2009 Sumida River Fireworks
Also known as the Sumidagawa Fireworks, or Sumidagawa Hanabi Taikai (隅田川花火大会) is a yearly fireworks celebration held on the Sumida river on the last Saturday of July. It attracts close to a million people. Interestingly, the firework display is put on by more than one ‘rival’ group. These ‘rival groups’ each have a set amount of time to perform their firework display, and then the next group follows. This turns the event into a kind of competition where people shout the names of their favorite group.
There are not one but two locations along the river where the fireworks are shot off (the following video briefly shows this). Therefore, the ideal seat is situated about half way between the two locations. It is a very cool phenomenon, and if you can get a perfect seat (which I didn’t have), gives you the feeling of being immersed in fireworks.