The Hanagasa Junko (花笠行列) or Hanagasa Parade is, after the main Yamaboko Float Parade held on July 17th, the second largest public event of the Kyoto Gion Matsuri. It took place on the morning of July 24th, in parallel to the second and smaller Yamaboko parade.
This Hanagasa parade is a great opportunity to see Maikos, the geisha apprentices, taking part of the parade grouped together in carts pulled by young men.
The Maikos came from two separate hanamachi (geisha districts), Gion Kobu and Miyagawa Cho. The first ones were wearing beautiful red and white kimono and a straw hat, while the later ones had a more simple elegant white kimono with no hat.
In addition, there were various other groups of people, musicians, children, old ladies, young ladies, costumed kids on horses, samurai warriors, beautiful little girls, etc. , all in kimono or historical costumes with colorful accessories and make-up. A real treat to the eyes!
A Shinto ceremony to pray for health
This evening ritual took place on August 6th. We arrived a bit early as the ceremony was supposed to start at 6:30. Well, this enabled us to get a good spot to wait and be ready to see the ceremony, the action, and take pictures. Some 50 arrow-like talismans were placed in the Mitarashi pond. It was daylight and we waited. People started to arrive and the place soon became packed. Not much happened for about one hour, then the shrine priests arrived, lighted wood fires around the place, and fixed one of the arrow.
A few more priests arrived and started the ceremony, moving around, purifying offerings in front of an altar, and reciting what I think was sacred text.
The participants, about 60 men (young and not so young) arrived, took position on both sides of the pond and waited for the priests to take care of the ritual, the benedictions and prayers. It was now night and the only light was from the fires around.
At 7:20, four priests took position at the four corners of the pond, and the signal was given. The men jumped into the water to retrieve the talismans that would ensure longevity for themselves while the priests threw hundreds of hito-gatta (paper shapes of human figures) around, into the water for them. Everything went very fast and it was over in a minute. This marked the end of Shimogamo’s summer celebrations.
A “chinowa”, also called suganuki, a large ring made of cogon grass erected on the pathway leading to the entrance of Shrines, (usually in the Torii Gate) had been placed in Shimogamo’s Romon Gate. By passing through the ring, participants’ sins are washed away. We were told to pass twice into the ring, while drawing an 8. After passing through the circle, people usually break off a piece of the grass ring to take back to their homes. Chinowa rings are common to most shrines for the mid-year purification rites.
About the Shrine
The Kamo Shrines (Kamigamo and Shimogamo) are among the most important in Kyoto. Shimogamo was founded by the Kamo clan (possibly of immigrant origin) and is ranked as one of the oldest Shrines in Kyoto. It is dedicated to two deities. Kamotaketsunumi-no-Mikoto is the tutelary deity of the Kamo clan. He is often represented by a 3 legged crow that allegedly guided the mythological Emperor Jimmu in his move from the west to the Yamato area.
The word Yamaboko refers to the two types of floats used in the procession: the 23 yama and 10 hoko. One of the main reasons the Gion Matsuri is so impressive is the enormity of the hoko, which are up to 25 meters tall, weigh up to 12 tons, and are pulled on wheels as big as people. Both yama and hoko are elaborately decorated and represent unique themes.
The procession on July 17 featured 23 yama and hoko, including most of the particularly impressive hoko, while the procession on July 24 featured the remaining ten yama and hoko.
Another reason for the festival’s impressiveness is its long and almost uninterrupted history. It dates back to 869 as a religious ceremony to appease the gods during the outbreak of an epidemic. Even today, the festival continues the practice of selecting a local boy to be a divine messenger. The child cannot set foot on the ground from the 13th until after he has been paraded through town on the 17th. In 869 Kyoto was struck by a massive epidemic. In order to end the plague and appease the gods, Emperor Seiwa requested the head priest of the Yasaka Shrine to hold a procession to remove the evil spirits from the city. Every year since, on July 17th, the procession is held. At least 32 floats, or pikes, many of them hundreds of years old and all constructed without iron or nails, are drawn through Kyoto’s streets by teams of men in one of Japan’s biggest festivals.
