Japanese Garden in Hasselt's 20th Anniversary Event!
Hullo! uploaded by extraordinary on Flickr.The Japanese garden in Hasselt celebrated its 20th birthday on April 15th with the official opening of an impressive new torii! ♥
I was super nervous about wearing my kimono properly for the very first time, b-but I think my outfit turned out pretty well? I'm really happy with how it looked! Unfortunately, my haori jacket doesn't match the kimono or season at all - but it's the only one I have & it kept me warm throughout the day... so I was pretty glad I brought it along. x'D
We arrived just in time for the official opening ceremony for the new gate! Lots of people were already standing around the entrance to the garden and waiting for the speeches, etc... this Japanese lady came up to me and was kind enough to help fix my haori ties, haha. (I ran out of time while I was dressing and kind of just grabbed the haori while running out the door? There was no time to Google how to tie it correctly... X.x;)
Here's the gate and... I think that's the mayor of Hasselt? ^^; BONUS DETERMINED PHOTOGRAPHER PHOTO-BOMBING MY PICTURE, LOL.
These two lovely girls from The Netherlands spotted me and asked me if I was there for the Dutch Kimono De Jack meet-up! X.x; I was all "WAAH! I'M NOT READY TO MEET POTENTIAL FRIENDS!" and tried to shy away at first, b-but they were very persistent & would not let me get away. *laughs!*
I was a little overwhelmed at first - but I actually ended up having a fantastic time thanks to them!! I'm so glad they didn't give up! I can't wait to see them all again~! ♥!
Cutting the official... ribbon thing! x'D
Kyaa~! Another Japanese lady looking super elegant!
...also, I think I look gradually less car-sick? x'D My mother's boyfriend drives a little, err, MANLY-like. I needed a few minutes to recover. *wry smile!*
There were a lot of performances for us to enjoy throughout the afternoon! Here is the lady who played the flute - I didn't catch her name? She admitted to being super nervous at the beginning, b-but it sounded all right to me. ^^;
THERE WAS ALSO SINGING & DANCE! *sweatdrop!*
O_O; Wasshoi...
I fail at matsuri dancing, ok. Well, I fail at any kind of dancing TBH. DON'T JUDGE ME. I somehow got roped into this one by one of the Japanese ladies I talked to earlier that day... T____T!
I TOOK MY REVENGE BY GETTING THE DUTCH GIRLS TO JOIN IN, THOUGH. LOLOLOL.
After we finished dancing, I was introduced to another member of the Dutch KdJ! Mei-ing is so stylish! FKDJLFKJDKLFJD! =)
Obligatory sakura shot~!
Time for another performance! This time it was the koto played by Horie-san! They also had a taiko performance, b-but I didn't get any pictures of them... oops. =')
Time for food~! I love how Mei-ing is so happily taking pictures of Linda and Carolien - NOT A TYPO! Our names are spelled a little differently, haha! - here! x'D (IT REMINDS ME OF SOMEONE I KNOW. LOOKING AT YOU, sarahcoldheart. LOL.)
Sushi~! ♥___♥!
Outfit shot! =)
I look like I'm falling over here... or like I'm about to ATTACK YOUUUU~! x'D IDK, I fail at posing. It's OK.
A GROUP OF WILD GEISHA APPEARED.
With my mother & her boyfriend~! ^^;
I DON'T WANT TO POST THIS PICTURE BECAUSE IT'S SO EMBARRASSING, B-BUT AT THE SAME TIME I SHOULD DOCUMENT MY PROGRESS RIGHT? T__T!
I still need to improve on so many things: my otaiko musubi is so messy! I'm not wearing a proper juban... I should be showing more of my fake!juban collar, etc etc etc. BUT I DON'T LOOK AWFUL SO IT'S ALL GOOD. x'D
Group picture with the Dutch KdJ Girls! ♥____♥!
I am so honoured I got to be included! They all look so amazing!! *HUGE GRIN!*
TABI SOCKS SHOT? This reminded me SO MUCH of Lolita meet-ups, ahahaha. =')
I sneakily (... ok, no, not so sneakily?) took this picture because I wanted to eternally admire their pretty musubi! Carolien's hair is so pretty here - I wish I had blonde and curly hair, too! x'D
Lastly, a really hilarious group picture. Not entirely sure what happened there. O.o;
There's only one thing I hate about wearing kimono... THE STORAGE! It's so hard to keep them wrinkle-free and fold them properly, ahahahaha. T___T!
I guess the same goes for most of my "normal dresses" as well, b-but for some reason it feels more troublesome with kimono. I need to improve my kimono folding skills ASAP. Or maybe I should invest in proper kimono hangers. x'D