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    The Obon Festival opened with shakuhachi (Japanese flute) music played by Rick Kruse.
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    The Rev. Rinban Gerald Sakamoto, minister for the San Jose Buddhist Church Betsuin, returned this year to bless the opening of the third annual Humboldt Obon Festival on Sunday afternoon.
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    Humboldt Taiko drummers, led by Gary Ronne, followed next in the program. Taiko may mean “drum” or “the art of Japanese drumming” in Japanese. This 12,000-year-old drumming style with lively shouts and choreographed movements has been used in religious ceremonies, battle and throughout Japanese history.
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    Gary Ronne (left) and Emily Hsu teamed up for this performance of “the art of Japanese drumming” on the group’s largest wooden, barrel-shaped drum.
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    Gary Ronne displayed his powerful skills of Japanese percussion on Humboldt Taiko’s largest wooden, barrel-shaped drum.
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    Emily Hsu added her skillful rhythmic Japanese percussion on Humboldt Taiko’s largest wooden, barrel-shaped drum.
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    Next on the program and accompanied by recorded music, Thuy Sugiura performed “Harusame,” a traditional geisha song which means spring rain.
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    A large crowd of attendees were encouraged to get up and join in the traditional Bon Odori folk dancing led by Craig Kurumada (center right) and five others, with Gary Ronne adding percussion to the recorded music. Kuramada offered free dance lessons in the weeks prior to the event.
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    A large crowd of attendees joined in the traditional Bon odori folk dancing led by Craig Kurumada (center right) and five others, with Gary Ronne providing percussion to the recorded music.
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    Totoro was a little shy this year and only watched Bon Odori dancers circle around the dance floor without joining in.
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    Many participants in the Bon Odori folk dancing waved a traditional fan.
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    These women wearing traditional Japanese clothing watched the Bon Odori folkdancing from the sidelines.
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    Andrea (left) and Nagaly from the Centro del Pueblo information table wandered the crowd and encouraged attendees, including Totoro, to take photos with their colorful “Sembrando Experanza” frame. Sembrando Esperanza (“planting hope” in Spanish), funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development and implemented by Creative Associates International, focuses on building youth capacities and ownership of local challenges and solutions to crime, violence and migration in Honduras.
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    Attendees were encouraged to write messages to loved ones on slips of paper and hang the message on community trees located under one of the tents at the Obon Festival.
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    A favorite activity at the Obon Festival – fishing with a string and small hook for these colorful balloons.
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    Totoro pulled art vendor Thao Le Khac, of Arcata, away from her display for a photo opportunity.
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    The Obon Festival hours were from 4 to 8 p.m. so the several Asian and Pacific Islander food vendors were a popular stop for attendees.
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    Members of the Bright and Green Reusables team surrounded one of the Obon Festival organizers, Alex Ozaki, near a stack of the used returnable Bright and Green dishware and utensils at the event (from right, Carly Tambling, Alex Ozaki, Holly Hiatt and volunteer Joseph). The Zero Waste goal of event organizers and Bright and Green Reusables – help reduce and eliminate consumer waste by delivering and retrieving reusable dishes from public and private events. https://brightandgreenhumboldt.com/
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    Attendees frequently stopped behind the festival food trucks to look over Jame Hildebrand’s latest salmon creation under construction in his Arcata Playhouse production area. He and others will be bringing the salmon to the Klamath (“No Salmon”) Salmon Festival next Saturday to increase awareness of the plight of the salmon in northcoast rivers.