Yamayaki - Mountain Grilling

Yesterday Jess Andy and I went to Nara for the Yamayaki festival. Hunty was going to come too, but he's caught something off the kids and was acting as a human phlegm production plant.

Waiting for Lucy to finish taking photos

I'd been contemplating getting a better camera, and Jess was generous enough to let me play with her Nikon SLR for the day. All the below photos except the fireworks and fire are from her camera. I had a lot of fun with her camera, maybe too much, as I snapped away at anything and everything, determined to test my photographic skills with a better camera.


We've all been to Nara a few times before, so this time we decided to skip the temple of the Big Bhudda, and picked a random path to explore for the afternoon.

Along the way we found some religious festivities, and a new shrine, the Kasuga Shrine, which happens to have the same name as our ward (suburb) in Takatsuki.

 

We had a late lunch at about 3:00, and then proceeded up the hill to stake out a spot for the night's excitement. We were very early, and were able to get front-row "seats" on the deer-dropping studded ground.

Volunteer fire-fighters

Hill, pre-burning. The long grass was where they lit the fires.

By late afternoon it was getting very cold, and by the time the sun went down it was freezing. I had on:

• Thermal leggings
• Thick socks
• Leg warmers
• Warm under-shorts
• Jeans
• Thermal long-sleeved t-shirt
• Long-sleeved t-shirt
• Light jumper
• Woolen jumper
• Scarf
• Gloves
• Scarf
• Beenie
• Down jacket with hood

I also had a heat-pack in each pocket, and I was still cold. Very cold. Especially my feet, but cold all over. However, after several hours of waiting, at 6:00, the event started. There was music and chanting as fire was carried to the pyre just  uphill-right of us, and the pyre was lit. A number of torches were lit from the pyre, and the fire bearers proceeded up the hill, and spread out along the fence, reading set the mountain on fire.

However, before the hill could be set ablaze, there were fireworks. We had a perfect vantage point, and were close enough to smell the gunpowder. I stood there with my camera (back to my little Lumix) pointed vaugely in the right direction, just holding the button down, but not really looking too closely because I was too busy seeing the fireworks in person. I managed to get some surprisingly good shots that way.

Then came the event that we had all travelled to see. It was time to set the mountain alight. On a signal, the torches were put to the long grass, and then we just watched as the blaze took off. We stood there for ages ooing and ahing over the blaze, then, when we were too cold to take anymore, we started the long walk back to the station.