Setsubun Shiba Inu Festival (February 13-14, 2021)
2021/2/16
On February 13th and 14th, the "Setsubun Shiba Inu Festival" was held at Stanley Marketplace in the city of Aurora. This event was co-hosted by the Japan-America Society of Colorado (JASC), Japan-America Society of South Colorado (JASSC) and Consulate General of Japan in Denver. This is the second Shiba Inu Festival to be held, and in accordance with the Japanese cultural tradition of Setsubun, the theme was "Oni/Covid-19 OUT and Fuku/Dogs IN".
Despite extremely cold temperatures, over 200 people and approximately 100 dogs attended the event over the course of the weekend. Advance registration was required, and families were able to experience different aspects of Japanese culture such as a kimono photo sessions for the dogs against a Japanese-style backdrop, Setsubun bean-throwing (mamemaki), and sake tasting. Take-home bags with Ehomaki (special sushi roll) were provided, further promoting Japanese foods and food culture. The sake tasting included three types of sake from Denver’s sister city of Takayama in Gifu Prefecture and a plum wine from Kumamoto Prefecture, which introduced regional/local Japanese culture Kumamoto is the home KUMAMON who visited Colorado and Stanley Market two years ago, are used to introduce Japanese local culture.
Also, due to Stanley Marketplace’s active involvement, a play area for dogs was set up where owners could leave their dogs while they shopped inside the Marketplace. Lastly, at the end of the event dog treats were distributed to the families, courtesy of The Hartz Mountain Corporation.
Thanks to Colorado being a dog-friendly state and the rapidly increasing number of families that are welcoming new dogs into their households, we were able to successfully and safely hold this event that not only helped introduce the lesser-known cultural custom of Setsubun, but also further increased awareness about Japan and Japanese culture among the local community.
Despite extremely cold temperatures, over 200 people and approximately 100 dogs attended the event over the course of the weekend. Advance registration was required, and families were able to experience different aspects of Japanese culture such as a kimono photo sessions for the dogs against a Japanese-style backdrop, Setsubun bean-throwing (mamemaki), and sake tasting. Take-home bags with Ehomaki (special sushi roll) were provided, further promoting Japanese foods and food culture. The sake tasting included three types of sake from Denver’s sister city of Takayama in Gifu Prefecture and a plum wine from Kumamoto Prefecture, which introduced regional/local Japanese culture Kumamoto is the home KUMAMON who visited Colorado and Stanley Market two years ago, are used to introduce Japanese local culture.
Also, due to Stanley Marketplace’s active involvement, a play area for dogs was set up where owners could leave their dogs while they shopped inside the Marketplace. Lastly, at the end of the event dog treats were distributed to the families, courtesy of The Hartz Mountain Corporation.
Thanks to Colorado being a dog-friendly state and the rapidly increasing number of families that are welcoming new dogs into their households, we were able to successfully and safely hold this event that not only helped introduce the lesser-known cultural custom of Setsubun, but also further increased awareness about Japan and Japanese culture among the local community.
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