鯉のぼり“Koinobori” in Jozankei.
From this Friday April 15th until May 8th the hot spring town of “Jozankei” will be the site of an exciting sightseeing display. “Koinobori” carp fish streamers, over 400 of them, will all be displayed along the river stream. Carp streamers, kind of like windsocks, are usually displayed on “Children’s Day” on May 5th, the last day of “Golden Week”. The Carp was traditionally used as a symbol to celebrate “Boy’s Day” until in 1948 the government decided to rename it “children’s day” to celebrate the happiness of all children and to express gratitude toward mothers.
The carp was chosen as a symbol for “Boy’s Day” because the Japanese consider it full of energy and power that it can fight its way up stream against the river flow.
Interesting facts about “Koinobori”. The black carp (Magoi) at the top represents the father, the red carp (Higoi) represents the mother, and the last carp represents the child (traditionally the son), with an additional carp added for each subsequent child with color and position denoting their relative age.
Event details
30th Annual Jozankei Koinonobori
Friday April 15th – May 8th.
Getting there
https://jozankei.jp/en/access
Please be sure to checkout the Jozankei Onsen Tourist Association website for great hot spring hotel deals and packages.
“Children’s Day (Japan)” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 22 July 2004. Web. April 4 2016 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Children%27s_Day_(Japan)
Hokkaido Explorer would also like to thank Jozankei Onsen Tourist Association for the photos for this story.
