Powell Street Festival

Yesterday...I attended the Powell Street Festival...in the East end of Vancouver. It
was very much about...the grace...beauty...and power...of the Japanese culture. I can
only speculate on why it is called the Powell Street Festival...and not a title with
the word "Japanese" in it. I suspect it may well be because this street was one of the
first in Vancouver...to be settled by Japanese-Canadian people. It was good to see...
how this segment of Canada'a population...where multi-culturalism...and not total
assimilation...is to the fore...has thrived...and how much they have to offer this
country. I was struck by how much people who have kept their ancient traditions going
...enliven the modern overall culture they live in...taking it away from being engulfed by a uniform blandness. The many women...children...and men...in traditional Japanese dress...offered a feast for those like myself...wielding cameras...and many of us roamed around the festival site...on the look out...for more of these images...to take away with us. I certainly came away with enough photos and video
clips...to create a video from the event. It now resides on YouTube. It is called...
"Japanese Culture Festival Vancouver 'o8".....................Quester.