Fireworks

In the UK, they celebrate this thing called the 'Bonfire Night' - it started in 17th century when 13 guys, in an attempt to overthrow the king, tried to blow up the Parliament. One of those guys was Guy Fawkes, the most notorious traitor in the British history. (http://www.bonfirenight.net/gunpowder.php) So every year on November 5th, they shoot fireworks all over the country to celebrate the capture of these men and safety of the king. This year, November 5th was on a Wednesday, so some of the firework events will be held on Saturday, November 8th.

Here's another cultural difference - in Japan and in the US, fireworks are summer events. The most famous one in Japan is by Sumida River in Tokyo (http://sumidagawa-hanabi.com/index_eg.html), which takes place in late July every year. Women wear 'yukata' and many food vendors line up, making it an all evening (sometimes an all day) event. We used to go to the fireworks in Yokohama and Kamakura, which are both held on the water (Yokohama Bay and the Pacific Ocean on the beach). Since they are such popular ones to go to, we used to 'get in place' by noon and wait for seven (!) hours before the fireworks started. But it was so much fun, with the vendors, music, and just chatting to strangers most of whom come in big groups, so they would share their food and drinks with us. By the time the fireworks started, we were all good friends.

In the US, it's the Fourth of July - I remember being in Boston one summer when I was a teenager, and our summer school class went to Charles River to see the fireworks. Other than losing a few people on the way back (!), we had hot dogs, burgers, and candy apple - it was a perfect way to spend a summer evening!

So the idea of watching fireworks in cold weather is new to me. And the scale of it is quite small compared to what I'm used to (Sumida River fireworks uses 20,000 fireworks and lasts for an hour and a half!). But I've been told that you're supposed to dress warm and bring mulled wine, so I guess it's a different thing all together.

One thing is for sure - our cat is not looking forward to tomorrow night!