In Tokyo, at the end of August, is an amazing festival call the Awaodori festival which takes place in Koenji. I’ve attend the event before and it never fails to amaze me. If you can tolerate the large crowds you will see thousands of dancers perform the Awa dance to lively music and parade through nine routes setup along the shopping promenades in Koenji. All the groups seem similar but if you watch enough you can see the various flavors and the personalities of each group. The more “professional†groups tend to stick very closely to the dance conventions while other groups just seem like they are there to have fun.
I got there early on the first night and decide to take some pictures inside the promenade instead of on the street. I lucked out because the second night it rained. Most spectators cheer on their favorite team and the event gets quite loud. Maybe it was due to all the alcohol everyone was drinking. What I find interesting about the festival is the costumes worn by ladies.  Women dress in special style kimono and wear a straw hat or “kasa†and dance on the tip of their toes wearing “getaâ€, while men dress in a happi coat and tabi. I can’t wait till next year.
