Photo by Damien McMahon (Flickr: damien_m_in_japan)

Summer in Japan is a time for spectacular fireworks displays! Below we listed some of Japan’s biggest fireworks events – called hanabi (花火) — which take place in July and August. The events are listed from north to south. The dates and times are current. However, if you plan on attending any of these events, please refer to the official web sites for any changes and updated information.

Akita
August 28 at 6:50 PM – Official web site
This event, started in 1910, is considered one of the largest and most prestigious in the country. Location is along the Omonogawa river in Omagari district in Daisen, Akita Prefecture.

Miyagi
August 5 from 7:30 PM – 9:00 PM – Official web site
About 16,000 fireworks will be set off near Sendai Nishi Park in the city of Sendai, close to Hirose-dori subway station. The location can also be reached by bus from Sendai Station.

Tokyo – Sumidagawa Hanabi
July 31 from 7:05 PM – 8:30 PM – Official web site
This is Tokyo’s largest fireworks display along the Sumida river. About 20,000 fireworks will be set off between Sakurabashi and Kototoibashi bridges and between Komogatabashi and Umayabashi bridges. Both locations are close to Asakusa Station.

Tokyo – Ichikawa Hanabi
August 7 from 7:15 PM – 8:30 PM – Official web site
The event takes place along the Edogawa river. About 1,000 fireworks will explode in the first 10 seconds. Altogether the sky will be lit up by 14,000 fireworks near the Shinozaki Park (Shinozaki Station). The fireworks can also be seen from across the river in Ichikawa, Chiba Prefecture.

Tokyo – Tokyo Bay
August 14 from 7:00 PM – 8:20 PM – Official web site
The event will about 12,000 fireworks will take place in Harumi Futo which can be reached from Kachidoki, Tsukishima and Toyosu. Free admission tickets for the main venue will be available by lottery. In the event of bad weather the fireworks will be canceled.

Yamanashi
July 3 from 8:00 PM – 8:30 PM – Official web site
About 2,000 fireworks over the lake Kawaguchiko will mark the beginning of the Mt. Fuji climbing season. The area also offers great view of Japan’s trademark mountain. Additional 10,000 fireworks will be set off on August 4 (8:00 PM – 8:30 PM) and August 5 (7:30 PM – 9:00 PM). The location can be reached from Kawaguchiko Station on the Fuji Kyuko Line.

Kanagawa – Yokohama
Augusut 1 from 7:15 PM – 8:30 PM – Official web site
About 8,000 fireworks will explode in the Minato Mirai district in Yokohama. The event can be seen from Rinko Park, Red Brick Park, Yamashita Park and elsewhere. Closest stations are Minato Mirai, Sakuragicho and Yokohama.

Kanagawa – Yokosuka
August 7 from 7:30 – 8:10 PM – Official web site
This event with 10,000 fireworks, which is part of the Yokosuka Kaikoku festival in the Yokosuka New Port, can be seen from Umikaze Park, Mikasa Park and elsewhere. Closest station is Yokosuka-Chuo on the Keikyu Line.

Shizuoka
July 25, 30 and August 5, 11, 19, 22, 29 from 8:20 PM – 8:50 PM – Official web site
The fireworks will be set off over Atami Bay in Atami and will be best seen from Atami Sun Beach, Shinsui Park and elsewhere along the city’s coast. Closest station is Atami. In the event of typhoon, the fireworks will be canceled.

Osaka
August 7 from 7:50 PM – 8:40 PM – Official web site
Fireworks will illuminate over the Yodogawa river in Osaka. Closest stations are Tsukamoto and Umeda. In the event of bad weather, the fireworks will be postponed to next day, August 8.

Hyogo
August 7 from 7:30 PM – 8:20 PM – Official web site
About 10,000 fireworks will be set off over Kobe Port in Kobe. The event will be best seen from Meriken Park, Nakatottei and elsewhere. Closest station is Motomachi.

Fukuoka
August 5 from 7:40 – 9:10 PM – Official web site
About 18,000 fireworks display will light up the sky over Chikugogawa river in the city of Kurume. Fireworks will be set off from two locations near the shrines Suitengu and Sasayamajinja. Closest station is Kurume.

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Source: http://www.asahi.com/english/TKY201006240400.html

Nail painting is a true form of art in Japan! The originality of Japanese nail art (ネイルアート), which is completely different from other styles, has made this fashion item highly popular elsewhere in the world as well.

There exists a number of professional nail designers who are true specialists in nail art, frequently taking part in domestic and international competitions. The Japan Nailist Association is a Japanese association of professional nail stylists. In Japan, you can find numerous nail art salons, especially around Tokyo and other big cities.

As is common in Japanese fashion, nailists often get their ideas from traditional Japanese paintings. Their creations, which sometimes include even real feathers and jewels, express rich imagination and artistic skill. Artificial nails are made using special tools and coated with acrylic or gel. Hardened nails have a very realistic appearance.

