Bon Odori festival

A quick online search of 'What's on in George Town' revealed it was  Bon Odori day and there would be a small festival on the waterfront  by the town hall gardens starting at 5pm. Off we went. 

We walked along the seafront to the town hall and it was nice to see small family groups with picnics and fishing rods dotted along the rocks.  There was also a massive cruise ship in port, it looked enormous alongside the little port buildings.

The area of the town hall has beautiful old colonial era buildings.

We were not sure what to expect, maybe a few stalls and a bit of music but boy were we surprised! 

Bon Odori is a Japanese Buddhist festival that honours the spirit of ancestors who return once a year to visit their families. 

The town hall area was full of families and stall holders selling Japanese specialty food and all sorts of things, young and old all having fun.

We were in time to hear the official speeches from the Japanese Consul General  which discussed living with different beliefs in shared harmony, Malaysian and Japanese culture respecting difference and then  following gift exchanges to officials, there was  a whoosh of fireworks and the festival was declared open.

There was a carnival like atmosphere with food stalls, culture displays, souvenirs  and demonstrations of martial arts.

The displays were so beautiful.

There were so many people, young and old, male and female, many dressed in traditional kimono. I bet they were hot, it was 38 degrees at 5.30pm.

There was to be a Japanese drumming display and the drums looked like it would be serious drumming but we were wilting in the heat so called it a day. I was pleased to see the locals  fanning themselves too so we weren't the only ones suffering the heat :)

Lovely family festival, gorgeously staged and lots of happy punters.