Takarazuka Fireworks Festival

This post was handwritten two days ago, and I'm transcribing it here now that I have access to a computer/internet.

Today is the second day of the Takarazuka Summer Fireworks Festival, and the night for the climactic main event show. I wasn't able to attend last night because I had night school until after 9pm. Because I don't have internet, I wasn't even able to get info on where or when this event was happening. I had only heard people talking about it at work throughout the week. So, at around 5pm, I headed to my local station and essentially followed the yukata/kimono. Those took me to Takarazuka Station (no big surprise there) and then to a large parking area in front of the Muko River. Here, families, couples, and groups of friends gather in groups with their festival foods to sit and enjoy the fireworks show. There are a LOT of people here. It's about 7pm and they are playing music over loudspeakers. It is just starting to get dark out. It is a little bit sad to be here alone; virtually everyone else is here as part of a group. This would make for such a great date!

It is really a shock to live in Takarazuka where you can see a member of the Review just walking around doing everyday things. Between the 5 troupes at the theater and the school associated with it, there are enough of them to be seen often enough. They really are shocking because they are women who walk a fine line between looking like beautiful women and dashingly handsome men. It seems as though they must get their hair professionally done every morning, and their attire is always a very well groomed masculine blend.

The show is scheduled to begin at 7:45 and end at 8:45pm. Supposedly there are going to be a lot of fireworks because a fireworks show scheduled for earlier in the year was canceled due to swine flu concerns. They basically just added those stocks to the ones they already had for this show. Quoting the Takarazuka Website: "August beginning of month Takarazuka Gala Fireworks Festival on Mukogawa River around Kanko Dam - one of the oldest fireworks festivals in Japan." The event takes place in coordination with a very very long list of sponsors.

The show is over, and I actually managed to get the entire show recorded on my video camera. It really lasted the full 45 minutes, and it was BY FAR the grandest, most elaborate, best orchestrated fireworks show I've ever seen. I was sitting a mere 100 yards or so from the launch site, and every firework shot off shook you on the inside. There were fireworks doing things I had never even heard of, and the entire thing was perfectly timed to some very beautiful music. It could easily bring you to tears. The show was done in several movements, much like a visual play, and together with the narration, told a very pretty story. I am very very glad I came to this event. It started to drizzle at about 8:00 and a few people left, but the rain held off just long enough for the show to complete, which I'm sure everyone greatly appreciated.