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Nashville Japan Week
Sunday, March 31
- Hanami Picnic
- Time: 12:00 – 3:00 PM
- Host: Music City JET Alumni Association
- Location: Centennial Park Sunken Garden, 2500 West End Ave, Nashville, TN
- Visit the Hanami Picnic Facebook Page for more information
- Come on out to enjoy the cherry blossoms with alumni of the JET Program and all those with an interest in Japan! This is a casual event where we will gather, eat, and chat. Feel free to bring food to share with one another, but this is not a requirement to join. JETAA will provide tarps to sit on, and you may want to bring a blanket for more comfortable sitting.
Monday, April 1
- Third Annual Ramen Showdown
- Time: 5:00 PM
- Host: Green Pheasant, Otaku Ramen, Two Ten Jack, Sister Cities of Nashville
- Location: Green Pheasant, 215 1st Ave. S., Nashville, TN
- Visit the Ramen Showdown Facebook page for more information
- The wildly popular Third Annual Ramen Showdown will take place on Monday, April 1, starting at 5 p.m. at Green Pheasant (mezzanine level). Chefs Jess Benefield (Green Pheasant, Two Ten Jack) and Sarah Gavigan (Otaku Ramen, Bar Otaku) will duel it out, crafting specialty ramen for the evening. $15/bowl til sold out. Profits to fund Sister Cities of Nashville programs and relations with our Japanese sister city Kamakura through events promoting Japanese culture, arts and cuisine. Join us for the smackdown!
Tuesday, April 2
- Tuesdays for Tots
- Time: 10 AM – 12 PM
- Host: Cheekwood Estate and Gardens
- Location: Cheekwood Estate and Gardens, 1200 Forrest Park Dr, Nashville, TN 37205
- Visit Cheekwood’s website for more information
- Art and garden adventures abound as toddlers take over Cheekwood every Tuesday morning! Join us to get hands-on with art and gardens with your tot. This special Japan Week Tuesdays for Tots will feature a Japanese-inspired art project and other activities. Stop by the gardens anytime between 10 am – 12 pm on Tuesday mornings to participate! Free with general admission or membership.
Wednesday, April 3
- Lunch and Talks on Japan
- Time: 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM (Talks 11:00 – 12:30, Lunch 12:30 – 1:00)
- Host: Crossroads of the Nations Church Japanese Group
- Location: Crossroads of the Nations Church, 7116 Crossroads Blvd. Brentwood, TN
- Visit the Crossroads of the Nations Church website for more information
- Join the Crossroads of the Nations Church Japanese Group for several talks on Japan-related topics, to be followed by lunch. Speakers and topics are:
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Mr. Spencer Kawamoto- Reflections on Life as a Japanese-American
Mr. Joseph Nugent- Reflections on Bushido, the Way of the Warrior Miss Sayuri Soga- Reflections on Being a Professional Japanese Cheerleader Mr Matt Murton- Reflections on Being a Professional Japanese Baseball Player (tentative) Mr. Stephen Young- The Rise of Tennosei (Emperor Loyalty) in the 19th & 20th Centuries Mr. Anthony Odtohan - Reflections of Teaching English to Children in Japan |
- Window into Japan
- Time: 5:15 – 6:30 PM
- Host: Tennessee State University College of Business
- Location: TSU Avon Williams Campus, 330 10th Ave N, Nashville, TN - Capitol Dining Room, 3rd Floor
- Visit TSU’s College of Business website for more information
- A group of Executive MBA students will share their Global Immersion experience in which they traveled to Japan last June, followed by a Q&A session. Refreshments and Japanese finger food will be served.
Friday, April 5
- Nashville Public Library Puppet Truck presents Momotaro
- Time: 10:30 AM and 11:30 AM
- Host: Wishing Chair Productions
- Location: Nashville Public Library 615 Church St, Nashville, TN - 2nd floor Children’s Theater
- Visit Wishing Chair Productions’ website for more information
- Take a mystical journey through the heart of Japan as Wishing Chair Productions introduces one of the most famous characters in Japanese folklore. Performed with newly constructed Bunraku puppets, follow Momotaro and his companions on this tale of bravery, unity, and triumph over adversity.
Saturday, April 6
- Nashville Public Library Puppet Truck presents Momotaro
- Time: 10:30 AM and 11:30 AM
- Host: Wishing Chair Productions
- Location: Nashville Public Library 615 Church St, Nashville, TN - 2nd floor Children’s Theater
- Visit Wishing Chair Productions’ website for more information
- Take a mystical journey through the heart of Japan as Wishing Chair Productions introduces one of the most famous characters in Japanese folklore. Performed with newly constructed Bunraku puppets, follow Momotaro and his companions on this tale of bravery, unity, and triumph over adversity.
