Fuji Festival

There's nothing quite like a Japanese summer festival - girls draped in yukatas, delicious food and fantastic fireworks. Almost every town has its own festival and Fuji City is no exception. Fuji Festival is on the fourth Saturday in July every year. It takes place in Fujikawa, with panoramic views of the Fujikawa bridge and the Minami Alps. Against this backdrop, and with the shinkansen racing by from time to time, the fireworks were really something to behold.

Take the train to JR Fujikawa Station and follow the mob of people. It's about a ten minute walk to the festival site. The most comfortable place to view the fireworks is from a picnic spot but you have to buy a ticket that costs around 5000 yen (you can maybe fit up to ten people in each spot). This year, the fireworks started at 7:30 pm but come early to enjoy the festival mood.

Yoshiwara Gion Festival

This festival is held on the second Saturday and Sunday in June every year and apparently has been taking place for the past 250 years. It's a pretty big event for Fuji City. The main street in Yoshiwara (Yoshiwarahoncho) is completely transformed as floats and mobile shrines are pulled by colorfully dressed Fuji City denizens and the sound of drums and flutes takes over. It's fantastic to see your solemn neighbors letting loose and drinking beer in the streets. And of course, the usual matsuri fare of fried foods on sticks is available for purchase.






Here's a short video of the fun. Seriously, this is the liveliest I've ever seen the locals of this city.

Bishamonten Daruma Festival

This Sunday, February 21, 2010 was the annual Bishamonten Daruma Festival in the Yoshiwara neighborhood of Fuji City. I'm not sure if it's held on this day every year. Possibly it's always on the third Sunday in February.

Just take the JR train to Yoshiwara Station and, after you get off, follow the masses of people. You can eat any manner of food on sticks including choco-bananas and candied grapes. There are also yummy grilled festival favorites like okonomiyake, yakitori and yakisoba.

First, make your way to the shrine, where you can throw a coin into the offering box and say a prayer.

Or, you can rub the statue of the Buddha for good luck, get your fortune, or bathe in smoke from the sacred fire.

Some people even bring their pets to be blessed.

But you've come here for Daruma dolls and there are plenty of those. They come in various colors that signify different things. Red is the color of the traditional Daruma, but I'm told that pink, for example, is for luck in love.
As you can see, the eyes are blank. You have to fill them in yourself with a black felt tip pen or whatever - the first when you make a wish, the second when the wish comes true.

I think the beauty of the Daruma may be about focus and goal setting rather than believing that actual power lies in the doll. But I don't know enough about it. I've read that it's tradition to take the dolls back to the temple where you got them at the end of the year to be burned.

Local residents work at the festival

A Japanese family takes a picture in front of the shrine