I had to leave Japan at the end of my 1 year Working Holiday Visa, which made me sad… Anyway, I mostly posted pictures of buildings or landscapes until now, so for my last post about my stay in Japan, here are a few pictures of the people of Tokyo.
Sanja Matsuri is a festival held in Asakusa every year in May. It celebrates the three people involved in the creation of Senso-ji and later enshrined as Shinto kami in Asakusa Shrine, next to the temple. It is one of the biggest festivals in Tokyo, with about 100 mikoshi (portable shrines) paraded around the neighbourhood.
The Kanamara Matsuri (かなまら祭り, “Festival of the Steel Phallus”), aka the Penis Festival, is a shinto festival celebrating fertility, long marriages and healthy births. It is held each spring at the Kanayama Shrine (金山神社) in Kawasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture, just south of Tokyo. The penis, as the central theme of the event, is reflected in illustrations, candy, carved vegetables, decorations, and a mikoshi parade.
The 85th Comiket (short for “Comic Market”) is currently being held in Tokyo, until tomorrow December 31st. Like the summer Comiket that I attended in August, it takes place at Tokyo Big Sight, on the island of Ariake. There are 3 parts to the Comiket: The main event is the Doujinshi fair (which I didn’t visit this time, since it seems to mostly consist of rows after rows of stands selling amateur homo-erotic manga) but there are also mutiple areas for cosplay, as well as a hall for professional companies to sell their products. The weather was great and the venue was really crowded.
This festival begins as the trees in the Ginkgo Avenue inside Meiji Jingu Gaien turn yellow. There are also stalls selling specialty products from different regions of Japan, while the local mascots also make the occasional appearance. The event will last until December 9th.