Cherry Blossom Festival Parade

Celebrate Japanese-American culture by sketching colorful floats, including the Mikoshi, hoisted by over 100 strong individuals (gender unspecified) as thundering Taiko drums shake the ground. Japanese classical (Buyo) and folk dance (Minyo) groups from the Bay Area perform along the parade route "like a myriad of floating butterflies." There will probably also be cosplayers to sketch.

1:00 Meet at 1501 Post Street (between Gough & Laguna) where the folks who carry the Taru Mikoshi hang out. If you're not interested in sketching a lot of beefy guys in loincloths and tattoos you can sketch the parade as it goes by, or head down Post to the Festival area, where there are tamer things to sketch, like bonsai trees and flower arrangements.

3:30 Meet to share sketches and chat at the Ruth Asawa Fountain basin on Buchanan Street, just north of Post. (The fountains are off being repaired, but the circular stone basin is still there.)

The parade route starts at City Hall, heads north on Polk Street and west on Post to the Japan Center. More info about the parade and the full festival schedule.

See our sketches from the Cherry Blossom Festival in previous years:
2018, 2017, 2015, 2013

BRING

• Keep your gear light and portable so you can sketch standing up in a crowd or walking along with the parade.
• A stool or other thing to sit on if you don't want to stand.