The festival season is definitively over but this year’s was a good one. One of my favorite festivals from last season was the Kitazawahachimangu Matsuri (北澤八幡宮祭り) in Tokyo’s Setagaya Ward. I followed one of the omikoshi belonging to the Yonchome neighborhood just to the south of the shrine. Not all of Yonchome are actually within the parish of this shrine but for this festival I think all of the neighborhood is invited, parishioners or not. They were the last team to brave the stairs and carry the more than a 1000kg heavy omikoshi up towards the shrine. There are actually two large stairs leading up to the shrine but the last one is just too steep so the omikoshi stay on the second stage. That stair is steep enough though and tourists and festival goers scattered over the rails to get out of the way as the omikoshi charged up. Other less adventurous (and probably smarter) photographers stood out of the way well in advance. Myself I made a less glamour but very nimble exit over the railings. More photos to come!
