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Water Street, next to Heritage Park, was the destination for the festival and the dancing area was ringed by red and white lanterns. In addition to the dancing – simple moves and genuflections set to folk music – there was Japanese food, the River Ridge High School taiko drum band and a demonstration of aikido, a Japanese martial art.
Bon Odori is part of what is known as O Bon in Japan, essentially a weeklong vacation in August in which many workers take time off to return home to see relatives, said Naoko Suzuki and Naho Choshi, two students from Japan who attended Saturday as part of a cultural exchange organized by Saint Martin’s University. Suzuki and Choshi are studying at Okazaki University and both are from cities in Aichi prefecture, between Tokyo and Osaka. Seattle Mariners outfielder Ichiro Suzuki also is from Aichi prefecture.
Suzuki and Choshi said O Bon, too, is a time of reflection for relatives who have died. Spirits are welcomed home and families visit grave sites to pay their respects. Choshi said one of her favorite things about O Bon is visiting her grandmother’s house for a delicious meal of teriyaki chicken, sushi, fried shrimp and cake.
On Saturday, Suzuki and Choshi each had a bowl of curry rice and had purchased teriyaki burgers to eat later. The two are visiting the U.S. for the first time – including stops at Seattle’s Pike Place Market, the Olympia Farmers Market, the Hands On Children’s Museum and the Capitol Campus. They said the Bon Odori festival reminded them of home.
Sarah May of Littlerock was their host. May speaks a little Japanese after she took classes at Tumwater High School; she wants to visit Japan one day, May said.
Also served at the festival were edamame, a steamed, lightly salted soybean; and somen, a thin noodle dish that typically is served in a cold broth due to Japan’s hot and humid summers.
Another feature of Saturday’s event was the hanging of wishes on slips of white paper, which replaced the traditional floating of lanterns to honor those who have died and express hopes for peace.
The lantern floating requires using Capitol Lake, which is not permitted now because of a snail infestation. Last year, lanterns were launched from West Bay Park, but splitting the festival between two locations proved complicated, and organizers chose to forgo it.
Donations also were accepted for earthquake relief in Japan. Money collected will go to Direct Relief International, The Olympian reported last week. The Bon Odori festival is sponsored by the Olympia Japanese American Citizens’ League and the Olympia-Kato Sister City Association.
Rolf Boone: 360-754-5403
rboone@theolympian.com
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