🎆 Light Up the Night at Anjin Festival! 🎆

Check out this amazing moment from the Anjin Festival in Ito, Shizuoka—the magical 灯籠流し (Lantern Festival)! ✨🌊 Over several days, the festival brings together locals and visitors to celebrate with different events each day, from parades to fireworks. The Anjin Festival has a rich history rooted in the story of William Adams, an Englishman who washed ashore on Kyushu Island in the early 1600s. Adams was part of a fleet of five ships, but only his ship, the De Liefde, survived the treacherous journey to Japan. Although initially suspected by Jesuit missionaries in Japan, who labeled Adams and his crew as pirates, he impressed the future Shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu with his knowledge of shipbuilding and navigation. In 1604, Shogun Tokugawa ordered Adams to build Japan’s first Western-style ships in the Ito city shipyards. The Anjin Festival honors this unique historical connection. It commemorates the launch of those first Western-style ships, with one of the highlights being the Lantern Festival, where lanterns are released to float down the Matsukawa River and into the sea, followed by a spectacular fireworks display over the ocean. If you’re ever in Shizuoka in August, this is a must-see event!