Rainy season ideas: ③ view the pinwheels

Each year in June there are several places where you can view pinwheels on display. Often shrines or temples will have a colorful display of pinwheels up during the rainy season. I am not sure of the significance of pinwheels during rainy season. I personally associate them more with children's day in Japan. But I noticed over the years that rainy season is a good time to see pinwheels up and, on a windy day, blowing. They really add some color on a grey day!

Each year I go to Kawagoe Hikawa Shrine to view their pinwheel display. This year, I've been once already. But as it was a calm day the pinwheels weren't dancing in the breeze at all, so I will go back again on a windy day. Even though I have seen them blowing in the wind every year for the last ten years! But they change the colors slightly each year, so its always a pleasure to go back.

Moreover, I relish seeing the pinwheels, because it is one of the few summer things outdoors that I can enjoy. Once mid July comes it gets too humid for me to spend long periods of times outdoors and my outings in the daytime sun will become less and less common. The pinwheels are usually down before mid July in most places anyway - late July / August is probably too humid for them to work properly too!

The pinwheels at Kawagoe Hikawa Shrine are up for about four to five weeks each year around the month of June. This year they went up earlier, at the end of May, because they will come down earlier than normal too, around the 24th of June. 

Is there anywhere you can see pinwheels near you at this time of year?