Saturday, August 13, 2011

Soma Nomaoi Festival(相馬野馬追) Fukushima

He is Mr.Kanno.He is a resident in Fukushima.
Unfortunately,the big Tsunami in March 11 washed away his house totally.....
and he lost his wife,mother,son and daughter.
Now he is going to join traditional festival in Fukushima.
"Soma-Nomaoi" is a festival that recreates a battle scene from more than 1000 years ago.
He disguises himself as Samurai,an armored warrior today.
At first,he was so depressed that he hesitated to join the festival this year,
just after the big disaster.
But finally,he decided to join the festival,
because he loves this festival,every year he has joined this event, 
and this festival has a meaning of mourning for his lost family this year.

not a trace remains of his house....
They're blowing on a conch shell. 
Before the Tsunami,there used to be 800 mounted soldiers in this festival.
But this year,there are only 50 soldiers...
In spite of the big disaster,they carried out the festival as usual,
because this festival has a tradition of 1000 years,so they're very proud of it.
And they wanted to cheer them up,cheer up their city,which is devastated by disaster.
They have strong spirit to overcome many difficulties.And we have to keep supporting and watching them.