The Strangest Day Ever

It started off stranger than strange. I'm not sure if it got stranger per se, but by the end, nothing would've surprised me.


On the first Sunday in April is a special festival in Kawasaki Daishi Temple; about 30 mins from my house. It was one of those events that would've been ruined if it had rained, but luckily this was pretty much the only hot day of the cherry blossom season. And I mean, H-O-T. Everyone got a bit burnt.

A group of us arrived mid-morning to be greeted by swarms of people. Maybe 10,000 in a small area; no bigger than maybe a football pitch. A quick scout around resulted in me realising that at least half were foreign, and that this was the most I'd ever seen in one go.

This was all due to the Kawasaki Penis Festival; endearingly coined "Dick-Fest". The ceremony, although only of recent years being a festival, has a long history concerning fertility and prevention of disease. Prostitutes in the Edo period would come here and rub phallic objects to hinder any problems that might, ahem, come their way.


However, this was largely ignored and the festival instead treated as a big joke. Statues were hugged, penises ridden by everyone - young and old, a vegetable carving competition was in full swing, and lollies were enthusiastically sucked. Everyone was happy and friendly, with one stall giving passers-by free alcholol to celebrate the occasion.





I'm not sure whether the number of young children present was such a good idea, but for being a reserved culture, they have very few quarms about the topic of nakedness and sex - evidently, it's not an issue which comes with any shame or guilt.

I bought plenty of souvenirs and smirked at the number of bare buttocks on display.

Then, it was time for the parade. This was crazy, and there was definite crushing whilst people were trying to get the perfect photograph. This poor bus was full of elderly people; a less-than-usual reason for a delay, don't you think?

We had a bit more of a look round, and I bought a slightly impractical dice as well as being given a choc-a-block calendar, before deciding to partake in hanami (drinking under the cherry blossom) somewhere.

Everyone had different destinations in mind and as haphazard plans go, we all split up. I stuck with some people from work, and stayed close to Shibuya as others who were working wanted to meet up with us later.

We ended up in a cemetery! It sounded just as strange to me too, but actually Aoyama cemetery (next to the baseball stadium) is a famous spot for cherry blossom. Although there were plenty of other groups doing the same, it did feel slightly wrong to be - literally - drinking on people's graves. Dr Ueno, the owner of the famous dog Hachiko, is buried there. It was rather charming, although when night fell, it became a bit creepy walking around, trying to find people. When our work friends couldn't find us, someone suggested splitting up to cover more ground. Have they never seen a horror movie? Idiot.

I met up with Keiko later after she finished work and gave her some presents.

We went to have a look at some cherry blossom lit up* and then for some food. On the way back to her house, which is by the river, we saw the road blocked off, filled with ambulances and fire engines. A crowd had gathered. Peering over the side, we saw a man down on the river.

I have no idea how he got down there, and whether it was planned or accidental, but he seemed a little scared. A boat came, scuba-divers with all their gear were running around, but eventually the firemen used a ladder to bring him back to street-level. All that effort for one man.

What can I say, except it was a strange old day?!

*yes, I know I mention it a lot but it seems to be the case that for the week it's on display, you go crazy until you've had your fill for a year. Tradition, and all that.