March Matsuri

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Dai-hiwatari Festival, Mt. TakaoMore pictures here

Room with Hina festival dolls and entrance to the Tonomura Shigeru Literature Museum. 雛祭りの雛人形

Hina festival dolls. 雛祭りの雛人形

Procession maidens pose with wooden penises. Tagata Shrine Honen Festival

Hina festival dolls

Procession maidens pose with the giant penis. The giant phallus was then partially hidden by the portable shrine as it is today. But this made the phallus become larger to 2.5 meters, as if to compensate for this partial shielding.

2nd floor with Hina festival dolls

Gozensai ceremony before the start of the penis procession. Tagata Shrine Honen Matsuri

The torch is positioned at the corners. It is totally dark when the torches are lit.

Ueno Park at night

Konomiya Hadaka Festival, Inazawa, Aichi Pref.

Also see the video at YouTube. Honen-sai Festival, Tagata Shrine Honen Festival.

Hina dolls made of stone in Hanno, Saitama.

Closeup of hina doll made of stone.

Hina dolls and tapestry on the bottom in Hanno, Saitama Prefecture.

A bakery in Hanno, Saitama displayed hina dolls flanked with hanging decorations made of bread.

Closeup of hanging decorations made of bread. These were outside, and I guess there were enough people to keep the birds away.

Hina dolls inside Kinujin, Hanno, Saitama.

The festival site is a short walk from Takao-san-guchi Station. It's held in this large lot cordoned off by a sacred rope. This festival is held as a prayer for traffic safety, household safety, and personal safety. It is held by the Yakuoin Yukiji Te

Dai-hiwatari Festival, Mt. Takao, Tokyo

Hiwatari fire-crossing festival, Mt. Takao, Tokyo

Before and after walking over the fire, they stick their feet into a pile of salt.

This is what it looked like by the time we got there. Hardly any fire. It was somewhat wet, and it did not feel hot or warm at all. Pretty disappointing...This is what it looked like by the time we got there. Hardly any fire. It was somewhat wet, and it did not feel hot or warm at all. Pretty disappointing...

End of the walk. Again we dip our feet in salt. We all ended up with muddy feet. There was no place to wash our feet either. Bringing wet tissues is highly recommended if you plan to walk on the fire.

Konosu Hina Matsuri Doll Festival

Konosu Bikkuri Hina Matsuri doll festival in Konosu, Saitama.

Special edition Japanese Hina dolls (not for sale) depicting Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and US Ambassador Caroline Kennedy to symbolize friendly US-Japan relations.

US Ambassador Caroline Kennedy Hina doll

US Ambassador Caroline Kennedy Hina doll. Pretty good likeness.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe Hina doll

Another special pair of dolls were of figure skaters Yuzuru Hanyu and Mao Asada who were to appear in the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.

Asada Mao hina doll in Kyugetsu, Asakusabashi, Tokyo

Kyugetsu has a very large selection hina dolls for Girl's Day. The store is busy with rich parents or grandparents out to buy hina dolls for their little daughter or granddaughter.

Honmachi float leaving Himure Hachimangu Shrine. Sagicho Festival, Omi-Hachiman, Shiga. 本町のだし

The kids then run around the fire while chanting "Masse-masse!"

At this stage, the fire is quite hot. Sagicho Matsuri, Omi-Hachiman

Flat barge with the three mikoshi cruising on the Sumida River. It has been 54 years since the last time this boat procession was held in 1958.

To mark the 700th anniversary of Asakusa Sanja Matsuri Festival in 2012, a boat procession was held on Sumida River on March 18, 2012.

The last time they did this was in 1958. The original Sanja Matsuri was actually a boat procession on Sumida River held in March 1312 (Kamakura Period).