The 58th Annual Northern California Cherry Blossom Festival at San Francisco’s Japantown spanned two weekends in April: April 12-13 and April 19-20. On Easter Sunday, April 20, the festival culminated with the Grand Parade, featuring taiko drummers, traditional dancers, decorative floats and more. On this sunny day, the parade began at 1:00 PM at Civic Center Plaza, through Polk Street to Post and Fillmore streets in Japantown. Throughout both weekends, tourists and locals alike can enjoy cultural performances by local students, meet community leaders, such as San Francisco’s new mayor, Daniel Lurie, and sample the food Japantown has to offer at their local markets situated along the parade route. This free and family-friendly event celebrates Japanese and American culture, and according to SF Travel, draws over 220,000 attendees each year. This year, the festival commemorates the 80th anniversary of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. To show this, atomic bomb survivors were recognized and honored, showcased in the parade by car.
