Kanda Matsuri (May 11-17): One of Tokyo’s three major festivals—Kanda Matsuri—takes place over a period of 8 days in mid May. The main parades are on the Saturday and Sunday in the middle with the ‘reitaisai’ procession on the last day of the festival (the weekend of May 13-14 and Wednesday the 17th respectively for 2017). The festival only takes place on odd numbered years, so if you miss 2017’s you’ll have to wait until 2019 to see it next.
Tokyo Fashion Meetup (May 11): Tokyo Fashion Meetup is a networking group for people in the fashion industry—designers, entrepreneurs, photographers, stylists, merchandisers, make-up artists and fashion industry professionals who want to connect, learn from and develop a strong network of peers.
Nerd Nite Tokyo (May 12): Nerd Nite is “the Discovery Channel with beer”, a worldwide monthly event series that mixes presentations, performances, trivia, demos, music, and of course drinking. Themes for the May event include being gaijin, compu-onco-netics, and sumo.
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Sidewalk Sale at US Embassy Housing Compound (May (13): A cheapo-approved event, the residents of the US Embassy Housing Compound in Roppongi hold an annual “Sidewalk Sale” to clear out old English books, clothes, sports equipment and household knick-knacks. The sale starts at 10am, but expect a crowd, so get there early to snag the best stuff!
Thai Festival at Yoyogi Park (May 13-14): Speaking of crowds, you can also expect some at Yoyogi Park—where the highly anticipated annual Thai Fest kicks off the park’s ethnic-centered celebrations for the spring and summer seasons. There will be 100 booths selling Thai delicacies, fruit smoothies and alcoholic beverages. Plus there will be art, crafts and musical performances.
