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| Tug-of-war participants in the Honolulu Festival pull a 3-ton straw rice barrel.
Eugene Tanner • The Honolulu Advertiser |
 Parade to cause street closures
By Scott Ishikawa
Advertiser Staff Writer
Sixty-two-year-old Kiyomasa Furuya yesterday showed new meaning to the concept of "carrying extra weight on the hips."
Furuya, a member of the Akita City Kanto Matsuri, yesterday balanced a pole of 46 Gohei rice lanterns — weighing about 120 pounds and standing nearly 50 feet tall — in the air using only his waist. Then his shoulder. And then his forehead.
His teammate, Koji Fukuda, explained how the lantern-balancing tradition is meant to scare away evil spirits before the Japanese Obon season.
"One guy can hold it up with his teeth," Fukuda said through a translator. "There is no special training or classes, but we do weight lifting on the side."
Fukuda, Furuya and 3,000 other Japanese were giving a demonstration at the Hawai‘i Convention Center as part of the Honolulu Festival, which originated in 1994 as a way to showcase Japanese culture and arts.
The festival started with events at Honolulu Hale on Friday and continues today with activities in Waikiki along Kalakaua Avenue and at the Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center, at the convention center and at Ala Moana Center.
A parade down Kalakaua Avenue will cap off the event today from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.
At the other end of the convention center yesterday, residents from Fukushima Prefecture performed a 400-year-old tug-of-war tradition called "Hatsuichi Otawara Hiki" using a 3-ton straw rice barrel. Members of Aizu Bange Machi performed a prefecture tradition to celebrate the annual rice harvest (Fukushima is known for its quality rice and sake). The belief is if the East team wins the tug-of-war, rice prices will rise. If the West team is victorious, the rice crop will be abundant.
During the tug-of-war, Greg Yee of Mililani got to straddle the 10-foot-high giant rice barrel while cheerleading for the winning West team. One of the announcers jokingly asked if he was insured.
"That was fun," Yee said.
Today’s parade in Waikiki will feature a 350-foot-long snake float from Japan’s Gunma Prefecture. One hundred volunteers were being sought yesterday to help carry the float during the parade. Also featured will be the Toyama Prefecture Uozu Tatemon Matsuri, a float shaped like the old fishing boats of Japan, lighted by more than 90 lanterns and carried by more than 80 assistants. The float and performing group accompanying it has been appointed as a national folk cultural treasure of Japan.
At the Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center, Ala Moana and the Hawai‘i Convention Center, cultural presentations, exhibits and stage shows will continue through 3 p.m.
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