※英文は日本文の下にございます！

8月中旬、スミス英会話相模原校のある相模原市中央区は静まり返っていました。2023年はお盆が本来どんなものだったかを思い出しました。人々は通常、お盆の時に故郷へ戻りお墓参りをするということを、私は忘れていました、なぜなら新型コロナウィルスが流行していた数年間人々は旅行を避けていて、相模原市内は変わらず夏の活気があり混雑していました。今年の8月、ある土曜の夜、散歩をして食事でもしようかと出かけました。

Sagamihara City Chuo-ku recently went silent! This year I was reminded what Obon is all about. Obon is an annual Buddhist event that commemorates one's ancestors whose spirits are believed to temporarily return to this world in order to visit their relatives. Families normally travel to their hometowns to pay homage. I had forgotten, because during the pandemic people didn’t travel, and Sagamihara City stayed much the same in August- vibrant and busy. One recent Saturday evening I decided to take a walk around town, and maybe drop into a place for a drink and some food.

My walk turned into a “hike” of 3.5 kilometers and 4,600 steps! It was a bit shocking to see the sudden change in Sagamihara City. I was confused. There was very little traffic, few people outside, and every restaurant and bar I passed was empty or near empty-  on a Saturday night. Then I realized that most people had left town. This is what this time of year is supposed to be like- quiet and peaceful, unless you’re traveling through an airport, riding the Shinkansen, or stuck in traffic on a major highway. 

We kept it quiet this year, having a small barbecue and later celebrating my wife’s birthday at TGIFridays in Machida City, Tokyo. I suggested making a reservation, but it wasn’t necessary. The restaurant was nearly empty at 7:00pm.

Yes, I had forgotten what the normal Obon season was like in Japan. How nice it was to close Smith’s School of English Sagamihara for a week and relax in a town gone silent. Obon is an interesting and serious time of year in Japan, whether you’re traveling or staying home. I really enjoyed it this year (2023).