There were 2 fireworks shows at the beaches I go to in the summer. The organizers decided to split the show instead of having one show where the fireworks are set off somewhere in between the beaches, and each show was only 10 minutes. Man, I feel sorry for people who travel all the way from the city just for a 10-minute show, unless they stuck around after enjoying a day at the beach.
Show #1
I went straight to the beach from work just to make sure I could find parking for my scooter. I went to the little grass hill I usually set up camp, which is near the pier where they were going to set off the fireworks from. Since I had plenty of time before the show, I headed for my favorite beach cafe and enjoyed a nice cold glass of masala chai with tapioca beads. The popular beach restaurant/bars were pretty crowded and the line for food was too long for me to even think about getting food.
I got back to my campsite and settled down with my Kindle. The breeze felt good and I didn't have to worry about getting sand all over the place. It was cloudy, so the view of Mt. Fuji wasn't clear, but the sunset shots were pretty nonetheless.
The beach itself was packed with people by the time it was dark, but the grassy hill I was on wasn't as crowded as previous years.
Although it was a short show, the fireworks were spectacular. People really enjoyed the ones that flared up from the water. We saw this flaming ball heading for the water and lit up the water on impact, or so that's how it looked. It was pretty cool. We didn't see the big ones that get set off high in the sky like in the major fireworks shows, but it was a short 10-minute show.
I used my new phone to take the vid and I'm still trying to figure it out. Dunno why the earlier part was blurry. Maybe it focused on the tape bordering the edges of the hill. Oh well, at least the finale seemed to be in focus.
Show #2
Again, I went to the beach straight after work just to make sure I could get into the bike parking, which was pretty empty when I got there. Since it was windy and the wind was blowing toward the shore, the parking attendant told me that they might only use the low fireworks and shorten the show. Shorten the show??!! It's only 10 minutes to begin with. Well, it turns out that the show did get shortened to 5 minutes.
I was going to set up on the beach I watched the fireworks from last year. There was this lady standing by the side of the road promoting her cafe, saying that they have cold beer. I asked if they had anything else and she told me they had homemade ginger ale. Sold!
I went to the cafe and it turned out to be a hidden gem. The cafe was part of an old home renovated into a Japanese inn. The building itself was a relic from the Meiji era and most of the structure was preserved during the renovation, only updating the wiring, plumbing, and bathrooms. The cafe manager showed me an old wooden bucket they found during the renovation that probably dates back to the Meiji era, too.
The cafe is mainly for the guests of the inn, but they open the cafe up only during the fireworks shows. Hearing that, I felt pretty lucky to stumble upon this gem.
The menu was limited to coffee, beer, homemade ginger ale, and satuma-age (a fried fishcake made with ground fish and vegetables). While satsuma-age is more associated as a snack to have with beer, it didn't pair too badly with the homemade ginger ale. Both were pretty good and hit the spot.
Like I mentioned earlier, I was going to watch the fireworks from the spot I was at last year, but when looking at the poster, it looked like the fireworks were going to be set off from the opposite side. So, I headed for the main beach. The beach was crowded, but not fully packed. I was able to find a spot in the front where people avoided earlier because it was high tide. The sand was still wet, but I didn't care since I had a sheet to sit on.
Mt. Fuji was hiding behind a curtain of haze when I got to the beach, but made an appearance during sunset. People were oohing and aaahhing at the view and of course, taking tons of pics.
Most of the fireworks were the ones that flare up from the water on impact. It was kind of disappointing to not see the ones that get set off higher in the sky, but I wouldn't want to get showered with hot sparks, either since the wind was still blowing toward the shore.
The show was more like 4 minutes instead of 5. Man, was it short! At least I didn't have to travel far for the show, unlike some of the out-of-town license plates I saw.
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11 comments
Bummer when a fireworks show is cut short and a wind keeps the higher fliers from being used. I love both of the pictures of Mt Fiji! I imagine that the various ways the weather provides a multitude of backdrops to him?, Her?, It?. Do the Japanese use a gendered pronoun when speaking of Mt Fuji. Somehow the mountain seems to deserve better than to be referred to than a it.
Sounds like you had a lovely time. Sending you big naked hugs.
The Japanese call it Fuji-san (Japanese for Mt. Fuji) or maybe simply "yama" (Japanese for mountain).
@JN63JPN Thank you. As I understand it adding san after a name is a title of respect?
@justskin1
Yes, and another way to read the Japanese character for mountain is "san", so in Japanese, it's Fuji-san.
From your posts , Japan has quiet a few fireworks displays , does it have cultural significance ? , lol.or just fun.
Fireworks festivals have been held since the Edo period to ward off evil and celebrate summer
Sounds like a nice time, and the setting perhaps makes it worthwhile despite the brevity of the shows.
One of the upscale shopping center here has a free summer concert series on Thursdays. It's only 6 concerts. At at the last one before The 4th of July they have a pretty decent fireworks show that lasts about 20 minutes. Last year it was super dry around here and a erratic shot ignited some nearby vegetation. Everyone evacuated without injury, but THAT made for some added interest!
A couple of summers ago, there was lightening flashing behind the fireworks. That was an interesting show.
That was a spectacular sunset.
Sunsets with a view of Mt. Fuji are spectacular
Thanks for sharing—your write-up gave a great feel for the beach vibe and the little finds like that inn café. Even with short shows, the atmosphere sounded pretty special. I liked the way you described the fireworks flaring up from the water. Hope the bigger events later in the season make up for the short runtime.
There are bigger shows scheduled in August
Thank you for the fireworks!!! And Mt Fuji
Hugs!!!
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