(Minghui.org) On April 14 and 15, 2012, Falun Gong practitioners in Japan participated in the 20^th annual Sakura (Cherry Blossom) Festival in Suigen Park of Toyoda City, Aichi Prefecture.

Practitioners teach the Falun Gong exercises

Practitioners demonstrate the exercises on stage

This marked the second weekend of the Sakura Festival. The flowers blossomed and the park was very beautiful. For two days, the practitioners demonstrated and taught the Falun Gong exercises on the lawn. They also demonstrated the exercises and performed a Chinese cultural lion dance on the stage.

Exercise Demonstration and Free Teaching

On the afternoon of 14^th, three female teachers from a nearby school came to the park and were drawn to the solemn exercise demonstration. They immediately wanted to learn the exercises and asked where they could participate in group practice in Toyoda. A practitioner gave them the phone number of the local Falun Dafa contact person. One of the teachers is learning Chinese. When they were leaving, she said “Thank you!” in Chinese to practitioners.

The Most Exciting Performance of the Sakura Festival

It was a sunny and pleasant day on the 15^th. More people came to Suigen Park that day, including a lot of families.

At 1:00 p.m., the practitioners performed a lion dance on stage and demonstrated the Falun Gong exercises. The lion dance attracted many visitors and the audience smiled happily. When the “lion” interacted with the crowd, the children laughed and followed it all around. The audience gave the practitioners warm applause.

Since 2005, the practitioners have participated in the Sakura Festival every year, but this is the first time they have performed the lion dance. According to Mrs. Kito, the wife of the council chairman of the organizing committee, some audience members said the lion dance was the most exciting performance of the festival.

When the event was completed, Mr. and Mrs. Kito thanked the practitioners and welcomed them to join the Sakura Festival next year.