Look what's Happening
in Tokyo
Issue: April 2005
Public Holidays in April
29th April is Midori no Hi otherwise known
as Greenery Day.
This was originally the late Showa Emperor's Birthday. After his
death it was renamed Greenery Day because the Emperor loved plants,
the environment and nature. It also starts off a collection of
4 days in a 7 day period known as Golden week. The word Golden
Week was first used by movie companies to get people to take advantage
of the "Golden Time" opportunity to go to the movies.
The term gradually began being used by other people to refer to
this string of holidays. The month of April also brings in a new
school year in Japan and every school celebrates the occasion
with special entrance ceremonies.
Easy Riders, Birthdays,
Cherry blossoms and Spring Festivals
31st Tokyo Motorcycle Show at the Tokyo
Big Sight. April 1st~April 3rd
Miss your motorcycle? The wide open road? Then escape for a few
hours to the Tokyo Motorcycle show. Tickets: Adults \1500 on the
day, or \1200 when bought in advance. Open from 10:00 - 18:00
(Building West 1 &2)
To get there: Take the Rinkai line to Kokusai-tenjijo Station
or the Yurikamome line to Kokusai-tenjijo Seimon Station.
Hana Matsuri (Birthday of Buddha) 8th April
Flower Festivals are held to celebrate Buddha's birthday. Flowers
are placed over the statue. A basin of water with a statue of
the baby Buddha is placed in the middle, and people who visit
the temples pour sweet tea (amacha, or hydrangea tea) on the head
of the statue. The sweet tea is made from dried and boiled hydrangea
leaves. A lot of temples will distribute it to festival visitors,
who take it home and drink it with their families. In the past,
people thought sweet tea had magical powers. People would write
a spell in ink made of amacha and hang it upside-down outisde
the gate in the belief that the spell would keep away snakes and
other unwanted animals and insects. Services are held at the following
temples; Senso-ji, Zojo-ji and Hommon-ji.
Haru no Taisai - Spring
Festival at Meiji-Jingu Shrine 29th April - 2nd to 3rd May
The annual Spring festival starts on 29th, with an Imperial Court
dance and music from 11:00. May 2nd Noh and Kyogen
(Japanese traditional masked dance-drama and traditional short
comedic drama May 3rd Satuma-biwa,Hogaku and Hobu(Japanese lute,dance
and music)
To get there: Take the Yamanote line to Harajuku station or Chiyoda
line to Meiji-jingu mae station and head for the Meiji Shrine.
Flowers in bloom this
month
Cherry Blossoms should be out at
the end of March and beginning of April. A Cherry Blossom guide
is available upon request.
Fuji Matsuri - Wisteria Festival
at Kameido Shrine is a must. The beautiful wisteria bloom at the
end of this month.
To get there: A 10-minute walk from Kameido Station or Kinshicho
Station on the JR Sobu Line.
What's going on elsewhere in Japan
Kamakura Festival 10th April ~17th April
This annual week long festival celebrates when Kamakura was the
place of government in Japan (1192-1333) Festive activities can
be observed all over the city during the week such as parades,
open-air tea ceremony. The highlights of the festival are the
Shizuka-no-mai dance on the first day and the Yabusame, an event
in which horse riders in samurai armor shoot targets with a bow
and arrow while on the move on the last day of the festival.
How to get there: Take the Yokosuka line to Kamakura station from
Shinagawa station
Further information is available by contacting
our Bureau Information Center: 0120-880-659 or hotline@space-d.co.jp
by Sarah Yamada
