Ichinomiya Tanabata Festival

The Ichinomiya Tanabata Festival is one of the three largest and most famous Tanabata festivals in all of Japan. Held in Ichinomiya City in Aichi Prefecture from the last Thursday to Sunday of July, which is July 24 to 27 in 2014 this is one must see festival in the Chubu area of Japan.

Tanabata (七夕) also known as the “Star Festival” is a Japanese festival with its origins in ancient Chinese legend. The festival celebrates the meeting of two stars (lovers) who are only allowed to meet one night of the year, which is Tanabata. It is one of the most romantic nights of the year in Japan.

More about Tanabata 

The festival centers on the 500 meter long Honmachi Shotengai Shopping Arcade near Owari-Ichinomiya Station. The climax of the festival is along the approach to Masumida Shrine.

We arrived late afternoon to Owari-Ichinomiya Station and the festival was already in full swing with the station decorated in beautiful Tanabata streamers called fukinagashi, and crowds of people many in yukata (summer kimono) heading to the festival.

Fukinagashi (Tanabata Streamers) outside of Owari Ichinomiya Station

 Stepping out of the station you’ll notice that the station itself is also decorated with colourful Tanabata streamers, and there are many fukinagashi around the station. The approach to the Honmachi Shopping Arcade is lined with food stalls (yatai) on both sides of the road selling all kinds of delicious Japanese street food. The atmosphere is electric and has a carnival vibe to it with many stalls offering the chance to play a game or two to win a prize.

Street stalls with food and games

The Honmachi Shopping Arcade is decorated in colourful Tanabata streamers on both sides. Some of the decorations contain coloured paper (tanzaku) which are small pieces of paper with wishes on them. These are made by local Elementary School children and stuck on the decoration in hope that the wish will come true.

Colourful Tanabata Streamers at the Honmachi Shopping Arcade

Other decorations feature famous or popular anime (animation) characters in Japan. We saw many different characters ranging from Doraemon to Anpanman.

Shimajiro character Tanabata decoration

The main action is centered at Masumida Shrine which the Honmachi Shopping Arcade leads to from the station. Masumida Shrine was the most important and principal shrine of Owari Province, which is now modern day Aichi Prefecture. The shrine grounds are also decorated in colourful Tanabata streamers with even more food stalls and entertainment. There is a stage set up were you can watch some traditional Japanese dance performances.

Masumida Shrine

When the sun goes down and the evening approaches you can see a parade down the Honmachi Arcade to Masumida Shrine. The parade is conducted to dedicate local products to the shrine for good luck.

Parade on Honmachi Street near Masumida Shrine

Ichinomiya Tanabata Festival

Tanabata Streamers at the Honmachi Shopping Arcade

The approach to Masumida Shrine

The crowds at Masumida Shrine

Beautiful Yukata at Masumida Shrine

More Yukata at Masumida Shrine

Yukata and Japanese Lanterns at Masumida Shrine

Food stalls at Masumida Shrine

Japanese Festival at Masumida Shrine

INFORMATION: 

WHAT: Ichinomiya Tanabata Festival
WHEN: July 24 to 27 2014
TIME: Most of the action happens from 6:30 pm to 9:00 pm
WHERE: Honmachi Arcade near Owari Ichinomiya Station
ACCESS: From Nagoya take either a JR or Meitetsu train to Ichinomiya

Ichinomiya Tanabata Festival 

Tanabata Star Festival 2014

Tanabata (七夕), also known as the “Star Festival” takes place every year on the 7th day of the 7th month here in Japan. In Japanese, Tanabata (七夕) means evening of the seventh; (七) = seventh and (夕) = evening. The Japanese festival originates from Chinese legend, and celebrates the meeting of the two stars, Altair and Vega. According to the legend, the Milky Way, a river of stars that crosses the sky, separates these lovers, and they are allowed to meet only one night a year on the seventh day of the seventh month of the lunisolar calendar. It is a fabulous story that was popularized in Japan over 1,300 years ago!



