Tokyo Koenji Awa Odori - And No, I Didn't Dance

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wittyzelllast yearPeakD6 min read

It's summer in Japan! It's so hot outside, that I am not looking forward but there's one thing in summer that I always look forward to, yes, despite the heat - and that is - the summer festivals!

Last year, I didn't let my summer end without attending at least one festival.

Sure, there are a lot of festivals here in Japan. There's even a fireworks festival but for me, that doesn't count as a festival I should not miss every summer. I'm talking about music, dancing and the costumes!

The festivals usually start from July and I was able to attend last minute. At the last days of August, I was able to attend a typical festival full of dances!

The festival is called Awa Odori. It originated in Tokushima Prefecture, located in the southwest of Japan. I didn't go to Tokushima for Awa Odori, that's like 4 or 5 hours by bullet train. In Tokyo, where I live now, the same festival is happening in August and it's located in the quiet town of Koenji.

Awa Odori's origin is interesting. They said the Awa Province's daimyo hosted a party in celebration of the completion of the Tokushima Castle. Because of this, the locals were so drunk they started dancing in the streets. Others followed up with music. It's a party! Now it has become a yearly festival. You can read it more on Wikipedia.

Koenji's Awa Odori is probably the only Awa Odori in Tokyo. I haven't heard of any other but if you know others, you can let me know in the comments.

This is actually their comeback after having a hiatus because of COVID. So I'm not so sure if before last year, there were many attendees but I think there were a lot.

I arrived at Shin-Koenji Station past 6 PM, just a little past from the starting time. The festival was happening on the streets between this station and Koenji Station. I chose to watch the festival on the small alley and not on the main highway. I figured the small alley would have less people and kinda intimate. The main highway should probably be crowded.

I have no idea what to see, but all I know was what there would be dancing. When I got on the alley, it was weird we were like having a procession following the group of performers. Wait, I'm not part of the dance crew. Turns out, everybody couldn't pass when there's dancing. And after every group had finished, everybody could walk and get a move on til the next performers arrived at the location.

I didn't go far so I just stayed on that alley, positioning myself on the sides. That way, I could see the performers. At first I was behind tall watchers, but then, they left so I got promoted to the first in line and could see clearly.

There were a lot of group performances. They belong to different places, most in Tokyo but there were others who came from provinces.

Every group have their own performance or dance or music (whatever that's called) at the start of their performance. They have nice music that go well with their dance. Then, after, they would dance the usual dance. It looks so cool!

What I liked was that I could see people from all ages doing the dances and the music. There were even foreigners who were dancing and playing the music! It looked so fun to watch.

At some point, I wanted to join the dance but hey, I didn't dance! I just wanted to dance with them but I wasn't confident enough. There was one matured lady who was joining them in the dance though. It was fun to look at her. Actually, if you keep watching the dance performances, there's this vibe that would want you to groove as well. I think that's the spirit of Awa Odori. 😅

By the way, the group's starting point was this pole that they're holding, usually they put their group name here but this one from this group looks like a hair. I really don't understand. 😂

Then followed by the dancers. There's usually a whole lot of them. Some were only wearing socks but others they had sandals on.

It's then followed by the instruments. They're in yukata too!

The ending point were the musical performers with their big drums and happy faces.

The festival was happening from 5 PM to 8 PM. And the Japanese were really on time. At 8 PM, the dance ended. The crowd was clapping, the performers were bowing and everybody was saying thanks. It was such a surprising moment for me because I think that was the first time I witnessed that happen. In the festivals I've been to, not in Japan, the ending was just a silent ending. It's just the end and there's nothing afterwards. You'd be left to wonder if it really ended. Here, it's so different!

I definitely enjoyed Awa Odori! The performers' faces were all smiles and all laughs, not minding the exhaustion and even the summer heat. It was so much fun! I really wanted to dance together with them, maybe I should try and look it up? 😂 ...Probably someday!

If you plan on attending Koenji's Awa Odori this year, it's going to be on August 24-25. This year is the 65th year! Make sure to check the times and the route so you could position yourself in a good place and not miss this once a year event! For more details, you can check it out in their

Thanks for reading!
See you around! じゃあ、またね！

With love,