By now you've already downloaded our Sakura Sunday app onto your smart phone and ordered your Sakura Sunday t-shirt, so you might be wondering, "What else can I do to prepare for Sakura Sunday?" Well, now you can download the official program for this Sunday, April 14 at the Fairmount Park Horticulture Center!
Today's weather has us thinking indoorsy. Come Sakura Sunday, we're all hoping for a beautiful day, but regardless of what it's like outside here are some great activities we'll be holding inside the Horticulture Center building on April 14th, including origami, calligraphy, and sending messages to people in areas affected by the 2011 tsunami in northeast Japan.
Ohanami or cherry blossom viewing is a timeless tradition that evokes images of kimono, hana (flowers), ocha (tea), and other traditional arts. This year Sakura Sunday will feature a concentrated area for enthusiasts of traditional Japanese culture - Shofuso's Sakura Pavilion. Steeped in traditions of its own - featuring two restored historic buildings from the Centennial celebration - it seems a perfect place to take in the finer aspects of Japanese traditions. Learn more about what's happening after the jump.
Another highlight of the performers taking the stage on Sakura Sunday, April 14th, will be members of the Sawai Koto Academy, a world-renowned koto (a traditional Japanese string instrument) school founded in 1979 by the late Tadao Sawai. The Sawai Academy trains hopeful members around the world, following the vision of Sawai and his wife Kazue, a koto master, that koto "should not be restricted to Japan and should actively participate in the world-wide music scene." Preeminent koto and jiuta shamisen artist Masayo Ishigure teaches for the academy in New York City.
With about two weeks to go before starting their spring tour of the Northeast US, the Tamagawa University Taiko and Dance group haven’t forgotten to keep up with their fans as they finish rehearsing and preparing. Through their English-language Facebook page, team members have been posting pictures of past performances, current rehearsals and the occasional doughnuts with cute bear faces (the perfect reward for an intense practice session). They’ve been getting to know their fans better via comment-based conversations, and in return helping us get to know them too.
By now you've already 
Today's weather has us thinking indoorsy. Come Sakura Sunday, we're all hoping for a beautiful day, but regardless of what it's like outside here are some great activities we'll be holding inside the Horticulture Center building on April 14th, including origami, calligraphy, and sending messages to people in areas affected by the 2011 tsunami in northeast Japan.
Ohanami or cherry blossom viewing is a timeless tradition that evokes images of kimono, hana (flowers), ocha (tea), and other traditional arts. This year Sakura Sunday will feature a concentrated area for enthusiasts of traditional Japanese culture - Shofuso's Sakura Pavilion. Steeped in traditions of its own - featuring two restored historic buildings from the Centennial celebration - it seems a perfect place to take in the finer aspects of Japanese traditions. Learn more about what's happening after the jump.
Another highlight of the performers taking the stage on Sakura Sunday, April 14th, will be members of the 
With about two weeks to go before starting their spring tour of the Northeast US, the Tamagawa University Taiko and Dance group haven’t forgotten to keep up with their fans as they finish rehearsing and preparing. Through their English-language Facebook page, team members have been posting pictures of past performances, current rehearsals and the occasional doughnuts with cute bear faces (the perfect reward for an intense practice session). They’ve been getting to know their fans better via comment-based conversations, and in return helping us get to know them too.
