Photo/Illutration Nepali and Sri Lankan students carry a decorated boat on Aug. 15 at the traditional lantern festival in Shimabara, Nagasaki Prefecture. (Eiji Matsushita)

SHIMABARA, Nagasaki Prefecture—International students were invited to join a lantern boat festival here, helping to preserve the local tradition and learning from the unique cultural experience.

The festival, which honors the spirits of ancestors on the Obon holiday of Aug. 15, featured a procession of boats adorned with gorgeous lanterns.

“The lantern festival is the biggest event for our community,” said Daisuke Kusunoki, 77, the neighborhood association chairman.

Nine Nepali and Sri Lankan students from the Shimabara International Japanese Language Institute worked together to carry one of the 41 decorated boats.

After being paraded around the neighborhood, the boats were carried to a beach on the Takeshima Coast. There, as firecrackers exploded and the carriers chanted Buddhist prayers, the boats were pulled around in a spectacular performance before being released to the sea.

There is a similar festival in Nepal to pay tribute to the dead, according to one of the students from that country.

“In landlocked Nepal we release the boats on rivers,” said the 26-year-old student. “It’s beautiful to see them floating on the sea. I feel great.”

As Japan grapples with a declining birthrate and aging population, many traditional events like this are threatened by a shortage of participants.

“While the international students help address our staff shortage, it also offers them a great opportunity to learn about Japanese culture,” Kusunoki said.

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