Akita Kanto Matusi - 3rd - 5th August

Going into this school year and knowing it was to be my last full year in Japan really made me put pressure on myself to get all those last things checked off my Japan bucket list. Over this last year I have been to some really cool places, and seen some amazing things - from the Light-Up festival in Gifu, to my relaxing trip down to Nagasaki. One of the last things I wanted to see was the Kanto Festival up in Akita - one of the most northern prefectures in Japan in the Tohoku region. This festival and trip was to be my last in Japan as it runs from the 3rd-6th of August, and my flight home was scheduled for the 6th. Todd and I made our way up to Akita on the 3rd (following a nice final few days in Tokyo) where we would be able to catch the evening festivities, see the festival all day on the 4th, and head back down to Narita on the 5th ready to depart the next day.

I was determined to see this festival as all the photos I had seen were really cool looking. I had done the research and knew that it was a popular festival (one of the three big Tanabata festivals in Tohoku) and so went ahead and locked in the hotel way back in October. Even then, there was not too much choice in our price-range left, and I heard a few months later that everything else had been booked up! Phew. So a note to any of you out there who are considering going to see this festival (and either of the other two, which also look incredible) make sure you book early or you're going to be out of luck!

So, a little bit about Kanto Matsuri before we get into the good stuff. Like I said before, this is one of the big Tanabata festivals in Japan, that spans over four days. There are both afternoon and evening events, which consist of people balancing long and heavy bamboo poles (kanto) with numerous paper lanterns attached, on four parts of their body - the hand, shoulder, hip, and head. These poles can get up to 12 metres in length and weigh as much as 50kg, holding as many as 46 lanterns at a time! Let me tell you, it's a pretty spectacular sight!

We were able to get a good standing position along the main street where the night parade was held. Over the course of an hour we were able to see three different troupes stationed in front of us showing off their balancing skills. At first all the troupes came in from various side streets and paraded around the km long road that had been blocked off for the event. Musicians for each troupe played large drums, bells and flutes, whilst the other members carried the poles (not yet raised) and chanted "dokkoisho". Then when all the teams were set up, a whistle was blown and the action began. It was mesmerising watching these men (no women apparently) hoist up these huge lantern contraptions and balance them with seeming ease on their body. Of course there were a few times where the balance was lost and the lanterns went careening one way or another - sometimes getting very close to hitting the spectators. However, this rarely happened where it was concerning, usually the skill of the performers meant that the poles were righted before any serious damage could be done. And when it happened that the poles did hit the floor, they were very quickly lifted back into position again. It was great to watch and Todd and I were both really pleased that we had made the effort to come to the festival. So without further ado, here are some of the photos I took on the first night.

Lighting the candles

Waiting for the start

The sound of the drums play constantly during the lifting and moving

The drums are carried around on small trucks

Ready for the up

Head balance

Hip balance

These lanterns almost landed in the crowed - saved by the tree!

Raising it into position

  On the second rotation, we were lucky to be stationed right in front of some very small children who were part of the festival - lifting a much smaller lantern pole in our eyes, but what must have been just as difficult for them as the big one was to the adults. The skill of these kids was amazing and it was really fun to watch - you certainly rooted for them a lot more!

The smaller kid's kanto

You can see all the other kantos down the road

Kid has some skills

Ready to move off for the next round

 On the last session, the teams really pulled out all the stops, bringing out their most impressive moves by extending the poles more than before. These poles were now so tall that they couldn't support the weight of the lanterns as well, meaning that it made for a pretty spectacular sight with the lanterns lying pretty much horizontal to the ground. They also played around with the other lanterns in their team resting each pole against one another - pretty dangerous, but impressive all the same.

Moving all four closer together

They did it!

The pole bends under the weight of the lanterns

The next morning we headed out to check out some of the day time activities. We watched a couple of teams at the competition. In front of a panel of judges, members of the team go up and balance the lanterns on which ever part of their body they want. I'm sure there was a reason to which one they did but we didn't know it. It was fun to watch, but also pretty hot so we didn't stick around for long. We had a short wander around the city itself, stumbling upon a very pretty lake full with the huge pink flowers, so obviously we got a few photos there before heading back and cooling off in the hotel.

