On 21 May, Japan Festival 2023 was held at Box Hill Town Hall in Whitehorse City, located in the metropolitan area of Melbourne, Victoria.
This event was a collaboration between the previously postponed “Japan Festival” and “Melbourne Japanese Summer Festival” due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It aims to contribute to the cultural exchange between Japan and Australia by introducing Japanese culture and customs and providing an enjoyable event for the everyone.
Visitors had a great time experiencing various activities such as Wadaiko (Japanese drum) performances, traditional Japanese dance, flower arrangement, bonsai exhibitions, and hands-on activities like shogi (Japanese chess) and origami. They also enjoyed visiting food stalls offering a wide variety of Japanese cuisine, including yakisoba and onigiri.
At the CLAIR Sydney booth, we exhibited and promoted the JET Program (Japan Exchange and Teaching Program) in collaboration with JETAA (JET Alumni Association) and travel information about various regions of Japan.
Many visitors came to our booth seeking information about popular tourist destinations in Japan and places where they can enjoy snow during the winter season. Some already made plans to visit Japan starting from the coming autumn or winter and expressed their joy at being able to travel to Japan again after going through the pandemic.
There were also people who inquired about information regarding sister cities, such as Aichi Prefecture (sister state of Victoria), Osaka City (sister city of Melbourne), and Matsudo City (sister city of Whitehorse City). There were also people who asked about travelling and brochures for regions they had not yet visited, in addition to internationally famous tourist destinations like Kyoto and Hokkaido. It was evident that there is an increasing interest and awareness regarding travel to Japan.
Going forward, we will continue to support the promotion of local governments in various regions of Japan, fostering stronger connections between the people of Japan and Australia and increasing interest in Japan.
From the 3rd to the 13th of December, eight selected swimmers from the Fukuoka Swimming Association visited NSW, where they participated in joint training sessions with a local school and competed in the 2024-25 Speedo NSW Senior State Age Championships.
