２０２４年９月
The annual Japanese Festival was held over the Labor Day holiday weekend (August 31 – September 2) at the Missouri Botanical Garden in St. Louis. Over the three days, we recorded a total of 54,000 attendees, reflecting a growing interest in Japanese culture. We take pride in the significant support from the volunteers who help make the festival possible.
Our group, the Tea Ceremony Society of St. Louis, “Junshin-an,” successfully conducted demonstrations of the tea ceremony on the first and second days in front of a full audience. This year, we used slides to showcase the small tools used in the ceremony and provided explanations to help the audience see and understand them better. Several attendees complimented us, saying it was wonderful. I believe the hard work of our students paid off.
On the third day, we assisted in two workshops led by the wagashi (Japanese sweets) artisan, Noriyuki Kamiyama, who has been coming from Koriyama for the past three years. Both workshops were highly popular, with more than three times the number of people lined up for the twenty available spots.
Thank you, everyone, for your hard work
