FIRE FESTIVAL

Every year on October 22nd, in the small and picturesque town of Kurama just North of Kyoto, they hold a fire festival. Although I've lived in Kyoto for nearly seven years, reports of long lines and ridiculously crowded trains always put me off going. But last Friday I finally went to see it.

The festival starts with bonfires being lighted at 6pm, but my friend and I missed that, arriving in Kurama just after 7pm. The train from Demachiyanagi in Kyoto was packed, but that was only what I expected. The main street was lined with braziers tended by locals sitting or standing outside their houses. We walked down the street to a shrine where two huge bonfires roared and hurled sparks into the night sky.

Every now and then men and youths in  festival costumes carried flaming torches of various sizes along the road. We saw one youth being helped to shoulder a huge torch. He was carrying the fiery end, and sparks fell from the torch onto his bare back. I thought more protective clothing would have been a good idea!
At one point we followed the crowds along the street thinking there must be some action up ahead, but policemen were pushing people into a narrow space along the side of the street behind a yellow tape. The people were 4 or 5 deep, and probably wouldn't see much form the back.

No doubt the nature of the festival and the crowds of people who attend make it potentially a very dangerous situation, but it was just like being on the train again. My friend and I pushed our way back along the road out of the crowds, then ducked under the police tape and joined some locals tending a brazier on the other side of the street. I was expecting to be moved along and forced to join the crowd again, but it never happened. Free from the pushing and shoving, we were able to enjoy a good view or the procession which came along after a while.

After the procession we headed for the train station, hoping that by leaving early we would avoid the worst of  the crowding. No such luck - everyone else had the same idea, and we were forced to queue for two hours before being tightly crammed into a small train for the journey back to Demachiyanagi. A friend told me he caught the last train back, at midnight, and that it was relatively uncrowded, and most passengers were even able to sit down.

I wish I had done more research about the event before we went. I'm sure we missed some of the good bits. I'm also sure I don't want to go back next year.  I really loved the festival, but I find it difficult to voluntarily subject myself to that degree of crowding. Crowds are okay if you can still move around freely, but when I'm trapped in a train or a queue it feels really unpleasant and frustrating.