Sagamihara Koinobori

2007 April 30th | Category: Event/exhibition, Nikon D80, Places

Every year, Sagamihara river in Sagamihara, which is approx. 2hrs train and bus ride from central Tokyo, collects and shows off over a thousand Koinoboris which draws huge crowds of families, couples, etc. This is the first time I have been to Sagamihara and is definitely the first time I have ever seen so many Koinoboris in one place! 1,200 of them, to be exact! I usually see a few on the balconies or rooftops of apartments/houses.

Koinobori are carp-shaped flags made from cloth with carp patterns painted on them and are traditionally flown in Japan to celebrate Children’s Day on May 5th. Japanese people associate carp with boys because of the strength associated with carp that swim upstream, a strength that is hoped the boys will also possess in order to grow up healthy and strong.

Landscapes across Japan are decorated with koinobori from April to the early May, in honor of sons. A lot are flown on the rooves of houses with sons, with the biggest ‘koinobori’ for the eldest son, ranging down to the smallest carp for the youngest son. Most even have the sons name written on them. The sizes of these ‘koi flags’ can be from a few inches long to a few meters long.

Anyway, because it is Golden Week, the traffic wasn’t cool (the bus ride). I got there at 2:15-ish and stayed for a little over an hour during which time, the sun was directly above the Koinobori making it quite hard to take photos. After I got fed up and started to sweat (it was hot), I checked out the temporary food stalls, bought some yakitori (skewed chicken) and Osaka yaki (veggy, floury thing) and sat on the grass and munched away. Actually, the food was bad! But it was nice being surrounded by families with kids running around and screaming their heads off…