Hamamatsu Matsuri

May 2, 3, and 4 are Japan's "Golden Week" holidays. Adding in the weekend and an additional holiday, it makes a great traveling opportunity. May 2nd-4th are also Hamamatsu City's yearly kite festival. Because many of the festivities occur directly outside of my apartment building for 72 hours straight (and the entire city's 800,000 people join) it made sense to escape for a bit (hence the trip to Hong Kong -- see below). However, we returned to Japan late on the 3rd thus allowing us to enjoy the final day of the matsuri.

Here Sarah and I are standing in front of some paper kites wearing traditional festival hoppi coats (provided by the volunteer photographer!)

Trying our hand at flying a kite!

Do you see the tiny speck? It's the kite!

The Hamamatsu kite!

Some lively buglers and drummers! Every township has their own set and they marched and played in front of my window from dawn until dusk!

Enjoying festival food -- here a chocolate covered banana (with strawberry koala cookies). Other yummies included, roasted corn on the cob, buttered potatoes, grilled kabobs, teriyaki chicken wings.... Why are these delicacies served only once a year?!?!

So tradition is that every town has their own kites written with the names of all the babies born in the previous year. For three days the kites battle in the skies...(I never did figure out why!)

Some of the kites coming in for the evening. We got there late so didn't get to witness any of the battles!

At dusk, all the towns pull their carved wooden floats through the streets while revelers play bugles, drums, dance and sing!