{"id":28817,"date":"2013-02-05T21:59:18","date_gmt":"2013-02-06T01:59:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jetwit.com\/wordpress\/?p=28817"},"modified":"2013-02-05T22:03:07","modified_gmt":"2013-02-06T02:03:07","slug":"2013-sakura-festival-in-kumejima","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jetwit.com\/wordpress\/2013\/02\/05\/2013-sakura-festival-in-kumejima\/","title":{"rendered":"2013 Sakura Festival in Kumejima"},"content":{"rendered":"

Posted by Benjamin Martin<\/strong><\/a>, a 5th year JET on Kume Island<\/a> in Okinawa<\/a>, publisher of the blog MoreThingsJapanese.com<\/a><\/strong><\/em>\u00a0and author of the YA fantasy series\u00a0<\/em>Samurai Awakening<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0(Tuttle).<\/em><\/p>\n

\"IMG_2073\"<\/a>January 26th marked the beginning of the 2013 Kumejima <\/a>Sakura Festival. \u00a0Sakura (Cherry Blossoms) are an important symbol marking the change of seasons in Japan. \u00a0As the weather begins to warm, cherry trees sprout beautiful flowers in a range of colors from white to red. \u00a0 Since Okinawa is so far south, cherry blossoms begin to arrive in January. \u00a0They work their way north through April. \u00a0During this time, people flock to areas with cherry trees to picnic, drive, and see the beautiful flowers and wildlife.You might have noticed the new header, a compilation of 3 shots taken of a Mejiro (Japanese white-eye) in cherry trees I caught the Friday before the festival along the Ara Forest path.<\/p>\n

The Festival<\/h2>\n

\"IMG_1856\"<\/a><\/p>\n

As part of the sakura season, many locals often have festivals to support tourism, create entertainment for locals, and to simply celebrate the beautiful surroundings. \u00a0This year the Kumejima Sakura Festival took place on January 26th, a day of sun and generally great weather (I got sunburned in January. \u00a0It was also a little windy.)<\/p>\n

\"IMG_1869\"<\/a>On Kume Island, the festival takes place at Daruma Mountain Park in the western\/central part of the island. \u00a0The festival was set up in a clearing surrounded by cherry trees. \u00a0After an opening ceremony, new cherry trees were planted for the future. \u00a0Arrayed around the clearing were many tents with local restaurants serving specialty foods. \u00a0This year, the restaurants competed in a competition to see which one had brought the most popular item.<\/p>\n

There were several live performances from local groups including Nankuru Sanshin and the “Super Bridal Band,” as well as karate demonstrations and other entertainment. \u00a0The band I play with (Super Bridal Band started up a few years ago to play at my boss’s wedding, I joined a bit after moving here) just after the opening ceremony. \u00a0 There’s a compilation video below of our set.<\/p>\n