

Obon with a Bang in Nagasaki
In mid-August, families across Japan get together to celebrate Obon, when it is believed the spirits of their ancestors return to visit. In Nagasaki Prefecture, this traditional event is marked in a remarkably boisterous way: people let off skyrockets at their ancestors' graves and light firecrackers. For 3 days, we film a long-established fireworks shop in Nagasaki. Among the customers, 2 brothers fondly remembering their mother who raised them singlehandedly; and a man spending 400,000 yen on firecrackers to send off the spirit of his father who died this year. As tears fall and fireworks explode, what were the customers feeling as they thought about their dearly departed?
Aired: Sep 23, 2016 Genre: DocumentaryRating: 0 Country: Japan Production: NHK
Episodes
01: Yokohama All Night Tonkatsu02: Kappabashi: Tokyo's Kitchen Capital03: Christmas at the Bus Terminal04: The First Dream at Tokyo Tower05: Benches and People: An Osaka Shopping Arcade06: Tokyo in the middle of winter, the name is ”Hanako“07: Winter, Tsugaru at the 100 Yen Onsen08: Valentine's Day at the Shrine09: 72 Hours Japan-Korea Comparison SP10: Drawn to Showa Songs11: Daitokai: Dog and Cat Shelter in the Big City12: Farewell Funabashi Auto13: Akita: In front of a vending machine in midwinter, a regretful farewell14: Tales Over Rice Bowls15: Carrying a Stamp in a Foreign Country16: At the Food Court17: Route 439: Japan's Last Frontier18: The Ferry to Volcano Island19: A Nostalgic Roller Coaster Ride20: Kyoto's Kamo River Delta21: Trapped in the Magic of Go22: Hiroshima: On the Street Corner Waiting for the President23: Relaxing in a Nagoya Café24: Faces Behind an Online Auction25: Brazil: Prayer-Filled Secret Sanctuary26: A Women's Prison: Up-Close and Personal27: Obon with a Bang in Nagasaki28: Fukui: Unattended Ice Shop in Midsummer29: People-Watching at a Monster Hotspot30: Where Cultures and Meat Meet31: The Little Station and the Sea32: Golf Driving Range: Slices of Life33: Art Supply Heaven in Tokyo34: Starlit Tales from a Nagano Tent Village35: Daycare Center in Fukuoka's Nightlife District36: The Traveling Ballot Box37: Behind the Masks: Halloween in Roppongi38: From Okinawa to the World and Back





















