Kobe Trade Information Office Blog: The 2010 Seattle Japanese Queen, Kisa Nishimoto, visits Kobe City

On May 22^nd, the 51^st Seattle Japanese Queen Kisa Nishimoto and the Queen Committee President Terry Nakano visited the Kobe Trade Information Office and talked about their experiences during their trip to Kobe and their participation in the Kobe Festival Parade on May 15th.

On May 13^th, Kisa participated in the Bell Ceremony at the Kobe Maritime Museum. Every year at the Bell Ceremony, special guests are invited to ring the bell in hopes of bringing prosperity and safety to the Port of Kobe.

Later that same day, Kisa attended a special worship and tea ceremony arranged by Chief Priest Kato of the Ikuta Shinto Shrine (who is also the Chair of the Kobe City Festival Committee). When asked about the ceremony at Ikuta Shrine, Kisa said that while she had been a little nervous, she was happy to have had the chance to experience such a traditional part of Japanese culture.

Kisa later paid a visit to Kobe’s Mayor, Tatsuo Yada, at city hall. When he asked about her overall impression of Kobe, Kisa said that Kobe was really beautiful and there were so many places she wanted to see during her visit. Also, next year is Kobe and Seattle’s 55^th Anniversary of their sister city relationship and Kisa invited Mayor Yada to visit Seattle for the event.

Finally, on May 15th, was the big event: the Kobe Festival. Kisa rode in a red convertible, alongside Deputy Mayor Nakamura. As the parade went down Flower Road and Sannomiya Chuo Street in downtown Kobe, Kisa greeted the crowds of people with a smile. When asked about her participation in the parade, Kisa said that the Kobe Festival was bigger than she had imagined, but she had had a lot of fun participating.

Now that she’s back home, Kisa plans to tell as many people in the Seattle area as possible about her wonderful stay in Kobe City.