Our Last Obon in Japan

I woke up on my birthday and was allowed to take a shower without worrying about how long I had until the baby was going to start crying, which is always a nice feeling. When I finished getting dressed, I was greeted by this:

Zack got me a few DVD's as a birthday present and decided a baby is better than a bow. :-)
That evening, our plan was to go out and see the Obon festivities, so we chilled inside for most of the day, saving up our energy to be out in the heat at night. Obon is a really beautiful lantern festival in honor of the ancestors. Trouble is, it's really hard to get good pictures of something like that. On our way to dinner, however, we came across a float in daylight, and I got this picture:

People parade these all over town all evening, especially after dark, setting off firecrackers around them. They are meant to attract the attention of the spirits and help them find their way, I think...
After dinner, we walked back through the park to see all the lanterns lit up. Zack did a walking video tour, I was in charge of still pictures:

Then we turned off the video so I could have my birthday snocone. :-)

Elly found this all very interesting until the people set of a firecracker too close to her stroller. Then we hurried it home and she was off to bed. It was a good birthday.