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Commemorative events for sister city and friendship city days
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Hiroshima City has set Sister City and Friendship City Days for each of its six overseas sister and friendship cities, and holds commemorative events each year.
From 2003, Hiroshima City has been consigning the organization of these events to this Foundation.
The Hiroshima Messengers, who are Hiroshima residents designated by the city, act as MCs for each event.
Volgograd Day
A commemorative event for Volgograd Day was held on September 9, 2018.
First of all, visitors viewed a display at the section introducing Russia's Volgograd City, which included traditional Russian crafts, photographs of Volgograd City, and explanations of youth exchange activities between Hiroshima City and Volgograd City.
Next, at the food and culture experience section, visitors could enjoy a piano recital by Ms. Kazuki Tanaka as they enjoyed the Russian sweet baklava cake and Georgian wine.
At the commemorative ceremony in the hall, there were speeches by the head of the executive committee and the Mayor of Hiroshima, and a message from the Mayor of Volgograd was read out in Russian by Ms. Julia Smirnova, a Russian living in Hiroshima who was the MC for the event.
There was also a speech by the Consul from the Consulate-General of Russia in Osaka, who was a special guest.
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Next, the Hiroshima Messenger Mr. Hirokazu Fujioka gave a presentation on Volgograd City using images and videos, and members of Hiroshima Choir, who visited Volgograd City in 2017, talked about their visit.
Following on from last year, two students from Elizabeth University of Music performed Russian music on the violin and piano, and then the members of Hiroshima Choir performed various Russian songs.
There was also a mini-lesson on the Russian language with Ms. Smirnova participating, a fun prize draw where participants could win Russian goods, and then Hiroshima Choir took to the stage again and sang together in a rousing chorus with the audience.
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Performance by Kazuki Tanaka and the members of Hiroshima Choir
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Although the weather on the day was poor, around 120 people attended the event and furthered sister-city exchange with Volgograd City.
Chongqing Day
A commemorative event for Chongqing Day was held on October 20, 2018 at Hiroshima City International House.
Visitors were welcomed by a display of chrysanthemums that were donated by Chongqing City.
They enjoyed Chinese moon cakes, mahua (fried dough twists) and oolong tea.
At the opening ceremony, there were speeches by the head of the executive committee and the Mayor of Hiroshima, and there was also a message from the Mayor of Chongqing.
The two Hiroshima Messengers then gave an easy-to-understand presentation on the city of Chongqing, its food culture, and other aspects, using photos.
They also held a quiz about Chongqing and a mini-lesson on the Chinese language, and the audience participated enthusiastically.
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Performance of the Chinese lute by Ms. Ting Ting
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At the commemorative concert, the members of the Hiroshima branch of the Japan-China Friendship Association performed tai chi, and the audience joined them, trying the slow, graceful moves.
Next was a performance of the Chinese lute by Ms. Ting Ting, a professional Chinese lute player.
Listening to the sound that we have few opportunities to hear, there were comments from the audience, such as "I was moved by the wonderful performance," and "The tone of the music was healing."
At the end of the event, there was a prize draw where people could win goods related to China that had been donated by Chongqing City and others.
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There were around two hundred visitors at the event, and through the various experiences they were able to enjoy themselves and deepen their understanding of Chongqing City and China.
Honolulu Day
On November 3, 2018, the commemorative event for Honolulu Day was held at the underground event space at the south exit of Hiroshima Station.
First, visitors were welcomed with flavored coffee and fruit juice.
The event was opened with the classic hula dance Kahiko, which was then followed with speeches by the head of the executive committee, the deputy mayor of Hiroshima, and a video message from the mayor of Honolulu.
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Next, the two Hiroshima Messengers gave a presentation on Honolulu's tourist spots, such as Diamond Head, and the history of Japanese immigrants in Honolulu, showing photos on the large screen at the venue.
Next was a performance by a Hawaiian band and hula dancers.
The authentic performance and graceful hula dance enveloped the venue in the tropical mood of Hawaii.
In the end, the audience joined in a chorus of "Hawaii Aloha" and experienced the atmosphere of Hawaii.
At the venue there was a display and sale of Hawaiian goods and a section where people could make their own ribbon leis.
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Graceful hula dance performance
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There was also a section introducing Mr. Hiromi Hasai, who won the Kentaro Kaneko Award from the America-Japan Society given to people for their long-term contribution to exchange activities between Japan and America.
The display showed scenes of the award ceremony and exchange between six Hiroshima universities and the Hawaii University baseball team, showing the results of Mr. Hasai's efforts.
There were around 600 citizens who joined the event, enjoying themselves as they learned more about Honolulu City.
(Hiromi Hasai passed away on January 26, 2019, at the age of 87. We commemorate his achievements and pray that he rests in peace.)
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| (International Relations & Cooperation Division ) |
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