A water festival without any water may sound like a contradiction in terms, but in Tokyo that's exactly how the Myanmarese community celebrate the New Year.
Back home, the end of the year (which falls in April according to Myanmar's traditional calendar) is marked by a four-day water-spraying spree, to symbolically wash away the sins and bad luck of the past year and welcome in the new year afresh. During Thingyan, as the festival is called, revelers cruise the streets in jeeps and trucks, stopping at special roadside marquees to be doused with water until soaked to the skin.
In Japan, however, the weather is too cold for water throwing, and no one wants to cause a scene by accidentally drenching unsuspecting passersby, so festival organizers confine themselves to providing plenty of food, fun and entertainment in a park in Nakano Ward.