At the end of rice harvesting season, the folks of the Kagawa and Niigata Prefectures in Japan hold a straw festival to celebrate the abundance of the harvest. Dried straws cover wooden frames to form larger-than-life sculptures from animals like sharks and gorillas to vessels such as ships and tanks. The family-friendly event invites visitors of all ages to engage, interact, and play on the enormous structures.

People stand under a giant Czech flag as they arrive to light candles at the base of a statue of St. Wenceslas to commemorate the death of former Czech President Vaclav Havel on December 18, 2011 in Prague, Czech Republic. Havel, who led the Velvet Revolution that forced communist rule in Czechoslovakia to crumble in 1989, died in the early morning today in his sleep at the age of 75. (Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

Participants sit on a cable chair as they take part in the 30th edition of the Belalp Witches Ski Race on January 14, 2012 in Belalp, Switzerland. The race is inspired by a legend dating back to the middle ages, of a witch who tormented villagers in the area until she was burnt to death. (Photo by Harold Cunningham/Getty Images)

Contestants dance during the Miss Plus Size Carioca beauty pageant on July 8, 2017 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. 24 contestants, aged 18-45, competed in the contest which aims to challenge modern inclusive standards of beauty. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)

A lightning strikes St Peter's dome at the Vatican on February 11, 2013. Pope Benedict XVI announced today he will resign as leader of the world's 1.1 billion Catholics on February 28 because his age prevented him from carrying out his duties – an unprecedented move in the modern history of the Catholic Church. (Photo by Filippo Monteforte/AFP Photo)

A girl joins other novice nuns for a lunch at the Sathira-Dhammasathan Buddhist meditation centre in Bangkok April 21, 2013. A group of Thai girls are choosing to spend part of their school holidays as Buddhist nuns, down to having their heads shaven at the meditation centre. The centre, founded in 1987, is a learning community for peace and harmony that has programs open to people regardless of age and gender. (Photo by Damir Sagolj/Reuters)

A German contestant adjusts his helmet during the “Battle of Nations” in Aigues-Mortes, southern France, Friday, May 10, 2013 where Middle Ages fans attend the historical medieval battle competition. The championship will be attended by 22 national teams, which is twice the number it was last year. The battle lasts until May 12. (Photo by Philippe Farjon/AP Photo)

Baloo (R), a North American Black Bear, rubs snouts with his companion Shere Hkhan, a Bengal tiger, inside their shared enclosure at Noah's Ark animal sanctuary in Locust Grove, Georgia, USA, 28 August 2014. According to the facility, the pair and a lion named Leo, were confiscated at a young age from a drug dealer's basement in Atlanta, Georgia. Noah's Ark cares for about 100 different species of animals on a 250 acre farm since 1990. (Photo by Erik S. Lesser/EPA)