Ideas for kids: Kingyo Sukui (goldfish scooping)
All Japanese kids raised in the cities know what "Kingyo sukui" is and our kids learned what it was all about last summer.
Kids go scooping at summer festivals for 300 yen per try from "Demise" goldfish merchant who set up shop under a tent with a huge tub full of goldfish. Off season you can do kingyo sukui at the local fish shops or Seibutuens (bio-parks).
Our kids did their first kingyo sukui from at a summer festival. The kids were given scoops made of rice flower that melt if submerged in water for too long and try to lift squirming fish out of the tub of water. Most merchants give the unlucky kids a "good try" present. Thus, with three unlucky kids, we beacame the happy owners of 3 baby goldfish on our very first try.
For our second try the kids did it at the local bio-park. The scoops must have been far more water resistant, thus, we had the attention of all the kids in our train carriage when we tried to take our 7 goldfish, 1 carp, and 3 loaches on the train home. Surprise! The kingyo sukui tub at the bio-park included not only goldfish but other freshwater creatures including crawfish! Although the kids begged me and my husband to go again the next weekend we had to decline. We were recreating the Japanese freshwater river habitat in our own living room!
Be warned, however, that should a year go by and you or whoever's put in charge of their care does a good job they may even grow big enough that you'll need to find a pond to keep them in. Our "baby" goldfish which were originally 2 to 3 cm long are now, 11 months later, 11cm. The "baby" carp which was 9 cm has a destiny awaiting it in the local elementry school pond in a few more months at 22 cm long.
Even with all this in mind you can't possibly go through a Japanese summer without trying it out! The excited smiles on your kids' faces will be priceless!
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