Matsuri

 Matsuri (祭) is the Japanese word for a festival or holiday.

Matsuri is often based around one event, with food stalls, entertainment, and carnival games to keep people entertained.There are no specific matsuri days for all of Japan; dates vary from area to area, and even within a specific area. In the case of Japan House in UIUC, matsuri took place on May 6th. 

For those of you not familiar with Japan House at UIUC it is is a university teaching facility and the building is not normally open to the public because it is a classroom for students taking university courses in Japanese arts and aesthetics.

My goal for this excursion was to enjoy the blooms of the 50 cherry blossom trees adorning the Japanese garden on the premises. But unfortunately, even with the perfect timing for the festivities, mother nature decided to be in control. 

No blooms!

Consequently, I spent most of my time people watching and clicking.