Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Left
Design Festa display
Right
A procession on New Year's Day
Festivals and Events
!
Design Festa
$
Kanda Matsuri
This biannual event, Asia's
largest art festival, features 7,000
Japanese as well as international
artists, musicians, and perform-
ers from every conceivable
genre. Drawing over 50,000
visitors, the Design Festa also
presents fashion shows,
cosplay
exhibitionists, and live bands.
The two-day extravaganza of
creativity is held at the Tokyo
Big Sight
(see p44)
.
d
May/Nov
@
Coming-of-Age Day
One of Tokyo's three major
festivals, the Kanda Matsuri is
held in odd-numbered years. It
features sake, music, and dance,
but the highlight is the more
decorous Heian-period costume
parade, a procession of floats,
and
mikoshi
(portable shrines).
d
Map F3 • Kanda Myojin Shrine,
Chiyoda-ku • 3254-0753 • Mid-May
%
New Year's Day
Millions of Japanese pay
homage to the New Year with
visits to Shinto shrines and
Buddhist temples throughout
Tokyo. The most popular venues
are the Meiji Shrine
(see pp24-5)
and Senso-ji Temple
(see pp10-
11 )
, where bells are rung to wel-
come in the New Year.
d
Jan 1-4
^
Sanja Festival
The age of consent in Japan
is 20, a milestone celebrated in
Tokyo by visits to major shrines.
The Meiji Shrine
(see pp24-5)
,
where an archery display is held
to mark the event, is one of the
most popular sites for adulthood
ceremonies.
d
Map B5 • 1-1 Yoyogi-
Kamizonocho, Shibuya-ku • 3379-5511
Tokyo's largest festival honors
the two brothers who found a
statue of Kannon, the Goddess of
Mercy, in their nets. The spirits
of the brothers and the
shrine's deities are
carried in portable
shrines through the
streets.
d
Map R1
• Senso-ji Temple, 2-3-1
Asakusa, Taito-ku • 3842-
0181 • 3rd weekend of May
#
Seven-Five-Three Festival
Children who have reached
the ages of three, five, and
seven, are dressed up in
pint-sized traditional
kimonos and taken
to shrines to pray
for their well-being
at this delightful
event. The num-
bers signify ages
once considered
milestones at a time
when child mortality
was high. The occa-
sion is also a great
photo opportunity.
d
Nov 15
&
Horseback
Archery
Yabusame
, or
horseback archery,
was integral to the
samurai arts of war.
Girls at Seven-Five-Three Festival
56
