Funadomari Festival!

Wrote this one in Japan and didn't manage to post it! Here it is!

The town of Funadomari had a city festival a few days back.  The elementary and middle school children of the town carried around two small portable shrines and then stoped and did some fun dances at a couple of key spots. The town is very small so this didn't take very long.  The end of the "parade" was at the sports centre and featured a yakisoba stall, a shaved ice stall, takoyaki, and yakitori.  I had the takoyaki (octopus balls) and some Blue Hawaii Shaved ice (blue slushy).  Both were good.

Getting ready to start

All dressed up in front of the shrine

The smaller shrine

Bigger kids = bigger shrine

Getting started

Waiting

They are singing enthusiastically

less enthusiastic with a heavier shrine

Dance break!

Pretty flexible

Second group has a more complicated dance

And a snazzy ending

This girl was particularly good

Kind of boring I guess

Cute little shrine!

All the dancers

yakatori

yakisoba

Goldfish!

 The entire festival was very fun.  Lots of cute kids, who seemed very pleased to see a bunch of foreigners show up to see them. In fact, we went to a second festival in Hamanaka and some of the kids from the first festival came up to tell us that we had seen them dance earlier that day.  They also showed up their frog.  Kids are kids.

This one was inside!

Another cute shrine

Win fun prizes!

Overall, it was a really great day.  I would recommend it!

Vanished: Japan Part 1

I didn't really vanish.  I'm in Japan!  Yay!  Doing an excavation from the Jomon period on Rebun Island! Yay! Just got internet - despite being told there would be internet . . . boo! It also took use 4 days to get here due  to canceled flights.  All is well now. 

I'm still very very busy. But I thought I'd go for some fun pictures in clusters.  This first group is called - Rebun Island!

Baggage claim Wakkanai Airport - Seal-Nessy!

Real tiny seals.

Ferry to Rebun Island

Our futon beds! More comfy then they look.  The pillows are filled with small beads though.

Breakfast . . .

Yummy breakfast squid!  The seaweed has a sweet sauce!

Start of the site

Slow down for kids!

Really!

We totally mean it!

Campsite across from the hotel.

Lake something . . .

Lake

Beautiful path

More lake

GIANT PLANTS!

Hotel is over there

Walking!

Look English!

We call these kinds of stairs the stair of death!  Stairs of death!

Mount Rishi.

the ocean!

Found a kitten!

Walk to work

right by the ocean

Though some industrial stuff

with lots of small shacks

but its a nice road

For luck!

So, far Japan is great.  Even the rural bit is pretty interesting.  Nice hikes, good food, and nice people.  Most people here aren't used to foreigners so it is quite interesting.  I'm learning many words though I can't spell any of them!  No thanks had to be learned quickly or I would have exploded with food by now.  I'll post more on food later.  And on hikes.  And on the excavation!  I love my job.  Archaeology is very very fun.  Time to stop hogging the internet!