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Monday, June 11, 2012

Hotaru Matsuri

On June 9th, we headed to the hotaru matsuri, or firefly festival. On the way there we stopped to see a waterfall, called hudou no taki.








We then went to the firefly festival. At first arrival it seemed more like a summer festival. The children were playing in the stream and catching fish with handheld nets, as passersby viewed from the bridges.








We arrived early so that we could find a place to park, but that meant that we had 4 hours to go before it started to get dark, and the fireflies come out. So, we walked around and found a hiking trail up a nearby mountain.








This one had 88 markers along the path up one side of the mountain and down the other. Each marker represented a different temple on Shikoku. So, we assumed that they were meant to represent the 88 temple pilgrimage that many make around the island, called Shikoku Junrei


The path was often steep

 This was the view from near the top. You can see the town we walked from at the base of the opposing mountain.





We returned on time for the taiko, drum, performance. The precision of their timing always amazes me. This is as much of a visual performance as is is a sound performance.


Their local English teacher even joined.






Once that was done, it was time to enjoy the local cuisine at the many stands set up during the festival.








I mean, who doesn't enjoy the sweet taste of squid on a stick?


Needless to say, that isn't what I ate... Then it was getting dark, and the fireflies were coming out. When we left, we were glad we had come so early to get a spot. The parking lots were pretty full when we arrived 4 hours early. When we left, there was a line of cars for miles down the road as the people arriving later tried to find parking.


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