The date of Tanabata varies depending on the region of Japan and is usually held at either July 7th or August 7th. The celebration is held at night and colourful Tanabata Festivals are held across Japan. One of the biggest and most famous is the Tanabata Festivals of Hiratsuka near Tokyo in July and Sendai in August.

A popular Tanabata custom in Japan is to write wishes on small pieces of coloured paper tanzaku and hang them on a specially decorated bamboo trees or branches (wish trees) in hope that the wish will come true. The bamboo trees or branches are usually placed in the backyard or entrances of houses and are set afloat on a river or burned after the festival, around midnight or on the next day.

Tanabata Decorations in Hida Takayama

Japanese snack companies also like to join in on the festivities with several of them releasing Tanabata themed snacks. One of our favourites is the Tanabata themed Koala no March (コアラのマーチ), which is a limited edition version only available around this time of the year.

Koala no March Tanabata Version

There are numerous Tanabata Festivals around Japan during summer organised by local merchants. They are usually held at major shopping streets or districts which are decorated with colourful streamers and decorations.

Some of the most famous Tanabata Festivals are:

Hiratsuka Tanabata Festival (Kanagawa Prefecture) July 4-6 

The Hiratsuka Tanabata Festival held in the Kanto region of Japan is one of the largest in Japan. It features several blocks of streets decorated in gorgeous Tanabata decorations as well as street performers. The action starts just outside of JR Hiratsuka Station.

Hiratsuka Tanabata Festival 

Ichinomiya Tanabata Festival (Aichi Prefecture) July 24-27 

The Ichinomiya Tanabata Festival held in Ichinomiya City, Aichi Prefecture is the largest in the Chubu region of Japan. It centers on the 500 meter long Honmachi Shotengai shopping arcade approach to Masumida Shrine. It features a parade through the shotengai, stalls and colourful streamers and decorations.

Ichinomiya Tanabata Festival

Sendai Tanabata Festival (Miyagi Prefecture) August 6-8 

The Sendai Tanabata Festival is the most famous and largest Tanabata festival in all of Japan. Held in Sendai City in Miyagi Prefecture, it features the famous kusudama ball of paper flowers made from Japanese paper (washi) as well as many other decorations.

Sendai Tanabata Festival 

Hida Takayama Tanabata Festival (Gifu Prefecture) August 6-7 

The Hida Takayama Tanabata Festival in the picturesque Hida Takayama sees the famous old streets of Sanmachi lined with Edo Period houses decorated with Tanabata streamers and wish trees.

How are you planning to celebrate Tanabata this year?

Sanja Matsuri in Asakusa Tokyo

Asakusa is probably the most popular place in Tokyo for foreign and Japanese tourists alike. Located between the other tourist hotspots of Akihabara and Tokyo Skytree, Asakusa is a great place to visit for its temples, shrines and traditional shopping streets.

Every year in late May the Sanja Matsuri (Three Shrine Festival) is held, and is regarded as one of the top 3 Shinto festivals in Japan. The festival celebrates the 3 founders of Senso-ji , the well-known temple in Asakusa. Participants carry mikoshi (little portable shrines) around Asakusa, while they chant, sing and play instruments.

It’s a really exciting festival and because there are so many mikoshi everywhere, you are guaranteed to see some authentic Japanese celebrations. Hang around and eventually one of the music performance trucks will come around, playing all sorts of old-style Japanese festival and folk music.

The mikoshi make their way around town, eventually passing down Nakamise-dori, the touristy shopping street that runs down from Senso-ji. It gets super crowded here, but the atmosphere is great, with everyone dancing, drinking and chanting. Almost 2 million visitors come to see the festival every year.

There are countless mikoshi teams who come to Asakusa every year to show off their teams power. The entire neighbourhood seems to have joined in as well, with kids playing musical instruments and grammas pushing the performance carts. The Sanja Matsuri is highly recommended for anyone who wants to see a real, fun Japanese festival.

