Nagasaki Kunchi - Festival Fever

What?
Nagasaki (長崎) is a port city located in the west of Kyushu (九州), making it one of the nearest places in Japan to the mainland (China). Historically it was also well located for Portuguese missionaries and Dutch tradesmen, both which left a huge footprint on not only the city itself, but also on Japanese culture in general, as during the period of Japanese isolation (1603-1868) the only place where foreigners were allowed was located off of the coast of Nagasaki. This place was an artificial island called Dejima (出島), currently reconstructed, although it is now surrounded by reclaimed land. Unfortunately, the city is better known for more recent history, as being the second and hopefully last city to be hit by an atomic bomb. Memorials form an important part of Nagasaki’s touristic offer, including the Atomic Bomb Museum, Peace Park and Memorial Hall.
Where?
Nagasaki city is the main city in Nagasaki Prefecture (長崎県) on Kyushu, the southernmost island of the main four Japanese islands. The city can be reached by the Kyushu Shinkansen (九州新幹線), but a small airport accessible from all over Japan is located within a bus ride of an hour. The city itself is rather small and with the street cars it is easy to navigate.
URL
Japan Guide Outline Visit Nagasaki

Never been to Nagasaki, but only hearing good things about it, a friend’s wedding in nearby Fukuoka was the ideal excuse to stop by. Of course, as the city is regrettably famous because of the atom bombing, the memorials regarding that moment in history are a must visit. Gunkanjima was a certitude, and as a graduate of Japanese studies, Dejima was also high on my list. Earlier plans to get to Nagasaki included some serious coastline hiking, maybe a visit to nearby Huis Ten Bosch and hopping along Sasebo. Eventually, the timing of my friend’s wedding decided otherwise: we were to see and enjoy the Nagasaki Kunchi Festival, organized every year between 7 and 9 October.

Living in Japan for several years now, I have seen my fair share of festivals. The biggest until now was the Takayama Festival. I have of course seen the Matsumoto Bonbon Festival many times, and I once have actually joined carrying a shrine around during the small scale Miyanomae Festival in Itami. And although there is some fun, some food and a lot of beer, I must admit they all have the same in common; it’s quite repetitive. Matsumoto Bonbon is the best example. A whole day long several groups of people (can be a firemen group, a group of highschool buddies or simply a group of individuals who want to join but don’t belong in any other group) do the same dance on the same music while parading the streets. A lot of food stalls sell the same (tasty but usually overpriced) fast food snacks, and eventually everything ends in a beer drinking festival. Most other festivals add a historical aspect by carrying around a shrine in which children play music.

One of the groups performing.

Everyone is wearing fitting clothes.

The float disappears in the Chinese quarter.

A cannon of the Dutch on Dejima.

Nagasaki Kunchi is in form not very different. Several areas in the city make an original float that they carry around, stopping at various places to show a performance. What makes it different though is first of all the visual aspect of the floats and the people. They represent their own area and show it. This means that in an internationally influenced city like Nagasaki, you get a Chinese dragon or a float with Dutch flags. Second of all there is the atmosphere: we walked four times past the Dejima Wharf which was bustling with life around the many food stalls. There were only very few selling alcohol, making the liveliness of the festival so much more authentic (mind you, I seldom say no to a beer).

Also, because the floats criss cross the streets, it’s possible to encounter them at any given moment while sightseeing. That’s how I visited Dejima. Dejima was a small man made island where first Portuguese and later only Dutch salesmen were the only foreigners allowed to enter Japan. “Enter” is a big word as they were literally kept at bay. The current Dejima is a reconstruction and because of land winning it is not an island anymore. Nevertheless there are some interesting documents on display in the remodeled houses. Only for people who are interested in Japanese history though!

The next day we leisurely strolled around the Nagasaki Peace Park with its many statues and pretty view on the Urakami Cathedral, and while we didn’t enter the Atomic Bomb Museum, we did visit the underground Nagasaki Peace Memorial Hall for the Atomic Bomb Victims. Being different in form and size from its Hiroshima counterpart, the look and feel was the same – modern, solemn. I can only assume the Museum shows the same horrors as shown in the Hiroshima Museum and that they want to convey the same message: no more atomic warfare.

All in all Nagasaki was great. For the first time I really enjoyed a festival, even though I couldn’t drink due to circumstances. The city is not too big so it’s easy to get around, and the melting pot of Japan, China and the west creates a very different atmosphere than in other Japanese cities.