Started in 1953, the Cherry Blossom Festival (CBF) in Honolulu is the longest, continually running ethnic festival in Hawai‘i. The purpose of the festival to perpetuate Japanese culture and enrich the lives of young women of Japanese ancestry in our state. A project of the Honolulu Japanese Junior Chamber of Commerce (HJJCC), the festival includes the crowning of a Queen at the Cherry Blossom Festival ball.
The culmination of the festival is an annual ball to select a queen from among the contestants. The evening includes a Western phase and Eastern phase. During the Western phase, Queen Contestants deliver a prepared speech while wearing an evening gown. During the Eastern phase, contestants answer an impromptu question while wearing a traditional furisode (kimono). The evening ends with the crowning of the Cherry Blossom Festival Queen and her Court.
Leading up to the annual ball to select a Festival Queen, contestants participate in cultural and personal development classes, which include Japanese cuisine, instruction in taiko (synchronized drumming), Chanoyu (tea ceremony), and Japanese business etiquette. This training provides the young women the opportunity to learn about their Japanese heritage, improve their poise, practice public speaking, and develop leadership skills.
Cherry Blossom Festival Free Events
The annual Cherry Blossom Festival (CBF) in Hawaiʻi is a time-honored cultural tradition, dedicated to the perpetuation of Japanese culture in our state by enriching the lives of young women. Each year, the CBF Souvenir Book memorializes the festival events. T-shirts are also designed to encompass the theme of the current festival.
2025 Cherry Blossom contestants’ public appearances
- Saturday, January 18, 2025 from 12:00 – 1:00 PM. ROYAL HAWAIIAN CENTER PUBLIC APPEARANCE
- Saturday, January 25, 2025 from 12:00 – 1:00 PM. PEARLRIDGE CENTER PUBLIC APPEARANCE
- Sunday, February 15, 2025 from 12:00 – 1:00 PM. KA MAKANA ALII APPEARANCE
- Sunday, February 23, 2025 from 3:00 – 4:00 PM. ALA MOANA CENTER PUBLIC APPEARANCE
More info: Hawaiʻi Cherry Blossom Festival (cbfhawaii.com)
About the Honolulu Japanese Junior Chamber of Commerce
Throughout the 1930s and 1940s, Japanese people in Hawaiʻi (and throughout the continental United States) faced social pressure to assimilate into popular American lifestyle. In 1942, President Roosevelt’s Executive Order 9066 forced the internment of 120,000 Japanese Americans, adding more hardships and challenges. After WWII, many nisei found a void in Japanese American communities. In 1950, HJJCC’s first president, Robert Y. Sato established the organization’s purpose of building good citizenship among Hawaiʻi’s young Japanese Americans by providing a platform for community-wide projects.
In 1999, the HJJCC opened the Queen contest to multi-ethnic Japanese American women. Although it was a controversial move, the CBF and the HJJCC succeeded in expanding the festival’s reach into the multi-ethnic community of Hawaiʻi. In 2000, Vail Matsumoto became the first Queen of less than 100 percent Japanese ancestry. The following year Catherine Toth became the first Queen without a Japanese surname.
Throughout the years, the HJJCC has also reached out to the international community and has formed bonds with other civic organizations, including the Hilo Jaycees, the Nisei Week Japanese Festival in Los Angeles, the Northern California Cherry Blossom Festival in San Francisco, and the Greater Seattle Japanese Queen Committee, and several Junior Chambers in Japan.
More info: Honolulu Japanese Junior Chamber of Commerce
About Japanese Kimono
Japanese Kimono are one of the most recognizable pieces of clothing around the world. You may not know there are many different styles of kimono, designed and worn in different seasons for different occasions from casual to formal. The design common to all kimono is the t-shape achieved by sewing 4 single pieces of fabric (called “tans”). Designs and uses are different for women and men.
For example, a furisode is a formal, usually hand-sewn Japanese silk kimono with long, flowing sleeves worn by an unmarried woman to a formal event. Yukata are casual cotton summer kimono that are popular attire at anime conventions and with visitors to Japan. Haori are simple coats worn over a kimono, by both women and men. Haori are also popular for western attire.
“Kitsuke” is the art of wearing a traditional Japanese kimono. Kimono are usually worn in layers. Juban is one common type of undergarment worn under the kimono with just the collar visible. By contrast, men’s Japanese kimono are typically simple in design, while the juban undergarment is decorative. Traditional Japanese kimono may require accessories, such as a koshihimo (belt) worn under an obi (wide sash) and several others. Just like the kimono, accessories have a range of formalities and uses.
Japanese people appreciate seeing non-Japanese wearing kimono, especially when they show an interest in understanding and learning about the traditions of kimono. It is important to learn about kitsuke and to wear a kimono properly, whether casual or formal.
Fabric designs for a kimono also have cultural meaning. For example, ducks are associated with a long and happy marriage. White rabbits symbolize fertility when paired with waves, the full moon, and the New Year. Cherry blossoms represent the fragility of life and beauty. And so on.
More info: Japanese Kimono Store USA // Ohio Kimono
Event calendar of free and affordable things to do
Listed below are all types of free and affordable things to do in the next 30 days across the Hawaiʻi Pae ʻĀina.
Featured Events are listed first each day, highlighted by a photo. These are unique, popular, or annual events that we or our advertisers don’t want you to overlook.
You might also like: Hawaiʻi on the Cheap – affordable living and things to do (hawaiionthecheap.com)
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