Sakura Season

Cherry Blossom (sakura) season is back in Tokyo, the most anticipated and brief season on the year has finally come to town.

Large parks are the most popular places to enjoy the cherry trees, but there is always an area not far from work or home with of a large number of cherry trees, making it easy to go out and enjoy the season.

As it is usual every year, large number of people goes out to enjoy the the sakuras, sitting under the trees, on the open tables set by the restaurants or just walking around the blooming trees, giving the city a great ambiance.

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One Love Jamaica Festival

As it is now traditional, every May the “One Love Jamaica Festival” is held at the Yoyogi park. Aiming to promote cultural exchanges between Jamaica and Japan, it is one of the most look forward free events in Tokyo.


The main event is the music concert, dominated mostly by Bob Marley’s music.


Another of the attractions is the food, with several stands offering authentic Jamaican food.


As every year, the event was very busy on the first day with a larger number of visitors expected on Sunday.


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Happy Children’s day

Today we celebrate the children’s day in Japan, originally boy’s day only, now by government decree a national holiday to celebrate all children.


As this is part of a long holidays (also known as ‘Golden Week’), parks, and recreation centers, are full of families celebrating this holiday.


Parks, public transportations, and houses are decorated with the traditional “Koi nobori” or carp flags to mark this celebration.

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Portable shrine Omikoshi

Mikoshi (also know as omikoshi when the honorific “o” is added) or Portable shrines are used on shrine’s festivals to take the god of the local shrine around the neighborhood. The size varies from the small ones, about 50kg, carried by the childrens on the early days of the festivals, to the very large ones, of over one ton, used by the very old shrines.



The shrine festival and the omikoshi parade are one of the most looked forward festivals on neighborhoods. Everybody dress up on “happy coats” decorated with the neighbordhood emblem, organizers are happy to lend them if you register in advance to carry the mikoshi.


The Omikoshi is paraded around the neighborhood, bouncing it in coordination to the music and participants cheers, a different cheer is used in each area of japan. I personally prefer to join the smaller shrines festivals where you can actually participate as oppose to the most famous and bigger shrines where is difficult to join the action.


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Children’s day in Japan

Japan celebrated the children’s day last May 5th. This day is to celebrate only the boys as girls are celebrated on doll’s day.



Similar to doll’s day, families with boys decorate the house with a Japanese warrior helmet, and lately with the full Japanese warrior armor. Additionally Koi nobori flags are raised on that week, symbols of a strong and healthy boys. The three Koi (carp) represent the Father, the mother and the boy.

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Doll’s festival hinamatsuri

Japan celebrated the “Hinamaturi” Doll’s day or girl’s day on March 3rd. Most of the Japanese houses with girls, display the dolls to pray for the girls happiness.


Dolls representing the emperor and empress, and court ladies musicians, ministers, ad servants are displayed on several layers covered with a red carpet.


The girls families purchase the doll when the girls are very young and display them every year until the girls get married and take them with them.



As families are living in smaller houses now, only the top layer with the Emperor and the empress are becoming more popular.

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Tanabata Japanese star festival

Tanabata is the stat festival that is celebrated on the seventh day of the seventh lunar moon.


The celebration is based on the legend of the stars Hikoboshi (Alter) and Orihime (Vega). Princess Orihime wove clothes for her father the King Tentei with great dedication, The King arranged the wedding of his daughter to cow herder Hikoboshi, who lived at the other side of the milky way (amanogawa lit. heaven’s river), they where so happy and in love that after marriage they neglected weaving and cow herding work, King tentei was so Angry by this that he separate the lovers on opposite sides of the milky way, and allowed them to meet only once a year on July 7th, when magpies flock to make a bridge so Orihime can cross and meet Hikobishi. It is also said when it rains the magpies cannot come and the lover have to wait another year to meet.



During the festival people write wishes on pieces of paper and hang them from sprigs of bamboo.

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