This guest post is from Matthew, a blogger and writer living in Tokyo, Japan. He has lived cheaply in Japan for over 5 years and writes for Cheapo Japan, a travel guide dedicated to budget travel in Japan. You can read more of his work at www.cheapojapan.com

Hina Matsuri Japanese Doll’s Festival

March 3rd in Japan is a special day called Hina Matsuri (雛祭), a traditional Japanese festival also commonly known as Doll’s Festival or Girl’s Day. On this day, families with girls will display ornamental dolls in the hope of bringing their daughters a successful and happy life.

Platforms covered with a red carpet called hina-dan (雛壇) are used to display the set of ornamental dolls called hina-ningyō (雛人形). The dolls represent the Emperor, Empress and other court attendants in traditional court dress of the Heian period (794-1185) in Japan. The dolls are usually displayed on a five or seven tired stand with the Emperor and Empress at the top. The next step contains three court ladies (sannin-kanjo), followed by five musicians (gonin-bayashi), two ministers (udaijin and sadaijin), and three servants ending the bottom row in a five-tiered display.

Hina-dan with Hina-ningyo

The customs of Hina Matsuri is believed to have started early in the Edo Period (1603-1867). Over the years the hina-ningyo sets have become more elaborate and grand.

A custom of Hina Matsuri is to eat diamond shaped rice cakes called hishi-mochi. They are often displayed as an offering to help ensure the healthy growth and happy future of daughters. Hishi-mochi is pink, white and green. Pink represents the spring season and is for keeping evil spirits away, White represents snow and is for purity, and Green represents nature and is for good health and longevity.

Families will generally start to display the dolls in February, usually in their living rooms and take them down immediately after the festival on March 3rd. There is a superstition that if you leave the dolls out past March 3rd, it will bring bad luck and delay the girl’s marriage. A tradition on the day of Hina Matsuri is to drink sweet white sake called shirozake , and eat chirashi zushi (sushi rice topped with raw fish and other ingredients), hina-arare (colorful rice-crackers).

There are many different hina-ningyō sets here in Japan and they are usually quite expensive. Traditionally grandparents buy a set for a girl for her first Hina Matsuri (hatsu-zekku).

The picture below is of our hina-ningyō at the family home in Gifu. As you can imagine, it takes quite a lot of time to set-up.

Hina Matsuri display at the family home in Japan

I also found this cute hina-ningyō set at Gifu Castle in Gifu City.

Hina Dolls at Gifu Castle

You can also buy these cute Koala no March (コアラのマーチ) limited edition Hina Matsuri snacks that come with their own cute cut-out hina-ningyō set.

Koala no March limited edition Hina Matsuri Snacks

Cut out and make your own Hina Ningyo set

Hina Matsuri is a fun traditional festival here in Japan and is one that the whole family can enjoy. What will you be doing this Hina Matsuri?

Shichi-Go-San 2013

Shichi-Go-San (Seven-Five-Three) is a Japanese festival in honour of girls aged three and seven, and boys aged five. The actual date of Shichi-Go-San is November 15th, but it is not a national holiday in Japan and is usually celebrated on the nearest weekend to the actual date.

Children dress in their finest clothes, typically a Japanese kimono and visit a shrine with their parents. It is a day to pray for the good fortune and healthy growth of children and hope for a successful future.

Why the ages Seven-Five-Three? 

These ages are odd numbers and are considered lucky in East Asian numerology. This year you can expect a lot of young children dressed in kimono at shrines on the weekend of November 16-17. I recommend a visit to a shrine if you want to see this event and it is also a good opportunity for all those photographers out there to capture a wonderful photo.

Traditional Clothing

It is tradition on Shichi-Go-San for children to dress up in traditional Japanese clothing such as a kimino and hakama and visit a shrine to celebrate and be blessed. It is usually the first time for many to wear such traditional clothing and is a popular time for formal pictures to be taken at a professional photo studio. In more recent times, many children are increasingly wearing Western style clothing such as dresses and suits. 

