Ft. Wendy's Creative Thinking
   Natsu Matsuri is a summer festival celebrated in Japan and of course, the Japanese in Singapore celebrate it too! JAS (The Japanese Association) held one in conjunction with Changi Japanese Primary School and they set up booths like they would in Japan. There are lots of food and game booths set up and the yukata booth was something I've really looked forward to. (Renting of yukata is something in my bucket list though as expected, it was really hard to walk in it.) The Bon Odori (second picture) was also another highlight of the festival where everyone would sing and dance around a stage. Though, it actually holds more meaning behind it. The Bon Odori is a dance that is performed during Obon (a time in which ancestors and their sacrifices are remembered and appreciated). Ours was done around a stage instead of a yagura, The dances consisted mainly of movement where everyone gathered around the stage with the dancers and followed them. At the end, we would have completed a slow, whole round around the stage from dancing (we did ours for 2 hours). We did the Tanko Bushi (coal mining song) dance, and the movements of the dance depicted that of coal miners like digging, cart pushing and lugging heavy stuff over the shoulders. It was overall a very enjoyable experience, having loved Japan's culture in the first place. The atmosphere was also something that I could have imagined to experience in Singapore, seeing lots of people in yutaka everywhere. I hope to go again next year! |