NEW YORK: The third “Japan Parade” aimed at spreading Japanese culture was held in Manhattan, New York, on Saturday.

About 100 groups, including the western Japan city of Yamaguchi, which was selected for The New York Times’ list of “52 places to go in 2024,” took part in the event. Tens of thousands of people gathered along the street to enjoy traditional Japanese culture and food.

The previous Japan Parade was held last year.

Yamaguchi Mayor Kazuki Ito appeared in a costume of the Yamaguchi Gion festival with a history of about 600 years. Performances of Hanagasa Ondo folk songs from the northeastern Japan prefecture of Yamagata and those by actors from the stage play adaptation of the “Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba” hit manga series were also shown.

Former leading wheelchair tennis player Shingo Kunieda from Japan took part in the event as well and responded to the cheers of people along the road.

Speaking to reporters ahead of the parade, the Yamaguchi mayor said, “I want to convey the taste of ‘the Kyoto in the West’.”

Yamaguchi, located west of Kyoto, is said to be modeled after Japan’s old capital of Kyoto and is often called the Kyoto of the West.

Visitors to the event also enjoyed Japanese food such as “takoyaki” octopus dumplings and grilled scallops from Hokkaido, northernmost Japan.

JIJI Press