I love Culture Day because of the regional festivals and parades that take place in Japan.  For example The Hakone Daimyo Gyoretsu (箱根町大名行列), translated in English as the Feudal Lord’s Parade, is a well known parade that takes place in the town of Hakone (箱根) in the Kanagawa (神奈) prefecture.  The parade is a display of clothing from the Edo  Period (江戸時代) of Japan, and consists of many people dressed as samurais and princesses.  I like to think of it as a Japanese type of Halloween, without the goblins and ghosts.  The parade starts in the morning and lasts until the afternoon.  It consists of people numbering in the hundreds, with men who carry wooden palanquins.

Unlike the parades in the U.S., which are motor or electrically powered, the Hakone Daimyo Gyoretsu (箱根町大名行列) parade is carried out by sheer man power.  As a result, I often prefer to watch than to  participate directly in the parade!  After the parade is over, it’s not unusual to see people drinking and socializing at local shops and restaurants.  One of the funniest memories that I had was when a friend of mine drank too much and became convinced she had time warped into the past.  With all the Japanese samurais walking around, I guess I can’t really blame her for being confused!  Like the Hakone (箱根町) region, many other regions have their own unique way of celebrating Japanese culture and the arts.  I hope that you all get to visit a region and contrast the different ways each region celebrates its heritage! Until then, watch a Youtube clip of the parade below: