Hi.
Could you correct my English?
"Bon/Obon : Augusut 8, 2009"
Bon/Obon is a Japanese Buddhist custom for the spirits of ancestors. That’s around August 15 in many areas in Japan.
The main custom of Obon is going to the graves of the ancestors, but the others depend on the areas.
In many areas, they make a horse and a cow called “shouryouuma” with a cucumber and an eggplant to welcome the ancestors. Shouryou means spirit, and uma means horse. They are spirits’ conveyances between the afterworld and this world. The cucumber means a horse which runs fast, and the spirits use it when they come, wishing they get to this world at an early hour. The eggplant means a cow which goes slow, wishing they go back to the afterworld late.
However, there are many people who don’t go to the graves or do the ceremonies. They go out for a trip because many companies are closed around bon, and they think it’s very good opportunity to go out for a trip.
Almost 50,000 people departed from Narita Airport today. Like Golden Week, all leisure venues and almost all Shinkansen trains are full of people. Expressways are full of cars, and plane tickets are more expensive during bon.
You should avoid Bon when you come to Japan, like Golden Week.
Thank you.
Bon Festival - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia