The Monterey Park Cherry Blossom Festival took place on April 20 and 21 at Barnes Park in Monterey Park. While the wind has been going crazy in SoCal for the last couple weeks it was a nice change to have typical sunny 79 degree California weather. The sky was clear and sun was merciless as the day continued. Due to the sunny weather I felt it was most appropriate to have “This Cat’s on a Hot Tin Roof” by The Brian Setzer Orchestra as the theme, not to be mixed up with the very similarly titled Tennessee Williams play that would be really inappropriate for this event..

Like many cultural festivals there were plenty of things to do and food to eat. There was a large food vendor area, there were several booths selling different craft and goods, in addition to two different stages, and an exhibit area. The event took up most of the park including a small gymnasium and tennis courts. It was difficult to choose what to do first. The main park area had several different booths selling goods, including the anime swapmeet put together by PMX. There were plenty of things for kids to do as well including a bounce castle, game booths, and an inflated climbing wall all of which made me wish I was a kid again.

In addition to the booths the outside also held the main stage. This stage was used for many different presentations from dancing to martial arts and there was always something to draw the attention of the passing crowd. I was lucky enough to watch several of the presentations and I enjoyed each of them. First I had the chance to see a Wushu group showing off different forms and displaying great acts of agility. The second presentation I got to see featured a variety of traditional dances. Several different performers came on stage showing off some interesting choreography. The music for the dances was not just traditional music it also had new music by different bands using traditional instruments. I was drawn away from other tasks by the third presentation I watched that featured a Taiko group. They had several drums and played several different songs. The booming sounds drew plenty of people to see what was going on at the stage.

After a quick look around the area I decided to hit the exhibit area as it had been one of the more interesting parts of the event last year. This was held in the gymnasium that also featured one of the two stages used for the shows. The exhibit area had several sections that offer different visual treats. One section had different flower arrangements, another section had paintings, and another section had pictures and information from the Japanese Internment for those looking to be depressed.

The gymnasium stage was used for several shows including the Pacific Media Expo Cosplay Runway Show. This was hosted by me (and I did a great job if I do say so myself) and featured the ever popular Mikarin and nine great cosplayers. The show began with me introducing Mikarin who talked a little about cosplay. Then we brought on the nine cosplayers who participated as I gave some commentary and told a few jokes. The audience really enjoyed the show and there were plenty of photos being taken during and after the show. It was fun and it would have been nice to have a few more cosplayers, but the small group really seemed to get along and be supportive. This may also be due to this being a show rather than a competition.

As I am a bit of a food buff it was no surprise that I was drawn toward the scents and sounds of the food area. Venders had a variety of foods including spam masubi, teriyaki beef, and a personal favorite of mine takoyaki. Several of the vendors were yelling out sales pitches for their products. The most noteworthy was the tea booth selling “Ice cold winter melon tea”. It was nice seeing the food bazaar and picking up some really good snacks. It is worth coming down to this festival just for the food. If you want to know more about my foodie adventure then check out my food report.

One of the nice things about outdoor culture festivals are that they often times have plenty of room for different stalls. As this was a fairly big vent there are booths for kids, tchotchke merchants, food venders, two stages, and plenty of friendly people. To sweeten the pot it is a free event and many booths are run by organizations that are worth supporting like the Monterey Park Mustangs basketball club. The Monterey Park Cherry Blossom Festival is one of the best cultural events in Southern California both years we have attended have been great. Just be careful as it can get really hot even in late April so wear clothing better suited for the hot, unless you are hosting something then just just need to power through the heat like me.

Monterey Park Cherry Blossom and Anime Fest 2013 Gallery

Pictures are copyright by Scarlet Rhapsody . If I took your picture, feel free to use it on your site or cosplay gallery. While you're here, do sign the guestbook. This site was brought to you by the font LittleRickeyNF. Many thanks to Dream Host, Adobe Bridge, MS Photodraw, Picasa, and Dreamweaver for making this site design possible.