The floats are decorated with carvings, statues and precious Gobelin tapestries, and depict scenes from the Buddhist or Shinto religions, Japanese and Chinese history and literature or Noh plays. The largest floats, pulled by teams of up to 100 men in period costumes, weigh more than ten tons. Steering is done by blocking the front wheels with wooden wedges while chanting men pull on stout ropes to maneuver around corners. The procession or Yamaboko Junko is the festival’s peak on the 17th.
We arrived early to find a good spot along the way or the procession. We posted ourselves on Shijo street, and after the passage of a first series of floats, we moved around to a few other spots, We got to see a lot of these floats, and mainly the way they were turned around the corners. We also enjoyed the view of all these participants, dressed in historical costumes. It was a very enjoyable festival, despite the heat and the humidity.
Gion Matsuri is simply the largest festival in Japan. And this was the first time I had a chance to attend it. Yes, I’ve lived for over 25 years in Japan, but I was in Tokyo and during all this period, I have spent very little time in Kyoto. Now that I’m back in Japan and have settled in Kyoto, things are going to be different.
I didn’t really know what the festival was actually about, I mean how to approach it to best enjoy it and see it. Gion Matsuri goes on for the whole month of July and there are events left and right in the city, in various locations, various temples. Many of these are small local matters and except for the main events, it is quite difficult to find proper and useful information. But the procession of floats (Yamaboko Junko) on July 17 is the main event and is particularly spectacular.
The atmosphere in the city changes as the date of the procession approaches. And the three evenings preceding the procession (Yoiyoiyoiyama, Yoiyoiyama and Yoiyama) are festive and enjoyable. After being put together these huge floats are displayed around the center of the city, illuminated in the evening by numerous lanterns (representing ship’s sails). The people, many of them wearing colorful summer yukata, move around to see these. The streets are closed to traffic and the area is full of food stands, drink vendors, and all kind of other little shops. And people eat and drink everywhere, and take pictures.
And then on July 17th, the processions of floats (Yamaboko Junko) starts at 9:00. We arrived a bit earlier to be sure to find a good spot, but actually, the procession route is quite long and last for a few hours, so it is not that difficult to get a good look at it. The procession starts at the crossing of the Shijo and the Karasuma streets and goes along Shijo, Kawaramachi and Oike streets. This year, after 48 years, a second smaller procession took place on July 24.
Here are a few pictures taken the three days preceding the actual procession day.
During the cherry blossom season, the Hirano Shrine, with its numerous cherry trees, is definitely one of my favorite spot in Kyoto. This is the place where I discovered the existence of green cherry flowers! Yes, this shrine is special. It is not a mere Jinja, but it is a “Jingu”, title of high class Shrine of Japan designated by the Emperor. And it was an Emperor (Emperor Kazan in 985 A.D.) who gave the order to plant this garden with a lot of cherry trees.
Today, there are about 400 cherry trees with some 50 different varieties of cherry. And every year, from March till the end of April, each visit is different because each cherry variety blooms at a different time.
This shrine has been the site of a cherry blossom festival (Ôka Matsuri) annually since 985. The long history of festivals at the Shrine began during the reign of Emperor Kazan, and it has become the oldest regularly held festival in Kyoto. Each year, the festival begins in the morning with a ceremony at the mausoleum of former Emperor Kazan. In the afternoon, a procession travels from the shrine into the neighboring area and back.
To get to the Hirano Jinja by bus from Kyoto Station, take the #205 or #50 to Kinugasa Komae.
From Sanjo Keihan station, take the #15 and get off at the same stop.
From Shijo Omiya (Hankyu Railways), take the #55 to the same stop.
Address: Hirano Miyamoto-cho 1, Kita-ku, Kyoto 603-8322
The Hirano Shrine is within easy walking distance to Kitano Tenmangu Shrine, Waratenjin and Kinkakuji Temple.
Ouka Matsuri (fête des cerisiers) au temple Hirano, Kyoto, Japon, Avril 2014
Our hotel is located right in the harbor of Svolvaer. We wake up early to avoid wasting the little time we have of day light. The day promises to be again beautiful. From our bedroom, we enjoy a new type of sun rise, as there is already light around, when the sun comes up, but the light is what you usually see in the evening, at the so-called Blue Hour, between the sun set and darkness. The tones here are not the usual warm ones in the morning.
