Takeuchi Festival (Bamboo Fight) Perhaps Tohoku is so cold that people just need some violence as a winter entertainment! In this town, hundreds of people literally get drunk, put on their helmet (safety is important), grab a 20-foot long bamboo stick, and gather for a fight. Fighters are divided into two teams (North and South). Winning of the North team symbolizes a good rice harvest in the upcoming year; although this tradition is often forgotten by the drunken Japanese men.