At the beginning of August, my host family brought me to their grandparents' apartment in Otsu to watch the fireworks festival. This festival happens once every year, and it was a spectacle to watch. We arrived in Otsu around 3:30 pm, which gave me enough time to meet my host mother’s family for the second time. We met once toward the middle of July, when we hosted a barbeque. I’ve always found that food allows for conversation to flow incredibly easily, and I experienced that firsthand on that day in July. I found it really easy to feel like a part of the family while watching the fireworks. Jokes flowed like water from a faucet, and laughter filled the air.

As we all were waiting eagerly for the fireworks to begin, we walked along the beach, taking in the cool August breeze. We were not the only ones waiting for the fireworks. The beach slowly began to fill with eager spectators. As the sun began to dip beneath the horizon, the anticipation quickly grew, not just in the apartment, but with the spectators who were sitting on the edge of Lake Biwa. There were dozens of people who were sitting on the edge of the lake, enjoying the August breeze.

Almost immediately after the sun started to set, the first of the fireworks was launched from the middle of the lake. The first one caught me by surprise, and I may have jumped slightly at the first boom. As soon as the first one began to settle down, a second one began. This repeated on and on as the sky began to turn from orange and yellow to a pitch black.

As the night progressed, the number of simultaneous fireworks increased. The night began with one firework, then two would come out at the same time, and it slowly progressed until the night sky was illuminated with shimmering lights. It reminded me of the sort of displays you can find on the Fourth of July.

While the fireworks were booming in the night sky, those of us in the apartment continued chatting as we watched the fireworks explode in the night sky. Somehow, despite two dogs being in the apartment, both of them were remarkably calm. Neither were shaking or barking, and were just enjoying the show. The dog that my parents had is a massive scaredy cat, and would even refuse to walk on tile. Seeing them so calm in spite of the massive noises and bright lights was something I was not expecting to see.

The next day, I boarded a bullet train and went to Nagoya, as my time in Japan was coming to a close. This firework festival was as perfect of a send-off that I could’ve possibly asked for.