Origins of Shichi-Go-San

The celebration is said to have started during the Heian period (794-1185) when nobles celebrated the growth of their children. Over time, this tradition passed to the samurai class who added a number of their own rituals. Children who up until the age of three were required by Japanese custom to have shaved heads were allowed to grow their hair. Boys of age five could wear a hakama (袴) for the first time, while girls of age seven could tie their kimono with the traditional obi instead of simple cords. The practice became popular among commoners during the Edo period (1603-1868) with families visiting shrines to offer their prayers, and evolved to what it is today during the Meiji era (1868-1912).

Chitose-ame

After the visit to the shrine, parents usually buy special candy for the children called chitose-ame (longevity candy). Chitose-ame is long, thin, red and white candy. The character for chitose-ame is 千歳飴 and it literally means thousand year candy. Not that it is a thousand years old, but it symbolizes healthy growth and longevity. The candy is shaped like a stick and comes in a bag decorated with cranes and turtles, which both symbolize long life.

Chitose-ame from Gifu Gokoku Shrine

Milky Chitose-ame

Gifu Nobunaga Festival

The Gifu Nobunaga Festival is held on the first Saturday and Sunday of October. The festival honours the memory and feats of Oda Nobunaga, a samurai warlord who used Gifu City as a base on his mission to unify Japan during the warring states period (Sengoku Period). It is a celebration of his contribution towards the development of Gifu as a city and the legacy that he has left behind. The must see events are the memorial ceremony at Sofuku-ji Temple (Nobunaga’s family temple) and the samurai warrior parade down the main street.

Kogane Park Flea Market and Street Vendors 

There is also a large flea market as well as various street vendors selling all kinds of festival food and snacks.

Street Vendors

Samurai Warrior Parade 

The samurai warrior parade starts with a marching band followed by ceremonial matchlock rifle firing and then various groups and historical figures including warriors, ladies and generals and even Lord Nobunaga on horseback himself. The parade starts at 12:30 pm from Gifu Station and ends at around 14:20 pm when the last group reaches Gifu City Hall.

Gifu Nobunaga Festival Mascot ~ Oda Nobunyaga

Marching Band

Samurai Warriors

Some of the cast of heroes and historical figures include:

Oda Nobunaga was a major daimyo during the Sengoku period and was the initiator of the unification of Japan in the late 16th century.

Lord Oda Nobunaga

Luis Frois, was a Portuguese missionary who befriended Nobunaga in 1569 and wrote about the history of Japan on his travels.

Luis Frois

Lady No or Nohime was the wife of Oda Nobunaga, and was renowned for her beauty and cleverness.

Lady No (Nohime) 

Saito Dosan was a Japanese samurai who became the father-in-law of Oda Nobunaga.

Saito Dosan

Shibata Katsuie was a Japanese military commander who served Oda Nobunaga.

Shibata Katsuie

Oichi was the younger sister of Oda Nobunaga, and was equally renowned for her beauty and resolve as Nohime.

Oichi

Lady Go was Oda Nobunaga’s niece. 

Lady Go

Yamauchi Kazutoyo served as a general under Oda Nobunaga.

Yamauchi Kazutoyo

Kinoshita Tokichiro was also a general who served under Oda Nobunaga. He later became Toyotomi Hideyoshi when he succeeded his former master.

Kinoshita Tokichiro also known as Toyotomi Hideyoshi

Takenaka Hanbei, also known as Takenaka Shigeharu was a Japanese samurai, who is remembered as being a clever strategist.

Takenaka Hanbei also known as Takenaka Shigeharu

The Schedule of Events 

Saturday 
• Memorial Ceremony at Sofuku-ji Temple
• Musical Band Parade
• Kogane Park Flea Market

Sunday 
• Samurai Warrior Parade
• Musical Band Parade
• Citizen’s Carnival
• Kogane Park Flea Market

The samurai warrior parade is held along Nagarabashi Dori from Gifu Station to Gifu City Hall. One of the best places to view it from is the intersection at Wakamiya-cho.


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