El Paisano

Issue date: 11/20/09 Section: Lifestyles

Media Credit: Marissa Gonzales Harajuku girl shows how bright amd wild the Harajuku fashion can be.

Orange County was able to get a taste of the deeply saturated culture of Japan when the Japanese Street Fair made its way to the Orange County Fairgrounds on Nov. 15.

The Japanese Street Fair is an event made to introduce contemporary Japanese culture to Southern California.

Though the street fair only filled up a tiny portion of the fairgrounds, the street fair managed to maintain several Japanese components.

There were booths filled with games like water-ball fishing and raffles to win a trip to Japan as well as booths with Japanese food and teas.
Visitors were even given free boxes of tofu while walking around.

The stage located at the end of the line of booths in the center was prepped to accommodate the arrival of several performances, including the dancers of GETA DANCE, a new style of Japanese dance, Japanese pop singer Stephanie Yanez, and the drumming skills of Jadaiko, a collegiate Taiko group.

Visitors were also able to play in a simulated sumo ring, dressing up in sumo wrestler suits and play-fighting each other.

Fashion was also introduced at the street fair, with the widely known style of the Harajuko fashion, displayed by young Japanese women with their wild and bright hair and clothing.

Japanese culture was able to spread its influence over Orange County, even in the smallest of forms.

Though not as flashy or as big as the Orange County Fair would be, the Japanese Street Fair was a small taste of what Japanese culture is and how influential it is.

The people at the street fair made it clear the Japan has a highly impacted affect on not just Southern Californian culture, but American culture as a whole.

Though it wasn't as extravagant as the website made it seem, it was a small change of pace for the normal American culture we are used to every day.

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