Driving around the Lofoten Islands, around Svolvaer, on snow and ice, was challenging at first, but the rented car was adequately fit and equipped and we had no problems. Still, we systematically added 30-50 percent to the time between places.
In the evening, we drive to a beach by the northern coast of the island, a place where there is nothing between us and the sky. We are, of course, looking for the Northern Light.
The night is falling and it is not yet really dark when Akiko takes a picture, look at it and officially declares the presence of activity up there in the sky. We stop the car, get the tripod out and in position, place the camera, set it up as necessary, and point it to the sky. The first shots are nothing to be excited about. But as the level of environment light goes slowly down, the activity level in the sky increases significantly and soon become both more active and more visible.
The spectacle continues for quite a while, slowing down at time to quickly restart with more intensity.
After a while, we decide to return to the hotel in the city, a 45 minute drive. This vision was the purpose of the trip to Norway and we were both happy to have receive such a gift from mother Nature.
The next day we drive again around, going through smaller roads to reach small fishing villages. Again, with a very intense light under a perfect weather, the scenery is magnificent.
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| Cod drying outside as it has been done for hundreds of years. | Fishing village by the water. |
In the evening, before returning to the boat, we enjoy a very long sunset with intense pastels colors. While the sun sets early, the light stays around for quite a while and offers beautiful tones.
We board the Lofoten, the older and smaller ship of the Hurtigruten fleet for the second part of the trip. Soon after our departure, an announcement signals aureal activity in the sky. The spectacle starts again.
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| The North Cap. While the temperature was not very low, the strong wind made it difficult to move around. | The small monument at the North Cap. |
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| The Nobel Peace Center | The City Hall |
November 2013. We’ve been discussing this for a while, but here we finally are — we’ll be cruising the North of Norway for the “Hunt of the Northern Light”. Our trip started in Bergen, where we joined the largest and newest Hurtigruten ship, the Trollfjord.
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Bryggen (the Wharf in Norwegian) is a series of Hanseatic commercial buildings lining the eastern side of the fjord coming into Bergen. Bryggen has been on the UNESCO list for World Cultural Heritage sites. Bergen was founded in the 11th century and the area of the present Bryggen constitutes the oldest part of the city. |
The weather was gorgeous and we had plenty of time to walk around, and even take the Fløibanen Funicular to ride up to the top of the Fløyen mountain (320 meters above sea level) where we had a spectacular view of the whole city of Bergen.
In late afternoon, we boarded the huge Trollfjord, our ship for the first part of our cruise toward the north of the country.
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| The ship navigates between the numerous islands. | And we can see people just about everywhere. |
Alesund was our next stop, and we had the chance to walk up the 418 steps under a perfectly blue sky to reach the Fjellstua restaurant located on top of Aksla, the hill that overlooks the town. The view was well worth the effort to walk up. Back in the city, we enjoyed the unique concentration of Art Nouveau architecture of the city.
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| Next came Trondheim, the third most populous municipality in Norway, with a population of almost 180,000. The city was the capital of Norway during the Viking Age. The must see place is the Nidaros cathedral, built from 1070 on. It is the most important Gothic monument in Norway and was Northern Europe’s most important Christian pilgrimage site during the Middle Ages. Again, the weather was beautiful. |  |
The cruise continues slowly, beautifully, with a perfect weather. On the Saturday, we crossed the Arctic Circle and attended the ceremony by King Neptune. We briefly stopped in Bodo on the way, and arrived as planned in Svolvaer, the capital city of the Lofoten islands. This is where we stopped for a couple of days.
The view from the ship is usually quiet and beautiful. We’re very lucky to have such a nice weather.
King Neptune came over for the celebration of the Arctic Circle passage. Cold water and ice in the neck for all!
The blue sky reflects itself in the blue ocean. Quiet and peaceful.
Bodo is the last stop before we leave the large and modern 9 stories Trollfjord. We will continue our cruise with the Lofoten, an older and smaller ship from Hurtigruten.
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