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Published: April 7th 2008
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Sakura - the symbol of Japan
This Sakura had travelled a long way from Japan to Hanoi for the Japan Sakura Festival on 6 April 2008. Japan Sakura Festival in April 2008 (photo No. 1 to photo No. 32) On Sunday 6 April 2008, the Japan Sakura Festival (Lễ hội hoa anh đào Nhật Bản tại Việt Nam 2008) took place at Giảng Võ Trade Fair Center in Hanoi. The event was organized in order to celebrate the 35th year anniversary of the Vietnam - Japan friendship. Many people in Hanoi visited the place. Most of them were young people or students who were learning Japanese. I learned Japanese for 3 years, traveled to Japan on business in 2004 and now still working for the Japanese, so I went to this cultural event with great interest.
Sakura is the famous flower which is the symbol of Japan. Late March and April are the best time to see cherry blossom. 300 branches of Sakura were brought to this festival from Japan, then attached to 3 big trees, as we could see the soil bags at the connection points. Lots of bees were flying around Sakura.
The cherry blossoms at the festival had pink and white color. Yesterday I saw Sakura for the first time and it was so great to see them right here in
Kinkaku-ji
The famous golden temple in Kyoto. Hanoi. When I visited Japan in November 2004, it was the red leave season (Koyo) in autumn, so I didn't have the chance to see Sakura.
Some other activities at the festival were Kimono performance (a Japanese lady explained how to wear a Yukata - summer kimono), Soba noodles made with hands, Aikido class, Super Yosokoi performance, Obon dancing, Yosokoi parade on Hanoi's street, Kabuki performance etc., as well as the games like Kendama (ball throwing), Senbon Tsuri (toy picking), Origami etc.
This is the second time the Japan Sakura Festival was held in Hanoi. The last festival in 2007 attracted about 10,000 visitors. This year, the event was organized by the Vietnam - Japan Cultural Exchange Association at a larger area from 10:00am to 6:30pm, so that more people could enjoy Sakura and know about the Japanese culture. Chochin (Japanese lantern), Koi (Japanese carp) and Japanese photos were also displayed at the festival.
Japan Sakura Festival in April 2009 (photo No. 33 to photo No. 47)
Sunday 12 April 2009 - The Japan Sakura Festival 2009 was held at Quần Ngựa stadium to celebrate the 999th year anniversary of Hanoi city and to introduce
Japanese Kimono
These girls are Vietnamese students, who are learning Japanese language in Hanoi. They are standing at the entrance of the gate into the festival area. Japanese culture to Vietnam. This was the 3rd festival during the last 3 years. The festival lasted 3 days (10 to 12 April), however we only could see real Sakura on the last day of the festival. 400 branches of Sakura and 400 carp flags were brought from Japan. It was estimated that about 200,000 people in Hanoi who visited the place for watching Sakura as well as other cultural activities.
The cherry blossoms (Sakura) this year didn't look as great as the ones last year. I was at the festival from 10am to 1pm and it was very crowded at the site. Japanese dances and circus Tamasudare performances were very impressive. Harajuku Super Yosakoi was the best performance with participation of Japanese artists on the stage and Vietnamese students on the ground. The music, dance, flying flags and atmosphere were all great. In the afternoon there was another Yosakoi dance performance same as parade on Văn Cao street (about 1km), but I left before that time. Many students from different colleges had been practicing for this show for months.
I've had a connection with Japan for the past 20 years and experienced different feelings. There were my
Mikoshi
This is used in the street parade during the festival. dreams of traveling in Japan when I was a little girl, determination to learn Japanese, harsh reality when working for Japanese companies, disappointment by treatment of some Japanese in Vietnam, decision to give up Japanese and change to learn English, happy moments during my business trip to Japan and gratefulness to some good Japanese who helped me. Now I no longer speak Japanese although I still work for a Japanese company. I also don't have any Japanese friend. There are some things relating to Japan that I still like which are food, Sakura, Kimono, traditional dances, music and lovely souvenirs.
Lễ hội Hoa anh đào Nhật Bản tại Việt Nam 2009 Lễ hội Hoa anh đào Nhật Bản tại Việt Nam 2009 được tổ chức từ 10 đến 12/4 tại Sân vận động Quần Ngựa, Hà Nội. Đây là một trong những hoạt động nhằm chào mừng kỷ niệm 999 năm Thăng Long - Hà Nội, đồng thời giới thiệu văn hóa Nhật Bản. 400 cành hoa anh đào tươi được mang trực tiếp từ Nhật Bản và ghép thành 4 cây hoa lớn vào ngày cuối cùng của lễ hội. Ngoài ra, còn có 400 cờ cá
chép là những biểu tượng mùa xuân của Nhật Bản.
Hàng loạt các chương trình biểu diễn giới thiệu văn hóa Nhật Bản như điệu múa dân gian Nhật Yosakoi, múa nón hoa Hanagasa Ondo, kịch Nam kinh Tamasudare... Yosakoi được biểu diễn trên đường phố Văn Cao vào chiều 12/4, với sự tham gia của 10 đội múa từ Nhật Bản và 700 sinh viên, học sinh Việt Nam
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Arigato gozaimasu
Once again, a well done and interesting blog entry. Great pictures, too! Thank you Ms. RedRiver... Arigato gozaimasu