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Summary The two-week National Cherry Blossom Festival opens in Washington on Saturday.
This cherry blossom event begins with donation and solemn DC tribute to Japan. The flowering trees that symbolize friendship between the United States and Japan are blooming for the 99th time in Washington in the wake of one of the worlds worst natural disasters.Before the opening of the festival, organizers held a fundraising walk and vigil on Thursday among the trees for victims of Japans March 11 earthquake and tsunami. Several hundred people gathered at the Washington Monument to donate money, with some holding Japanese flags or signs of support. The donation will be used by American Red Cross for relief efforts in Japan.Japanese Ambassador Ichiro Fujisaki attended the donation ceremony and gave a speech, expressing his appreciation of the support from the American people. The festival director Diana Mayhew said, Tonight, two days before the festival starts, we are just gathering people, inviting people for moment of reflection here at the Washington Monument and then walk the Tidal Basin in the spirit of hoping rebuilding for Japan.This event has also attracted people from all walks of lives, including John R. Malott, president and CEO of Japan America Society of Washington. I think at this time the Japanese people need encouragement from us, they need to know that all of the friends overseas, whether in China or the United States, are thinking about them. And we all want to do anything we can to help them recover and rebuild their nation, he said.The tradition of National Cherry Blossom Festival can be traced back to 1912, when the then mayor of Tokyo gave 3,000 cherry trees to Washington as present. Since then, the festival was held at the end of March every year.
