Japanese Cultural Festival Offers Families a Return to Their Roots

Steve Otani, 60, of Oxnard wants his Japanese-American children to learn something about their culture other than Nintendo.

So Sunday, Otani dragged his wife and three young offspring to a Japanese cultural festival in Ventura in an attempt to return them to their roots.

“My kids, they play Nintendo, and they’ll drive a Toyota,” Otani said. “That’s their culture now.”

Otani also admits that his own knowledge about Japanese culture is fuzzy. He is third generation, his wife is fourth generation, and neither of them can speak the language or has been exposed to much Japanese culture, said Otani, who owns a fish market in Oxnard.

The trip to the festival at the Poinsettia Pavilion was as much of an education for the parents as it was for the children, he said.

About 200 people attended the event--titled “Celebrating Our Heritage”--sponsored by the Ventura County chapter of the Japanese-American Citizens League.

“This is to promote the Japanese culture among our members and Ventura County residents,” said Tsujio Kato, president of the local chapter, who estimated that about 5,000 Japanese and Japanese-Americans live in Ventura County.

“I’m third generation,” Kato said, “so my kids grew up with very little contact with the Japanese culture.”

Carol Kotake, 32, of Camarillo decided to expose her children to Japanese ways early. “We want to teach them the culture now,” said Kotake, a third-generation Japanese-American who bounced her 2-year-old daughter on her knee as they watched a Japanese dance.

The event featured performances of Japanese taiko drumming and dancing as well as martial arts demonstrations and a traditional tea ceremony. Other displays included origami , flower arrangements, brush painting and Japanese dolls.

“I find the music very intriguing. It’s totally new to me,” said Lee Weiss, a 66-year-old retired technical writer from Oxnard, who listened raptly as the Los Angeles-based Kinnara Taiko Group performed.

“ Taiko has roots in religious and folk music,” said George Abe, leader of the troupe. The group has developed its own taiko style, borrowing from Buddhist concepts, traditional Japanese elements and Western ideas, Abe said.

“I’m always impressed by the amount of discipline and religion that is in the dances and arts,” said Glenn Berry, 39, of Ventura, who has learned a lot about the culture from his Japanese wife.

Although most of the demonstrations reflected Japanese traditions, the sushi-making lesson included American elements to appeal to the Western palate.

“Traditional sushi includes eel, mushroom, dried gourd and raw fish,” said Marcia Miyasaka, a homemaker from Newbury Park who helped make 60 rolls of sushi for the event. “This is California sushi. It has crab, avocado, sesame seeds and cucumber. When we have a mixed group, we know everyone won’t want to eat raw fish.”

This is the second year the festival has been held, and organizers on Sunday were pleased at the turnout. “We were very worried that people would stay home because of the earthquake,” Kato said. “One dancer canceled because of the quake, but all the rest of the groups made it.”

“The festival is a kind of community service,” said Carolyn Morinishi, an organizer. “A lot of people have a negative view of Japan now.”