In Tokyo’s Asakusa district, Saturday August 30, 2008, 4,700 people, organized in 20 Samba schools, turned their district into Little Brazil. They were dressed accordingly, danced the samba, and used decorated cars. This is a tradition started in 1981 - The Asakusa Samba Carnival - when Taito Ward invited over the winning group of that year’s Rio Carnival in Brazil.

Akira Iizuka, a member of samba organization G.R.E.S. Saude in Yokohama, said his group participates in other events, but this is the biggest.

“The Asakusa Samba Carnival is where people can perform a real Brazilian-style carnival,” said Iizuka, who was taking part in his eighth Asakusa festival.

The carnival featured contests for two leagues with a total of 20 teams.

The teams paraded from Umamichi Dori to the end of Kaminarimon Dori in front of thousands of people.

The dancers prepared their own costumes and themes.

While many women wore showy colorful bikinis with big feathers on their head and back, costumes varied widely between the different teams. Members of one team dressed as chefs.