This Month's Schedule

I was reading the latest edition of Japanzine, the English language national Japanese magazine. Here is a sampling of some festivals held in Japan in February. (I couldn't make this stuff up if I tried.....)

February 3, Yamaguchi Festival
Local businesses donate cow-related prizes made from gold, silver and copper. The top prize is a live bull that the winner has to look after until the autumn.

February 6, Saga Festival
A parade of hundreds of people in festival dress led by horses with colorful headgears and saddles. Horses and people alike dance the mambo while thousands of people look on.

February 10, Ishikawa Festival
Young men, half-naked, beat the ground and try to smash a 2-meter length stick of thick bamboo into pieces, then pull a giant straw snake out of a shrine and throw it into the river.

Seventh Day of Lunar New Year Festival
Major bean-throwing festival held at the head temple and men dressed as demons act crazily and prod people's backs with burnt-out torches.

February 5, Nara Festival
This is a celebration of fertility. After a rice-planting ceremony, a ritual dance simulates a couple having sexual intercourse.

February 3 Nagasaki, Kyushuu Festival
Hundreds of year-old babies compete every year: they sit opposite each other while a referee tries to surprise them into crying. The first baby to cry is the winner.

And to top it all off, there is a special section listing all of the "Naked Festivals" being held nationally this month. Here is a sample listing for one of the naked festivals (there are five listed): "The ages of 25 and 42 are considered unlucky ages for men and so at this festival, about 10,000 men of those ages take this opportunity to run around the town naked--and usually drunk-- jostling each other before diving into the sea. The night climaxes in a vigorous struggle to touch the 'god-man' (a wooden charm) tossed into the air by priests. Recently, men of other ages have been joining in the hope of making their wishes come true."

So when I come back, no one can ever argue with me that Japanese people aren't crazy. Because they are, a lot. Really, honestly, this is where I live.