What is obon? What kinds of memories do you have about summer holidays? When I was a kid, my family visited the hometown to see my grandparents. The family of my father is a Buddhist, so they do customs of Buddhism during obon holidays, too. Obon refers to the holiday seasons of Japan that is related with Buddhism, basically which is from Aug 13 to 16. What people do during obon is to decorate a butsudan (Buddhist altar) in their home with flowers, lanterns, and vegetables, etc. to welcome the spirits of one's ancestors. There are an egg-plant and a cucumber on the right side of the decoration. They have legs lol People make them with sticks to decorate. They are symbols of horses. The spirits ride the horses to visit the family. I remember my grandmother burned wood in front of her house to welcome the spirits of the ancestors in the evening on Aug 13, and to say good-bye to them on Aug 15. That's memory I have as a typical of Japanese summer holidays.