Ito Anjin Festival - Taiko
The Anjin Festival celebrates the launching of the first western-style Japanese ships in 1604. Anjin Miura (English name - William Adams) was an English navigation officer, who drifted ashore in Japan in 1600. He made great efforts to promote international trade, including building Japan's first western-style sailing ship on the orders of shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu. Anjin was known as the Blue-Eyed Samurai.
One of the festival events was the Taiko competition in Nagisa Park. Taiko is the Japanese drumming that has been part of the Japanese culture for centuries. Taiko drumming isn't for sissies. It's a very energetic, aerobic, work out. The event was scheduled to last three hours.
Just before 8:00 pm, phone alarms (earthquake warning) started going off. Two days before this event there was a 7.1 magnitude earthquake in southern Japan, within the Nankai Trough. This trough includes the area where I live. As a result, the Japanese government issued a mega-quake advisory, the day before the taiko event.
The earthquake warning that evening was for an earthquake in Kanagawa Prefecture, next to Shizuoka Prefecture. We didn't feel the earthquake at the event, but it spooked everyone and the taiko was canceled at that time, so we took the train home.
Life in Japan is never dull.
2 comments:
It was nice to see how the scenery changed with the daylight.
That alert must have been scary and I am glad everyone was safe. It is a bit irritating that the alerts interrupt events like this taiko performance, but it is better to be safe than sorry.
You are right, life in Japan is never dull!
That sounds like such a fun event, both to participate and to watch. Shame it had to be canceled early.
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