The Cherry Blossom Festival is in Town
In case you missed it last weekend, the annual Cherry Blossom Festival is back again this weekend, April 21 and 22 in San Francisco’s Japantown (Post Street between Laguna and Fillmore Streets). The event is free and open to the public. There will be food booths, cultural performances, martial arts, live bands, the annual Queen Program, and more. The Grand Parade will be held on April 22, beginning at City Hall and concluding in Japantown.
About the festival
This year, the Northern California Cherry Blossom Festival is celebrating its 45th year, as one of California’s most prominent celebrations of Asian traditions. Each year, over 200,000 people attend this dazzling display showcasing the color and grace of the Japanese culture and the diversity of the Japanese American Community. The 2012 Festival will celebrate the 100th year anniversary of the National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington, D.C. and will also pay tribute to the 100th Infantry Battalion, the 442nd Regimental Combat Team and the Military Intelligence Service comprised of all Japanese American soldiers receiving the Congressional Gold Medal of Honor. The highest civilian honor bestowed by the U. S. Congress. The festival will also recognize the one year anniversary of the Tohoku Region Earthquake and Tsunami.
The Northern California Cherry Blossom Festival is said to be the second largest festival outside of Washington, D.C. to celebrate the blooming of cherry blossoms; and held at one of three remaining Japantowns in the United States.
