Aki-Matsuri
Aki-Matsuri is literally Fall Festival in Japanese. Which is where I went yesterday. Josh volunteered for this and I asked if I could tag along to see what it was. He had talked about these festivals, mostly the one in the spring, and I was curious to see what one entailed.
First thing was the food, or the smell of it. Those who know me best know I really do not care for oriental food...so the smell was almost enough to send me back to the car for the day. Hehe Ok, I didnt. I payed the entrance fee and went on into the area. I walked around and then sat down to wait for it to all get started. The Japanese ambassador to the US was there and spoke, though I have no idea what he said since he spoke only in Japanese. =) That was where I was most lost...very few spoke english.
I have to say I really enjoyed just being around the culture. They had performers, one group on drums and another group harp like things, but I dont remember what they were called. *shrugs* And yes, I did actually eat some of the food there. Octopus dumpling like things...very interesting flavor, but not as bad as I had dreaded and also this bean-filled pastry shaped like a fish on a sick...that was good as well. I blame Josh...he got me to try it. Hehe
They had a drawing for several prizes before the close of the festival, I didnt win anything but the last thing drawn was one number off from mine....close, but no prize for me. It was a round trip ticket to Japan, and I know exactly what I would have done with it...some one would have recieved it as a birthday gift. *smiles* But I can probably recognise the numbers 0-9 spoken in Japanese...so not a total loss. Hehe
All in all, it was a great day, weather was beautiful even if it did sprinkle at the end of the day. Two rainbows spread across the sky. I had a wonderful time and made me think I would like to learn more about the culture, and maybe even the language.
First thing was the food, or the smell of it. Those who know me best know I really do not care for oriental food...so the smell was almost enough to send me back to the car for the day. Hehe Ok, I didnt. I payed the entrance fee and went on into the area. I walked around and then sat down to wait for it to all get started. The Japanese ambassador to the US was there and spoke, though I have no idea what he said since he spoke only in Japanese. =) That was where I was most lost...very few spoke english.
I have to say I really enjoyed just being around the culture. They had performers, one group on drums and another group harp like things, but I dont remember what they were called. *shrugs* And yes, I did actually eat some of the food there. Octopus dumpling like things...very interesting flavor, but not as bad as I had dreaded and also this bean-filled pastry shaped like a fish on a sick...that was good as well. I blame Josh...he got me to try it. Hehe
They had a drawing for several prizes before the close of the festival, I didnt win anything but the last thing drawn was one number off from mine....close, but no prize for me. It was a round trip ticket to Japan, and I know exactly what I would have done with it...some one would have recieved it as a birthday gift. *smiles* But I can probably recognise the numbers 0-9 spoken in Japanese...so not a total loss. Hehe
All in all, it was a great day, weather was beautiful even if it did sprinkle at the end of the day. Two rainbows spread across the sky. I had a wonderful time and made me think I would like to learn more about the culture, and maybe even the language.