Commodore Perry first arrived Hakodate in the ships with American flags, the people in Hakodate were scared and confused at the sudden appearance of these alien-looking human beings with powerful weapons and speaking in strange tones. However, as 150 years lapsed, Hakodate residents, just as Japanese people always do, accepted their foreign ways and integrated it into their daily life. The tranquil town is scattered by western style churches and consulates with pointed roof and round windows. After passing by an Italian Gelati store, a mongolia barbecue restaurant is just around the corner...Hakodate people enjoy their way of living and are proud of the diversity of its culture and the autenticity of its historical sense.The biggest event of the month-long celebration is composed of a parade followed by a firework show on a Saturday. Luckily enough, we as HIF students got the chance of participating in the parade by dressing up as various roles involved in that era of history. Sarai and I became the ice venders at Japanese matsuri.
No, but that's not it. On the biggest parade cart, there was a small booth, where people sit in and hit the drum according to the beat of the crowd's chanting. And the booth ROTATES! It looked like the coolest thing in the world, so when a local asked who wanted to volunteer to be on the booth, Sarai and I jumped for it. So our state throughout the whole parade is demostrated by the picture below.
Trust me. It definitely did not feel as cool as it appears to be. They did a couple of test runs before the parade--rotating us for three times while we kept drumming. Seeing the world spinning around us while staring at Sarai's excited face across the drum from me was a once-a-life-time experience, had to say. They also assured us that they would blow a whistle before they started spinning us, to draw the crowd's attention as well alert us. When the real parade began, with the first blow of whistle the booth started to rotate...once...twice...three times...four times?? Why doesn't it stop? I started to feel nauseous. After six rotations when it finally came to a stop, I could vaguely hear the crowd cheering at both sides and see faces floating around me. I was so glad it was over. Little did I know at the time...I wonder if six has some special meaning associated with the festival, because the process was repeated for six times, each time six rotations. When I finally got onto my feet...well, you imagine.Before the parade, we were luck to have a picture with three Miss. Hakodate. "sonna ni kawaikunai..." Somebody commented.
My classmates from HIF who signed up for their roles in the festival earlier were excused from the dread of sitting on a rotating booth. Standing majestically on the stage, dressed up in the 19th century European fashioned outfits were the "ambassadors" from all over the world that once left their footprint on the beach of Hakodate. However, these prints were washed away by the tides. They were absorbed by the earth and became part of the unique identity of the city inseparable from its native culture.
They hosted a thank-you dinner for all the participants of the parade. I met this really nice local college student who seemed to be constantly amazed at everything I said about the US...or just everything I said. Japanese courtesy teaches people to respond enthusiatically in a conversation to the other person's words. That is why you can always hear exclamations such as "Soo desu nee!" and "hee~~~" from Japanese people out of their habit. This friend of mine, nonetheless, definitely carried this principle to its extreme. We had a great conversation about Japanese language, the festival, arashi, and his future job--a kindergarden teacher. He would be a good one, for sure.
Helen! Thanks so much for joining SAC as International Student Advisor. We are so happy to have you on the team. =)
回复删除