Every year, more than 200,000 individuals from all around California gather to meet at San Francisco’s Japantown for the annual Northern California Cherry Blossom Festival. This year, the event occurred over two weekends, beginning on April 12 and ending on April 20.
For the event, Post Street, Sutter Street, and Webster Street were closed off to prevent any traffic during the event. Additionally, booths were set up alongside the sidewalk, with a main stage at the intersection of Post Street and Webster Street, where most of the event’s performances were located.
“There were lots of different artists, food stalls, and music acts along the streets,” said Suri Taherian, a Carlmont sophomore and cosplay enthusiast.
As one of California’s most recognized and celebrated events surrounding Asian culture and the most attended spring event in the Western hemisphere, the festival’s primary goal is to celebrate Japanese culture in light of the spring season. The event brings the diverse Japanese American community together through various activities.
“I thoroughly enjoyed the event thanks to all of the different booths where I learned more about Japanese culture,” said Bhavya Raman, a junior at Carlmont. “I had only known about cherry blossoms being associated with Japan prior to this festival.”
The event began in 1968 and has since cultivated and maintained the cultural bridge between the United States and Japan. This event has grown into a memorable phenomenon with a growing Japanese population.
In the spring of 2024, the San Francisco Recreation and Parks Department began the renovation of Japantown’s Peace Plaza. Construction is estimated to conclude in late 2025 or early 2026. As a result, the cherry blossom festival and its participating companies had to improvise without the area of space.
The festival attracted the attention of various companies, including Sanrio, known for its signature characters. On April 20, My Melody joined the festival parade to integrate Japanese pop culture into the celebration.
One group participating in the parade was from Drum Revolution, a taiko ensemble based in San Francisco. Kensuke Sumii, a professional taiko drummer with years of experience training in Japan, leads the group.
“This event allows groups like us to present our daily activities and practices,” Sumii said. “Without this event, I wonder how the public could appreciate a season of cherry blossoms.”
For families with younger children, various local childcare and Japanese immersion programs offered fun games and crafts to raise funds for their schools and community.
Masa Sasaki, a parent volunteer, helped run the Clarendon Elementary School udon booth.
“The goal of the booth was to spread awareness about our school’s Japanese Bilingual Bicultural Program, which allows students to learn about Japanese culture at school,” Sasaki said. “We hope to spread the word about Japanese programs in elementary schools beyond San Francisco.”
Other ways that attendees participated in the festivities were through cosplay.
“I didn’t go to the festival to watch the parade, but I wanted to meet and introduce myself to other cosplayers,” Taherian said. “However, I enjoyed the different art showcased at the festival.”
Sumii mirrors this feeling when discussing why many groups perform in the parade, to share their hobby rather than educate the public about cherry blossoms.
“I always hope that our production of the art form can encourage the audience, especially those who have encountered difficulty,” Sumii said.
