The 36th Annual Seattle Cherry Blossom and Japanese Cultural Festival took placed at the Seattle Center on April 2nd and 3rd.
The event is usually held in the middle of April, but despite being help two weeks early this year, the cherry blossoms were nearly in full bloom. By comparison, the blossoms had nearly all fallen off by the end of March last year.
There were many displays and performances of traditional Japanese culture done by local Japanese culture clubs. For example, there were Taiko drum performances, traditional Japanese dances, displays of Japanese-style flower arrangements (called ikebana), and Japanese calligraphy, among others.
The Seattle-Kobe Sister City Association (SKSCA) once again had a booth with the Hyogo Business and Cultural Center to promote Kobe, Hyogo Prefecture and the Sister City relationship with Seattle. One of the highlights of the SKSCA booth was the kimonos. Visitors could come to the booth, choose a kimono and SKSCA volunteers would dress them. Once the volunteers finished dressing them, many visitors had pictures taken to remember the experience.
In addition to the kimonos at the SKSCA booth, there was a Kimono Fashion Show emceed by Ms. Yuri Nishimura, an SKSCA board member. As the audience listened to Ms. Nishimura’s explanations and facts about the kimonos, people took pictures and videos of the models. The event was so popular that all the seats were filled quickly and people had to stand in the back to watch the show.
We are grateful to Ms. Yuri Nishimura, Ben Erickson, the SKSCA board members and all of the volunteers who helped out at the festival. We really appreciate all of their hard work.
On March 11, 2011, Japan suffered a magnitude 8.9 (some say 9.0) earthquake and tsunami near Sendai, on the east coast of Japan. Many people lost their lives, their homes, or a combination thereof. In order to raise money to help those in need, at this year’s festival there were donation boxes and t-shirts for sale. The t-shirts were red or blue, with the words, “Tsunami of Love,” written on the front. The victims of the Great East Japan Earthquake (also called the Tōhoku Earthquake) still need your help and you can donate to organization such as the Red Cross or Peace Winds America.
Next year is the 50th Anniversary of the opening of the Seattle Center, and hopefully next year’s Cherry Blossom and Japanese Culture Festival will be bigger and better than ever before.
The words, “Ganbare! Japan” are made out of paper cups. The words translate as, “Keep your chins up Japan!” There is a message written inside each of the cups.
Some of the models of the SKSCA Kimono Fashion Show
The Kimono Dress-Up Corner
