Yosakoi Festival
Yosakoi Festival is held for four days from Aug 9 to Aug 12 every year in Kochi. Along Otesuji street, Kochi-Central Park, Masugata and Obiya-machi street lots of teams dance passionately to the Yosakoi music with Naruko in their hand.
It is a typical festival in Kochi. There are lots of Yosakoi Festivals like Kochi Yosakoi Festival all over Japan these days. But the origin of Yosakoi Festival comes from Kochi. Kochi is the home of Yosakoi Festival! Yosakoi Festival is the most real summer festival because temperature of more than 35 degrees, the road surface temperature is more than 60 degrees. People go dancing through the streets from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. for four days in the burrning sun! I always think that dancers are at the mercy of the summer heat.
left, center:
Otesuji street, which is the main place of the festival.
right: Naruko, which was originally used as an agricultural tool, bird clapper. Yosakoi dancers take Narukos in their hands and crak them. It is essential for the dancing in the festival.

Yosakoi dance teams
Lots of people in teams go dancing through the streets in the festival. There were 170 teams and about 17000 dancers.

Leading cars waiting for their turn
Otesuji street, which is a street from Kochi castle toward the east, is the main place of the festival. Each dance team has to prepare its own leading car and set up an amp and some musical instruments like Taiko drums on the car.