Hodari Matsuri (Fertility Festival)

There are times in Japan when you have to wonder why such occasions are in need of celebrations! This past weekend was a prime example of that phenomenon. In a nearby mountain town, the celebration of fertility captured people’s attention and especially foreigners. There was only one way to start this celebration off with a bang and that was to host a party for all these eager and curious foreigners. Kelly and Michelle live in this little snow covered town and were the host for this raging event! Organization, along with extreme planning, allowed us (I joined in on this event planning process of course!) to host a party consisting of 20+ ALTs.

4 Crazy Teams = Random Determination

Nagano and Niigata Girls We had people traveling from a variety of prefectures including Gunma, Nagano, Osaka (not sure the prefecture name) and from every direction in Niigata. With an apartment filled with enough food and drinks to celebrate with the entire town, we had a blast planning a group game that put a special spin on the party!

Having a Blast!

Team 2 Crazies! Thanks to Kelly, we had a mixture of great Asian cuisine consisting of Tochio’s famous aburage (fried tofu), gyoza, kimchi, onigiri (rice balls), sandwiches and Nagasaki’s special udon. It was certainly a feast and ended with my Mom’s great brownie recipe…thanks Mom, they were a hit! Of course, the night ended in the town karaoke booth where 20 foreigners sang their hearts out to outdated songs along with turning the floor space into our own dance club!

Back in Karaoke!

The next morning it was time for the Hodari Matsuri to kick off! After rounding up the large crew, we managed to direct the line of clown cars to the festival site. I forgot to mention the lovely blizzard that was starting as well. I was hoping spring had sprung that week but my thoughts came too soon when the snow was accumulating on the festival day. Nevertheless, town’s people were gathered around to see the treasured featured of the day….a giant wooden male genital! To correctly celebrate fertility only one thing is necessary and that is to praise and ride a penis. Yes, bizarre but a yearly event that brings all sorts to join in the celebration.

The Giant Wooden...What???

Megan and Scott at the Matsuri We arrived just when the gates were opening for the first viewing and praying of good fortune to the giant monster. After a few camera shots, throwing rice, doing the ritual claps, we all received a shot of sake to welcome the morning. It was then that the uncanny occurrence began….the penis rides began! First three Japanese women in beautiful kimonos climbed on top while about 30 men carried the giant wooden statue up and down the snow covered hill. 100% Japanese Culture The crowd cheered while we were laughing hysterically at this phenomenon that we were witnessing. Bizarre or not we were all ready to ride ourselves so we hopped on. I felt famous being bounced up and down while getting pictures taken from every direction. Only in Japan! Hold on Girls! We were all entertained either by riding, carrying or viewing this Japanese tradition but were ready to head to warmer and dryer land. Once again the Japanese culture pulls more surprises out of its sleeve and leaves us all loving our lives in Japan.