By Khalida Sarwari
If Hakone Gardens’ Lunar New Year celebration is any indication, the year of the snake will be a happy and successful one.
The fifth annual Chinese village fair, which took place March 3, was the best such event that the Hakone Foundation has held to date, said board president Connie Young Yu, who was given the task of opening the program this year.
“There was fair weather and a capacity, exuberant crowd enjoying the arts and crafts bazaar, the food booths and entertainment,” Yu said. “People were delighted with the authentic Chinese food served outdoors.”
Blossoming trees and bushes as well as the plentiful dim sum added to the Chinese village fair ambiance, Yu said.
To welcome visitors, Liz Chew led a troupe of a dozen youth in a lion dance performance at the entrance gate. Throughout the day, visitors participated in tai chi, calligraphy and Chinese painting demonstrations and watched 17-year old Jennifer Liu play the Chinese zither. A Chinese women’s drumming group also put on a rousing, crowd-pleasing performance, Yu said.
Vice Mayor Emily Lo, who is on the organizing committee, said the best part about the Lunar New Year festival is that it brings the community together.
“It was fascinating to see kids showing off their face painting with snakes and flowers, trying out lion dance and walking away with Chinese calligraphy pieces that they practiced,” she said.
The children’s activities were a new attraction this year, Yu said, adding that kids also learned about the lunar zodiac calendar through arts and crafts activities.
Students from Homestead High School’s Japan Society and the Chinese class at Saratoga High facilitated everything from food service to the decorations, Yu said.
One of the event’s special attractions was the more than 130-year-old Qing Dynasty children’s hats that Yu displayed from her personal collection. The hats are traditionally worn by children during the Lunar New Year.
Yu’s parents were among six families–four of them Chinese-American and two with European origins–who came together to save the 18-acre Hakone estate 50 years ago. Her restaurateur parents, John and Mary Young, helped restore Hakone and sold the estate and gardens to the city of Saratoga in the 1960s. Yu said she was thrilled about the opportunity to be a part of the occasion.
“Now [Hakone] belongs to the community and is part of the National Trust,” she said. “So appropriately, we have a wonderful tradition of celebrating different cultures at Hakone and welcoming the broader community to enjoy this jewel of the valley.”
