Kyoto Calendar - Intro to the Seasons
Floating lanterns in Arashiyama during Obon Festival in August
Why are there so many parades, floats, geisha dances and temple light-ups in Kyoto? It seems Japanese people just love celebrations, commemorations and giving thanks year round. They like to stage something special to mark the change of seasons and the passing of every month. Their festivals are called matsuri, and these are held in temples, shrines and gardens to honor nature or tradition.
It is good to know what takes place, where and when for 2 reasons: First, many of the matsuris are spectacular events that are truly fun to witness or participate in; secondly even if you have other plans, it is useful to know whether streets will be blocked or restaurants closed at certain times. There is actually a 3rd reason, and it is that during matsuris, sakura or foliage seasons there are special foods not available at other times. One of them is the New Year o-sechi bento boxes. Once you’ve seen them, you’ll know that these are delicious works of art not to be missed!
O-sechi New Year fare in bento boxes.
We are going to walk you through the Kyoto calendar month by month, and zoom in on all the photo ops and yummy specialty foods that come with matsuris and other special events. But we are going to do this in our next 4 blogs, dividing the year into seasons and attuning ourselves to the rhythms of Kyoto.