Big fireworks displays

One of the first memories, when I met my now husband, was going to the big fireworks display in Maebashi, a bigger city nearby. His daughters who are usually with him went on their rare visit to their mother’s place and he took a bit of time off in the evening to come home and change so we could make it out to the river where the fireworks could be seen. It was my first time going to see fireworks in Japan and I wasn't sure what to expect. In America, I never needed to leave my front yard to see the glorious bursts of color around Christmas and New year and then again for the Fourth of July. I had also seen fireworks at a distance from the balcony of my host families high rise apartment. What I didn’t expect was the number of people parking cars in the free parking areas set up (we were late so they were nearly full) the hoards walking in from the train stations or the lines of patient people qued up for that oh so delicious Jaga-bata. The fireworks show was a festival all of its own with food vendors and crowds upon crowds of people. Those who clearly didn’t have to work on Saturdays until past 5 in the evening had already set up and claimed space for themselves and their family members. Everyone and their mothers had brought leisure sheets or tarps and many of the families were in full picnic mode. They had ice chests and bentos, foldable chairs and all the luxuries one could haul out to a riverside. Wedged between these families were couples, often in yukata, holding hands or eating some of the festival foods. That was us. We searched for a cozy spot to see the lights in the sky. Being late, this was nearly impossible. There were so many people it was difficult to move let alone find a seat to rest ourselves. With giant booms sounding every few seconds, we made our way through the crowds and never really settled anywhere. It was still a great memory and we try to attend one fireworks display every year. This isn't difficult because there are multiple ones all across Japan every summer. But my favorite wasn't in summer. It also isn't an annual event. Our town had its 60th anniversary and in celebration, they put on a huge display. And of course, everyone was there. I hadn't known there were so many people in our tiny town. But because it was only townfolk there, we had front grass seats along the river