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San Francisco Japantown: Cherry Blossom Festival 2017
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dracosphynx.livejournal.com dragged me up to the San Francisco Japantown for their 50th Cherry Blossom Festival. Whee! It was fun, though at this point we both know pretty much what to expect.
This is from a recently-opened store that appeared to specialize in kitchenware - things that would be useful around the kitchen or one's home in general. This in particular is a selection of cat-themed ceramic from Reiko Takahashi. I was tempted but I honestly don't drink tea enough to merit buying these.
Behold! Now you can dress your sake bottles up fancy. I'm not sure if this serves a purpose but it's adorable.
I'm pretty sure these are examples of small mobile shrines styled after palanquins. Now your god can travel in style!
Speaking of traveling in style, while we were up in the northern part of the festival (it was early in the day) we saw a miniature parade - it seemed as if they were carrying a Mikoshi shrine to the main area of the parade where it would be blessed later in the day. Makes sense - you wouldn't want it out in the open for potential vandalism overnight.
That's not a fursuiter-- that's someone positioned just behind a tiger's head backpack. A really impressive tiger's head backpack. You can buy ALL sorts of things in the arts'n'crafts section of the Cherry Blossom Festival.
I inquired but was denied permission to take pictures of the unique cat-shaped leather bags and pouches nearby. Ah well.
They had a bonsai exhibit again. I'll be honest, most of the bonsai does nothing for me, but this particular specimen is a masterful recreation of a traditional Asian mountainscape.
The paper dolls got shuffled over to a table next to the stage, rather than having a room of its own this year. I'm not sure if it's a promotion or demotion. Ah well. I always enjoy Rachelle Lum's critters. ^_^ Also, take note of the interesting poses in the third one -- that's some advanced doll-making there!
Random dolls I saw in the window of an exhibit that wasn't open at the time. These aren't paper dolls, they're just (well, not really just) miniature dolls in elaborate outfits. Still, someone took a lot of time and trouble to bring these scenes to life!
Dawg! Specifically, an 'Akita Inu'. These are BIG dogs - Dracosphynx thought they probably weighed as much as we did. I liked the tiger-striped pattern, though I suspect actual dog owners would call it "brindled".
They are RIDICULOUSLY fluffy. You could see them visibly shedding into the wind.
Food! Sadly, On the Bridge has simplified its menu, and I was looking forward to trying out their various rice bowls. We should probably try eating at one of the other restaurants next time. This is a chicken katsu curry, with a fried egg on top. Because fried eggs make so many things tastier.
While passing through the food stalls section of the festival, I was able to take advantage of one food booth's temporary lull in business to snag these tasty things. They're miniature donuts, with a dark chocolatey sauce drizzled on top. Yum!
dracosphynx.livejournal.com dragged me up to the San Francisco Japantown for their 50th Cherry Blossom Festival. Whee! It was fun, though at this point we both know pretty much what to expect.This is from a recently-opened store that appeared to specialize in kitchenware - things that would be useful around the kitchen or one's home in general. This in particular is a selection of cat-themed ceramic from Reiko Takahashi. I was tempted but I honestly don't drink tea enough to merit buying these.
Behold! Now you can dress your sake bottles up fancy. I'm not sure if this serves a purpose but it's adorable.
I'm pretty sure these are examples of small mobile shrines styled after palanquins. Now your god can travel in style!
Speaking of traveling in style, while we were up in the northern part of the festival (it was early in the day) we saw a miniature parade - it seemed as if they were carrying a Mikoshi shrine to the main area of the parade where it would be blessed later in the day. Makes sense - you wouldn't want it out in the open for potential vandalism overnight.
That's not a fursuiter-- that's someone positioned just behind a tiger's head backpack. A really impressive tiger's head backpack. You can buy ALL sorts of things in the arts'n'crafts section of the Cherry Blossom Festival.
I inquired but was denied permission to take pictures of the unique cat-shaped leather bags and pouches nearby. Ah well.
They had a bonsai exhibit again. I'll be honest, most of the bonsai does nothing for me, but this particular specimen is a masterful recreation of a traditional Asian mountainscape.
The paper dolls got shuffled over to a table next to the stage, rather than having a room of its own this year. I'm not sure if it's a promotion or demotion. Ah well. I always enjoy Rachelle Lum's critters. ^_^ Also, take note of the interesting poses in the third one -- that's some advanced doll-making there!
Random dolls I saw in the window of an exhibit that wasn't open at the time. These aren't paper dolls, they're just (well, not really just) miniature dolls in elaborate outfits. Still, someone took a lot of time and trouble to bring these scenes to life!
Dawg! Specifically, an 'Akita Inu'. These are BIG dogs - Dracosphynx thought they probably weighed as much as we did. I liked the tiger-striped pattern, though I suspect actual dog owners would call it "brindled".
They are RIDICULOUSLY fluffy. You could see them visibly shedding into the wind.
Food! Sadly, On the Bridge has simplified its menu, and I was looking forward to trying out their various rice bowls. We should probably try eating at one of the other restaurants next time. This is a chicken katsu curry, with a fried egg on top. Because fried eggs make so many things tastier.
While passing through the food stalls section of the festival, I was able to take advantage of one food booth's temporary lull in business to snag these tasty things. They're miniature donuts, with a dark chocolatey sauce drizzled on top. Yum!
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