Despite the frigid cold air and cloudy weather of April spring, thousands of residents and tourists flocked to the Mall this weekend to be uplifted by the colorful costumes and dances at the Cherry Blossom Festival Parade.
The festival had an AU angle as many students participated in the event from senior Melissa Chin being crowned as queen to campus organizations helping out with the setup and actively performing in the parade.
Chin was crowned Cherry Blossom Festival Queen by the National Conference on State Societies on Thursday, after she was randomly chosen from a number of princess representatives.
She was eligible as queen after representing Massachusetts as their 2004 Cherry Blossom Princess.
"I was shocked," said Chin, who felt honored that she was chosen. "I didn't know what to expect. It happened so fast."
The crown decorated with gold and pearls was an exclusive creation by Mikimota - the Japanese equivalent of Tiffany's, Chin said.
"The crown weighed at least five pounds or more," Chin said. "You could only have it on your head for a couple of minutes, it was so heavy."
A smaller crown and pearl necklace was then given to Chin to wear, also exclusive to the queen.
She also had the opportunity to ride on the float with Japanese counterpart Eriko Sawamura.
"As soon as we got off the float, we couldn't walk more than 10 steps before we were bombarded by photographers and people asking for autographs," Chin said.
In two weeks, as part of the National Cherry Blossom Festival Goodwill Ambassador Program, Chin will be leaving for Japan where she will visit the prime minister as well as other dignitaries.
Also participating in the event was the AU greek organization Delta Tau Delta, which had a large balloon Elmo floating in the air in the parade. About 25 members woke up early that morning to help out with the balloons as part of philanthropy events, according to DTD spokesman Phil Javellana.
"I was very happy with the turnout we got," Javellana said. "Everyone involved had a great time helping out the community. The Cherry Blossom Festival is great for the city and our chapter is lucky to be invited yea after year to participate."
DTD was specifically invited to participate and has been involved with the festival for over five years, Javellana said.
Also present were organizations like Barkada, the Philippine Society on campus, who was invited by the Philippine Embassy to participate in the parade, Javellana said. Members from Barkada and the embassy dressed up in costumes and performed dances.
The Cherry Blossom Festival runs from March 27 until April 11 and marks the 92nd anniversary of Tokyo Mayor Yukio Ozaki's gift of 3,000 cherry trees as a token of friendship to D.C. in 1912. The festival annually celebrates the relationship between the United States and Japan.
