The Fukushima Orientation party is just around the corner! The party will start at 19.00, August 16th, at the Grand Park Hotel’s rooftop beer garden in Fukushima City. You can check out all of the event details here! RSVPs for the party will close on August 14th at noon so make sure to get your RSVP in!
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Name: Koriyama Fireworks Festival
Date: August 6th (Saturday)
Area: Koriyama
Address: 富久山町河川敷多目的広場 Fukuyama-cho Kasenjiki Tamokuteki Park
Details: Summer is the time for fireworks festivals! Enjoy food stalls and street vendors during the day and then round out your festival experience by watching a fireworks show featuring 6000 fireworks! The fireworks show will be from 7:30-8:30 PM.
Website: http://fukuyama-s.or.jp/hanabi/
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Name: Higashiyama Onsen Water-Splashing Festival
Date: August 6th (Saturday)
Area: Aizu-Wakamatsu
Address: Higashiyama Onsen
Details: Help the locals of Aizu-Wakamatsu carry a large mikoshi (portable shrine) while getting splashed with water from the local hot springs. If you don’t want to help carry the shrine, you can follow the shrine and help throw water on the people carrying it!
Website: http://www.tif.ne.jp/jp/event/event_disp.php?id=3757&year=2016&mon=8&day=0&area=&keyword=
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Name: Iwaki Fireworks Festival
Date: August 6th (Saturday)
Area: Iwaki
Address: Onahama Aquamarine, between wharfs 1 and 2
Details: Watch a fireworks show set to music over the water on the coast of Iwaki. Although you will be able to see the fireworks from the surrounding areas, it’s recommended to get seats somewhere at the venue to ensure the best view.
Website: http://www.tif.ne.jp/jp/event/event_disp.php?id=3817&year=2016&mon=8&day=0&area=&keyword=
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Read more
Have you ever wanted to explore canyons while floating through rapids and jumping off of waterfalls? If so, the FuJET trip to Canyons in Minakami, Gunma is the perfect trip for you! This trip starts with an adventure-packed Saturday filled with a morning of exploring Fox Canyon (highlight: being lowered halfway down a 20-meter waterfall and then dropped the rest of the way into the pool at the bottom) and an afternoon of white-water rafting, bungee jumping, or mountain biking, followed by an evening barbeque and dance party. Sunday features a relaxing soak in an onsen with amazing views and some of the best curry around.
Even if the thought of floating through canyons and jumping off of waterfalls doesn’t give you an anticipatory adrenaline rush, I’d highly recommend this trip. It was one of the first big activities I participated in after arriving in Fukushima last year and it is definitely one of my favorite memories of my first few months. I am not a particularly adventurous person and, I’ll admit, when I first heard about the trip, I was pretty intimidated. It doesn’t help that I’m afraid of heights, so the thought of the waterfall in the middle of the course didn’t make me feel much better. However, I talked to a lot of people who had gone on the trip in the past (including someone who didn’t know how to swim when they went) and they all assured me that they felt completely safe and had a great time. After some deliberation, I signed up. I came to Japan for new experiences, after all, and this definitely counted as a new experience.
Name: Aizu-Bange Planting Festival
Date: July 6th (Saturday)-7th (Sunday)
Area: Aizu-Bange town
Address: 栗村稲荷神社 Kurimura Inaka Shrine
Details: Join the people of Bange as they pray for a fruitful year and celebrate the beginning of summer. Featuring a Saotome dance performance, a sumo competition, and portable shrines, this festival is a great way to start the summer!
Website: http://www.tif.ne.jp/jp/event/event_disp.php?id=3779&year=2016&mon=7&day=0&area=&keyword=
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Name: Ura-Bandai Fireworks Festival 
Date: July 21st (Thursday)
Area: Ura-Bandai
Address: 桧原湖第一駐車場 Lake Hibara First Parking Lot
Details: Ura-Bandai’s yearly fireworks festival will take place on July 21st this year. The festival will begin at 4PM with the fireworks commencing after dark.
Website: http://www.tif.ne.jp/jp/event/event_disp.php?id=3724&year=2016&mon=7&day=0&area=&keyword=
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Name: Aizu-Tajima Gion Festival
Date: July 22nd-23rd
Area: Aizu-Tajima
Address: 南会津町田島地域 Minami-Aizu Town Tajima Region
Details: Tajima’s annual Gion festival will feature a crafts exhibition and kabuki performances, all aimed at recreating the feeling of an Edo period festival. As one of Japan’s three major Gion festivals, it’s definitely one to mark on your calendar. The festival runs from noon to 10:30 PM on the 22nd and from 7 AM to 11 PM on the 23rd.
Website: http://www.minamiaizu.org/gion/index.html
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