I went to the 36th Ashiya Sakura Festival, which was held yesterday, April 7!
↑Just like last year, it was packed with people and super crowded!
↑The schedule and venue map. A “Photo Contest” was also being held.
↑The street was lined with all kinds of food stalls, selling fried chicken, fries, frankfurters, yakisoba, oden, curry, wine, and more.
↑There were chairs and tables set up at the venue too, and everyone was relaxing and enjoying the cherry blossoms.
↑There were lots of people in front of the Ashiya Civic Center too! Rice flour donuts were being sold in front of the main building entrance.
↑Having these kinds of specialty sweets shops feels very Ashiya, doesn’t it?
↑The candied fruit stall had a huge line when I arrived, and by the time I was leaving, it was sold out. So popular!
↑A street stage was being held at Matsunouchi Green Space!
↑This area was lively too! It was a little hard to see the performers, but we could hear the music clearly and still enjoy it.
↑Still, the venue was just people, people, and more people!
↑Can you see how packed it was in front of the food stall tents?
↑Under the cherry trees in full bloom, lots of people were enjoying both the blossoms and the festival.
↑That day, plenty of people were also having cherry blossom picnics along the riverside north of the festival area, from Narihira Bridge to Taisho Bridge.
↑This is around the Hankyu Ashiyagawa Station bus stop. The cherry blossom branches spreading over the riverside were beautiful.
↑Outside the main venue, there were also stalls from “Ashiya Nikki” and “Raffinato” in front of “Palais Elegance”!
↑There were food trucks in front of the Seven-Eleven by the south exit of JR Ashiya Station too, so it seems various events were being held not only near the main venue but also at shops around Ashiya.
↑The Ashiya Sakura Festival resumed last year and was a huge success again this year. Hopefully it will continue for many years as one of Ashiya’s signature spring events!