Attaching the lanterns to the pole

At the competition - note the judges in the background

 We also got a chance to see some of the performances going on in front of a department store opposite our hotel. There weren't many people watching, and there wasn't much to see but we did get to see a weird dance routine where the guys fake beat each other up, and some tap dancing. And of course we couldn't resist holding a small kanto when we saw the opportunity!

Kanto master!

And then lastly we headed back to the festival that night. We watched from the end of the road to see it from a different view which was fun, but brighter so photos weren't as good. Either way, the festival was a great success in my eyes and I'm really glad we made the effort to head all the way up north to see it.

South Korea and the DMZ - 6th - 8th June

So way back in February 2013, Todd and I went to South Korea for a long weekend (see previous post). We had an amazing time, but felt that we hadn't quite accomplished everything we wanted to in South Korea - we weren't able to go to the DMZ.
A year and a bit on, with a flight sale in sight, we decided that it was now or never, and so booked ourselves some cheap flights over to South Korea for the S(e)oul (get it?!) purpose of taking a tour to the DMZ. We were to fly over and get to our hotel late Friday night, had booked ourselves on a tour on the Saturday and would be returning to Japan Sunday afternoon, so we really were going just for this tour.

The DMZ is the Demilitarised Zone between North and South Korea. The Military Demarcation  Line (MDL) is the line that roughly cuts Korea in half, and this line has a 2km buffer zone on either side making up the DMZ. 

Our American soldier guides with North Korea in the background

Getting to Korea with no problems, we were happy to find that our city passes had not expired and still had money left over on them. Using them, we took a train to our hotel from the airport and settled in for the night. The next day saw us up early and prepared to get to the meeting place by 7 o'clock. Because of this early start we had purposefully booked ourselves a hotel minutes from the meeting point and so casually meandered down the road just before 7 and checked in. 7:30 and the tour began with an hour long bus ride up to the DMZ. Our tour guide was very informative, not only telling us a bit of the history of the DMZ, but also explaining a little more about the surroundings, and South Korea/Seoul as a whole. Our first stop was the JSA (Joint Security Area) where we would be met and escorted through with an American soldier. The JSA is the meeting point where all negotiations since 1953 have been held. We were told on the tour however that the North has not been willing to have these meetings for the past few years now. There are buildings on both the North and South side of the MDL belonging to the respective countries and country allies. However, there are also a few buildings that straddle the MDL and it is in these buildings that meetings would take place. It was also in one of these buildings that we were being allowed to go.

To the left of my head, between the two buildings is the MDL

A lot of the experience was pretty unnerving. The first crazy part for me was when we were driving towards the MDL and our guide was telling us about all the measures put in place to keep out a North Korea attack. We drove through an area with walls of rock built up on either side and were told that there were explosives under the rocks that could be detonated at any time to bring down the rocks and block the road. We were also made well aware of the multiple mine fields across the perimeter with literally thousands of land mines! Scary stuff. Then, once we had gone through the Freedom House we were confronted with the view of a North Korean soldier watching us from their side. We were also made well aware of the buildings where North Koreans were in, apparently watching us and taking photos. We were expressly told not to gesture, point or wave and we could only take photos in certain directions. It felt like one false move, and that would be it!

Those girls in the North, I'm in the South

We were taken into one of the conference buildings and stationed around a table so that our soldier could introduce us to the building. It was here that he casually mentioned that those standing the other side of the table from the door we came through had unknowingly passed into North Korea! Just like that! It was fun to watch comprehension dawn on their faces (I was still in South Korea). There were a few microphones on top of the conference table, and it was here that the line between North and South was made clear as they were in line with it. There were two South Korean guards in the building with us, standing like statues in a jujitsu(?) pose wearing sunglasses so we couldn't see their eyes. They were definitely very intimidating, even more so when our soldier told us not to touch them as they were black belts and wouldn't hesitate to show us our place! When I went to stand by one on the North Korean side, my heart beat a little quicker and I've never been so aware of the space between me and another person!
Anyway, that was it! I can now say that I have been to North Korea (even if it was only in a building!).

The mics and flag show the MDL, the soldier is straddling both countries

This guy looked like a waxwork he was so still

Actually quite scared in case I accidentally touch him!

