I happened to find out that the Shibukawa Heso Festival was being held that day.
I’d never been before, so I thought, why not?
And I’m glad I went, because it was one of the funniest festivals I’d seen.
First of All, What Does “Heso” Mean?
Heso (へそ) means belly button in Japanese.
Shibukawa is known as the “belly button of Japan”, and that’s where the idea for the festival comes from.
The festival began in 1984 as part of an effort to promote the city, and its most distinctive feature is the Heso Odori — the belly button dance.
And yes, it really is a dance involving people’s bellies.
People Actually Paint Faces on Their Stomachs
This was easily the funniest part for me.
The dancers paint faces across their stomachs and then dance together through the street.
The first time I saw them, my reaction was basically:
This is hilarious.
What made it even better was that every belly seemed to have its own personality. Different faces, different expressions, different designs — and then you had an entire group of them moving together.
It was such a strange idea, but somehow it worked.
Some of the groups appeared to be from local companies and organisations, so I stood by the street for a while and watched one group after another pass by doing the Heso dance.
What Was the Festival Like?
It was busy when I visited, with plenty of people around and food stalls along the festival area.
The festival itself didn’t feel particularly spread out, though. I don’t think I stayed for even an hour.
I mostly wandered around for a bit, stopped to watch the dancers and enjoyed the atmosphere.
It was lively, noisy and fun — exactly what you’d expect from a local summer festival, except that this one had a procession of dancing belly faces going past.
That’s probably the part I’m going to remember.
If You Happen to Be in Shibukawa…
I wouldn’t plan an entire trip to Gunma around my experience alone, but if you’re nearby when the Heso Festival is on, it’s certainly an unusual bit of Japan to see.
I only spent a short time there, but watching groups of people proudly dancing through the street with faces painted on their stomachs was enough to make the visit memorable.
Sometimes you don’t need a huge festival or a famous tourist attraction.
Apparently, a load of dancing bellies will do.
