Back when I was a student in Kyoto I had the chance to participate in the popular festival "Toka Ebisu" (十日戎) in Osaka as a "lucky girl" - fukumusume (福娘). This was a great cultural experience for me, and one of the most fun memories I have of my time as a student in Japan. Each year the Imamiya Ebisu shrine elects a total of 50 girls through the Fukumusume contest, and the lucky chosen get to work at the shrine during the 3-day long Osaka festival held on an annual basis in January, and if you are lucky you could have the chance to become one of the lucky girls of next year!