Our 'In North Korea' faces!

After that, we headed back on the bus to be shown a little more around the area. Including the Bridge of No Return, and a stone memorial in the place of the Axe Murder Incident in 1976, where the attempt to cut down a tree resulted in the deaths of American soldiers by axe-wielding North Koreans. Since that incident, the North and South Korean soldiers have not been allowed to freely cross over the MDL inside of the JSA.

The Bridge of No Return - the poles stand for the MDL

The memorial for the men who died when trying to cut down a tree (the circle represents the tree)

Huge flag in North Korea (it was something crazy like 30m long!)

Back at the Freedom House, it was time to say goodbye to our American host, but this wasn't the end of the tour for us. Our final stop before lunch was Dorasan Station - the last train station in South Korea, next stop - North. Unfortunately, since 2008, trains have not been able to progress past this station and onto the North, so for now you can see the tracks go further, but the last stop is Dorasan. It was interesting to see this station and know that in the past trains have been able to go from one country to another, which could technically connect South Korea with Russia and beyond via trains. There was a train at the station, but this train is used mainly by tourists coming up to see the area and goes from Dorasan to Seoul.

Next stop, North Korea

After the station we went for a lunch of bibimbap (fried vegetables) and bulgogi (grilled marinated beef). Both were yummy but the bulgogi was better in my opinion. That's probably because (according to Wikipedia) bibimbap is best served hot, and mine was anything but that. But lunch was nevertheless tasty, and just a taster for what we were planning for dinner.

After lunch we headed up to a viewing point that looked out over North Korea. This was fine but unfortunately the weather was a bit misty so you couldn't really see much. Also, you weren't allowed to take photos right at the lookout spot, but several metres back behind a yellow line. Combining the distance from the edge, the copious amount of people, and the fact that I'm pretty small, I didn't actually manage to take any photos. But as I said, there wasn't much to see anyway.
After this we went to our last stop on the tour which was the 3rd tunnel. So far, there has been four tunnels discovered running from North Korea to South under the DMZ. Despite the armistice the South believed that the North were creating these tunnels to stage a surprise attack on the South, the exit destination of these tunnels being Seoul. The North Koreans tried to be clever with this tunnel, painting the walls in black 'coal' to suggest that the tunnel was actually a coal mine. However, the South were not convinced as there was evidence of dynamite holes where the North had used explosives to create the tunnel. We were able to go down and walk through this tunnel but, because of the three concrete wall blockades, we obviously couldn't walk all the way through to North Korea. It was incredible to see that this tunnel had made it all the way to the South without detection though. As I said before, only four of these tunnels have been found, but there is believed to be at least twenty more yet undiscovered. Once again, we weren't allowed to take pictures inside this tunnel, but let me just say I was glad that I'm quite small at this point, and had a good chuckle counting how many times Todd hit his head (hard hats were provided!).

The hope of reconciliation between North and South

After coming up out of the tunnel and watching a short video of the history of the DMZ, that was it for the tour. It was time to get back on the bus and head back to Seoul. Todd and I both agreed that it was well worth coming back to South Korea so that we could come on this tour. It was really interesting and we learned a lot on it.

Our last thing we had to do before leaving Seoul for the last time was to go and get some proper Korean BBQ. We had heard many great things about this food through a lot of our friends who had had it before and we were keen to try it. We stumbled on a cute little place near our hotel and ordered some pork and beef. We were then inundated with various small dishes that we had no idea what to do with. It was pretty overwhelming. Luckily the owner took pity on us (or was just too exasperated by our stupidity) and came over at various points to help us through each stage - grilling the meat, cutting it up, and telling us how to eat it. Yes, it was embarrassing that we were so clueless, but I was very grateful to be shown what to do, and we had a great meal because of it.

Yummy pork, with so many dishes!! (the pork was eaten in the lettuce leaves!)

The owner showing the foreign idiots how it's done!

 Overall, it was another really successful trip back to South Korea. I'm really glad we made the time to go again and finish off the things we hadn't managed to do the first time. We're pretty sure that this is the last trip overseas together before we head our separate ways, which is pretty sad, but we're just glad we had all these chances to go to these different countries together.

Next trip planned? Back to Tokyo...