Finally in the shrine grounds

 Standing just inside the shrine grounds, I was able to see what was happening at the blue tent. It was a food stall sell a variety of Japanese foods typical of this sort of place. They were also selling shochu and hot water. Shochu is a distilled drink made from sweet potatoes, yams, or sometimes grain. To me, it tastes a lot like kerosene, but many people like it. In winter a shot of shochu is placed in a glass of hot water.

 We were finally getting close, after being in line for a little more than an hour.

 The line turned off to the left to a place where each person purified themselves by washing their hands and rinsing their mouths. I did not take pictures because many people would have considered it an invasion of their privacy and people were three abreast so I could not show just my wife.

 After purifying ourselves, we stopped for a moment at the fire that had been burning since sundown on New Year's Eve. The heat felt really good.

I was surprised because there was a large pile of charcoal brickets in the fire. Most years the fire is complete made from old planks and tree trunks. I guess that someone must have donated them.