You don't have to go far anywhere in the United States to find a Cherry Blossom Festival this spring! This weekend we stopped by the Cherry Blossom Festival hosted by JASCO at the Franklin Park Conservatory and enjoy a day long adventure dedicated to Japanese culture and art. This event was free to attend if you lived in Franklin County, and the admission for non-local attendees went to help support the garden and its important conservation and educational work. Live entertainment included thrilling martial arts displays, taiko performances by Dublin Taiko, and Koto Performances by our friends over at the Koto Columbus Ensemble.
So I grabbed one of my favorite antique haori, and wore it out to the festival!
There were interactive family friendly and very fun displays as well including a kimono photo booth by our friends at Columbus Kimono! While stopping by to say hi, we even saw a few obi and kimono we are pretty certain Columbus Kimono has purchased from Ohio Kimono! This booth was extremely popular, and Kat and Liz were main attractions for attendees.
We also were fortunate enough to be able to sample one of the amazing matcha lattes and Japanese style doughnuts from The Mochi Shop, which we greatly enjoy and highly recommend. Supplies were limited, and they were nearing a total sellout by the time we got through the time. So we consider ourselves lucky to get to try their tasty options!
Hosted By: JASCO, Japanese American Society Of Central Ohio https://www.jascentralohio.org/
When: April 2nd, 2023 - Sunday, Free Community Day
Location: Franklin Park Conservatory, Columbus Ohio - https://www.fpconservatory.org/
These festivals are the perfect excuse to break out your favorite yukata, or haori and enjoy a fun time! Be certain to use google to check and see if there are any cherry blossom festivals happening near you!
We hope this event returns next year, and plan on attending!