Vallejo, California - Akashi Sister City Agreement Commemoration Event March 30, 2025

Our Tokotoko shachu held our annual Vallejo-Akashi sister city commemorative tea ceremony.

Vallejo, located east of San Francisco, is a city with deep ties to Japan. The hull of the Kanrin Maru, the ship used by Katsu Kaishu when he crossed the Pacific Ocean at the end of the Edo period, was restored at a shipyard in the city and returned safely to Japan. Vallejo is also known as a shipbuilding town.

In the past, over 200 Japanese and Japanese-Americans lived in Vallejo, but in recent years that number has decreased, and the tea ceremony utensils donated by Akashi City were apparently forgotten for a long time. Five or six years ago, they caught the eye of a certain person, which led us to begin helping out, and since then, we have had the opportunity to introduce the tea ceremony to the people of Vallejo every year at the end of March.

All the tools used in the tea ceremony, including the garden shelf, folding screen, felt carpet, folding umbrella, a short piece of paper written by the 15th head of the Urasenke school, Grand Master Hounsai, as well as the tea bowls and kettles, are carefully stored and are still in good condition today.

This year, we once again offered visitors matcha green tea along with sweets, providing them with a glimpse of Japanese culture.