Fuurin and Toro Nagashi

This is mostly a photo post, I just want to share these few pictures about these small omatsuris, Japanese traditional celebrations, that I recently visited. The first one is Fuurin, in the other words, wind chime matsuri, that was held in Nishiarai Daishi temple (Buddhist). The last of the festival is actually almost three weeks, but we picted luckily a day when the yungster around the area were performing Taiko drumming while I shopped the wind chime I liked best.

The other matsuri was part of the Ueno parks summer matsuri (natsu matsuri), the evening when traditionally some paper lanterns were lit up in the pond in the park (toro nagashi). The luck was on side 50-50, becouse we didn't haven typhoon even it was promised by forecast, but in the other hand we had so strong wind, that most of the paper lanterns sunk before all them were fully lit. It was still pretty event. Now I look forward for Sumida rivers same kind of paper lantern matsuri in the end of August.

Fuurin Matsuri

Nishiarai Daishi Temple

Ueno Natsu Matsuri
Paper lanterns

(Toro Nagashi)

Sakura post

So becouse this is Japan and becouse this country goes crazy over sakura, meaning the cherry blossoms, I have to post about it too. And when I say crazy I really mean everything is about sakura. All the adverstisement goes sakura, Starbucks and all other cafés too have sakura coffees, sakura cakes.... And then there is sakura cookies, sakura candy, sakura ice cream, sakura everything! All the parks are full of people, under every single cherry tree there is someone holding a picnic or taking photos.

This year they said that sakura was 3 days early. It was more hot than normal and then came strong wind. So the sakura this year was over just in a week, when it usually lasts from two to three weeks. For me it was first time seeing sakura in Japan. In Finland we have a sakura park, but they are smaller trees than in here (I guess it is becouse of the climate) and of course they bloom in May, way later than sakura blooms here. It was super beutiful, but I can't say there was some spell cast over me like it seems to be for Japanese people. It was pretty, magical, but for Japanese it is the mark that summer is comming, winter is over. Maybe it is because of that, that I don't have such a feeling becouse this was the first time, that I didn't feel that way. This is already summer for me. ^^ Without anymore words, here are the pictures!

Ueno

Takadanobaba

Asakusa

Toshimaen