Shimada Obi Festival 4: The Kids!

The best picture of the day!

I finally went to watch the Shimada Obi Festival today where I took literally hundred of pictures and have to divide this report on of the strangest/unusual festivals in Japan into many parts!
This report is about the many kids I had the pleasure to (all pictures were agreed with!) to give a good idea of what to expect at a Japanese Festival!

I basically divided the many pictures along themes for easier viewing:

With the mascot!

Teaching by example?

Hungry and waiting for the parade to come.

It was a bit too hot for the kids that day!

Tired and hungry.

Eager to participate!

So well-behaved!

Aren’t we beautiful?

These are tough kids who had to walk no less than 1.7 km a day for 3 days in a row!
Also very tough for the parents who walked behind in holiday finery!

Mind you they were looked after, what with portable stools during the many stops and caretakers looking after all your needs!

Even on the third day many kids were still having a ball of a day!

A bit tougher for the bigger kids who also looked after the wee ones!

Some still couldn’t hide their fatigue!

Note the mothers following their kids in 30 degrees Celsius heat!

How far do we still have to go Mum?

Let’s have a break, shall we?

Well, that kid is certainly enjoying himself all year round!

Horse Lord 1!

Horse Lord 2!

Horse Lord 3!

Lucky boy! I wouldn’t mind being reined in by such grand ladies!

The festival chariots also served as dancing stages where incredibly clad kids form 4 to 9 years old performed traditional Japanese dances to the sound of instruments and singers’ voices!