- Calligraphy Workshop at the Tennessee Language Center
- Time: 1:30 - 3:30 PM
- Host: Tennessee Language Center (TLC)
- Location: TLC, 220 French Landing Dr, Nashville, TN
- Visit TLC’s website for more information
- Visit the Calligraphy Workshop Facebook Event Page for more information
- In this free workshop, participants will be introduced to the 3 writing systems of the Japanese language, the history of the scripts, how they are used and for what purpose, and how to distinguish them from each other and other scripts (e.g. Chinese or Korean). The second hour will focus on Japanese calligraphy. Participants will receive brief training on stroke order and meaning of some common characters and will create some calligraphy art on their own.
- Tennessee Area Japanese Speech Contest
- Time: 12:00 – 6:40 PM
- Host: Middle Tennessee State University
- Location: MTSU, 1642 MTSU Blvd, Murfreesboro, TN - BAS State Farm Hall
- The Tennessee Area Japanese Speech Contest offers a chance for university students from Tennessee-area schools to show off their Japanese language skills through short speeches. Open to the public excluding children under 12.
Sunday, April 7
- Mochi Pounding Party
- Time: 12:00 – 3:00 PM
- Host: Asian Culture Center of Tennessee
- Location: Sevier Park Shelter 1, 3021 Lealand Lane, Nashville, TN
- Experience a uniquely Japanese activity as you pound rice flour to make Japanese mochi sweets! Guests can make and taste their own mochi, make a craft with chopsticks, and play fun games!
Tuesday, April 9
- Japanese Culture and the Cherry Blossom
- Time: 6:30 – 8:30 PM
- Host: Belmont University
- Location: Belmont University Bunch Library, 1907 Belmont Blvd, Nashville, TN - Bunch Multimedia Hall
- The Sakura, or Cherry Blossom, has great symbolism in Japanese culture. It heralds both the season of spring and death. This evening we will explore the Cherry Blossom's symbolism in Japanese culture yesterday and today in poetry, song, film, and literature.
Wednesday, April 10
- Tomodachi-kai Happy Hour
- Time: 6:00 – 8:00 PM
- Host: Music City JET Alumni Association
- Location: East Nashville Beer Works, 320 E Trinity Ln, Nashville, TN
- Visit the Tomodachi-kai Facebook Page for more information
- Join JET Program alumni and other young professionals interested in Japan to network over drinks and good food!
Thursday, April 11
- Mewsic Kitty Café BYOB (Build Your Own Box): Gotokuji Temple Japan Week Event
- Time: 6:00 – 8:00 PM
- Host: Mewsic Kitty Cafe
- Location: Mewsic Kitty Café, 2519 Nolensville Pike, Nashville, TN 37211
- Visit Mewsic Kitty Café’s website for more information
- We worship our cats. Meow it's time to do it in style! Join us as we build our own cardboard box cat forts in the style of the Gotokuji Temple. The Gotokuji Temple is home to thousands of maneki neko, beckoning cats. We will briefly share some of the folk stories of the Maneki Neko in Japan, then the Mewsic Kitty Purrduction Crew will guide the group in creating their own cardboard cat forts. Participants will leave with their own cardboard cat temple to take home to their kitties. This two hour event leaves plenty of time for kitty cuddles with the 18 adoptable cats at the catfe! You can register for the event by clicking this link and scrolling down to Thursday, April 11th. Click here for the Facebook event page.
Friday, April 12
- Japan Through Pictures
- Time: 5:30 – 7:00 PM
- Host: Austin Peay State University
- Location: Austin Peay State University Morgan University Center Room 308, 601 College St, Clarksville, TN 37044
- Over the last 5 years, students and faculty from Austin Peay State University have traveled to Japan and documented their travels in photographs. Please join us as we present these images and allow the audience to ask questions and discuss as we share these experiences.
Saturday, April 13
- Cherry Blossom Walk さくらウォーク
Additional Sakura Season Events
April 19 – 21
- Nashville Japanese Film Festival
- Host: Nashville Japanese Film Festival
- Location: Watkins College of Art, 2298 Rosa L Parks Blvd, Nashville, TN
- Visit the Nashville Japanese Film Festival website for film information and festival schedule
- Returning for its sixth year in 2019, the Nashville Japanese Film Festival celebrates Japanese culture through cinematic expression. Guests can enjoy free admission to as many of the 16 films on display as they’d like, thanks to the Festival’s Presenting Partners and Sponsors.
April 19 – 21
- Middle Tennessee Anime Convention
- Host: Middle Tennessee Anime Convention
- Location: Sheraton Music City and Embassy Suites Nashville
- Visit MTAC’s website for more information
- MTAC is Tennessee's largest fan-run convention, focusing on Anime, Manga & relevant Popular Arts.
