.