Besides making nails look pretty, Japanese nail artists place great importance on nail care and health. There is a special type of manicure — Japanese manicure — which is used by many nail salons in the country. The hands are put in the bath with mineral substances, cuticles are softened with special vegetable oils and the nails are covered by a coating made of bamboo, minerals or pearls to make the nails look shiny. The relaxing massage also includes aromatic additives such as jasmin or other flowers.

Let’s check out some of these creations! If you think your aunt’s bloody red nine inch nails are a bit extreme, see what Japanese come up with:

Wide selection of nail art. Just a few among thousands.

Hello, Kitty.

The photos are from the annual Tokyo Nail Expo 2009.

Need more nails? Browse through this catalog of one of Japanese online nail art stores.

If you are visiting Tokyo around this time and are looking for a good place to see cherry blossoms, you should head over to Ueno Park where the blossoms are in full bloom this week. Hanami, as the Japanese call it, is a spring festival for viewing of cherry blossoms and parties under the sakura (cherry) trees.

Typically during the hanami, people go to the park in early morning hours to find and secure the best place for a picnic and then wait for others to join, whether it’s family members, friends or coworkers. These parties can go on until late evening.

Hanami is so popular in Japan that tourist agencies offer travels around the country just for the purpose of viewing cherry blossoms and meteorologists every year try to predict very specifically where and when the sakura will start blooming. There are even special web sites like this one for the purpose of following the blooming and forecasts.

Besides many other parks in Tokyo, Ueno Park is one of top favorite places for viewing. It might be interesting to know how many people gathered here during this time. Maybe 1000, 10,000, 50,000? Not even close! According to TV reports, in one single day (Saturday, April 3rd) there were about 1 million people visiting Ueno Park despite the gloomy weather during the evening when it started raining. Of course that’s not an obstacle, so the next day, on Sunday, again about the same amount of people visited the park.

Digital fortune teller booth.

It’s well taken care of for the starved crowd; people can get various kinds of Japanese style fast food, meaning mysterious dishes like okonomiyaki, oden, takoyaki and more international ones like baked corn, french fries, Turkish kebab and similar snacks. It’s interesting that despite this massive gathering there was no music to be heard anywhere. A bit of a different type of party than usually in the West.

While strolling around the food stands, we came across a fortune teller who usually aren’t that interesting for an average Japanese. And I don’t mean your typical gypsy fortune teller with a crystal ball — this one was giving predictions right out of the computer (see photo on the left). The guy had a scanner on the counter where you place your hand and then wait a bit until the computer gives a proper analysis of your future. How much can you believe this system? According to the sign on the booth, these digital predictions are 90% reliable. Fair enough!

As is common during the hanami, the cherry trees were decorated with long rows of bright red lanterns which turn on in the evening. The signs written on them usually mean names of companies and shops that sponsor the festival.

You’re welcome to take a look at the rest of the photos in our gallery, taken on April 3rd at Ueno Park:

Gallery: Hanami – Cherry blossom viewing at Ueno Park 2010
View all photos »

New Year celebrations are over and we can move on! How did it turn out here in Japan? Like every year, most people wait for midnight usually in temples, some stay home and some celebrate somewhere outdoors. We decided to go to Nishiarai Daishi temple which is one of the three main Daishi temples in Tokyo area.

What does it look like when you visit a big Japanese temple on New Year Eve? Crowd, crowd, crowd! People are packed like sardines in a can, yet still somehow they make sure they don’t walk you over. You just might think you found yourself in the middle of some peaceful mass protest. Around the temple grounds you can find booths with all kinds of traditional New Year food. Here and there you might come across a Turk selling kebab and slicing the meat with a respectably sized knife while yelling out irasshaimase, irasshaimase (“welcome”) in perfectly sounding Japanese. You might even see a fortune teller waiting for customers inside a tent. Most everyone seems to ignore them, though.

Crowded grounds at Nishiarai Daishi temple.

Most people visit a temple with intent to pray for their wishes. Their prayer is not meant for some specific god or deity but it depends on each person and you can wish for anything you want. Outside the temple you’ll see a long line of people waiting to make their first wishes in the new year as they pass the time chatting and typing on cell phones. Because there are too many of them, teams of security guards let them enter the temple in large groups, one at a time. We waited there for about 30 minutes.

Hordes of people on the stairs to the temple, some rolling upstairs, some downstairs.

A maze of booths.

Darumas for sale! Daruma is a traditional Japanese New Year symbol. They come in various sizes, anywhere from 1 cm to 1 meter and maybe even more.

A nearby street that leads to the temple had shops and restaurants open all night.

Earlier we checked out the glitzy chandelier in Ebisu, now let’s take a train ride a few minutes further to Shinjuku. After working our way through the crowd in Shinjuku Station, the world’s busiest rail station that transports something 4 million passengers per day, we exit through the Southern Terrace Exit and step on a long terrace that’s been decorated with sparkling white and blue lights for the holidays. The illumination is called Shinjuku Southern Lights.

Our teeth are chattering in the freezing cold wind, but we keep on walking and ignore the warmth that’s radiating from the Starbucks on the left.

Penguin is a mascot of the Suica rail pass that's issued by JR East.