A three day festival called Bon Odori marks the beginning of summer. A special dance is performed every night for three nights on a temporary podium. The dance is done to honour the souls dead who have died in the past year. A podium was erected in Inokashira Park. It has two levels above the ground. A circular dance floor and a central higher platform where a large taiko drum is situated. The decoration for a Bon Odori podium consists of with red and white lanterns. There are four lines of lanterns which radiate from the top of the podium into the surrounding trees.
When I first saw this structure complete with dancers in yukata (traditional summer garb) I realised that this is the dance that Speilberg wrote into Karate Kid 2. The dancing looks great and the festive atmosphere, with the the lighting from the lamps is very cosy but the best feeling was that of making a connection between my experience of Japanese culture in Australia through Karate Kid 2 and the genuine article here in Japan.
Street Vending in Shinjuku – I am interested in selling my wallet and coin purse somewhere in Tokyo. I see a lot of people who have just set up their stuff on the street and I was thinking that this might suit me. I’ve been concerned about the legality of this activity though. Another hint came from some signs I read which said that street vendors are not allowed. To my mind this meant that normally it is OK. Recently I spoke to a Russian street vendor in Shinjuku about the legality of having a table set up in Shinjuku selling stuff. He said that it was illegal but because he is married to a japanese woman the police don’t bother him. As for me and my working holiday visa, I might get deported. So I guess street vending is out of the question after all.