Gion Eve, III

After promising little J that we'd take the night off from the Gion festivities (and go to bed at a normal time for a little baby), I put him in the carrier and took him downtown anyway. I was glad I did, and I think he might have been, too. S teaches in Kobe Thursdays, so he was still commuting back to the Big K this evening, and we met up later.

When J and I got out of the Keihan station at Shijo, I thought it was thundering and instantly regretting my decision. Turns out we were hearing Taiko drumming from up the avenue. We enjoyed the big drums (J was mesmorized), and especially liked hearing a monk play shakuhachi (Japanese flute) accompanied by a giant drum. The flute and drum together sounded like a developing thunderstorm, and, in fact, it started to rain a little during the performance. Now that's Gion magic.

Further up the street, there were giant puppets (colorful horses) dancing, which J seemed to like. After a brief stop for matcha ice cream, we wandered around the Yasaka Shrine (Gion's main shrine, and the host of the festival), which featured a kabuki performance on its stage.

It's really something to wander Kyoto's streets during this festival. We're used to crowded sidewalks, but walking with thousands of people down the middle of Shijo avenue makes everything seem different and strange. You'll have to take my word for it--as is often the case when I go out alone carrying the baby, I downsized the backpack and didn't take the camera. I did get some photos and video on my cell phone, but I haven't figured out how to get those on the computer yet.

We'll definitely take the camera tomorrow--we're hoping to catch the Grand Parade and see the giant floats in action. We still can't believe we have an apartment just a few train stops away from the Gion Matsuri.