The Gion Festival's Atomatsuri (after festival) reached its "Yoiyoyama" on July 22, 2024. On a summer evening after the rain, many people went out to the center of Kyoto City, where the mountain and the meeting hall are located.
At Suzuka-yama (Karasuma-dori Sanjoagaru, Nakagyo Ward, Kyoto City), nine fifth and sixth graders from Gosho Minami Elementary School took turns handing out rice dumplings and red seals at the meeting hall. The children sang "children's songs" that they had practiced in advance in unison, and called out to visitors, "How about some rice dumplings?" and "How about some red seals?"
The visitors smiled at the sight of the children singing with all their might, taking the gifts and applauding. A sixth grader (12 years old) said with a smile, "It was my first time exchanging money, so it was a new experience. It's an experience that you can only have in this area, and it's a precious memory."
In recent years, the town where Suzuka-yama is located has seen an evacuation of residents, and five companies, including ShinPuhkan, where the mountain is located, and the Kyoto branch of NTT West Japan, take turns managing the mountain. In an effort to maintain ties with the local community, they are calling on children from nearby Gosho Minami Elementary School to participate as priests.
According to the Kyoto Prefectural Police, as of 8:30 p.m., there were about 9,500 people in the area, 5,500 fewer than at 9 p.m. last year.
