What made this autumn festival with fireworks and wish-laden lanterns one of the most Japanese events I’ve ever been to?
Is it that everyone waited with bouncy anticipation for the signal to be given…
then let them fly at the same time?
Was it the childrens’ wishes inscribed on each one as they rose to the heavens?
Or was it the fact that even after the fireworks started…
…none of the lanterns rose any higher than the strings tethered to the wrists of their owners would allow?
Yes, you guessed it. The thing that made this the most Japanese event ever is that hundreds of glowing lanterns rising gloriously to freedom in the night sky would also mean hundreds of burnt-out lanterns eventually drifting back to earth. And no amount of uplifting Insta-worthy delight is worth inconveniencing the citizens who would be plucking them from their gardens, trees and power lines the next morning.
But even though the reality was a bit of a bust, there were other things at this very, er, local neighborhood festival that made it well worth it. Like, among the cute Pikachu and Thomas the Tank Engine balloons for sale, there were also balloons shaped like giant stag beetles.
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Jonelle Patrick writes novels set in Japan, and blogs at Only In Japan and The Tokyo Guide I Wish I’d Had
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