The largest festival in Japan, Hakata Dontaku is held in Fukuoka City during Golden Week, the first week in May. The festival originated in the Muromachi Period (1333-1568) as a procession of the merchants of Hakata, an old section of Fukuoka City, paying their new year visit to the daimyo, or feudal lord. The festival highlight is a three-hour parade with legendary gods on horseback, floats, and musicians playing samisens (a three-stringed instrument similar to a guitar), flutes, and drums. Discuss