Hanagasa Ondo folk dance performs during the “Japan Parade” in New York on Saturday.
13:42 JST, May 12, 2024
NEW YORK (Jiji Press) – The third ‘Japan Parade’ aimed at spreading Japanese culture was held on Saturday in Manhattan, New York.
About 100 groups, including the western Japanese city of Yamaguchi, which was selected for the New York Times list of “52 Places to Go in 2024,” took part in the event. Tens of thousands of people gathered along the street to enjoy traditional Japanese culture and food.
The previous Japan Parade was held last year.
Yamaguchi Mayor Kazuki Ito appeared in a costume at the Yamaguchi Gion Festival with a history of about 600 years. *2
Performances of Hanagasa Ondo folk songs from Yamagata Prefecture in northeastern Japan and those by actors from the stage adaptation of the manga series “Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba” were also shown.
Japan’s former leading wheelchair tennis player Shingo Kunieda also took part in the event and responded to the cheers of people along the way.
Before the parade, the mayor of Yamaguchi told reporters: “I want to convey the flavor of ‘the Kyoto of the West’.” Yamaguchi, located west of Kyoto, is said to be modeled after Japan’s ancient capital, Kyoto. often called the Kyoto of the West.
Event attendees also enjoyed Japanese food such as ‘takoyaki’ octopus dumplings and grilled scallops from Hokkaido, the northernmost of Japan.
