Introduction
Natsumatsuri is a general term for festivals held in summer in Japan. It is a general term for summer festivals in Japan, especially those held from early July to late August. On the other hand, festivals held in September or later are often treated as summer festivals when they are held in July of the lunar calendar.
Story
Hey, look at that! Iroha!
There are people dressed somewhat differently.
What's going on today?
Oh, that's a yukata.
As I recall, there is a summer festival near here today.
summer festival?
Yes.
I wonder if Tina has seen a Japanese summer festival yet?
Yeah! I've never seen that before!
But what exactly do Japanese summer festivals do?
Well...
It's just a bunch of people getting together and dancing.
There are a lot of stalls and fireworks at the summer festival, so it's a lot of fun!
That sounds like fun! I wanna go!
Okay! Then let's go play together!
Wow! That's a lot of stalls!
Hey, I was just looking at the store and I got hungry.
Yes, let's get something to eat first!
If you ask me what we eat at a Japanese summer festival, I'd say Yakisoba and Takoyaki!
It is delicious! I love them both!
Hey, next time I want something sweet!
Well, how about Kakigori?
Kakigori is Japanese snow ice.
Kakigori? I've never had it.
I want to try it!
Look at this!
Kakigori is snow ice with syrup on it.
Wow! It's cold! But it's sweet and delicious!
Perfect for a hot summer day.
And I got the Ringoame(candy apples)!
Oh, my God! It's an apple-shaped candy!
I didn't know there were so many different kinds of food on sale at a Japanese summer festival.
These stores are not just about the food.
Now that we're full, let's play!
That's good idea!
Show me what's in there!
How about we start with a game of scooping yo-yo?
Oh! There's a lot of water balloons floating around!
How does this work?
You see the rubber bands on the balloons?
That's where you hook and hoist it up.
Yes! I got one!
Congratulations!
Let's go that way next time!
Okay!
This is a shooting gallery!
If you can shoot the goods with this gun and take them down, you get them!
Cool! I've got the shooter!
I'm good at shooting!!
Oh, I missed…
Don’t worry about it lol.
Let's go see what else is in store!
Oh! There's so many fish!
You can do goldfish scooping here!
You have to use that scoop net to catch them. They're made of paper, so don't tear it up!
I'll try!
Yeah!
Oh, it's ripped…
Hahaha!
You need to be nicer to it.
But I know it's hard to do the first time.
Yeah, but it was fun!
Next time I will get it right!
Oh, look! It's a Mikoshi!
What is it? Wow! That's a lot of power!
All the men are carrying something up.
That's called a Mikoshi, which is usually stored in a shrine, and during a festival, they take the gods out on it.
Right. That's why it's so lavishly decorated.
What's the word on their call sheet, by the way?
They're all saying, "Wasshoi!" at the same time.
It makes me feel really excited and festive!
Tina! How was your day?
I'm tired of walking and wandering around in the crowd.
But we got to see a lot of stuff and play a lot of fun!
I want to come back!
Right! Then I'm glad!
I'll come back with you!
Yes!!
Summary
Natsumatsuri
Natsumatsuri is a general term for festivals held in summer in Japan. It is a general term for summer festivals in Japan
Yukata
Kimono for Japanese summer festivals. The Yukata has become one of the most fashionable items to wear during the summer season, and women's Yukata, especially those with gorgeous patterns and colors, are often seen.
Yakisoba
Yakisoba is a type of noodle dish. It is made by frying steamed (or boiled) Chinese noodles with meat such as pork and other ingredients such as cabbage, carrots, onions, onions, bean sprouts and other vegetables. In Japan, Worcestershire sauce yakisoba has become popular. Recently, salted yakisoba is also becoming more and more popular.
Takoyaki
Takoyaki is a local dish in which octopus and condiments are added to flour dough and baked into a spherical shape with a diameter of 3 to 5 cm.
Kakigori
Shaved or crushed ice with syrup and other ingredients. It can also be served with red bean paste or condensed milk.
Ringoame(candy apple)
Ringoame is a fruit candy with a stick attached to a fresh apple fruit coated with syrup or candy and held in the hand.
Yo-Yo
In Japan, there are two types of yo-yo. The first is a yo-yo that appears at summer festivals and the like, and is made by filling a rubber balloon with water. The other is made of wood and string and is used as a sport.
Mikoshi
It was an ancient vehicle used to carry noble people and was generally carried by more than one person. The vehicles were used to temporarily pick up the gods at the shrine and take them outside in order for the gods to hear their wishes.
That's it for this lesson. In this lesson, I introduced Japanese summer festivals. If you want to know more about Japanese culture, please check out the other articles!
