Greenroom Camp in Shirahama: Beach Hippies Go Wild! ...And Other Stuff

On September 9^th and 10^th, I went to the first ever Greenroom Camp in Minamiboso, an event whose proceeds go to protecting the beaches in Japan. Greenroom Camp is a beach festival at Nemoto Marine Camgrounds in Shirahama. You can camp there at any time during the season, but for this event, event planners invited vocal artists, DJs, shops, and restaurants, and also provided a number of games and activities, water sports equipment rental.

I had to go to my old school’s sports day in the morning.  So we got there a little late.  Here, my friends are searching for a good spot near the water.  Luckily we found one!

Manly men.  Men who built the Eiffel Tower out of steel and braun.

Tent City

Shortly after we sent up the tent, we realized it was sunset. We could see Mt. Fuji and Oshima pretty clearly from across the bay. It was beautiful!

Oshima from across the bay.

A view of 'diamond Mt. Fuji' from across the bay.

Hammocks!

We stopped at 7-11 to pick up drinks and snacks, but we definitely came back to camp for dinner!  A lot of people bought grills and barbecued outside their tents, but there were also number of booths from restaurants from all over the Tokyo Bay area. The booths sold everything from ice cream and beer made in Miyoshi (in this city) to Hawaiian food and hamburgers made 100% from scratch (even the pickles and buns).

I had loco-moco and island-style fried chicken from the Hawaiian food stand and it was AMAZING!  I was so starving I forgot to take a picture :-/.

My friend had a burger and I took a bite…BEST BURGER I’VE EVER HAD IN JAPAN and chock full of veggies.  This is stand of the shop that makes it.  I hear it’s in Yokohama so if you’re in the area I recommend stopping by.

All of their burger ingredients and toppings are made from scratch. Yummy.

After that, we got our folding chairs and coolers, headed over to the stage, and waited for the day’s last performance to start.  It was nice and relaxing to listen to the sound of the waves and feel the cool breeze while enjoying a nice frosty beer and looking up at the sky.

An hour or so of chatting later, a performance began by some lady named Bird.  I have no idea who she was, but before I knew it, the beach, which had previously only been occupied by a few people sleeping and the three of us, swarmed with people.  At first these beach hippies were calmly swaying and applauding in between sets, but when Bird said she would play her debut song, everyone got up and starting dancing and yelling. It wasn’t even an especially fast, lively song. It was scary, like we had unknowingly in the frenzy of some cult meeting.  Beach hippies can be frightening!

Bird's performance before the frenzy.  Can you see the people?

After the show, we went back to the tent, and the boys changed clothes and got back in the water.  I am allergic to anything cold, so I just sipped a beer and got my feet wet.  Afterwards we went back to the tent, finished off our snacks, and went to sleep.  We left the roof open so we could sleep under the stars.

In the morning, we got up just in time for beach yoga!  I missed the sunset yoga on Saturday, so I was really happy to participate on Sunday. A ton of people came out, too.  Afterwards, most of the yoga participants (and us) hit the water again.  It was really hot outside so it was perfect for a dip.  Surfboard, surfmat, and paddle board (like a surfboard-raft with a paddle) rentals started back up, too.  I really want to try paddle boarding someday! We checked out the hammocks (so comfy) and then the boys tried sandal-tobashi (kicking a flip flop off your feet – if you kick it far enough you win a prize from REEF).  There were also some guys playing slackline (a big stretchy band that you stand on and dro tricks while you bounce).  I have zero physical ability of any kind, so I passed on the games, and around 11am we packed up and headed home.

Playing on the beach.  See my bobble-head friend in the bottom right.

sandal-tobashi

It was a nice experience, and I would definitely go again!  Next time I want to get there a little earlier, bring a ton of friends, and set up a full camp (tables, a grill, lanterns, etc) to make the best of the experience.  I hope they hold the event again next year!

Liz